As if going against Church Canons to baptize the children of a gay couple wasn’t enough, Archbishop Elpidophorus clarified his ambiguous stance on abortion to be even more contrary to the Church’s teachings. In other words, going against all Tradition he now explicitly supports the unlawful destruction of the unborn. Unfortunately, this thinking seems to be the trend in the West instead of the exception. Translated below is the report detailing the Archbishop’s statements. As it is machine translated, we apologize in advance for any errors.

Image: The head of the American Archdiocese of Fanar with the gay couple whose children he baptized.

By Elena Konstantinova

Archbishop Elpidophorus believes that the right of women to decide of their own free will whether they want to become a mother should be "supported."

Archbishop Elpidophorus, head of the Archdiocese of the Fanar in the United States, said he supports safe and effective birth control, reports in.gr.

Asked about abortion, Archbishop Elpidophorus said his position coincides with that of his Church, "which emphasizes the sanctity of human life, born and unborn."

"Abortion has been a known method for thousands of years, but it has never been supported or blessed by the Church. At the same time, however, we believe deeply in the fundamental freedoms of the individual," said a representative of the Fanar.

According to him, "We must support the right of women to decide of their own free will whether they want to become a mother. And at the same time, both the Church and society must develop all the necessary directions and create the necessary conditions that make abortion unnecessary and support the woman who decides to have a child."

"We support safe and effective birth control, which has also been practiced since time immemorial in various ways. We must avoid treating women only as women in labor, as if that were their only purpose in life," Archbishop Elpidophorus said.

As an example, the Phanarian representative cited the Virgin Mary, who, he said, "voluntarily and freely agreed to receive God in the flesh into her holy womb."

He also resented that American "political centers are spreading the argument that it is unthinkable for a real Christian to vote for a politician if he or she supports a woman's right to a legal abortion that will help preserve her health and life."

"The politicization of Christian principles worries me because we should not allow the gospel teaching to be used as a tool for secular and political ends," Archbishop Elpidophorus concluded.

Earlier SPJ wrote that the head of the Phanarian Archdiocese in the U.S. explained why he baptized the children of gay couples.