A Greek Orthodox Bishop has filed a lawsuit against individuals, accusing them of spreading fake news on social media related to his stance on the Covid-19 pandemic.

Metropolitan of Drama Pavlos instructed his lawyer to sue the individuals over defamatory comments on Facebook when they called him “a sell-out, ant-Christ, and a Mason”, while another commenter claimed he refused to bury people who had died with Covid.

As the Metropolitan’s lawyer, Christos Papatheodorou, stated to protothema.gr, the allegations concern, on a case-by-case basis, the offenses of insult, defamation, and the dissemination of false news. :

After the complaints we filed, police located and arrested the two people. Their posts were uploaded to a Drama group on Facebook.

The Prosecutor’s Office decided that the process should lead to a regular trial and released the two citizens.

In his statements, the Metropolitan of Drama stated:

“About three days ago, It came to my attention that through the internet some people spread lies about my person. Not these thousands, who are circulating news during this period of the pandemic, for which we tolerate and forgive as Christians. One of the ladies said that the Metropolitan of Drama forbade the burial of the dead by covid. As a result, it created a negative uproar for my person and spread lies in society through the internet. And under the comment of this false news, a gentleman wrote the following, posting my photo, “here is the sell-out, the antichrist, the Mason’. He launched the three greatest charges that a person can launch for a clergyman and even a Bishop. That is, that I have been bribed from somewhere, that I am the antichrist; I who am in the form of Christ in the local church of Drama, and that I am a Mason.”
Answering a question on whether the process will continue, as the 2 citizens apologised, His Excellency noted that the lawsuit will proceed, adding that something like this cannot be rectified with a simple apology.

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