Peter's Viewpoint

The Greek Orthodox religion along with other religions provides a spiritual assurance but is also thought to provide a lifestyle of respect and values.

While living in a country where more than 90% of the people are Greek Orthodox in faith, I tend to wonder what values the church purports when the same church does not pay taxes, receives money as a government employee, accepts donations, can perform other paying jobs, and can rent commercial property located on church properties such as city squares with a church.

I have not seen if any research about social behavior and the correlation of the church but if the information here about the Greek Orthodox Church in Greece is used as a basis, then merge this with corrupt government then one could infer why the Greek people who are not to blame have had to adopt tax evasion as a means to survive.

I came across an article written by Maria Antoniadou in the Greek newspaper, TO BHMA Sunday 21st March 2010, which details the current “war” between the church and state in Greece.  Most people do not realize that the churches in European countries are declared as state churches and therefore receive funding from the governments of the countries but what they do not know is the extent of funding that churches do actually receive.

Here is a synopsis from the article.

What the government provides:
In 1852 King Othonas legislated that an allowance would be provided to the priests of the church.

Today the funds provided by the government are:
A Priest Salary: 1,600 to 2,500 Euros per month based on experience and level of education.
For a small cathedral, salaries include a driver and for 2 to 4 employees of a church. 
For a larger cathedral, salaries cover 5 to 10 employees of which each receive 800 to 1,200 euros per month and of which are increased based upon marital status, children, and level of education.
Monies from European program funding from 400,000 to 800,000 euros based on the program.
Funding from 15,000 to 20,000 euros per year for teaching catechism in their local area school.  The hiring of teachers and the provision of salaries of 1,500 up to 2,000 euros per month for 10 to 12 teachers for the same schools.
For social support to help people, they receive 1,000 to 1,000,000 euros from the foreign ministry analogous upon the amount of help.
Funding from the state lottery in the amount of 5,000 to 10,000 euros per year.

What the Church provides:
Since 1853, almost all priests collect money from their congregations that come under their jurisdiction of performing the religious services of the mass.

As such in 2010 the Church offered to each hierarch:
The payment of the church utility bills of 1,000 to 5,000 euros per month.
Each cathedral includes a private home for their priest.
Transportation costs of around 1,000 per month.
Food costs.
If the priest is part of the 12 member holy summit, he receives a lump sum of 500 euros every month as compensation.
Monies from the income of the church:  7% for the office in the church and 3% every month for the edifice of the church from the sale of candles, and donations.
Money from the special occasions of worship of their areas as minister.

Note: There is no mention of fees or amounts that the church charges for marriages, baptisms, funerals, blessings, special occasions, feasts and other miscellaneous amounts that the priests receive.

As anyone can see, even though the church receives funding from the government, the un-audited amounts of money that they receive are not given to the government.

At a time of Greece's economic crisis, why does the Greek government not appropriate the church funds since the government pays them as government employees or terminate their funding?

With the inception of taxing the church, why should the church receive any special privileges or not being audited?

I’d say that they have found their tax heaven, oops, sorry I mean tax haven.

We as consumers are regulated in the amount of credit that we can borrow but countries weren’t and are still not bound to the same loan regulations.

In my last blog, I should have asked the question:
Who regulates how much money a country can borrow?
The answer is no one.  Each country can use and abuse it’s economy as it wishes because in the end, the people of the country will be the guarantor to repay the debt.  We are the spokes in the wheel that continuously rolls, moving the economies of the countries that we live and work on a daily basis.

My next question is:
Who are those that are behind the IMF?
The inferences by the actions of the EU community decisions that Greece and other European countries waiting in line for a hand out are going to get it through the IMF.  So it sounds logical that the same people that began the financial world crisis are the IMF waiting for easy customers to make consulting and loan interest fees.

The I.M.F. or International Monetary Fund are the bankers of the world.  They provide financial assistance to countries and act like cash buffers to cover the “over drafts” that countries may as one of their help services that work like a small business loan to cover pre-holiday business costs.  For countries that maybe considered a risk, they also help even if a country is on the threshold of bankruptcy.

What most people do not know is that one must be a member of this “club” to be able to receive these benefits and as with all worthy club memberships that fee is equal to a gold membership account.

The problem with the IMF is that it acts posthumous rather than prognosticated even though the IMF degrades the credit rating of any country that using its services.  With all the financial information that the IMF accumulates does this mean that they are performing their work to benefit those who provide trillions as money making global loan sharks?

These days, Greece became the first country in Europe to test whether or not Europe is united.  They have asked Europe to show a display of financial unification that the EU was originally established upon.  The outcome is once again more talk by Europe to discuss the idea of creating a European version of the IMF.  This alone constitutes the lack of faith that Europe has and why the interest rates have skyrocketed but also creates ambiguity that the IMF is just another group of golden boys.

The fact that Germany and France continue to vie for the leadership of Europe, and the fact that they consider Southern Europe as PIIGS, with the hint by Germany that Greece should be “expelled” from the EU, indicate that Europe is united only for border crossings and a single currency but nothing more.  In fact, this display of disunity regarding the unwillingness by Northern Europe to have a central financial assistance policy simply says that Union of Europe is a failure.

The horrific conclusion to all this is that, if countries that have been gulled into these investment scams decide not to repay the debts then the ultimate nightmare will be the loss that could bring the financial collapse of the USA.

Here is a video clip discussion with Max Keiser on Inside Story - Greek Debt Crisis.

Here is a link to a financial analysis and discussion by Daryl Bradford Smith regarding CDS or Credit Default Swaps and their involvement in the international crisis.

Interesting how a simple search on the Internet can bring an analysis of one of today’s most vivid problems that began sometime back in the 80’s.

Like a weapon with delayed timing, the financial markets of countries around the world are now seeing their economies collapse and are realizing that banks and bankers are to blame.

Once upon a time, banks were simple institutions that were created to safeguard and protect our hard earned money but as time went on investment firms grew from banks and they both collaborated to become the greedy insatiable monster that is causing economies of the world to fail.

Napoleon Bonaparte of France in 1815 once said, “When a government is dependent upon bankers for money, they and not the leaders of the government control the situation, since the hand that gives is above the hand that takes... Money has no motherland; financiers are without patriotism and without decency; their sole object is gain.”

If you have not been following the world financial situation then you are going to be shocked at how much you will be paying soon for the combination of greed and corruption that started as unscrupulous investments being used by countries and companies world wide.

Like rolling a snowball down a hill and watching it gather speed and size, we now see the snowball uncontrollably uprooting of businesses and governments causing havoc.

The biggest failing is the moral responsibility that does not exist.  This is evident even after banks have received bail out money and continue their offering loans to participants that are unable to repay those loans.  These practices including that of bonus schemes to promote the same services that created the financial mess.

Countries and businesses involved in these schemes have borrowed beyond their means to repay and those involved are blatantly helped legally by the law after declaring their companies bankrupt.  As they have gone above the law, there is only one solution to at least punish those responsible, the segregation of individuals in any of the countries involved for the immediate confiscation of their bank accounts anywhere in the world.  This of course may require actions by countries upon those countries that provide hidden accounts under outdated and irrelevant bank secrecy laws but this can be used as the basis to eliminate these accounts and banks.

The punishment of these individuals should also be extended to prior years and to prior and current country heads of state until proven otherwise.

Who will pay for these so-called money management mistakes, the people of the world, you and I unless decisions are taken for immediate action.

If you are not part of the solution, then you are part of the problem, there is no middle ground on these issues.

What was it that P. T. Barnum said, oh yea “There's a sucker born every minute!”.

What would Greece be like without the help from Greeks abroad?

The quick Greek response would probably be what foreigners would be like without the foundations that Greece has given them!

While the Greeks abroad work hard and develop their worthiness and status in the foreign countries where they reside, the Greeks in Greece now cry about having to undergo wage reductions to pay for the sins of their fathers.  It is unbelievable to hear the stories that display the lack of respect and humility that Greeks today seem to forget.

The fact that many of them have relatives who left the Greek homeland years ago to better themselves and their families, and sadly find that they have reached an age when they can visit the “old country” only to find that the old country still does not live up to the obligations without taking the charities of the Greeks abroad.

While many are still placing their bets that Greece will follow Iceland in bankruptcy, the government workers take their opportunity to strike on a daily basis, the younger generation complain about the prices of the cafeterias and threaten on a television to stay home, and the private sector unfairly takes a chance at trying to have the wage freeze applied to their employees.

Meanwhile Greece calls upon the councils of the Greeks abroad to ask for help as seen here.

ALEXANDRIA (ANA-MPA - N. Katsikas) The World Council of Hellenes Abroad (SAE) on Sunday issued to call to all Greek expatriates, asking them to donate to its campaign 'Support Fund for Greece' that seeks to raise money to lower the country's high public debt.

Greece created it’s problem and yet shows no shame in asking patriots outside of the country to help solve it.

Isn’t it time that Greece eats some humble pie? The country already has gone bankrupt three (3) times, yes that’s right.  Refer to the newspaper TO BHMA within the last month if you don’t believe it.

By helping Greece, you will be providing psychologically and financial support that shows that what Greece has done over these years is correct.

If you are wondering why someone who lives in Greece is writing this, it is because I believe in the spirit of Greece as developed by the ancient Greeks.