Church of Greece

Church of Greece
Seal of the Church of Greece
Founder	Paul the Apostle
Independence	1833
Recognition	recognised by the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople in 1850
Primate	Ieronymos II of Athens
Headquarters	Petraki Monastery, Athens
Territory	Greece
Language	Greek
Members	17,000,000
Bishops	101
Priests	8,515
Monastics	3,541
Monasteries	541
Website	www.ecclesia.gr

The Church of Greece (Greek: Ἐκκλησία τῆς Ἑλλάδος, Ekklisía tis Elládos, [ekliˈsia tis eˈlaðos]), part of the wider Greek Orthodox Church, is one of the churches which make up the communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity. Its canonical territory is confined to the borders of Greece prior to the Balkan Wars of 1912–1913 ("Old Greece"), with the rest of Greece (the "New Lands", Crete, and the Dodecanese) being subject to the jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. However, most of its dioceses are de facto administered as part of the Church of Greece for practical reasons, under an agreement between the churches of Athens and Constantinople. The primate of the Church of Greece is the Archbishop of Athens and All Greece.

Adherence to the Eastern Orthodox Church was established as a definitive hallmark of Greek ethnic identity already in the first modern Greek constitution, the "Epidaurus Law" of 1822, during the Greek War of Independence. The preamble of all successive Greek constitutions simply states "In the name of the Holy, Consubstantial and Indivisible Trinity", and the Eastern Orthodox Church of Christ is established as the "prevailing" religion of Greece.

Mainstream Orthodox clergy's salaries and pensions are paid for by the State at rates comparable to those of teachers. The Church had previously compensated the State by a tax of 35% on ordinary revenues of the Church, but Law 3220/2004 in 2004 abolished this tax. By virtue of its status as the prevailing religion, the canon law of the Church is recognized by the Greek government in matters pertaining to church administration. This is governed by the "Constitution of the Church of Greece", which has been voted by Parliament into law. Religious marriages and baptisms are legally equivalent to their civil counterparts and the relevant certificates are issued by officiating clergy. All Greek Orthodox students in primary and secondary schools in Greece attend religious instruction. Liaisons between church and state are handled by the Ministry of National Education and Religious Affairs.