ACTING Church head, Bishop Chrysostomos of Paphos, yesterday declined to comment on a transcript of a conversation in which he appeared to be talking about the sexual exploits of a bishop and a number of monks.
The transcript, published by Politis, had the outspoken cleric casually naming this or that priest as a “pervert” and giving the impression that this was common knowledge among ecclesiastics both in Cyprus and in Greece. The other participant in the conversation was said to be Archbishop Chrysostomos himself.
One of the names that came up was that of Limassol bishop Athanassios, who was reportedly friends with other monks of similar sexual inclination at a monastery in Greece. One cleric in particular, described as the “Old Man”, was said to be in the company of a group of young boys, probably apprentices.
In one instance, it was said that Archbishop Chrysostomos had conceded to his Paphos namesake that he was none too happy with appointing Athanassios, but also hinted that he would find ways to remove him if things got out of hand in the future.
Smut notwithstanding, the above discussions were in fact about Church politics, with the Archbishop and Chrysostomos deploring the lack of capable or charismatic leaders.
In another part of the transcripts, Chrysostomos complained that Bishop Nikiforos of Kykkos was on a power trip, saying he regretted his initial decision to back him for the bishopric.
The Archbishop said he belatedly realised how Nikoforos had delusions of grandeur and would cause dissent in the ranks. He was sorry he did not heed the advice of a friend, who had advised him that “bad DNA” ran through Nikiforos’ family.
Nikiforos’ presence in the Holy Synod was also said to be causing problems, with Chrysostomos of Paphos even insinuating that Nikiforos was to blame for the fact the Church did not take a clear-cut stance on the referendum last April.
The vendetta between Chrysostomos and Nikiforos is well-known. The former is billed to succeed the ailing primate, but reports say that Nikiforos has a strong support base, both among the public and clerics. Sources said that, though bitter rivals in the past, the bishops of Paphos and Limassol had forged an alliance to stop Nikiforos from winning the throne.
In the transcript, Chrysostomos made some serious allegations, such as that certain top clerics were trying to bury police investigations into embezzlement of Church property because a number of their friends and associates were involved.
About a dozen separate cases have been documented, but although the probe wrapped up almost a year ago none have gone to court. The investigations began at the behest of Chrysostomos as part of a drive to clean up the Church’s finances.
A 400-page report prepared by an investigative committee reportedly mentioned the names of politicians and other prominent public figures for all the wrong reasons, fuelling speculation that a cover-up was in the works.
Some have also guessed that the very reason the elections for the throne are being delayed is because certain quarters do not want Chrysostomos or a like-minded priest to take the inquiry to its logical conclusion.
Chrysostomos told the Cyprus Mail yesterday he would seek a meeting with the Attorney-general to expedite bringing the cases to court. The meeting would take place immediately upon his return from Athens, where Chrysostomos is attending a Major Synod of the Greek Orthodox Church.
The Synod will be addressing the crisis that has erupted over the alleged sale of Church land to the state of Israel by Jerusalem Patriarch Irineos.
Yesterday Chrysostomos neither denied nor confirmed to the Cyprus Mail the authenticity of the transcript.
