BOSTON – This was not just a mere event or even just a celebration but a true hymn of the Greek-American community of Boston and New England to Greece. It took place on the evening of Sunday, March 23 at the Consulate General of Greece in Boston.
The highlight of the event was the presence of former Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, who had been in Boston since Friday evening for a series of lectures he will deliver at Harvard University. He visited the Consulate General to celebrate the great anniversary of Greece’s liberation from the Ottomans alongside the children of Greek schools and members of the Greek-American community in Boston and New England.
At the conclusion of the celebration, Tsipras spoke to the National Herald, expressing his thoughts and impressions of the event: “I feel deep emotion and joy. I had the pleasure of attending the celebration of our national holiday at the Greek Consulate in Boston. I was impressed and moved to see children of the fourth and fifth generations of the Greek-American community dressed in traditional Greek costumes, reciting poems, singing songs – hymns to freedom – because Greece is synonymous with freedom.”
Tsipras also stated: “Naturally, when you see these children embodying the greatness of the Greek spirit, you feel incredibly proud to be Greek. I wish all Greeks a happy national holiday and extend my congratulations not only to the children but also, above all, to the teachers who fight to keep the Greek flame alive, as well as to the parents and all of you here who sustain the spirit of our homeland. Congratulations you all.”
Also present at the event was Dimitris Skalkos, Secretary General for International Economic Affairs, who was visiting the United States for a series of meetings, starting in Boston. He delivered an enthusiastic greeting.
The event began with the singing of the Greek National Anthem and a prayer, and His Eminence Metropolitan Methodios of Boston invited the children from Greek schools to recite the Lord’s Prayer in Greek together.
Metropolitan Methodios of Boston offers the opening prayer at the celebration of the March 25th Greek national holiday at the Consulate General of Boston. Also pictured are Consul General Symeon Tegos and his daughter, Erieta. (Photo: TNH/Theodore Kalmoukos)
Students from Greek schools fluently recited poems and sang songs about the Annunciation of the Theotokos and Greece’s liberation. Consul General Symeon Tegos praised the children and their teachers, presenting each child with a keepsake from Greece.
In his speech, keynote speaker Theodoros Kalmoukos, the Religion Editor of The National Herald, referenced both the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary and Greece’s liberation from Turkish rule. Among other things, he stated: “March 25th is a holy day, as with the free and willing participation of the Virgin Mary, the ‘Son of God’ became the ‘Son of Man’ so that we humans might become ‘gods’ by grace.”
He explained that “in the Virgin Mary, all of humanity was represented. Her willing and free response – “Let it be to me according to Your word” – to the Angel’s message marked the beginning of humanity’s salvation. This phrase embodies her total self-offering and surrender to God’s will. Of course, she could have refused – she was free to do so. After all, God never coerces human freedom. Her complete and voluntary consent not only freed her from any hesitation but also gave motherhood an exalted, supernatural, and divine dimension. This is why she is known as ‘Ever-Virgin’, as defined by the Fathers of the Church Councils.”
In another part of his speech, he emphasized: “This is how the chapter of our salvation was written. Salvation is not just an abstract theological concept used by preachers as a form of moral instruction, but a victory over decay and death. The beginning of this victory is celebrated on the day of the Annunciation, which coincides with another liberation – the freedom of Greece. The homeland of all homelands, which, although it may have fallen into the hands of conquerors, was never truly enslaved. True enslavement only occurs when the soul is subjugated – and Greece’s soul was never conquered. Greece may have bent for a moment, but it never died because no amount of tears in the world could mourn its loss.”
(Photo: TNH/Theodore Kalmoukos)
He continued: “Captured, Greece patiently awaited the great moment of revolution. When the call came, as one voice, it resolutely declared, ‘Freedom or Death!’ And, of course, freedom prevailed. The battle was fought ‘for the holy faith of Christ and the freedom of the homeland.’ This must never be forgotten. It was faith in Christ that made the miracle of the Revolution possible, leading to the Resurrection of 1821.”
Approximately 350 Greek-Americans of all ages and generations, from all walks of life, attended the event. The Consulate General was packed to capacity. Among those present were Rhode Island State Senator Leonidas Raptakis, the President of Hellenic College and Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology in Boston, Dr. Demetrios Katos, Professor of Canon Law and Chaplain Fr. Vartholomaios Mekardo, priests from Greater Boston communities, academics, doctors, graduate students, entrepreneurs, Philhellenes, and representatives of various organizations, including George Panagiotopoulos, President of the Athenian Society, and Dimitris Matthaios, President of the Euboean Society.
A crowded scene was created at the Consulate General in Boston during the National Celebration due to the massive participation of students and expatriates from Boston and cities of New England. Photo: “TNH: Theodore Kalmoukos
Greek-Americans from Woburn, Roslindale, Somerville, Lowell, Brockton, and Nashua, NH, were also in attendance. The event concluded with remarks of gratitude from Metropolitan Methodios, Consul General Symeon Tegos, and a lavish reception at the Consulate General.
