All the Islands in the Cyclades have been adopted!
Location
Iraklia is one of the smaller (17.5km2) islands in the Cyclades, and is accessible from the larger neighboring island Naxos.

10 minutes sailing time away from Schinoussa.

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Population
Approximately 110 people live on this island.

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History
The main village is called Agios Georgios, and it is found to the right of the port and up a little hill. The town’s two main roads fork around a small ravine that is filled with Cactuses, the right road leads to Melissa, the left road leads to Livadi, the islands nicest beach. On the way to this beach on a little hill, stands the impressive remains of a tower, which dates back to when this island was notoriously known as a pirate’s nest. A little further on is the little village of Hora, which is also known as Panagia (The Virgin Mary.)

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Religion
This topic is not island-specific. It applies to the nation of Greece.

Orthodox Christianity is the recognized dominant religion of Greece and it is legally protected by the state. This has caused legal discrimination against non-Orthodox Churches, and although the constitution of 1975 removed the power of most of the old laws against Protestants, problems still exist today. There is a lot of fear towards anything outside of the Orthodox Church, especially on the islands. However, repeated rulings of the European Court of Justice in favour of religious minorities in cases of discrimination have led to a relative increase of the freedoms that these religious minorities now enjoy.

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Saints
Most of the saints are honored on this island and the Orthodox Church is highly respected.

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Prayer
-That the outreach will enable the gospel of salvation to be shared

-That the people on the island will realize their need for God and their eyes will be opened to the truth and love of God.

-That God will work in the lives of all the God-fearing people already living on this island, and bring healing & refreshment to their lives.

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Miscellaneous
There is a cave with stalactites near to Voukaria Bay.

There is a surviving mule path that runs from Agios Georgios up the west coast and on to the cave.

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Celebrations
The celebrations on the islands usually revolve around the Saints, and there are also big celebrations at Easter.

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Resources
www.greektravel.com

www.in2greece.com

http://www.dilos.com/location/289

www.harrys-60-greek-islands-guide.com

www.worldtravelgate.org

www.united-hellas.com

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Operation Gideon - Copyright © 2003 by Hellenic Ministries - General Information: info@operationgideon.org
*NASA image courtesy of Earth Sciences and Image Analysis Laboratory,
NASA Johnson Space Center. http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov


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