Fellow Participants,

Among the many prevailing misconceptions, is the idea that religion in general, and Christianity in particular, are interested only in life after death, as if by struggling to divest one’s self of a material body, one might be changed into a liberated spirit, as Plato taught. However, leaving the arguments of other religious teachings and philosophical schools to their own adherents, we will focus on the Eastern Orthodox Church, in the knowledge of our own responsibility.

It is a qualitative element of our humble faith that we believe and accept that the Creator Who loves us also fashioned the material universe “very good,” as well as the psychosomatic reality of humankind in its totality according to His image and likeness. Consequently, we stand far afield from any dialectical opposition of matter and spirit, body and soul, or the present world and metaphysical reality. We reject this Manichean perception and live in harmony with that which we are, in harmony with the material and spiritual world, in which we live and move and have our being. We live in harmony with God, the Creator of all things and with all things which He has created.

Obviously, we recognize a certain hierarchy in the created order and we accept a gradation of proportionate value in the harmony of creation, inasmuch as the All-wise Creator has arranged all of creation in the fullness of His love. Even when we cannot know the specific reason of creation, and the existence of an objective reality or even the property of a physical law, we can be absolutely certain of one supreme Logos, Who has established and apportioned all things with immanent rationality. From this we hesitate to opine that human remedies which interfere with the natural order are better than those found in the natural conditions provided by God. However, it does not follow from this that we consider the natural order as an intangible “taboo” for we possess the commandment of God, that we should have dominion over the earth.

Therefore, the question should be focused around the proper limits of our interventions, such as they are, and around a consideration of what might be considered appropriate interventions from the very outset. About these things, we can answer in a positive manner and without hesitation.

Our answer concerning the appropriate limits of our interventions in the natural condition of the material world in each particular instance is a razor’s edge, on which we stand and which itself is the measure of our own spiritual condition. For this answer presupposes a careful weighing of innumerable factors, which must take place with prudence and dispassionate discretion, which unfortunately, is rare, much like our own virtue is rare.

Therefore we stand before nature, which has in recent times come to be called the “environment,” with the same affirmation of its own worth, as that with which the Creator of all things characterised it as “very good.” However, in this we face the reality of the hierarchy inherent in the design of the cosmic plenitude, both the material and the spiritual, and we assign it to its proper place. We do not make of nature an absolute value, nor do we deny it to the point of absolute negation. Nature exists for the service of humanity according to the material portion of our nature; it is not humanity that exists for the sake of nature.

With this understanding, the core of our concerns for the Black Sea and the environmental dangers threatening it is focused on those people who live in the surrounding regions of the Black Sea, and not on the Black Sea in itself. In as much as we are interested in preventing a catastrophe of the Black Sea as a biotope, we declare that our most vivid concern is for our fellow human beings who dwell either near or far from it and who may not be aware of the danger that threatens their life, health and livelihood, from the disruption of the natural ecological balance of the Black Sea.

We are deeply concerned for their daily life, for it too is a gift of God, “very good” indeed and destined to be used as a starting-point for an eternal life, continuing beyond the grave into the infinite, when the bodily substance of our nature is transmuted into a spiritual reality.

To ensure this furtherance of natural life, we consider ascetic self-denial to be necessary, and the reduction of many material pleasures to be beneficial. However such deprivation should certainly be a voluntary and conscious decision, and not something imposed by external constraints and consequently without ethical merit. So from this perspective we join forces with all those who are concerned for the self-sufficiency of those material goods necessary for survival, but we do not approve of overproduction, irrational exploitation, and greed. We seek and urge for the Patristic and Aristotelian sense of moderation and balance, and would dissuade you as much from forming an idol of wealth as from reducing wealth to an evil in itself. For wealth is the accumulation of the abundance of human labor and natural resources. Wealth is both valued and reviled in an ethical sense according to the manner of its concentration and the manner of its use.

It is obvious that the rapacious exploitation of natural resources, which derives from greed and from an extraordinary circumstance of need, entails a debilitation of nature which must constantly renew its own productive powers. Such exploitation is as unethical as it is irrational, given on the other hand that, as is observed sociologically, a lack of ethics coincides with a lack of intelligence to an astounding degree, because someone who is truly intelligent understands the injurious nature of bad character. Again, it is equally evident that the utilization of concentrated wealth and selfish purposes, for one end or another, for good or bad, is ethically disdainful. Rather, the utilization of the concentrated surplus of human effort and natural resources forms a basis for the furtherance of the means of production, aimed at the improvement of the quality of life in human society, and for the allocation of various aspects of education, public health, and the other possibilities for the development and enrichment of the spiritual life. This justifies wealth as a shared property, expended for the common good, even if it is managed by only one part of human society.
And so, the Orthodox point of view and teaching is that the environment was created so that we might evolve and develop within it in soul and body. In addition, we ought to preserve the divine law and do those things that are useful and reasonable for our own self-sufficiency, and not for any kind of hoarding. If there should happen to be an excess without draining the vigor of nature dry, this ought to be employed for the common good. Thus, religion propounds eternal truths and maintains a sensitivity to all members of society because of the danger of falling away from those same truths.

It is at this point that the work of science begins. For science certifies the situation, proposes measures that would delay the deterioration of this situation, and organises the effective application of these measures. Not infrequently, whenever science considers it possible through the measures at hand, it also proposes the transformation of the destroyed elements in the environment.

This Symposium has the blessing of gathering together, as the title of the Symposium declares, representatives of religion and science. All of you enjoy the blessings of the Holy and Orthodox Great Church of Christ, and personally speaking, most certainly of our Modesty; you enjoy the patronage of the President of the European Commission, His Excellency Jacques Santer. The subject of this Symposium is of interest to many peoples and their governments, as evidenced by the selection of the circumnavigation of all these interested countries as the venue for this Symposium. This action constitutes a conscious decision, aimed at sensitizing individuals and whole peoples about the significance of the biotope of the marine region of the Black Sea for their life. For, environmental change and ruin on such a vast sea-wide scale, through the thoughtless contribution of many, wreaks vengeance on itself over a long period of time in every conceivable way. The redress of such circumstances is a most onerous task and requires the cooperation of all concerned parties, for it constitutes a challenge to the ethical and social conscience of us all and substantiates a criterion of the degree of our spiritual condition.

The Black Sea is spoiled and its biotope destroyed as a result of the indifference of countless people, each of whom contributes to the unfortunate result, to a greater or lesser extent. A ship’s captain, for example, who is protected by the fact that it is not easy to prove that he discards his ship’s polluted waste into the sea, is as responsible as another person who lives far from the coastline, but who discards his own destructive waste which finishes up in the Black Sea. Unless everyone is made sensitive to the harmful character of such actions, it is almost impossible for any endeavour for the improvement of the situation to succeed.

And it is precisely here that the fundamental role of religion is revealed. Religion can inspire the behavior of every individual or even mass movements; and it is able to transmit and spread the necessity and benefit of these behaviors.

The fact is that the negative result of this, the dividend, if you will, springs from the contribution of many people who may hardly be aware of their own responsibility, because their contribution to the overall result is relatively minor. If there is going to be an overturning of this, it will require the cooperation of everybody; in other words, it will reveal the necessity of achieving a social ethic and a common effort. There is no single deed which benefits others, without this first and foremost benefiting ourselves.

This sense of a common fate, which is indeed the polar opposite of the widespread individualistic and self-interested perception which is short-sighted in its appreciation of the world, is a basic teaching of the altruistic Christian faith, and especially of Orthodoxy. Without it, facing problems such as those of the Black Sea would be impossible.

Surely there are not many today who are ignorant of the influence of prevailing ideas and beliefs about our life. For this reason, such attempts at predominance focus on the acquisition of adherents and the spreading of ideas.

With this understanding, let us seek also through this Symposium to energize in varying degrees the feelings of inertia about responsibility for the common good which we find in individuals and in whole peoples. Each of us here is concerned with one and the same thing: to achieve a whole and healthful Black Sea as expeditiously as possible, for the benefit of all humanity.

We are deeply pained by the suffering which, as a result of human indifference, keeps piling on our fellow human beings. We call on every conscience to awaken! We invite those of our beloved fellow participants whose consciences are already sensitized to a virtual apostolic commission, in order to disseminate ideas about the necessity for a common confrontation of these problems.

Finally, we pray wholeheartedly for the success of the proceedings of this Symposium. We welcome all the participants and thank them for their kind response and attendance. We pray for the health, joy and inspiration of each of you personally, and eagerly await to hear of your detailed and informed proposals.

The grace of God be with you all. Amen.