The birth of the Godman was celebrated by the world, and in Cyprus the day was dedicated to family moments, with wishes for the newborn Christ to help overcome the consequences of the financial crisis. Thousands of believers flooded the churches throughout free Cyprus at dawn to watch the Nativity Mass.
In the Cathedral of Agios Ioannis, in Nicosia, the Divine Liturgy was officiated by Archbishop Chrysostomos, who in his Christmas message stressed that the great message of Christmas is Justice, and that the current tragic reality that Cyprus is experiencing invites everyone to unity and solidarity.
Stating that the great message of Christmas, as proclaimed by God through the prophet, is "Let the inhabitants of the earth learn righteousness", he adds that the current tragic reality that our country is experiencing underlines the "present need" that calls everyone us in unity and solidarity, strengthening the oligarchs and supporting the poor.
Chrysostom II of Cyprus also states that the galloping unemployment, the inability of many to meet the demands of life, the unworthiness, decay and corruption that are revealed daily throughout public life, are humiliating for our national dignity and unjustifiable. To a large extent, the demands of the Troika, which, in the face of some usurious borrowing, puts the present and the future of our country under its control, lead many to discouragement and others to despair.
At the same time, he notes that "every sane person demands the establishment of the rule of law, the elimination of inequalities, the functioning of institutions in a transparent manner, the punishment of those who do injustice and the reward of those who benefit the country."
Regarding the Cyprus issue, Archbishop Chrysostom II reiterates that Turkey is cynically promoting its permanent and unchangeable goal of occupying and Turkifying the whole of Cyprus.
He observes that "a part of our people, as it should not be, we fell in the middle of the road and joined the occupying power, reaching acts of utter betrayal, selling out the occupied possessions to the occupier, thus giving him coverage of legitimacy, to achieve his Turkification of our place ".
He recalls the examples of heroism and self-denial in Zalongo, Kougi, Macheira and Dikomo, emphasizes that faith in God and love for the homeland have been the driving forces of our people and addressing everyone as a father calls for spiritual and national vigilance.
As a basis for the desired solution, the Chrysostom II of Cyprus mentions the principles of one man one vote, of free movement, installation and acquisition of property, which apply to all peoples.
He adds that if colonization is condemned by all as a war crime, he wonders why we should not ask for the removal of all the settlers, so that the solution that is found has the guarantees of survival?
Finally, the Chrysostom of Cyprus states that the experience of forty years of occupation and continuous retreats taught us that retreats do not please the conqueror, warning that "other retreats will lead us to complete and permanent destruction."
Source: ANT1