(photograph Euphemia and Khalil during church picnic) What's this Arabs and Greeks hosting a Feast Day Fiesta???
A private message from an orthodox priest responding to my editorials: "Angela, thank you... And in your other matters, keep up the good fight. The battle, that is "being engaged" is the path, the outcome is the Lord's. Our sin is failing to engage, our work is to engage. We each have to faithfully use our talents to fulfill our part, even if that part is poorly understood by others. I understand it and more than applaud your efforts toward unity."
Father, thank you for your words of encouragement. I heard a sermon on Sunday hailing the sacrifice of the fallen for God and for country while also being told SSHHHH. As if the omophorion gives these 'men of God' an acceptable pass. It is not immunity but actually a bulls-eye for discerning scrutiny.
The church martyrs, those holy selfless individuals, gained their strength from God and we gain our courage from them. It is our obligation to carry on and not to slumber with indifference. We owe all to them; it is our duty, our sacred calling to pray, speak and conduct ourselves with a robust discourse.
I have everything to lose by looking away by not speaking out. I am not noteworthy and am scarcely doing anything; yet the whole of my salvation counts on these vindications. Just as countries have their fallen soldiers so the church her glorious martyrs.
Those like myself of little repute and ability will continue to generate a grassroots dialogue lending all our allegiance and support to those more able to those 'true agents of change'. My only concern: affirm their declarations of faith and the one true church, by exposing all conspiracies to abandon the Holy Ecumenical See and in joining unto my end the good fight; not in political correctness (a devilish scheme) or in polite sensibilities. Our Ecumenical Patriarch is pastoral and faithful by not abandoning his post.
What is mind boggling even too me is the blindness to indifference and irreverence to what is painfully obvious. Met.Philip and his cronies wait with baited breath for a collapse of true holy order. They consider everything but their own ambition expendable.
How is it that one is prepared to serve: a servant, a slave, a responsible citizen a militiaman. I am an activist, an old time loyalist inept as I am. In the U.S. the disloyal CEOs of already stated jurisdiction(s) are playing out their feudal feuds for a major power grab relying on the softness of their parishioners who seem to desire above all personal comfort and ease.
This 'can't we all just get along' phronima paves the wide road...the road to hell, the lukewarm. The Hierarchs of this 'new world' demand their props their 'liberty' in the shadow of their rebellion disgrace the likes of Holy Tikon. We are bound by our moral code, honor and true church membership. Issues raised by His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios during his address are inconvenient not consequential truths to Met. Philip and his impotent possy.
In the words of Archbishop Demetrios of which I could never improve I re-post here:
(1) Some jurisdictions receive persons from roman Catholic and certain Protestant bodies into Holy Orthodoxy by baptism and chrismation, some by chrismation alone, and some merely by confession of faith.
(2) Some jurisdictions receive Roman Catholic clergy converting to Holy Orthodoxy merely by vesting, while others ordain.
(3) Some jurisdictions recognize all marriages performed outside Holy Orthodoxy as being real marriages (though certainly not sacramental) whether performed for an Orthodox or non-Orthodox, while others recognize no marriages performed outside Holy Orthodoxy whether performed for an Orthodox or a non-Orthodox.
(4) Some Orthodox jurisdictions bury suicides under certain circumstances, while others forbid the burial of suicides under all circumstances.
(5) Some jurisdictions bury a person who was cremated with all funeral rites in the church temple, others permit only Trisagion Prayers of Mercy in the funeral home, and some forbid any prayers anywhere for a person who was cremated.
(6) Some jurisdictions recognize civil divorce as complete and sufficient for ecclesiastical purposes, while others do not recognize civil divorce at all and insist on Ecclesiastical Courts.
(7) Some jurisdictions have in the past accepted clergy suspended or even deposed by other jurisdictions.
And this list is by no means exhaustive. This means there is serious work ahead, and this may not sound very appealing. Some of us may wish to avoid this difficult work and settle for easy pronouncements about unity, but the Gospel compels us otherwise.
To be sure, this Pharonite will not cut and run. This Greek-American is Greek Orthodox. The Ecumenical Throne cannot be distinguished and somehow removed from the Orthodox Church as Greek cannot be removed from the Orthodox faith. This is the true Church. Is it really too much to ask our clergy spent their tenure as a priest learning the language of the Bible and the church fathers? We expect immigrants to learn English but we accept ignorance and stagnation from our shepherds who would have us exchange excellence or mediocrity. Pitiful.
The church martyrs, those holy selfless individuals, gained their strength from God and we gain our courage from them. It is our obligation to carry on and not to slumber with indifference. We owe all to them; it is our duty, our sacred calling to pray, speak and conduct ourselves with a robust discourse.
I have everything to lose by looking away by not speaking out. I am not noteworthy and am scarcely doing anything; yet the whole of my salvation counts on these vindications. Just as countries have their fallen soldiers so the church her glorious martyrs.
Those like myself of little repute and ability will continue to generate a grassroots dialogue lending all our allegiance and support to those more able to those 'true agents of change'. My only concern: affirm their declarations of faith and the one true church, by exposing all conspiracies to abandon the Holy Ecumenical See and in joining unto my end the good fight; not in political correctness (a devilish scheme) or in polite sensibilities. Our Ecumenical Patriarch is pastoral and faithful by not abandoning his post.
What is mind boggling even too me is the blindness to indifference and irreverence to what is painfully obvious. Met.Philip and his cronies wait with baited breath for a collapse of true holy order. They consider everything but their own ambition expendable.
How is it that one is prepared to serve: a servant, a slave, a responsible citizen a militiaman. I am an activist, an old time loyalist inept as I am. In the U.S. the disloyal CEOs of already stated jurisdiction(s) are playing out their feudal feuds for a major power grab relying on the softness of their parishioners who seem to desire above all personal comfort and ease.
This 'can't we all just get along' phronima paves the wide road...the road to hell, the lukewarm. The Hierarchs of this 'new world' demand their props their 'liberty' in the shadow of their rebellion disgrace the likes of Holy Tikon. We are bound by our moral code, honor and true church membership. Issues raised by His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios during his address are inconvenient not consequential truths to Met. Philip and his impotent possy.
In the words of Archbishop Demetrios of which I could never improve I re-post here:
(1) Some jurisdictions receive persons from roman Catholic and certain Protestant bodies into Holy Orthodoxy by baptism and chrismation, some by chrismation alone, and some merely by confession of faith.
(2) Some jurisdictions receive Roman Catholic clergy converting to Holy Orthodoxy merely by vesting, while others ordain.
(3) Some jurisdictions recognize all marriages performed outside Holy Orthodoxy as being real marriages (though certainly not sacramental) whether performed for an Orthodox or non-Orthodox, while others recognize no marriages performed outside Holy Orthodoxy whether performed for an Orthodox or a non-Orthodox.
(4) Some Orthodox jurisdictions bury suicides under certain circumstances, while others forbid the burial of suicides under all circumstances.
(5) Some jurisdictions bury a person who was cremated with all funeral rites in the church temple, others permit only Trisagion Prayers of Mercy in the funeral home, and some forbid any prayers anywhere for a person who was cremated.
(6) Some jurisdictions recognize civil divorce as complete and sufficient for ecclesiastical purposes, while others do not recognize civil divorce at all and insist on Ecclesiastical Courts.
(7) Some jurisdictions have in the past accepted clergy suspended or even deposed by other jurisdictions.
And this list is by no means exhaustive. This means there is serious work ahead, and this may not sound very appealing. Some of us may wish to avoid this difficult work and settle for easy pronouncements about unity, but the Gospel compels us otherwise.
To be sure, this Pharonite will not cut and run. This Greek-American is Greek Orthodox. The Ecumenical Throne cannot be distinguished and somehow removed from the Orthodox Church as Greek cannot be removed from the Orthodox faith. This is the true Church. Is it really too much to ask our clergy spent their tenure as a priest learning the language of the Bible and the church fathers? We expect immigrants to learn English but we accept ignorance and stagnation from our shepherds who would have us exchange excellence or mediocrity. Pitiful.
On a positive note: I applaud the 55 hierarchs who participated and attended the Assembly acknowledging by their presence the role of the Ecumenical Patriarch.
2 comments:
I'm gonna sound really uninformed here, not being the type to follow on Church politics but...what exactly is going on here?
visit www.goarch.org and read up on episcopal assembly. orthodox rebels essentially want to succeed from patriarchates and definately Ecumenical Patriarchate following a protestant ideal (schism). unity in america must not be at the expense of church tradition. they need to work through many issues ennumerated. thanks for asking and keep reading!!!
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