Subject:  Archbishop Christodoulos Blesses the Hellenic Genocide Petition Effort   Date: Thu, 22 Mar 2001 19:38:16 +0200   To: Hellenic Genocide Petition Committee (www.greece.org/genocide)         Hellenic Electronic Center (www.greece.org)

Beloved Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Fellow Hellenes Worldwide,
Dear Friends,

I am writing in response to the thousands of e-mail messages addressed to our national political leaders, copies of which I received.

These messages are nearly unanimous in urging that our political leaders not violate Law 2675/98 by deleting the term "genocide" when explaining the destruction of Hellenism in Asia Minor.

Not only does this denial reflect disregard for the law, but also a retreat in the face of pressures by a regime founded on the genocides of the Christian peoples of Asia Minor, and which continues to have a heinous human rights record.

In a few days we will be celebrating the Annunciation of the Theotokos, the message of the upcoming birth of the God-man. At the same time we will be honoring the memory of those who fought for the rebirth of our ethnos. This struggle began outside of our enslaved land, by the Hellenes of the periphery and the Diaspora.

Today you, the Hellenes of the Diaspora, our brothers and sisters in far-flung lands, supported by many Philhellenes, utilizing the most advanced communication technology, are reminding all of us not to deny the suffering and the martyrdom endured by the Greeks of Asia Minor. 
Hundreds of thousands were exterminated, over a million were expelled from this ancient land, part of our heritage for millennia, rather than betray their Christian Orthodox faith and Hellenic identity.

Nor should we forget the other peoples of Asia Minor, the Armenians, the Assyrians and many others whose presence in their ancestral lands was violently terminated by the criminal acts of genocide. Thankfully, the civilized nations of the world are going on record, one by one, in recognition of these tragic events.

By circulating this Petition against the denial of genocide, you, Hellenes of the Diaspora, are taking the lead to awaken our conscience. Thank you resisting efforts to distort our history and to deny our identity.

God Bless you All.

+ Christodoulos
Archbishop of Athens and All Greece