The Orthodox Academy of Crete, 8 June 2001

Conclusions of the Fifth Dialogue between the Ecumenical Patriarchate, Autocephalous Orthodox Churches and the Political Bureau of the Group of the European People’s Party (Christian Democrats) and European Democrats

7–8 June 2001 at The Orthodox Academy of Crete

At the invitation of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and in conjunction with the Liaison Office of the Orthodox Church to the European Union, representatives* (see attached list of participants) of European Orthodoxy met with the Political Bureau of the Group of the European People's Party (Christian Democrats) and European Democrats, 07-08 June 2001, at the Orthodox Academy of Crete, Greece, in order to draw, on the one hand, the necessary framework for European development based on Fundamental and Human Rights, and, on the other, to discuss the rôle of the Church and of the State, in their common endeavour to serve civil society in the Europe entering the Third Millennium.

Both parties recognised the challenge in uniting the peoples of Europe on the basis of Fundamental Values and Human Rights, which had their origin in the Universal Natural Law and in the light of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They recognised, too, the need for the Church and the State to cooperate in promoting civil society. They saw the urgent need for people to recognise that equality of rights and of duties lay at the heart of dignity and responsibility of the human person.


With regard to the Charter of Fundamental Rights and the Enlargement of the European Union

The participants in the Fifth Dialogue *(see attached list of participants)

1. declare their conviction that every human being is a person who is a unique irreplaceable being, totally irreducible, free by nature and open to transcendence, and that each human being within society depends on others, with shared rights and duties. They thus have a responsibility to ensure the rights of one another according to the Will of God;

2. reaffirm that the principle of subsidiarity includes rights and responsibilities for each person and that this, in their view, remains the guiding principle for European construction and political life in civil society;

3. confirm their strong commitment to reconciliation, justice, cooperation and solidarity as the bases for peace and stability throughout the European continent;

4. welcomed the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union as a very important document, which they fully accepted, which must reflect more the spiritual and moral bases of all the peoples of Europe;

5. expressed deep concern about the lack of reference to the rôle of Churches in Society in the Charter of Fundamental Rights;

6. welcomed the proposal by the Churches in Europe for the Charta Oecumenica as a document for the debate about integrating the Charter into the constitution of the European Union, and therefore committed themselves to integrating Section III, "Our Shared Responsibility in Europe," of the Charta Oecumenica, in the follow-up to the Nice Treaty;

7. welcomed in the Charta Oecumenica the condemnation of nationalism which leads to the oppression of other peoples and minorities;

8. recognised the importance of the role of the Churches in promoting reconciliation among people, while being aware of the difficulties posed for Churches in conditions of revenge and retribution;

9. with especial reference to the former Yugoslavia, called upon the Churches and other religious communities to promote the Peace and Reconciliation Project, involving Catholics, Orthodox, Protestant Churches, Muslims and Jews, through the reciprocal rebuilding of churches and mosques and synagogues, and facilitating the return of refugees to their original homes, and the education of young people;

10. faced with profound changes in society and substantial technological developments which impact on human life, exemplified by bioethical issues such as human cloning, committed themselves to cooperation in refining and promoting common shared values;

11. expressed deep concern about the lack of reference to the role of Churches in Society in the Charter of Fundamental Rights;

12. insisted that the future of Europe and its constituent societies would depend on how integration could be linked with Christian values, and emphasised the importance of strengthening the moral dimension in a reform of state and of society;

13. expressed deep concern about the serious violation of the rights of women and of the rights of children, even sometimes under the guise of religious ideology in certain societies;


With regard to the Church and the State

The participants in the Fifth Dialogue (see attached list of participants)

1. acknowledged the special relationship throughout the centuries between Church and Society, which was and remains independent of the formal relationships between the Church and the State;

2. confirmed the need for the Church to fulfil its role in national society and at European level with the shared aim of constructing civil society;

3. committed themselves to cooperation for the benefit of society;

4. reemphasized that the churches have a primordial role in conjunction with parents in the education of children, by inculcating in them an understanding of the importance of Christian values in their personal lives and in their life in society;

5. underlined that the Churches are an integral and essential part of European society;

6. invited the EPP sister parties to address and resolve before accession pending issues of Church-State relations;

7. expressed its will that the importance of Christian values and the rôle of the Church as well as the spiritual heritage of Europe should be reflected in EU legislation;

8. stated the important role of the Church and the State as partners in implementing such values;

9. insisted that the status of churches and religious communities should be legally enhanced in redefining the Amsterdam Treaty and in the post-marxian constitution of each applicant state;


with regard to the results of the Fifth Dialogue meeting at the Orthodox Academy of Crete

decided to continue this dialogue by tasking the joint standing working group, comprising representatives of the various churches in the European Union and the EPP-ED Group, to prepare the Sixth Dialogue meeting, to agree the issues to be addressed and to edit the proceedings of the Fifth Dialogue.
decided that the Sixth Dialogue between the Church and the EPP-ED Group will take place in 2002 on the joint invitation of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the Presidency of the EPP-ED Group.


Participants of the 5th Dialogue

07-08 June 2001

Orthodox Academy of Crete
GR-730 06 Kolympari-Chania - Crete
tel: 00-30-824-22245/22500; fax:00-30-824-22060


a) Members of the European Parliament

Mr Guido BODRATO MEP
Mr Jean-Louis BOURLANGES MEP
Mr Markus FERBER MEP
Mr Francesco FIORI MEP
Mr GARCIA-MARGALLO Y MARFIL MEP
Mrs Cristina GARCIA-ORCOYEN TORMO MEP
Mr Konstantinos HATZIDAKIS MEP
Mrs Hedwig KEPPELHOFF-WIECHERT MEP
Mrs Eija-Riitta Anneli KORHOLA MEP
Ms Astrid LULLING MEP
Mr Ioannis MARINOS MEP
Mrs Maria MARTENS MEP
Mrs Emilia MÜLLER MEP
Mr Juan Andres NARANJO ESCOBAR MEP
Mr ArI OOSTLANDER MEP
Mrs Doris PACK MEP
Mr Hans-Gert POETTERING MEP
Mrs Godelieve QUISTHOUDT-ROWOHL MEP
Ms Encarnación REDONDO JIMÉNEZ MEP
Mr Reinhard RACK MEP
Mr Christian ROVSING MEP
Mr Lennart SACREDEUS MEP
Mrs Ursula SCHLEICHER MEP
Mr Ikka SUOMINEN MEP
Mr Antonios TRAKATELLIS MEP
Mr Wim van VELZEN MEP
Mr Karl von WOGAU MEP
Mr Christos ZACHARAKIS MEP

b) Participants from Western Europe

Mrs Marietta GIANNAKOU-KOUTSIKOU (New Democracy - Greece)
Mr VAN LAARHOVEN (CDA Netherlands)
Mrs Agnès DETOBEL (Belgium)
Dr. Ursula RÖPER (Germany)

c) Participants from Central and Eastern Europe

Mr Georghe CEAUSESCU (Romania)
Mr Alexandru HERLEA (Romania)
Mr Pal CSAKI MP (Slovakia)
Mr Ivan PANAJOTOV MP (BANU-PU - Bulgaria)
Mrs Manuela GEORGIEVA (BANU-PU - Bulgaria)
Mr Mate GRANIC MP (Chairman of Croatian Democratic Party)
Mrs Kadri JÄÄTMA MP (Pro Patria Union - Estonia)
Mr Vladan BATIC MP (Chairman of Alliance of Change - Yugoslavia)

d) Observers

Mr Michael WENINGER (Germany)
Mr Laurantiu Nastase - Minister of Culture - Government Romania

e) Ecclesiastical Participants

Archbishop Anastasios of Tirana and All Albania
HE Metropolitan Stephanos of Tallin
Metropolitan Jeremias of France
Metropolitan Michael of Austria
Bishop Emmanuel of Reghion
The Very Reverend Great Protopresbyter Georges Tsetsis - Orthodox Centre - Geneva
Very Reverend Archimandrite Athenagoras Peckstadt
Very Reverned Eugenios Antonopoulos
Professor Dr. Gregorios Larentzakis - University of Graz
Professor Vlassios Pheidas - University of Athens
Bishop Eirineos of Kydonia
Dr. Georgios Giourgas
Mr Elefterios Chryssochoos
Mr Nicolas Manginas - Ecumenical Patriarchate
Metropolitan Archbishop Leon - Metropolitan Archbishop of Helsinki
Rev. Fr. Anton Ilyin Patriarchate of Moscow
V. Rev. Panteleimon Lugovyi - Kiev Patriarchate
Dr Franho Komaritza , Bishop of Bana Luka
Rev. Fr. Nenat Michailovits - Patriarchate of Serbia
Metropolitan Kyrill, Bishop of Varna (Bulgaria)
Professor Ivan Dimitrov
Bishop Casian, Bishop of Galati and the Lower Danube (Romania)
Rev. Fr. Professor Constantin Coman - Patriarchate of Romania
Bishop Athanasios of Archaïa (Greece)
Rev. Fr. Ignatios Soteriadis
Dr. Constantin Zorbas
Mr Andrzej Kuzma - Orthodox of Church of Poland
Professor Vaclav Jezek, Orthodox Church of the Czech Republic
Dr. Jan Zozulak, Orthodox Church of Slovakia
Mr Jorgo Papapdhopuli, Orthodox Church of Albania
Kardinal Achille Silvestrini, representative of the Holy See
Kirchenrat Dr. Herbert Ehnes, World Alliance of Reformed Churches
Mgr Noel Treanor - Secretary General COMECE

e) Robert Schuman Foundation and EPP secretariat

BILLER Stephen
COLLING Karl
CORTIVO Marie Luisa
COSTANZO Antonio
DOLL Walter
HECKE Marianne
KONTOROUPI Xeni
LANGES Horst
MEIJER Pamela
PERDIKIS Stavros
SLOOTWEG Eduardus
ZEHLER Corinna
ZOGRAFOS Yannis