Our View: Poor turnout indicates indifference to church

It was a good thing that all the people of the Orthodox faith on the electorate were entitled to vote in the archiepiscopal elections, as the poor turnout illustrated the indifference of most of the public as to who will head the church. Only 30.2 per cent of those eligible to vote bothered to do so, despite opinion polls forecasting a turnout of 50 per cent.

In the end of 548,793 eligible voters, 165,688 cast a vote, with bishop of Limassol Athanasios the clear winner, with 35.68 per cent of the vote. Second was the bishop of Paphos, Georgios with 18.39 per cent and the bishop of Tamasos Isaias was a close third on 18.10 per cent. This does not indicate much interest among the public, which despite what is being said is a healthy sign, an indication that the majority of society has no interest in church affairs.

The prevailing view, however, was that the low turnout was the direct result of the low regard in which the church hierarchy was held, something that could not leave the bishops unmoved. Bishop of Tamasos Isaias said the low turnout “confirmed in the most emphatic way how the people devalue the church, and the great obstacles and challenges we must overcome in order regain their trust”. This is a more convenient explanation for public apathy, that the possibility that the church hierarchy has lost the hold it had over Cyprus society which could also be an explanation about the low turnout.

It may just be that the overwhelming majority of the people are indifferent to who will be the next archbishop, because this does not affect their life in any way. It does not matter to them if the man elected is more focused on issues of faith or administrative affairs. Only 30 per cent of the population is interested in who leads the church which is quite normal in a modern society.

Under the circumstances, it was rather presumptuous of the support group for Bishop Athanasios to claim that the people had voted, and their vote must be respected. About one tenth of the total electorate voted for Athanasios, so it is unlikely there would be any protests if the Holy Synod votes for one of the other two candidate before it. The election of an archbishop is not a popularity contest. As Bishop Georgios said, “the people decide with different criteria than the bishops.”

And it seems correct that the bishops have the final decision about who should head the church, because as the elections showed, the overwhelming majority of the people have no interest in the matter.