Updated: 130+ women and Community organisations respond to Archbishop Makarios’ statement on abortion

In wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade, a decision that revokes Americans’ constitutional right to abortion erasing 50 years of precedent, Archbishop Makarios of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia issued an anti-abortion statement.

This is the second time the Archbishop has waded into secular territory on this issue, the first being when he addressed a crowd at a ‘Stand For Life’ protest at Martin Place, Sydney in 2019.

“All of you who are reading this message, at this present moment, should thank God that whilst your mother was pregnant, she did not only consider her own rights. She thought of her obligation and maternal responsibility which allowed for her to keep the child in her womb, giving this child the chance to be born. Your mother fulfilled her duty. When a woman kills the embryo, she is not fulfilling her duty as a mother. She may claim this to be her own right but at the same time she revokes the right of life for the embryo. May God pity us… May God enlighten us…,” the statement read.

The post, published on the Archbishop’s personal account and shared by the page of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia caused a lot of backlash in the wider community with many Greek Australian women reacting to the intervention.

• The Greek Community of Melbourne, issued a statement on their website supporting the right of women to access abortion on Monday:

“In light of recent events in the US and the wider debate taking place both here in Australia and around the world on women’s reproductive rights, The Greek Community of Melbourne, would like to affirm that we are a Pro-Choice organisation. This is an issue of gender equity and the respect for women’s right to make decisions regarding their reproductive life. We understand that these decisions can be fraught with difficulty and pain and support women’s right to safe, legal abortion.”

• The Greek Orthodox Community of New South Wales also made its stance public on Thursday, standing in solidarity with women:

“The US Supreme Court decision to ban abortion sparked protests around the world… Thousands of people have descended on major cities to demand access to safe abortions,” it said, stressing that “There are many unwanted pregnancies that women are forced to suffer because of war, rape, incest or changing living conditions and should be able to control what happens to their bodies and have the autonomy to decide whether to have an abortion or not. Women deserve support and not censure or opprobrium for making decisions that are in the best interests of their health and life circumstances. The Greek Orthodox Community of New South Wales condemns this decision which restricts women’s human rights and choice and takes us back to medieval times.”

• Speaking to Neos Kosmos, former Health Minister Jenny Mikakos who, in 2008 was a member of the Victorian Parliament during the Brumby administration, shared the reasons that led her to a pro-choice conscience vote.

“When I consulted members of my local community prior to voting to decriminalise abortion in Victoria, I found that overwhelmingly elderly Greek-Australian women were pro-choice, some even confiding difficult decisions they had made. Abortions should be safe, legal and rare.
“I spoke to church figures, members of the Greek Community, of course I spoke to members of all nationalities and religions in my electorate,” she told Neos Kosmos. “I am Christian and I accept my Church’s teachings about the sanctity of human life but as an elected representative it was my duty to represent what I saw was for the greater good of my broader community.”

Highlighting the importance of sexual health education from an early age Ms Mikakos argued that there will be circumstances women will be faced with unwanted and unsafe pregnancies.

“There are many reasons for which women would seek an abortion and my point is that those reasons are never easy. Rape, incest, ectopic pregnancies, congenital abnormalities and a long list of life-threatening complications are only a few. Often families are put in a really difficult position; we have a wanted pregnancy that hasn’t gone to plan and the foetus is likely to die either during the course of the pregnancy or very soon afterwards. There are heart-breaking decisions.

“These reasons need to be reflected by the law and we should not assume that women make these decisions lightly,” Ms Mikakos added, noting that Australia should not want to return to the 1960s, where pregnant women in distress resorted or were subjected to unsafe termination practices without access to post-operative care, a ‘solution’ that often resulted to their death.

“I believe that the decision in the US has clearly sparked interest around the world in these issues. It’s important for women everywhere and in Australia to stay vigilant about these issues. We should not push to wind back the laws that we have now. These rights need to be protected and women need to be able to choose,” she concluded.

• On that note, female founded and led non-profit network Food For Thought Network (FFTN) also published an announcement sharing the group’s stance on the comment:

“The recent statement by the Greek Orthodox Church in regards to abortion and the inference that a woman is not a good mother if she terminated a pregnancy is deplorable, anachronistic and lacks empathy! Does the Church think that women would abort at the drop of a hat? There are many unwanted and uncalled pregnancies that are forced onto women through wars, rape, incest and or change in one’s circumstances that compel a woman to terminate a pregnancy! There are a million reasons for a woman to have an abortion and she needs proper care and support by all! No judgement. Resorting to backyard operations is detrimental to a woman’s health! The statement is not in line with current thinking, human rights and equality laws which have been in place to protect women who are abused, and discriminated against! Controlling what is happening to our bodies is a human rights issue! Her body – Her choice!”

Furthermore, FFTN encouraged leaders of the clergy to abandon comments like the ones posted, as they don’t consider the emotional toll of women, nor the circumstances. “Empathy towards these women is needed,” it ended.

• In response to the statement more than 130 women signed a petition urging church leaders to consider women’s rights and the harsh or life-endangering situations women may find themselves into, where abortion could be deemed necessary for the physical and psychological safety of the woman.

“We want to express disdain and disappointment at the public proclamations of Archbishop Makarios on the issue of abortion. The decision of the US Supreme Court and protests around the world have brought this issue to the forefront of public debate. The issue of abortion is one of women’s equality and human rights. Women should be able to control what happens to their bodies and have the autonomy to decide whether to have a child or not. All women should have access to legal abortion so that the safety of women is the primary concern. The Archbishop’s inference that women are mere carriers of a foetus and their needs and wants are secondary to that is not in keeping with the advances in women’s human rights in contemporary society. No woman from our community should feel alone, ashamed or marginal because of her personal decision in regard to having an abortion. Women deserve support and not censure or opprobrium for making decisions that are in the best interests of their health and life circumstances. We encourage the leaders of the church to abandon attitudes to women that belong in the dark ages and have no place in the contemporary Greek-Australian community or anywhere else in the world,” the joint statement reads.

Signatures:

Magdalena Simonis (President Australian Federation of Medical Women), Melbourne |

Eirene Alexiou, Sydney |

Alexandra Aroney, Sydney |

Anastasia Aroney, Sydney |

Annette Aroney-Grogan, Sydney |

Christina Aroney-Grogan, Sydney |

Eleni Aroney-Grogan, Sydney |

Diana Artis, Melbourne |

Christina Bacchiella, Sydney |

Ariana Badunas, Melbourne |

Connie Barkatsas, Melbourne |

Fotini Nola Biantes, Melbourne |

Evie Boukouvalas, Melbourne|

Efrosini Chaniotis, Melbourne |

Meni Christofakis, Melbourne |

Agnes Constanti, Sydney |

Zoe Constantinidou, Melbourne |

Sophie Cosmas, Melbourne |

Efrosini Costa, Sydney |

Athanasia Costa, Sydney |

Alexandra Dellios, Canberra |

Koraly Dimitriadis, Melbourne |

Helene Doukas, Sydney |

Evi Drakoulidou, Sydney |

Eleni Eleftherias Kostakidis, Sydney |

Alex Elhert, Melbourne |

Gaelle Emvalomenos, Sydney |

Mia Evans Rorris, Sydney |

Sasha Evans Rorris, Sydney |

Kiriaki Fotiadou, Melbourne |

Stella Gavrielatos, Sydney |

Krys Georgiadis, Melbourne |

Afrodity Giannakis, Melbourne |

Anthea Giannakopoulos, Melbourne |

Lena Giannakopoulos, Melbourne |

Eleni Gianopoulos , Melbourne |

Lorraine Gitsas, Sydney |

Marina Gkavardina, Sydney |

Anita Grassos, Sydney |

Ros Harvey, Sydney |

Matty Houndoulesis, Sydney |

Alyson Kakakios, Sydney |

Maria Kampyli, Melbourne |

Georgia Katsifaras Kolokithas, Melbourne |

Marietta Kokkas, Melbourne |

Alexia Koletsis, Melbourne |

Angela Konstantinopoulou, Sydney |

Effie Konstantopoulos, Melbourne |

Tanya Kryvonosova, Melbourne |

Joanne Kyrkilis, Melbourne |

Zoe Kyrkilis, Melbourne |

Ariana Kyrkilis-Kalathas, Melbourne |

Dimitra Lagoudaki, Melbourne |

Christina Lavdaras, Sydney |

Emily Lebetzis, Melbourne |

Maria Leontios, Sydney |

Vicki Lesis, Sydney |

Anastasia Likouresis, Melbourne |

Stacey Livis, Melbourne |

Filippa Makrigiorgos, Melbourne |

Petr Malapanis, Melbourne |

Effie Maltezos, Melbourne |

Eleni Maltezou, Melbourne |

Alex Missiris, Sydney |

Elfa Moraitakis, Sydney |

Phaedra Nico, Sydney |

Olyvia Nikou QC, Melbourne |

Eleni Paneras, Sydney |

Kristine Papadopoulos, Melbourne |

Lisa Papaioannou, Melbourne |

Iris Papathanasiou, Melbourne |

Agapi Pashos, Melbourne |

Eugenia Pavlopoulou, Melbourne |

Anita Philopoulos, Melbourne |

Christine Piakis, Melbourne |

Eleni Pitsilioni-Alexiou, Sydney |

Helen Portelos, Adelaide |

Katerina Priftaki, Melbourne |

Anna Rerakis, Melbourne |

Mary Rerakis, Melbourne |

Amy Rontziokos, Sydney |

Vivienne Rontziokos, Sydney |

Lucy Rorris, Sydney |

Violet Roumeliotis, Sydney |

Yianna Roumeliotis, Sydney |

Angela Sdrinis, Melbourne |

Athina Sergianis, Melbourne |

Effie Sfrantzis, Melbourne |

Despina Sikes, Sydney |

Nelly Skoufatoglou, Melbourne |

Nicky Skouris, Melbourne |

Stephanie Sonter, Sydney |

Christina Stamenitis, Melbourne |

Eleni Stamenitis, Melbourne |

Argyroula Stamogiannou, Melbourne |

Chrisoula Stamopoulos, Melbourne |

Katerina Stevens, Melbourne |

Marina Strigas, Melbourne |

Anastasia Tharapos, Melbourne |

Soula Tharapos, Melbourne |

Efrosini Theodosiou, Melbourne |

Natalia Thliveris, Sydney |

Sue Persa Thliveris, Sydney |

Zoe Thomaidou, Melbourne |

Annetta Tourta, Sydney |

Penelope Tourta Alegounarias, Sydney |

Jana Tsigaras, Melbourne |

Angela Tsoukatos, Sydney |

Arielle Tsoukatos, Sydney |

Paris Tsoukatos, Sydney |

Dr Demetre Tsounis , Adelaide |

Stella Valenzuela, Sydney |

Olga Vasilipoulos, Melbourne |

Vasso Zangalis, Melbourne |

Cavel Zangalis, Melbourne |

Stacey Zarifopoulos, Melbourne |

Dimitra Tseros, Melbourne |

Sofia Papasifakis, Melbourne |

Theano Iliades, Melbourne |

Alexandra Irini, Melbourne |

Athena Aligizakis, Melbourne |

Anastasia Hantzis, Melbourne |

Eleni Nanos, Sydney |

Maria Leontios, Sydney |

Helen Zahos, Queensland |

Vicki Paras, Melbourne |

Professor Carol Reid, NSW |

Jenny Malapetsas, Sydney |

Daphne Karanasios, Sydney |

Stella Boyages, Sydney |

Ouranita Karadimas, Sydney |

Betty Maniotas, Melbourne |

Niki Hantzis, Melbourne |

Popi Zografakis, Sydney |

Kathryn Couttoupes, Sydney |

Jenny Mothoneos | Sydney

Maria Dimopoulos, Melbourne |

Hariklia Stournaras, Canberra |

If you wish to co-sign this statement please contact: response.archbishop@gmail.com