(855) 4-ESSAYS

Type a new keyword(s) and press Enter to search

Socio-cultural essay - Greek Orthodox Churches in Australia

            The Greek Orthodox Church in Australia has travelled a rocky road on the way to its present shape. Its history is riddled with conflict between the Greek Orthodox Communities that are serviced by the Church and the religious hierarchy that is struggling to control more than just the religious teachings. It can be argued that it is the nature of Greeks to not allow this conflict to ever be resolved but instead to continually push the limits of what they expect as their rights of independence.
             According to the censuses, Australia's Greek Orthodox numbered between 500 and 600 in 1891. (Gilchrist, 1992 P. 270) The Commonwealth census of 1911 showed the number to be 1,464 and these were spread far and wide with minor concentrations in Sydney and Melbourne. (Gilchrist, 1992 P. 387).
             The Greek Orthodox religion was established in Australia by the lay community. This was due to the inactivity of the Greek Orthodox Church in Greece and the absence of religious leaders in Australia at that time. (Tamis, 1994 P. 52). Even though no party was willing to establish the Church, the Greek Orthodox Community was not left without a place to worship. The Anglican Church in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth offered their churches and mission houses for services conducted in the Greek tongue and mainly by a layman. ( Tamis, 1994. P. 52 ).
             The founding of the Greek faith satisfied both the social and, more importantly, religious needs of the Greek Orthodox population. The existing inner city Greek coffee-houses catered to their social needs but Greek family life, included a strong religious element. Whilst Greeks wanted to hear the Greek liturgy conducted in their native tongue, the fear that a marriage celebrated outside the Greek Orthodox Church would not be valid in Greece gave it a sense of urgency. Consequently, in order for Greeks in Australia to be recognised as properly married in the eyes of the Greek Church and State they would either have to travel back to Greece or to a Greek church in Port Said.


Essays Related to Socio-cultural essay - Greek Orthodox Churches in Australia

1. How to Properly use Wikipedia for Writing an Essay

... Not all sources are acceptable to schools, or even to certain professors or professional organizations, so it's always best to make a few checks before submitting your essay. Keep sources within the realm of believability. For example, if you're a high school freshman, and writing a paper on viruses for biology class, you probably ... it probably won't be accepted as a reference. Once you find that the source book is available, check to make sure that the information really is in the book. There have been cases where sources on Wikipedia have been found to be fake. Using common sense is ...

  • Word Count: 513
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

2. My Big Fat Greek Wedding Review

... another, each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way."" And the family in Nia Vardalos' movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding could have just as easily been Italian or Jewish or just about any other nationality on earth. The point is, the family was happy in the kind of ways to which ... when they finally do announce impending nuptials. No, it's not War and Peace, and it won't earn you credibility points in academic circle to quote it, but My Big Fat Greek wedding is a good bit of honest-to-goodness fun. Anyone who has ever experienced the joys and pain of planning a ... Toula's fiancé, an...

  • Word Count: 515
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

3. Greek Parliament Approves Austerity Plan

The Greek Parliament finally consented to Prime Minister George Papandreou's package of austerity measures - the only factor standing in the way of Greece receiving the $17 billion from the European Union, the European Central Bank, and ... Greece was lucky that their foreign creditors, the European Union and the International Monetary Fund, had given a "vote of confidence in the Greek people" by offering to help the country in their financial crisis (Donadio). Syntagma Square, right outside of Parliament, was overcrowded with protestors shouting, "Traitors, traitors!" The police ... you belo...

  • Word Count: 1157
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

4. Boyfriend, Nick MGuffin, Suspected in Leah Freeman's Murder

... . After the argument, Freeman chose not to wait for her ride and instead decided to walk home but never made it (CBS News). On August 3, 2000, her body was found in a wooded area about eight miles from her hometown of Coquille. The autopsy revealed that she had died from "homicidal violence." The only piece of evidence found was a single tennis shoe ... his father protested that he had removed the liner because of a fuel leak. Neighbors also reported that a bonfire was held at the McGuffin household the day after Freeman disappeared (Lohr). In October of 2009, Freeman's mother, Cory Cour...

  • Word Count: 515
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

5. Toxic Sludge Spill in Hungary

... ! News). The sludge burst from its reservoir last week, killing eight people. The European Union and environmental groups are worried that the sludge could spread down the Danube River, resulting in long-term consequences for many nations. Emergency workers are currently trying to build temporary barriers to slow down the sludge before it reaches the Danube River. They will then scoop ... ...

  • Word Count: 517
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Has Bibliography

6. Journalists Participating in Gaza Flotilla Threatened by Israel

... Israel's right do defend itself and to knowingly violate Israeli law" (JTA). "The flotilla has nothing constructive. There is nothing humanitarian or anything that has to do with Palestinian welfare in the organizing of this flotilla," said Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, Ron Prosor. He added that the flotilla participants are "extremists" (Chick). The U.S. Department of State spokeswoman Victoria ... send "a chilling message to the international media and raises serious questions about Israel's commitment to freedom of the press" (Weiss). The flotilla participants are largel...

  • Word Count: 620
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

7. Eight Suspects Charged in Anti-Gay Hate Crime Beatings

... miniature baseball bat (The Berkshire Eagle). The gang then went to the older man's house, tied up his brother, and stole three cell phones, $1,000 in cash and a 52-inch television (ABC News). The eight suspects include Ildefonzo Mendez, 23; Elmer Confresi, 23; David Rivera, 21; Steven Caraballo, Denis ... Peitars, Nelson Falu and Bryan Almonte, all 17; and Brian Cepeda, 16. They were arraigned on hate crime charges. They were seen in the courtroom with their heads down as their relatives wept. The charges they face include robbery, assault, sexual abuse, and unlawful imprisonment as hat...

  • Word Count: 502
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

8. New Deficit Plans Calls for Reduction in Social Security

... , constructed by Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson, is a revised draft of the plan proposed earlier this month, that also resulted in great controversy. Changes to the second draft include higher domestic cuts than the original version, as well as a decrease in the health care savings from overhauling the medical malpractice system. Unlike the original proposal, the revised version does not call for ... a cap on medical malpractice awards, but instead recommends a change in how awards are made (Andrew and Kuhnhenn). The proposals that did not change from the original draft include a gradua...

  • Word Count: 495
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

9. China's Oil Spill in the Yellow Sea

... that the storage tank had a capacity of 27.7 million gallons and had just refilled. According to them, more oil has been collected in the cleanup process than was reported to have been leaked. The explosion occurred after workers continually injected an agent to strip sulfur from oil after ... an oil storage tank was replenished by a tanker. Afterwards, workers released oil from other tanks in the area to prevent another explosion (The Huffington Post). Cleanup efforts were much more immediate than those that followed the Gulf incident. 40 oil ... officials, oil company workers, and vo...

  • Word Count: 538
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

10. Linda Norgrove Accidentally Killed by US Grenade in Rescue Attempt

... mistakes (Vogt). The rescue team came under fire from within the Taliban compound, as well as from an overwatch position nearby. A spokesman at NATO headquarters in Kabul, Lt. Col. John Dorrian, reported that, "It was a very high elevation area, very very challenging terrain." According to his reports, the ... six gunmen who fought back against U.S. forces were killed, although women and children in the compound were not injured. No one from the U.S. rescue team was injured (Vogt). Prime Minister Cameron, defended the original reports, saying, "The statements ... fire, some are questioni...

  • Word Count: 710
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

Got a writing question? Ask our professional writer!
Submit My Question