Greece is out This Summer Jewish Couple Say Anti-semitic Remarks by Bishop of Chios Led to Decision

Mrs. Roslyn Myers and her husband, Judge Allen M. Myers of the Civil Court of New York City, will not be vacationing in Greece this summer as they had a number of times in the past few years. In a letter to the Greek Consulate General dated April 24, of which a copy was sent to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Mrs. Myers cited anti-Semitic statements made by the Bishop of Chios as the basis for the decision not to visit Greece.

In her letter, Mrs. Myers stated that it was “with great dismay that I read in the Jewish Telegraphic Agency Weekly News Digest of March 17 that the Bishop of Chios, in Athens, on Greek Orthodoxy Day, before a distinguished audience including government officials, denounced the Jews and quoted from a notorious anti-Semitic forgery to substantiate his accusations.”

On March 13, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency Daily News Bulletin reported that the Bishop of Chios, quoting from the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, asserted that Greek Jews and Zionist organizations are controlling the Freemasons and Rotarians and adversely influencing Greek youth. This report was subsequently carried in the JTA Weekly News Digest.

In a telephone interview today, Mrs. Myers told the JTA, “It is incumbent on the Greek government to disavow the Bishop’s statement, which concerns the 6500 Greek citizens of Jewish faith.” Noting the “innate anti-Semitism” of the Greek Orthodox Church, she said the Church’s support of the government has led the government to be lenient with the Church. “But,” she said, “the government must learn that if they accept this kind of support they will lose other friends.”