Galery

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Ancient Greeks next to Karaiskakis and Velouchiotis, together with the International Monetary Fund, memoranda, Merkel and Papandreou. Next to them marching with his ATV is priest Ilias during the two-day strikes in June, along with the "indignant" and demonstrators on Syntagma Square. His picture on top of the ATV, dressed in a cassock, flying as the speed increases, against the security forces went all over the internet and news agencies. 

The 61-year-old priest Ilias, with the secular name Ilias Konstandopoulos, works in the church "prophet Elijah" - Aharnes. From there he leaves to go to the rallies in downtown Athens. "People need to go out to the street and ask whether their grandchild will have a job or will become an immigrant", he said. He also quotes the poet Kostis Palamas: "We owe it to those who have come, who are gone and to those who will come to pass. Our judges will be the unborn and the dead." 

In 1991, next to a small church built in the 8^th century, "a place covered with the bones of heroes, stones and thorns, was built the church "prophet Elijah" with the volunteer work of the people", says priest Ilias. He was a quarryman, before becoming a priest. He represents his generation in the following way: "Tradition says that we are descendants of Papaflessas (hero of the Greek liberation movement). Aris Velouchiotis once said that without Papaflessas, the uprising in 1821 would have never happened." He worked as a bootblack, builder, and in 1979 went to Saudi Arabia to work. He becomes a priest in 1979 "for Christianity, which is continuous revolution." 

Greece everywhere 

He defines himself as a lover of antiquity, analyzes words, the history of the world and founds Greece everywhere. "My dear stranger," says he, "history is written by the statues, the stones that leave their traces on the ground. And when stones speak, thousands are silent. Can we challenge the Epicurean Apollo, the statue of the Akkadians, the sacred Mainalo mountain of the god Pan? The civilization of ancient Greeks is the root, the flow of life, and Hellas, not Greece, is a stone of the sun." Priest Ilias explains that he goes to the rallies, where people together want for "Greece not to be sold." He calls the "indignant" to continue: "End of indignation and straight to revolution." The slogan, which he offers is "fire and sword for those who give up." As to the masked and the accidents, he says that they are "from a system of wossies". He speaks, using quotes from Karaiskakis, who he "revives" to make parallels with the situation today and condemns those who he says serve foreign interests: "Well, what did Karaiskakis, like Mavrokordatos and Koletis say about politicians? That the Turk and the p**** are the same – as much as you caress it, the more it lifts up its head." Priest Ilias talked about the European Union, the Memorandum, Angela Merkel, the Westerners from the International Monetary Fund. There is a book by Dimitris Fotiadis, and page 80 is folded, where it says the process of Kolokotronis. He opens a parenthesis, to say that they have "thrown him in the prisons Armansberg, Mason, Mauer, Mavrokordatos and Koletis" and closes it, wanting to read aloud the quotation from page 80: "You are trying in vain to approach them with good. Bavarians have always come into our land, hoping to make it their colony. In order to succeed, they had to put Greeks on their knees with terror. They could not have left you alone, Kolokotronis. They had to start with you." 

He remembers his spiritual father, as he calls Father Anipomonos or Aris Velouchiotis (Greek resistance hero, member of the Greek Communist Party). He met him in Agatonos Monastery, where he lived for 12 years. For Father Anipomonos he says: "Such men are born every 500 years. When he died the nightingales stopped singing." He remembers another phrase by Father Anipomonos: "He said: If you take out the gun of the soul and body, you have to shoot. If not – you let it go...”. They ask him what he thinks of socialism. He answers right away: "I believe in the struggle of the Isocrates classes."Democracy, how we rape you every day and we do not pay you for the stained sheets." Even Marx relied on the ancient Greeks ...”. 

"Bravo to Kouroublis”

He does not say to many “Good luck”. He says it though, for composer Mikis Theodorakis - "why shouldn’t I agree with Mikis? Is it a problem that he is a patriot?". He says it also regarding MP, now independent, Panagiotis Kouroublis - "I want to congratulate him for speaking up. Bravo, Kouroublis. Your "no" (to the Memorandum) has value. This is Greece." Conversely, he uses heavy words for the "Papandreous”, except for Andreas. "Back then the civil war and the Cyprus problem were associated with the old Papandreou and now another tragedy with George (the current Prime Minister)...". 

When asked if he is a nationalist, he nearly bounces off his chair. "I hate nationalism. I am a patriot." He believes it is time for universal uprising. "Even Obama said to Merkel ‘be careful for the Greeks not to rise’." He insists that a new National Assembly should convene in Troezen (the town where it the first National Assembly after the liberation of Greece from Turkish rule was called), as well as confiscation of property of the lawmakers who voted for the memorandum and to whom a penalty should be given to plant all burned forested mountains, but also to reduce the number of MEPs to 151. In any case, he warns that "what we will be guilty about is if we start eating one another. Help us Mary. No to contention ...”. 

Hoarse voice, serious words. During the pauses he sings songs by Vassilis Papakonstantinou. He says that despite his 61 years, he feels his heart is 25. And he adds: "whoever fears death, dies every day." 

"The Germans owe us, we do not owe them anything" 

Priest Ilias says that he goes to rallies because "nobody asked me before the election if I am willing to borrow money or sign memoranda." He shouts loud, sitting on the stairs next to the small church: "Let us ask for the German compensation. They owe us, we do not owe them anything. Kalavrita, Distomo... And with the help of England the civil war...”. He insists that today there is an economic war and sings "we also want a free country, and general freedom... 

He constantly repeats that he does not belong to any party and what is needed is the National Liberation Front. He began to recite by heart the oath: "I, a child of the Greek people, I swear to fight...".