The prophecies of Paisios began to come true
The Cyprus problem will be solved, but not through negotiations
Turkey will fall apart
"The polin' the polin the polin the god the polin the polin'"
The greatest heroes in Cyprus, the successors of Matsis and Afxentios, are the Turkish Cypriot teachers
"Big complaint" from Greece
The shortcomings of the Church
He expressed confidence that the Cyprus problem will be solved, "but not through the process of talks". Morphou Neophytos said that the two leaders, President Anastasiades and Dervis Eroglu, will not have time to conclude the talks for a solution to the Cyprus problem precisely because of the "coming" world war, which "has already started in Syria". Anastasiades, Morphou Neophytos added, "more formidable for the solution, though, last year when I saw him and we spoke privately, that things were easy. Anastasiades thinks that gas allows us to negotiate on equal terms."
"Turkey will fall apart," said Morphou Neophytos, adding that the prophecies of the elder Paisios were beginning to come true. Turkey's only weakness, according to Metropolitan Morphou, is its leaders and their ambition to become caliphs. "God karamutta the poulin," he said.
Morphou Neophytos argued that the greatest heroes in Cyprus, the successors of Matsis and Afxentios, he said, are the Turkish Cypriot teachers and priests operating in the occupied territories.
Furthermore, he referred to the "big complaint" he has from Greece, which, as the Metropolitan said, "if it were a motherland", should have recalled its Ambassador from Turkey, as a reaction to the Turkish provocations in the Cypriot EEZ.
He also referred to the Islamic State and the role of Turkey, which has bred it.
"It is midnight", the Bishop of Morphos replies to all those who believe that orthodoxy, the church, and faith are in crisis.
On another level, the Bishop of Morphos turned his fire against those whose concern is the one-offs and welfare. They have taught people not to react, said Neophytos of Morphou, who asked if citizens at the international level will rise in reaction to economic misery.
Below is the full text of the interview - Watch also a video excerpt
Are you optimistic about a solution to the national problem, given the crisis that has erupted in Cyprus as a result of the latest Turkish provocations in the Cypriot EEZ? Will the march to Morphou be the last one this year?
I am sure that the Cyprus problem will be solved, but not through the negotiation process. The Cyprus problem, like the Kurdish and Armenian problems, will be solved through a process of geopolitical reordering, which is already underway. I am in favor of a solution to the Cyprus problem because, without a solution to the Cyprus problem, Cyprus is doomed to complete Turkification. I have understood this through a double study of events, on the one hand geopolitically and on the other hand theologically, something that politicians cannot do, the theological approach to events. The Cyprus problem will be solved within the framework of a geostrategic reordering. The main phenomenon will be a huge war, which has already started in Syria and has now entered Iraq. Something similar is happening at the same time in Ukraine. These small local wars will join together in a global war, where they will move in two phases. One phase, the "playing field" will be the Middle East," what we are now experiencing with the so-called Islamic State. Russia will be involved at some point. The big losers will be Georgia and Turkey. Turkey will fall apart. When I said this years ago, I was told that it was an exaggeration. Now the State Department and the foreign media are recording them as facts. So the solution to the Cyprus problem will not come through the marches, or the talks of any President.
Various people often invoke the prophecies of the elder Paisios and claim that the destruction of Turkey is coming. How can a father of the church speak of the destruction of a people, even of "unbelievers"?
He doesn't wish it. He prophesies it. A prophet is a man with open senses. He hears and sees things before they come to pass. The prophetic gift exists in the church, just as the healing gift exists. Why is it that when we are to be healed of a disease, we accept it, but we do not accept prophecy? This saint told me when I was 20 years old that I would become a bishop in the place where I was born. He also told me that I would build monasteries and even Paisios sketched the architectural plan on the ground. Two courtyards he said, not one. One for the people and one for the monks. And I asked him, "But will I do things like that?" "Yes," he answered, "not now, but later." He's not the only one that Paisios prophesied. I tell you about one of your neighbors, you are a Morphite. In Zodiac in 1973, one of our cantors, Dimitris Protopapas, said "Oh children and you will become refugees, Turks will live in our village".
He was watching the developments and decoding the events perhaps...
Listen. "Are we going to be refugees forever, Father?" his daughters asked him. No, he replied, "Many will die in the refugee camp, but when you hear that a new country called Kurdistan has been founded then you will return home without war." At that time no one knew that there were Kurds. So, the gift of prophecy is given to all people, as long as they purify their senses. Prophecies of Russian saints converge with the prophecies of Paisios and the ordinary man of the Zodiac. If you read a book, Hadjiflouretzos by Milia Famagusta, who died in 1967, describes the whole disaster of 1974 and events that are now beginning to take place.
Isn't it possible that this is a symptom?
Now this is a matter of your faith. But is there an epidemic of coincidences? Is it a coincidence that he told me that I would become a bishop in my place of birth, as I was?
There is a large section of people who disparage religion, even God himself. Some even describe God as an "imaginary friend". It seems that this disparagement grows in proportion to the rise in the level of education. Are you concerned about this development, if you agree?
I disagree with your statement. Right now Mount Athos is in full bloom. It is visited by all the world leaders. Not only the Orthodox, Putin, and others. In our time, Mount Athos determines the spiritual things of Russia, France, Cyprus, and America. Fathers left Mount Athos and went and built monasteries in America. You have midnight. In the last 40 years, more than 20 monasteries have been built and renovated in Cyprus. All this was done with the people's money. Russia managed to defeat atheist communism and now Russia's orthodoxy shines in all corners and the Chinese are waiting for when the Russians will come down to teach them Christianity. Do you understand? What you are describing is happening in a portion of Western Europe and America, which because of its previous entry into Roman Catholicism and Protestantism lost the spirituality of the Western religious world. What you described applies only to Roman Catholics and more so to Protestants. Islam is experiencing renewal. Orthodoxy is also experiencing renewal. What you say applies to Protestants, who have lost their religious status and are not aiming for holiness. Now, our people, to the extent that they imitate Western culture, of course, doubt and question their tradition enters in. But those who know the Orthodox tradition and life immediately return to the life of their fathers. Go and see churches. They are full of young families, whereas before they were full of old people. The church is experiencing renewal. In Europe, there is a new order and we are in Europe and bills are coming in that want to make us European. Is your face European? It's Syrian, son. Is this one's (the photographer's) face European? Is mine European? We are people of the East. Don't be fooled by the new world order, which wants to make men women and women men and we are losing the identity of our body and soul.
Your view on homosexuality?
It is a passion that the church can harness and in some cases, if there is a great struggle, transform it.
How do you know?
I've seen it. I confess to a lot of people.
I had a conversation with a friend of mine who, when I told him we were going to have the interview, asked me to give you his opinion. So he told me that if you follow the word of God in real society, you will be torn apart. Fix society and then I will be a good Christian. How do you comment?
In the church, we make ourselves, not society. Our purpose is holiness, son, and holiness is a personal matter that affects society. Just as the cell is first affected by cancer and then the whole body becomes cancerous in the same way. The cell is my face and your face. So we try to transform ourselves with the help of the triune god and then the transformation extends to our family and society. This is how the Orthodox person works. Your friend is influenced by the Western concept. We who are Christians, have we been broken? Thank God. In Syria, Christians would rather die than lose their faith. So we are not afraid of death either. From here one understands what it means to be a Christian. Not to fear society and the media that they will create a bad image. If a man is afraid, it means he is afraid to witness his Christian faith. We model ourselves on the saints. We are not afraid of death, since we believe in eternal life, Thanassis. But you are Athanasius. What does Athanasius mean? He who has no death. Death has been defeated by Christ. What we say we believe.
So you disagree that the church was in crisis in 2014.
What crisis? Renewal passes.
Is there an upsurge in false prophets? We hear a lot about the second coming and signs of the times...
My child, there will be a Monday presence. But there's an upsurge in false prophets and I think the internet is to blame. However, the church can discern what is false and what is true. Paisios is a saint in our consciences, not only for his prophecies, which have already begun to take place but for his miracles and his teaching. When he was alive and the ship was going to Mount Athos, most of the people on board went to Paisios. A whole generation was brought up with Paisios, Porphyry, and James. We saw their holiness. If I had not seen their holiness, I would not have dedicated my life to Christ. So, we can distinguish false prophets from true prophets.
Have you studied the Koran?
Quite a lot, yes.
Do you think it promotes hatred?
Yes. It says "Where you see unbelievers (non-Muslims), if you destroy them you will have a greater share in the joy of heaven."
Do you consider that we are in danger from the Islamic State?
Sure. Tomorrow a group of Turks living in the occupied territories can turn the occupied territories into a jihadist camp since we all know that ISIS Islamists are supplied by Turkey. Do you know who are the greatest resistance fighters of all of us in Cyprus today? The Turkish Cypriot teachers. The biggest heroes right now in Cyprus are the Turkish Cypriot teachers and the priest-Zacharias of Apostle Andreas. These are the heroes, the successors of Matsis and Afxentios. Not all the rest of us who march. These are anniversary things. It's about risking your life. That's what it means to be a hero so that others can live free. For me, the modern heroes are the imprisoned, except for the priest who keeps the mass alive in the occupied territories and of course the T/C teachers. Of course, there is a danger that as long as we have occupied territories, the occupied territories, dear Athanasius, can become an incubator of all fanaticism, whether religious or nationalistic. Do you know where we belong geographically? Do you know where Cyprus' place is? Above is Turkey, to our right is Syria, Lebanon, and Egypt, and below is Egypt. It's a wolf's mouth and Cyprus is in it. This whole basin of the eastern Mediterranean is called the Levant. So we are in their plans. Let's not be under any illusions. We are in their plans. And not only us but also Greece, through immigrants, who can organize revolutions.
Is there not a supreme religious leader or group of religious leaders in Islam, to "excommunicate" them, making them somehow heretics, thus depriving them of power and influence over would-be young followers with a tendency towards extremism?
This cannot be done because Islam is multiracial and all Islamic countries are organized around races. Muhammad knew very well that he would give them a code of life for all these Arab tribes to live by, which expanded Mosaicism to other countries. Right now we have two kinds of Muslimism. And what you see happening now has a religious background that Western analysts and your "peripatetic" journalist colleagues have not been able to analyze. It's the Shiites and the Sunnis. In Shi'ism, you can say that there is a leadership of the Persian tribe. But if you talk to the Shiite of Syria, he will not tell you that he recognizes Khomeini of Persia as the "patriarch". Every tribe has its religious leader. This fragmentation of Muslimism into tribes does not allow for what he expects, a supreme authority. Islam once attempted this thing, that is, one patriarch, and not only at the religious level but also at the political level. Islam is not a religion. It is a political realization of a religious organization. It was the caliphate.
What the Islamic State is also trying to create...
To add to what you say. It's what Erdogan wants to do. His deepest desire was to fill that void, not only religiously but also politically. He wants to fill this void, which has existed within Islam since the 18th century. You see, he could not bypass Egypt. Anyone who wants to become a caliph, that is, the leader of Islam worldwide, must have previously consulted with Istanbul, Damascus, Baghdad, and especially Cairo. He (Erdogan) went and strengthened the Muslim Brotherhood, thinking that he would be able to run Egypt. The deeper reason why he made this move was to promote him to caliph through the Muslim Brotherhood. Then he saw that Assad, the other big capital, Damascus, was blocking him. And he tried to bring Assad down. All the geopolitics, if you mix it with the religious, you can draw a lot of conclusions. If you study them in isolation, you'll get out of touch.
Do you think human relationships are in crisis?
Yes, and what is happening is a tragedy. In Cyprus, this can be seen in the many divorces and the alienation of children in the world of digital technology. Also, the alienation of the younger generation from the land creates people in short supply in concrete cities. In Cyprus, because of the refugees, formed settlements around the big cities. As a result, they created four monstrosities. This depopulation of the countryside is where I live. This creates a deficit in human relations. When he has no relationship with animals, or with the land, then you think you can create a relationship with people? Man is made by God to be social, to be constantly in a relationship. Even God is one, but he is triune. A being like a man, which is made to be in a relationship, you put him in a cage, called an apartment or an office, in front of a screen, which gives him the illusion of communication, but that thing is not communion. I'm not one of those people who embellish things in the church, and the church is deficient in that area. The church, if it wants to make a revolution in the great problem of modern man, which is called the problem of relationships, with our body, with our soul, with our neighbor, with nature, must help people to return to the earth, otherwise, no matter how many sermons we preach, they will be insipid.
And what are you doing about it?
We here do organic farming. So the church has to provide solutions. The monasteries and the dioceses are doing cultures to give jobs to people and to teach culture to younger people. We need to lead this effort and we have not yet done so to the extent we need to and this is one of our shortcomings.
Perhaps the Archdiocese, which has the potential, should help more...
Exactly. But even there, there have to be people there who will appropriate this vision, because it will be for our good, for less cancer, for a better relationship between our bodies and the earth that gave us birth, and we will go in. It's a healthy attitude. The younger generation wants this stuff. Schools in the area have done vegetable gardens. I'm not one of those who embellish things in the church. There are deficiencies in that area as well.
Do you think that a social explosion is coming because of the economic crisis?
They taught people not to react. It's also the fault of the media. The reaction that people need to make is on three levels. One is purely spiritual. Not to accept the vision of the new world order that is being fostered by five secret agents of money. The other is to refuse to accept the drugs that are proposed to us and to refuse to accept the food that is proposed to us.
And how will we be healed?
So we have to have a counter-proposal at the pharmaceutical level. And there is a counter-proposal, holistic medicine, but they are fighting it. But people will not have time to react because I think the Great War is near and we will not be able to react. We wish for peace, but we say what we see developing.
As a Christian and as a Bishop, do you love Islamists, Buddhists, and Hindus?
We love them, but love is a word. However, the Orthodox are the least bigoted and usually pay the bride of bigotry of Catholics, Protestants, and others. Orthodoxy has the fullness of truth, sobriety, and peace.
People want proof of the existence of God...
Paisios is proof, and so are Porphyry and James. When persons are proof, what else do we need? For the angels to appear in heaven? There will be such a sign. After the war, there will be such a great sign. Some will think it is the Second Coming, but it will not be. And they will all believe, but then faith will have no value. Faith has value now.
Do you think that the time has come for the Greek and Turkish people to unite as one people against the political elites, claiming their freedom?
They will not have time either. In principle, there is no such prospect, because the real heroes are, as we said, the TC teachers, while ours are fighting for their one-off pension and salaries. My assessment, I hope I am wrong, I hope I am wrong I say it twice, is that we are close to the big war. In 2012, at the Morphites' march, I said the same thing to both former President Christofias and current President Anastasiades. In 2012, when there was neither ISIS nor the Ukrainian crisis, I told them that such powerful events were coming in our region that it was not important to talk about whether we would hold talks with Eroglu or not, what we will talk about, and what we will not talk about. I told them that we should finally get out of our cybercentrism, look at our neighbors, where they are going, what they want, what their plans are, and study geopolitics through the lens of religion. They told us a message and I listened to it and I told them: my president, hold talks, because you have to hold talks because we are people of dialogue and peace, but hurry slowly. Run slowly. They understood. They are both educated people. They liked it. Anastasiades, more formidable for the solution, though, last year when I saw him and we spoke privately, that things were easy. Anastasiades thinks that natural gas allows us to negotiate on equal terms and I told him that natural gas allows the Turks to have increased expectations of us and that as a counterbalance they will bring water from Turkey. And I said to him, what are you going to do when while you are holding talks, all of a sudden the Turks come out in the Aegean and claim the Six Miles? Are you going to hold talks? And as we speak, the Turks are not in the Aegean, but they are off Larnaca and Limassol, claiming our maritime space. And we broke off the talks and Greece, I have a big complaint about this, should, if it was a motherland, at least have gotten its ambassador from Ankara and brought him back. Turkey's only weakness is its leaders and their ambition to become a caliphate. Poullin the mutant, God caramut it. God also has his plans, it is not only Turkey that has plans.
