Listed among these persons are the President of the Republic, the Prime Minister, the Speaker in Parliament, the government, leaders of legally recognized parties and judicial authorities. How ‘government’ got on this list is curious, as one usually thinks of it not as a person or two, but as a great many people, and if one includes civil servants in which this regime is so plentiful (and why not?) then the amendment covers just about everyone who isn’t a neo-Nazi, Turk-loving, reactionary, anarchistic, Trotskyite deviate.
And a fine amendment it is. All citizens should be treated with greater respect. There’s been far too much verbal abuse bandied around here lately. We’ve had enough of this behind-the-back chatter about the prime minister’s private life, these vulgar attacks on the president mouthed by clowns parading as wits on the Athens stage, the slanderous epithets heaped on the head of the leader of New Democracy by the director of OTE.
Admittedly, one of the reasons for all this verbal abuse is that Greek is so rich in it. As in most things, Greece has a longer tradition than most cultures. Scholars studying the language of Thersites in Homer suspect foul-mouthing was already an art in Mycenaean times. Hence today the highly-developed vituperativeness of cab drivers, construction workers, customs officials, civil servants, kindergarten pupils, politicians and even old grandmothers when sufficiently provoked.
Sweet-talk and polite manners, like charity, must begin at home. And that’s exactly where it did begin when the Ecumenical Patriarch Demetrios I was amongst us for a few days last month. His aura must have had something to do with it, for suddenly Greeks became paragons of politeness and protocol. The propriety of leaders, so often observed in the breech, was above reproach. The milk of human charity fairly oozed from their lips.
For instance, after a chat with the Patriarch, the prime minister stressed how very moved he was by his visit, dedicated to peace and love. It was nothing short of a miracle, after all these years of Greek-Turkish hostility, that love-of-neighor-across-the-Aegean suddenly became a new dogma of socialist faith. Mr Papoulias, the fore-ign minister, announced that his meeting with the Patriarch “filled him with emotion and joy.” Even the minister of education and religious affairs, Mr Tritsis – a figure in the very eye of a vituperative storm regarding student unrest and the confiscation of church property – stated “Modern Hellenism is wedded to Orthodoxy. Only the enemies of state and those ignorant of history will seek a rupture with the church.” An aim of his ministry he added was “to make Greece an interntional center for Orthodox studies.” It seems now that PASOK is on the verge of another about-face. It is not usual in these columns to make predictions but if, instead of appropriating 500 square mile of monastic land, PASOK – and its new, born-again religious ardor -gives as much state property to the church, no one should be surprised. Our periscope zeroes in on the whole cabinet’s following the icon “Axion Esti” back to Mount Athos and going into permanent Byzantine retreat.
Luckily there is no amendment being discussed in parliament preventing praise from being given to ‘leaders of authority’, for it is this country’s good fortune to have a president who is so sensitive to good manners. An episode revealing this is worth mentioning for the edification of everybody. At 2 p.m. Tuesday, November 17, the presidential limousine arrived before the GB where the Patriarch was giving a banquet in honor of the president. Mr Sartzetakis emerged from his Mercedes, looked about and directly got back in again. His attendants froze.
“I will not go in until I am personally received by the Patriarch,” he said. “I am the supreme leader.”
His people scuttled into the hotel. Five, ten minutes passed before his Beautitude appeared at the steps. The president stepped grimly from his car again. “Why did you not receive me? I am the most honored guest.”
“Yes, of course, you’re right,” stammered the Ecumenical Patriarch, endeavoring to smooth over the incident.
“I ask you, why did you not greet me? I want an explanation!”
“Please, Mr President, let us not discuss this here. We will talk inside.”
The matter, of course, was quickly cleared up for the president was soon replying to the Patriarch’s toast, commending his visit as ‘a sacred mission of peace, love and unity”.
The episode was minor but revealing. The Patriarch clearly had a great many things on his mind at the moment and, generally, is more accustomed to rendering unto God than to Caesar.
Nevertheless, manners are manners, and frankly they have become very lax. One sees it in the streets and on the pavements; hostesses no longer introduce their guests; people shove at buffet tables; waiters impertinently join in political quarrels with their betters while serving the smoked salmon. Even parliament is not free of ill manners, and one wonders if the new amendment will protect leaders of authority’ from other ‘ leaders of authority’.
So, the Patriarch and the president, each in his way, have inspired us to turn over a new leaf. It is high time good manners were restored to a country which seeks the return of the Elgin marbles, the Olympic Games and what EOT defines as’ the better sort of tourist’.
