Protesters protest against a bill that would allow same-sex marriage in Athens

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ATHENS, Greece — More than 1,500 protesters rallied in central Athens on Sunday against a law that would legalize same-sex marriage in Greece. The bill will be voted on in parliament in a few days.

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Greece's conservative government is sponsoring the bill, but it needs votes from center and left opposition parties to pass. However, even some center-left lawmakers opposed the bill.

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Organizers of Sunday's rally, religious groups, described the bill as a threat to the traditional family. Many of the protesters chanted, “Let go of our children.”

“Unfortunately, the awakening agenda has reached Greece, and that agenda includes gay marriage,” Dimitris Natsios, leader of the far-right and staunchly religious Niki party, told The Associated Press.

“Greece is a Christian Orthodox country and our tradition does not allow this. … We know and respect one form of marriage: the Orthodox Christian wedding. Our Constitution does not provide for this either, so this bill is unconstitutional and contrary to our faith in Christ,” Natsios said.

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The Niki party, founded in 2019, entered the Parliament in 2023. In the most recent elections, held in June, it came sixth with 3.70% of the vote and elected 10 lawmakers to the 300-member assembly.

Many same-sex couples wishing to start a family in Greece currently marry in countries where same-sex weddings are legal.

Greece has legalized “cohabitation contracts” for same-sex couples since December 2015. In October 2017, it also allowed a change of gender identity through a simple declaration without requiring a psychiatric evaluation or gender reassignment surgery.

If the bill is approved, Greece will become the first Orthodox country to legalize same-sex marriage.

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