Pave the Way Foundation (PTWF) a non-sectarian organization founded to remove obstacles between religions in order to foster cooperation and to end the misuse of religion, has issued an urgent call for the Israeli government to quickly finalize the affirmation of the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem. Theophilos III. The Greek Patriarch was duly elected by his synod in August 2005, over two years ago. In Jerusalem, the Patriarchs must be affirmed by the Israelis, the Palestinians, and the Jordanians. The Israeli government has been delaying this affirmation for over two years.
As a result of this, the Patriarch has been forced to function in a limited capacity since he has not been able to perform simple banking, mail and some religious functions and has also not been able to move into the official residence of the Patriarch. Gary Krupp, President of Pave the Way stated, "We became involved with this situation early on, because we viewed it as a simple matter of religious freedom. The Israeli government rightfully prides itself on allowing full religious freedom in Israel. We feel that this situation holds potential danger in future events where this delay could be cited to challenge the Israeli government’s claim of religious freedom.
"His Beatitude Theophilos III has shown enormous personal patience over these past two years while steadfastly asserting his commitment as Patriarch of Jerusalem," said Gary Krupp.
Last week, the Israeli inter-ministerial committee ruled that the government should affirm Theophilos III as the Greek Patriarch of Jerusalem. PTWF urges quick completion of this process in order to allow the normal day-to-day business of the Patriarchate to begin. PTWF also wishes to see the positive healing process begin between the parties to unite against those who will use religion to forward their own agenda.
We are gratified that the ministerial committee has come to approve His Beatitude Theophilos III . We now call upon the government to quickly finish this process.
About Pave the Way Foundation
Pave the Way Foundation is dedicated to bridging the gap between religions through cultural, technological, and intellectual gestures. The Foundation has a simple yet monumental vision: To enable all the world’s religions to mutually realize that extremism, politics and personal agendas must not be allowed to poison the true benevolent message common to all faiths. Bigotry and hatred must be abolished by the faithful embracing their similarities and savoring their differences. More information on the Foundation can be found at www.ptwf.org.
