On the occasion of the death of 6 of our fellow men and the injury of many others, the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew made the following statement:

“In this shocking moment for the inhabitants of Halkidiki and northern Greece in general, the Mother Church of Constantinople is spiritually and prayerfully attached to the families of the victims and the sufferers. She asks the Creator and the Provider of everything to heal their wounds and to keep the region and all Greece from any further danger and threat. Extreme weather phenomena come to remind us not only of the power of nature, but also of its reaction as a result of the wicked human interference in it. For decades, the Ecumenical Patriarchate has been struggling to protect the natural environment, which is our common home, and we must not destroy it, because the consequences affect not only the place where its natural ecosystem is destroyed, but the whole planet. We call upon every person of good will to move in the direction of the preservation of creation, and we pray for the repose of the souls of all the victims and the restoration of the health of those injured by this new natural disaster, and we support in all possible ways our fellow human beings who have suffered incalculable material damage.”