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MP Panicos Leonidou, head of the Cypriot delegation to the Inter-Parliamentary Assembly of Orthodoxy (IPA) and Member of the International Secretariat of the Assembly, travelled to Belgium as a member of the IPA delegation, consisting of the General Secretary, Greek MP Mr. In the framework of the visit, the IOA delegation held a working meeting with representatives of Christian churches and organisations, as well as MEPs and other actors involved in shaping the dialogue on the Future of Europe.
In the framework of the visit, the IOA delegation held a working meeting with representatives of Christian churches and organisations, as well as MEPs and other actors involved in shaping the dialogue on the Future of Europe.
In the framework of the visit, the IOA delegation held a working meeting with representatives of Christian churches and organisations, as well as MEPs and other actors involved in shaping the dialogue on the Future of Europe. The main topics of discussion were the inclusion of references to Christian values in European Union (EU) texts and the sending of a Declaration to the EU institutions and the Political Groups of the European Parliament. The meeting was hosted by the Committee of Catholic Bishops' Conferences of the EU at the headquarters of the organisation in Brussels. Leonidou, referring to today's European values, which were forged on the three main pillars of ancient Greek literature, Roman law and Christian tradition, pointed out that the dialogue on the Future of Europe lacks references to the third, Christian pillar of European civilization, thus ignoring the numerous communities of believers and followers from all Christian denominations. The values referred to in Article 2 of the TEU are based on Christian values and the recognition of their contribution falls within the provisions of Article 17 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU, Leonidou added. In view of the European elections, Mr Leonidou stressed that the importance of Christian values should be recognised and included in the election manifestos of the MEP candidates.
On Wednesday, 14 February 2023, Mr Leonidou was a speaker at the presentation of the dedicated volume entitled "Saint Sophia: The Temples of the Wisdom of God around the World" co-organized by the IOA, the Holy Metropolis of Belgium and the Network of Greeks of Brussels "Argo" at the Orthodox Centre Ambiorix.
In his speech, Mr. Leonidou stressed that Hagia Sophia has the peculiarity of being both a global symbol of cultural heritage and an emblematic monument of religious tradition for millions of believers in Christianity and Orthodoxy. He further noted that the campaign under the auspices of the IUCN, with the publication of this volume and its translation into fourteen languages to date, is aimed both at condemning the Turkish leadership's decision to turn a UNESCO World Heritage Site into a mosque, and to raise awareness among the authorities and civil society in various countries around the world of the damage caused to the monument due to the massive and uncontrolled influx of visitors, posing further risks to the monument's viability.
(Text as sent by the House of Representatives)
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