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The Catholic Church of Greece has decided to restrict the marriages during the sunset on the Santorini island, stating that the staged weddings are a profanation of the clerical mystery.
According to the bishops of the Santorini, Crete and Siros islands in the Aegean Sea, the natural beauties disturb the concentration on the essence of the process and the wedding becomes an industry.
The couples are usually using a touristic agency to organize such an event, instead of a direct contact with a priest and the tourist agents are often order various requirements to the clergy that contradict with the Church regulations. For example they demand to perform the process on various languages including such exotic languages for the Catholic church like Arabian and the scenery should be the famous Santorini sunset. According to the bishops, some of the couples conceal that they have already took part in a church wedding earlier. This is unacceptable for the Catholicism.
The Orthodox church, as well as the Catholic - have refused to perform staged weddings on Santorini and other islands.
But such weddings are powerfully promoted by the local authorities, because the incomes of the ceremonies represent a serious income for the islands budget and are contributing to the touristic branch.
It is noticeable that the Aegean islands are famous for their sights and the most famous is the Santorini island, where an ancient earthquake has created a multi-kilometer tall cliff - caldera - with a view at the still active volcano in the center of a semicircular bay. The Santorini sunsets are attracting hundreds of tourists yearly and of course lots of couples that want to get married here. |
