Orthodox Christian Communities and Islam
In Cyprus there is a kind of dichotomy with regard to church and religion: the South is “dominated” by the Cypriot Orthodox Church, which hardly differs from other Eastern Churches in terms of doctrine of the faith. Islam is predominant in the north of the island.
The most important figure in the Cypriot Orthodox Church was Archbishop Makarios III. This made Cyprus, next to the Vatican, the only state that was ruled by a prince of the church. He managed to consolidate the Church in Cyprus between 1950 and 1977. In addition, Makarios III led Cyprus to independence and was elected President of the newly formed Republic of Cyprus as head of the Church in the same year, 1959.
During his tenure he was not only politically but also ecumenically engaged. On his initiative, diplomatic relations with the Holy See were established in 1973. A milestone was the referendum he initiated in 1950 on the connection of Cyprus to the island state of Greece. In addition, he stood up for his fellow believers in the north of the island by issuing a memorandum on constitutional reform, which should modest the extensive rights of the Turkish ethnic group. However, this reform ended in a civil war. He only escaped four assassinations, so that at the end of the 60s he initially turned away from the idea of unification, but in the following years tried again and again for the Turkish side to give in.
The Cypriot Church is considered to be one of the seven councils: a legally independent, independent and autonomous church, but in full ecclesiastical fellowship, with a jointly defined theology and liturgy, i.e. all Christian rituals that serve the worship of God (prayer, reading, song, Movement, robes etc.). At the top is an organ or body, the so-called Holy Synod. The Cypriot Orthodox Church now has around 600 believers.
The church is divided into an archbishopric, five metropolises (a network of dioceses within a province) and 11 monasteries. Its headquarters are in Nicosia.
When the Arab occupation made it impossible for Christians to freely practice their beliefs in the middle of the 7th century, the city of Neo Justiniana was founded and became a refuge for the Orthodox churches. In the 10th century Cyprus was recaptured by the Eastern Roman Emperor Nikephoros, who officially revived the church. This rule lasted for several centuries. The church was placed under Latin administration until it was abolished with the Ottoman rule in 1571 and the Orthodox Christians were banned from practicing their faith for 300 years. It was not until 1878 that the free exercise of their faith was made possible in all of Cyprus.
This changed with the occupation of the northern part of the island by the Turks in 1974, who in the course of their invasion destroyed numerous churches and monasteries in northern Cyprus and suppressed the orthodox faith of the locals. To this day, church life in this part of the country is not easy for the population.
The Cypriot Church is the majority church on the island and traditionally maintains close relationships with the Orthodox Church in Greece, so that it is strongly influenced by the Greek language and culture.
