Greeks in America - eBooks4Greeks.gr

128 THE GREEKS IN AMERICANeed of Pastoral visitation.—Pastoral visitationis one of the greatest needs among the Greeks.Many are *'like flocks without a shepherd.'' Nominallyall Greeks are Christians. Large numbers ofyoung men in the stores, restaurants, factories andother places are sorely neglected. There is scarcelyany one looking after their spiritual welfare. Manypriests are either unable to do it, or are too busywith their levitical functions.Forms of religious break-up.—^Apparently thereis no irreligious movement among the Greeks, noopen atheists, nor free thinkers. Theoretically mostof them, if not all, respect religion. As all Americans,good or bad, are citizens, so all Greek believersor unbelievers, warm or indifferent, church-goers ornot, are reckoned, and they regard themselves asmembers of the Greek church, excepting the Protestantsand Roman Catholics, whose Hellenism or patriotismis questioned by the zealots, although facts haveshown repeatedly and conclusively that patriotismis not the monopoly of the Orthodox. Americanswill state what they profess, believe or disbelieve;will say they are not Christians, do not profess tobelong to any church, but Greek materialists or agnosticsmay ridicule all religion and still defend thepractice and usages of their church as a nationalinstitution. This peculiar combination of religionand patriotism pervades and influences the wholeGreek life.Practical unbelief.—There are, however, manypractical unbelievers, who live as if there were noGod, the whole of whose religion consists in an occasionaloutward conformity to some religious ceremonyor a visit to the church at Easter.As in Greece, here in America, too, the educatedclasses, especially students, are occupied with philosophicaland metaphysical problems. They havetheir doubts, difficulties, tendencies to materialism