Following months of sustained lockdowns and strict COVID-19 measures, Melbourne’s Greek Orthodox community is gearing up for a more jolly Christmas.
“Christmas is of enormous importance [to the Greek Orthodox community],” said Bill Papastergiadis, president of the Greek Community of Melbourne.
“The churches are filled during the services at this time of the year. After Easter, it's one of the most important event in the Orthodox calendar.”
But as the community prepares to attend church services and family get-togethers, there is still some trepidation as cases of the Omicron COVID-19 variant continue to surge.
Mr Papastergiadis said being COVID-safe is of enormous importance to the Greek Community of Melbourne, which has worked with the state and federal governments to establish vaccination hubs in church halls.
Bill Papastergiadis (centre) with his children Eleni (right) and Lee (left). Source: Supplied
“QR coding is equally important. There are no [capacity] limits [in churches],” he said.
“Our priests are vaccinated, and it's important to make sure that any services and events are maintained with the highest standards of protection.”
Mr Papastergiadis said the closure of churches over the pandemic has had a significant impact on the community’s emotional and mental health.
“Funerals were conducted in very limited circumstances,” he said.
“The pain and grief that people experienced by not only being able to pray in a church but also the isolation from other church members… had an impact on their belief system [and] affected their social relations.”
Being able to hold services this Christmas has been a welcome relief to many in the community, Mr Papastergiadis said.
“It's brought a sense of joy and happiness to people's lives,” he added.
“A broadened opportunity to reconnect and feel normal again, in these very abnormal times.
“There’s now light at the end of the tunnel for parishioners and for the community as a whole.”
Archbishop Makarios with Bill Papastergiadis. Source: Supplied
Churches turn to technology
It’ll be another virtual Christmas for parishioners at Sydney’s Leichhardt Uniting Church, as leaders work to keep their community safe amid rising COVID-19 cases.
The state continues to break national daily cases records in COVID-19 infections.
Reverend Radhika Sukumar-White said many churchgoers have been identified as close or casual contacts.
She said the church has decided to be “proactive” and made the “hard but wise decision” to cancel in-person events this Christmas.
“We have made a decision to not have Christmas in person, given the COVID numbers and a lot of people being claimed as either close or casual contact,” Ms Sukumar-White said.
“Our Christmas Eve services will be pre-recorded and then Christmas Day and all our January services will be live-streamed.”
In NSW, you are no longer required to be fully vaccinated or show proof of your vaccination status in places of worship and face masks are no longer required.
Reverend Radhika Sukumar-White at Sydney’s Leichhardt Uniting Church says precautions have been put in place for this year's Christmas services. Source: Sydney’s Leichhardt Uniting Church
NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet said on Tuesday wearing face masks was "recommended", and booster shots "were key" in protecting against COVID-19.
"Vaccination protects and saves lives," he said, adding: “It is time to shift the balance back to personal responsibility.”
Ms Sukumar-White said she was frustrated by the NSW government’s decision to scrap mask mandates and QR codes.
“There are simple things I feel like we could do to lower the spread,” she said.
“The lack of leadership has been frustrating.
“Individual responsibility is one thing [but] ... we've kind of made our decision for our community.”
Ms Sukumar-White said she and her husband will be live-streaming church services on Facebook.
“I happen to be able to play music and so I do music and we share the preaching and the prayers," she said.
“People can comment through the service and I can offer those prayers live to everyone who's watching … so that it's more interactive.”
She said while it’ll be sad to look out at empty pews this Christmas, her community’s wellbeing is the priority.
“Obviously preaching to an empty chair is hard and sad, so there's some grief in that for sure for me and for the community," she said.
"But despite all of that, we still feel like this is the best and most wise decision for us.”
