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Religion

Religion is central to the Greek community. In Greece, religion was a refuge during the Ottoman occupation of 500 years and had defined the Byzantine Empire for the prior millennium. In America, the Church was a great consolation for the immigrant community in this "strange city, in a strange new world," as described by journalist Charles Sampas. For many families, the priest was their primary guide and arbiter.

Reverend Mittakos with Patriarch Athenagoras I

The Greeks of the 1930's were strong defenders of their faith. Dedication to their belief kept three separate Greek churches each prosperous and active: The Holy Trinity ("Agia Triada"), Saint George ("Ayios Yiorgios"), and The Transfiguration ("Metamorphosis").

Greek Orthodox Great Friday: "The voices in the choir are in sharp union in their infinite sadness. Hundreds of parishioners follow their priest as he leads the 'epithafios' procession. The strong men and boys of the parish are holding aloft the flower-bedecked bier of Christ" (Charles Sampas).

Archbishop Kontogeorge

leader of Old Calendar adherents in America
stands before Saint George Church

In Lowell, the Church was a social buttress in the Acre. The Church provided a safe haven during difficult economic times. Immigrants and their descendants sought spiritual solace in the age-old traditions brought from the "patrida."

During the 1930's, many priests traveled from Greece to serve the faithful of the Greek Orthodox churches in Lowell. Later young men from the Greek community in Lowell responded to the call of priesthood. George Tsoumas and Dino Makris of Lowell were in the first class to graduate at Pomfret Seminary.

Reverend Sgouros and Chris Laganas flank the
Holy Trinity Epitaphio on Good Friday

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