$HUN$H HgU$ AN INDEPENDENTPUBLICATION OF CRTHODOXCHURCH OPINION

.Juiy1997 Vol 9 No 7(63i

Republrcatronpermltted upon acknowledqment oi source

SOS

MEMBERSOF THE RUSSIANORTHODOX CHURCH ABROAD:

AWAKE! COMETO YOURSENSESi

OUR CHURCHIS SUFFERING SHIPWRECK!

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CHURCHNEWS 639Center Street Oradell,NJ 07679 1 THEAGONY OF THERUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH OUTSIDE OF RUSSIA

In connectionwith the tragic events of the criminalseizure by the Moscow patriarchateof the Monaster-yat Abraham'soak, the internationalpress, the Internetand e-maiiinnumerable accounts were published,often oescribing the events ft"ompersonai points of view and. therefore,not always accurate. Consequenily due io the amount of materlaireceived regarding this case the editorialoffice of "ChurchNews" ejecicjed to publishmainly information or thatwhich seems to be reliablycoi-rect Perhapsreaders "church of News" rememberthat in 1995 {lssue # 5A (4g)} we i"elatedthe very disturbing situationof the Ecclestastical Missicn in Jerusalem,which !'esultedrn very strainedrelations between Chief cf the Mission,Archimandrite Theodosios, a syrnpathizerwith the MoscowPatriarchate and AbbessJuliana who opposedit. Evenat that time,instead at givingher full support.the Synodof Bishopsrntended not to removea pro-sovietChief of the Mission,but the .who was defendingthe basic positionsof the Synod Onl;i due to a storm of protestsfrom differentsides was the Synodforced to let the Abbessstay on (untiitne next convenrentmoment) and even to replace Archimandrite Theodosywith Archtmancirite Barthoiomew, w'ho started to cooperatewrth Mother Juliana. ln 1994 (it seems) the Synodof the ROCA sold a piece of reai estatebeiongrng to the palestineorthodox Societyin which was the Tree of Zacheas At least this is what was reportedby the Russianlanguage newspaper "NovoyeVremia" ("New Time") publrshed in Jerusalemt# Z3lg7,\.At presentthrs questron rs underinvestrgatron by the POS'slawyers. News of the iossof Jerrchoplot became known only ln the 1gg5 In Februaryof 1g97Brsnop (Grabbe)while meetingwith Arafat'srepresentatrves in connectionwith ine seizureof the land containingthe Tree of Zacheas,accidentatiy found out thai the chref of tne Mission ArchrmandrrteTheodosy, already hao conciuoedan agreementwith the rnayor of Hebron to "rent"large piots of land aroundthe Abraham'sOak for 99 yearsfor a lumpsum of $140.000 After reeeiving a copy of the mayor'sietter addressedto ArchimandrrteBartholomew. Anthony immediatelythrough Fr P. Holodny(charged with overseeingthe Mission'sfinanciai affairs)foru,iar,led ii to ihe Synodof Btshops,at the same tir-neofferrng the synod his full cooperltion in the event of a legal suit to defendthrs ptace. The Synodof Bishopsdici nct hcnor him with any reply. Hopingto in scnaeway tc directconcern of the Synodof Bishopstc thts rnatter.the "Church editorialoffice of News"sent a copyof the sar"neletter to the Secretaryof the Synodof , At'chbishopLaurus but here againthere was no reaction.The Synodof Bishopsalso In no wa!/reacted to the seizureof the ZacheasTree and rts handrngover by Arafatto the MoscowPatriarchate, although it was, withoutdoubt, aware of this Betweenthe appearanceof the MoscowPatriarch at the gaie of the convent on ihe fu'lountof oiives on the Holy SpiritDay (June 15th)and the seizureof Abraham'sOak nearly3 weekspassed. The braveMotner Abbess spent them in Hebron. stayingthei"e almost alone, with only a few , one invalidmonk and Fr- Andronik consiantiybeing threatenedby police the Arab In spiteher effortsduring all this time to get in tcuch with the synod it pretendednct to exist As it was discovereoby one of the priests,who took pity on the hopelessstate of MotherJuliana that Metropoiiian Vitaly (at the peak of the tragedydeveloping in Hebron)went on vacation.. in France The DeputySecretary of the Synod, Bishop Gabriel due to famiiy circumstancesstayed in Austraiia,and the Secretaryof tne Synoo Arcnbishop Laurus himselfcoulci not advise on how to get in iouch with the Metropoiiianand rn qenerai showed a very lrmited inierestin this matter Only when Hebronwas irrevocablylost, did there (in absentraof the Metropoirtan)appear, very characteristic of the Synodof recentdays, an "UrgentDirective to All the Priestsand Fartnful" These dii-ectiveswere writtenin English onl;; had no dateand outgoingnumber and insteadof a genuinesignature by MetropolitanViialy a facsimilein Russianwas affixedl lt was sentout imrnedratelyafter the seizurecf Hebroncn July5th The directivesstated that the priests,after SundayLiturgy, were to serve a rnolebenand then reprintand hand out the copiesadvising llow to write p!-oteststo Americansenators ano congressmen To whomthis molebenwas to be servedand what petitionswere to be saidwas leftto the inventionof the indivrdualplests ',urgent However.as if havrngsecond thoughts. exacillr a month laterafter the first directive,,on AugustSth the Synodoffice sent out to all the parishesa "petrtronfor the AugmentedEctenia of molebensor the Liturgy,'.The priests receivedwithout any coveringletter a sheetwith following text: "We also ask Thee,our Lord and God,to help us and our brethren,the resrdentsof the holy monasterywhich is in Hebron, and to returnto us our property.so that our brethren.expelled by the authoritiesat the instigationof servants of the churchwho trampledon conscienceand fear of God,might live there again. "We also ask for forgivenessof our transgressionsfor the sakeof Thy mercyand to returnour property,the holy monasterytn Hebron,which was unlustlyseized, so that in it again would be elevatedthe prayersof our brethren, ,olorifyingThee our God,giorified and worshippedin HotyTrinity.,, Throughcutall these actions,or more accuratelythis criminalinaction, of the presentleadership of the ROCA it is evidenithat it totallyignored the very basic principlesof its own existence. lt has forgottenthat the holy Tikhonanathematized the Communistsand all thosewho collaboratewith the godlessauthorities. During the first glorificattcn servicefor the new Martyrsand Confesscrsof RussianChurch, the bynod's protodeaconread this Patriarchal epistlefrom the ambo. This anathemawas never lifted. And the Moscowpatriarchate never mentionsit. 2 whilethe presentleadership of the ROCApretends never to have heardit. This,although for a good ten yearsin each of the servicesto the New ;,Weeping, Martyrs and Confessor"scf Russia there is chanted at Vlspers: sadness and woefulness:behold the scrollof Hezekiel,which filled your soul, Hoiy ,our patriarch. Let us now hear aiso your voice:brethren, archpastors ano ,cal! your childrento defendtne OrthocjoxChurch. Let the destroyersof the churchesof your God hear fieryword.. by ihe auihoritygiven to us by Goci.we anathematizeyou O ierribteeveriasiing excommunication!Behoid the anathema,which can be liftedby no one! Beholdthe patriarchalboldnessj" This service was composedby ArchbishopAnihony of San Francisco,who ai present sees no obstaclesto unificationwith the Moscow Patrtarchate. MetropolitanAnastasy's testament, which at the time niade was made widely known -- now ccnsrderedtc be outdated-- states "As far as the Moscow Patriarchateis cancernedand its hierarchs sincethey, areln closeand actrvevoluntary union wlth the Sovr'ef Government, whtch openly confes-ses its comptete godlessne-s-sand which urges imptantation af atheismamong fire Russtan Beopte,therefore the ChurchAbroad guardingher purity should not haie any canonicalar prayer or even sacial relationship with them. at the same time leaving each one of inem to final judgement by a future Council of the Free Russr'anChurch"" As is weli known, there has been no Council of the Russian Churcn which would ludge hierarchswho collaborated godless with the Eovernment.Objections, on the pretextthai now the Churchrs free and everytninghas changedfor the betier,can be acceptedonly cn the basisof a desireto ignorethe actualsituation and with the goat of uniting with the MoscowPatriarchate under any conditions.For example it is commonknowledge that all the churches in the Kremlinand the iarge monasteriesdo not belong to the Moscow Patriarchate.but ir-e governmentowned museums, with whose agreementihe Patriarchateoccasionally rs permittedto hold servtcesin them. The Moscow Fatriarchate continuesio confess the sergianist heresy, which was conciemnedin 1g27 by ihe New Martyrs and Confessorsof Russiaas well as by the ROCA. lt has signed the so-called"Balamand Union" and remainsan active member of the WCC,which represents all ihe exisiingheresies in the world. The goaiof thisorganization is to uniteali the ' Christiansand by the year 2000 to establish"one worid religion Now thereare everinon-Christians particrpating in thrscrganizaticn. pr"iest In 1979 G. Yakuninmanaged to send abroada copy of a reportby the DeputyPresident of the Councilfor relrgious matters,V Fourov.',who presentedit to the centr-alcommittee of the communistparty. Fourovdirrided the wholeepiscopate into three categories (the main brshops of everygroup lrsred bv name) In thefirst group are. "The ruling Brshoos,who by words and deeds testtfy not only loyalty nut aiso patrtotism tourardthe sociatist socte/y,strictly obseruing the laws about cultsand bring up rn thrssprrft the clergyand fathful are cansciausof the realtly

effoft in order to spreadthe influenceof Orthodoxyamang the populace Among them can be tnctuded patriarchpimen, the Meirapolitans ALEXISAF TALLIN(the presentPatriarch since1990) Youvenatyaf Tuta palady of Ortov. Sergiusof Odessa. af Alma-Ata;the :Nikodim af Kharkov,Pitirim of Volokolomsk,Metiton of Tikhvtn,Jonathan Kishenev of Gregoryof Mukachevo,Atipy of Vinnitsa,Leonty of Simferopol,the Bishops: Jonasof Stavropol,platon of Voronezh.Ntcholas af Perm and in recent times, alsoMetropatitan Seraphim of Krutitsa." Thanksio ihe same Yakounin,we iearneda whole numberof KGB agent cocle-namesfor those coiiaborators ,'patriarch,, with the godlessgovernment and. in particular,we know now that the agent code-nameof the present ts "Drozdov"! ls not ii astoundingihat the majoi'ityof the hierarchyof the ROCA would make such an effort to unite with MoscowPatriarchate. rgncr-tng the testamentsof the threeformer Chief Hierarchs and closingits eyes to the fact that the presentHead of the Russianchurch is noihingbut a very largescale KGB agent?l A steadfast\ryoman Abrbess -luliana, Arab by nationality.does understandsomething our Russianhierarchs do not want to understand"and who insteadof honoringher for defending,at the risk of her lrfe,the basic principlesof extstenceof the ChurchAbroad. managed to accuseher of "disobedience"and beganto persecuteher. When the tragedyof transferof the propertyof the ROCA was compieted.only then did the Synodof Bishops sendto Jerusalema largecommittee chatred by ArchbishopMark, who is a mainagent active in completingthe plan to unitethe ROC with MoscowPatriarchatel He was loined from variousplaces (supposedly to negotiatewith Arafatthe returnof Abraham'sOak, but as is evidentfrom futuredocumentation, just to apologizeto Arafat):Bishops Gabriel and Kyrill' Potapov and Larin (ArchprtestV. Lukianovfell ill and could not go) and even the protodeaconE. Burbelo.The arrivaiof forrnerChiefs of the Missron,Archimandrites Alexis and Theodosioswas alsoexpected. During a conversationof the editorsof "ChurchNews" with two prominentmitered archpriests of the Church Abroadon July 5th, bothpriests trred to assureus. that thereis no reasonto be aiarmed,because both are ,,inimmediate ;ontactwith Jerusalem"as well as amongthemseives and will take all the necessarymeasures to save Hebronl It seemsihat the piiest of the ChurchAbroad, A. Lebedevtook upon himselfio be a spokesmanfor ihe Synodof Bishopson the Internet.On July 7th, in nameof the Secretaryof Synodof Bishops, Laurus, he publishedthe fcllowingpress release: .i "On the morning of Saturday,Juiy 5 (Jerusalerntime) the civil and armedforces of the palestinranAuthority arrived at the Russian Holy Trinity "Abraham's Oak" in Hebron.This monasteryis the propertyOF THE RUSSIANORTHODOX CHURCHOUTSIDE RUSSIA, an Americanlegal church body, duty incorporated under the taws of theStateof NewYork,U.S.A. quarteredatT5Eastg3rdStreet, NlwYorkCity, N.y. 1o1ZB,Tetephone (212)534- 1601. "The armedforces demandecithe occupantsof our Monasteryvacate the property"within an hour and a half'" upon their refusal,brute force was empioyed,resulting in the hospitaiizationof ihe Abbessas well as bodily injuryto othermonastics. "One cf the cccupants. a cieric of cur Church,an elderly slck rnan was not permittedto leave and is being forciblydetained. We are unableto conrmunicatewith hirnand are concernedfor- his welfare. "Thisaction ts rn flagrant violationof internationallaw and we urgentlyappeat to our UnitedStates offleials, both at home and in lsrael.to iake whateverlegal steps necessaryto redressthis moraloutrage and returnour propertyIn Hebronto ouf legalmonastrc resrdents "ArchbishopLaurus, Secretary,Synod of Bishopsof the RussranOrthociox Church Outside of Russia july 7th. 1997."

The very same ArcnprrestA. Lebedevon July 1gth,1997 made through the Internetan announcementto the presswhich stated regarding the commrtteechaired by ArchbishopMark "...The SynodalCommission in the HolyLand reported to the Synodof Bishopsthat during their meetrng with the PresidentArafat on July 12, ArchbishopMarx expressedhis drspleasurecver the refusal of a small group of our monastics at'Abraham'sOak'monastery to aliowthePairiarch of Moscowrnio ihe groundsof Monasiery.The Synodal Commission expressed ta President Arafat its apologiesfor thrs rncrdentanc; exftained to him that dunng rtsspring session. heid in t''lew York on May 13th. the Synod of Bishops of the RussrarrAfthadox Church Outsideof Russia instructedthe admnistration of i,te RussranEcclesrasfical f/lission rn Jerusaiemto adnit to itshoryplaces the patriarchof Moscow during hr,svis# to the Hcly Land, and treat hlm tvith dignrtyanci respect lJnfcftunately, this directive was foltcwed onlyin pad " (Ernphasisby, "Ch N.") In a letterto PresidentArafat, the FirstHlerarch of our Chur-chMetropolrtan Vrtaly wr"otethe following. "We deplore the fact that as a resultof the disobedrenceta the Synorl of ceriatn membersof our Mission,your Excellency feels aggravated,anci we sincerely ask you to acceptour mosf numbie apalogtes We wili, in turn, take disciplinary action against fhose responsiblefor this improper behavtour and see to t that such incidentswtil neverbe repeated."(Emphasis by "Ch.N.") It is simplyimpossible to believethat such an disgracefulletter in the nameof the FrrsiHierai-ch of the ROCA addressed to a Muslim.who desecratedan OrthodoxChurch could be signedrndeed by the Metropolitanhimselfl ls it not possiblethat his secretariesaffixed to this outrageousletter a facsimileivithout his knoivledge? As a resultof theseevents Abbess Juliana on July 4l17th.the day commemoratingthe Holy lmperialMartyrs, wroteto MetropelitanVttaly the followingletter in Russianon the Mt of OlivesConvent statronerv:

"YourBeatitucie Holy Vladyka: Biess! "l am now writingyou a recapitulationof ihe evenisio whichI was a witness. I had heardof the Synod'sdecision thatwe weretc receivePaii"iarch Alexis ll and his group,so ihat they'could serve a pannikhidafor ArchimandriteAntonin. [At'chirnandriteAntcntn Kapustin Head of the Russian EcclesiasticalMissicn in Jerusalemfrcm 1865-94,had been purchasrng responsiblefor most cf the land owned by the lt4rssionin the Holy Land.l But I acted accordingto my consclence l' personallyl, refusedto deiiverthe speechto the Patnarch,since, standingthere beforethe television cameras,lwould havedisgraced myself before the wholeworld!!l As 'We far as lcan recall,the textof the writtengreeting went somethinglike this: greetyou not as the Patriarcnof All Russia,but as the guestof the patriarchof Jerlsalenl Diodoros.' Thisseemed to me absurd Any sort of greetrngis. afterall, still a greeting;and while I stood there holding piece paper the of tn my hands,the reporterswouid have put totallydifferent words into my mouth Andby the very nature of the affair, I would have been obliged to take hrs blessrng. By greeting him, even if insincerely - out of obedience, I would have acted againstmy conscience. We have hanging here on the wall the lJkaz of the 'The Synod of Bishopsof April 19, 1994,which I quoteverbatim. clergyof the MoscowPatriarchate and otherjurisdictions are not permitted to performany serviceswhatsoever on the territoryof our monasticcommunities (i e., they are not to don an epitrakhilion,perform lities, motebens, etc.).' "OUESTION:When. at what time,was this standingUkaz abrogated? Since when do we have dealingswith the fioscow Patriarchate? After all, this was the arrival in the Holy Land of representatiyesof the ecctesiastichierarchy on whose conscr'enceare iens of millions of tortured and murdered Russian clergymen and laymen The days of their soJournin the Holy Land are days of mourning. Just recently,only you 'My six monthsago, wrote in your letterto Vladyka : three predecessors,the Metropolitansof blessedmemory, have preciseiyand clearly indicatedto us the correctpath. I arnrnerely striving to hold to their instructionsand to continueto followthe true,uncompromising path., 4 Holy Master. one should not blame Vladyka Barnabasalone, as ArchbishopMark and his secretariesat Gethsemaneare doingnow, a monthafter the event,thus attemptingto blackenhis namebefore the wholewortd. lt was my personaldecision, since principles. I have my my ooiicy,which i have alwaysadhered io, and whichhaci aiways been professedby our cnurch. This is not simpiymy own opinion;there are many people,both abroadand in Russia,who to this very day do not wish io have any contactwiih the MoscowPaii-iaichate untii she repents. Many,both from abroacj and from Russia,anxiously begged me not to i-eceivethenr [the patriarchand entoui"age] "Fiftyyears ago by deceitfulrneans. his predecessorof the sarnename, Alexis l, dividedthe conventat Go;-ny the New City of Jei"usalern]. placed fin He AbbessAntonina in the So,.,retsrde. Oui'churchwas shut. \y'Jetived with them like that for three yearsl And then v/e were fcrced to flee, flee in the night to flee whereverour legs woutdcarry us, l cannat forgivethem for Gorny -- the cradle of my,5ssprsticism "ln like manner.(before preseni the incidentin Hebron.when the frenziedwomen soiciers dragged me along the floor like some criminal), they nat oniy offered me, but at firstfor a tong trme soughtto convtnceme, and then threatened fo use farce ta compel me ta live together with the Soyr'efsin peaceancl harmonyii "Theseare people of a spiritforeign to us. yet... it is interesirngthat from amongthose who accompanred VladykaMark, one respectabieand venerabiefigure from 'Ihe;'didn'tbeatthemenough'i! Synodlost hrsself-restraint and rnthe hearingof all expressed himselfthus: AllofourwoeshereintheHolyLandbeganwrththevisitoithepatriarch Alexisand his groupon 'by June 12 One lgumenof the ChurchAbroad Fr LohnMagramm chance'foundhimself at the Lord'sTomb at sevenrn the evening *nen the Greeks*"r" i".*iu'ng ,;r Cu".i He has no excuse "Accordingto ViadykaMark, he learnedof all that had taken piace only on the eve of his arrivaihere. and then only from the newspapersand from those not directlyinvolved, not from hrsfeltow hierarchs i-leabandoned everything io come here and save our position;his diocese,the monasieryano a seriesof feasi ciaysof his churches-- the imperial Martyrs'St of Radonezh.the Kazanlcon of the Motherof Goci The Head of the lvlrssionand I met hrm. He is stayinghere rsith us at Eleon. On the third day VladykaKyrill of San Frangscoarrived; he toc is here at Eleon,where ihe Headof the I'Iission.Fi. Barlholomers,and his chancelleryare located "We are awattingFatners Larin, Vrctcr Potapcv and Er-rgeneBurbello. But for some reason,for some inexplicablecause everyoneis conductingbusiness at Gethsemane(at lrapezar/ladyka Mark even apologizedto all that he is seen -- here in oasstng) exceptfor the Headof the Mrssion They do sometimescome here to pay callson the latter "We learnedthai for two days now the FathersGeorge and Eugenehave been stayingat Gethsemane.They supposedly broughtforty kriosof the Mission'spapers and documents For some reasonthese papersare not berng returnedto the chancellery of the Misstonat Eleon,to theirproper place fromwhich they were removed by someoneat sometime They [the documents]are beingexamined in Gethsemanevrhithei' the iwo hrerarchsand the head of the Missionhimself descend each day Hischancellery is practicallyempty thereis nothingrn the frlesl "How canrve beiteve that all thtstook place wrthout the knowteogeof thosewho are worKingso intenselybehtnd the backof ihe Heacjof the Missionappoinied by you ancjihe Church?iViaoyka Kyriii arrived ,n oi.je,io giveihe group a more weightyappearance. But he is not weii-informedconcerning rhrs matter and oy hrs nobrlttyof souiand by his upbringinghe is iii-suriedfor ai^gumentsand unpieasantness.And the PoiapovsLarins and ioucjBurbeiio won't give him an oppodunityto speak anfway ) Was not all this, which is novutakrnE piace on tne occasionof the so-caiied.iSoth ann,versaryof the Missicn lthe RussianEcclesiastical lJlission which openec In Jei-usaiemin 1842]planned long ago? They muchwanted to di'awus togethei'withthe MosccwPatriai-chaie -- -- "'sry desprteou1 own wishes and thereforeat the last sesslcn of the Synod they strovesc intenselyto obtain t-he 'o,yer ukazlhat all our rnonasteriesshor,rld recerve the So'rietPatriar"ch, and a cuo of tea' at that "And plan now thatthrs has miscarried.ihat we naturallydid not wantto meetwith them (even Vladyka Gabriel. in parting, said that he wouid not permitthem to crossthe thresholdof the Synodbuildrng - wouidyou realtyallow them to. -- Vladyka?) well. now a way out of thrs predicament,caused by the fight rn Hebron and arrangedby order of the infuriatedMoscow Patriarchate and Arafat.has been found. And now this groupwhich is hasteningthis rapprocnement is compellingyou to ask forgivenessof Arafat,i.e., by this meansyou aregivtng Arafatthe greei light ta transferour praperty ta the Moscow Patriarchate. You are being compelled to apatagize, io discredityour authority, before the very ones who have inflicted blows and insults upon yoar awn representativesrn Jerusalem, Fr. Baftholomew, upon the manks,fhe abbess,and the srsfers. is then the path to reconciliationstrewn wrth beatings,rnsults, and abuse? l-loly Master,this biow was strucknot at us. but, rn your person,at the entireDiaspora at the hLad of which you stand! ii is flieywho shotrldmake a prostrationto the groundbefore you and ask forgiveness To this I shouldlike to add that those surroundingyou giveyou false information;they seekto frightenyou. "ln summary,this is howwe perceiveall that has takenplace. "Their origina!plan rniscarriedon the Mondayof the Holy Spirit. When the armedsoldiers and patriarchAlexis enteredthe monastery,Evseev {the traitor-)alone remainedof ihat group which had preparedthis 'peaceful reception'{to quote the Synod'sdecision) or unification. Evidentlythey were not expectingus to come there, since Hebron was not rnentionedon the Patriarch'sprogram. Evseey (the traitor-novice)was countingon nat being the anly 3

one of them there. Postfactum we learned that he had often receivedthe Head of the SovietEcclesiastical Mission and Fr Gury of the Moscaw Patriarchate,that he had often receivedthe Russian Ambassador,that fie often chattedon the telephone wfh Abbess Anna, and that he had paid visrTsfo her at Gethsenane Our fortuitous presence at Hebron prevented all thesepecpie fl"om coming there for the arrivalof the Patriarch.And Evseev,being a mere novice,did not cjareto ask the Patriarchto receivethe eniirecommunity and himselfunder his guardianshipon the basisthat therewere no Russian in the Russian monastery. There are Americans,Australians, Frenchmen. etc. Followingthe unsuccessfulvisit of the Patriarch,fvseev ciidnot acceptthe ukaz of the Head of ihe f/lissionconcerning his transferal. did not permithrm to cioss the threshoidcf his ceil.and even dai-edto be rudeto him. "On the |tlanday of the Holy Spirit the Mcscow Patrlarchate did nct arrive lo seizecur own real esfafe frcrn us; she acfed as lhe savereignowner. On July 5. forty-eighthours before the seizure of the monasteryby storrn,it becarne clear at the Land RegistryOffice in Hebr"on"that in Februar"yof 1997a warrantof powerof attorneyhad been submitted to that office by PatriarchAlexis in the name of Sergei lvanovichVasnev r e the Head of the Soviet Mission.Fr Theodosy,Abbess Anna had receiveda teiephonecall from Sergei lvanovich(Arcnimandlte Theodosius) and had informedthe Synod, withoutsaying a word io her immediatesuperior the Headof the Mrssron[of ROCA]. "HolyMaster. in lightof the above,the affairis clearto everyonein the Hoiy Land how cloyour lettersto Arafat and to PatriarchDiodoros appear now, with the proffereddistress over the unsuccessfuireceptron of Alexisll. with your deferentialassurance to themthat thoseguilty will be punishedand that suchdeplorable events wrli not happenrn the future? Apartfr-om the censureof our firm stance-- followingthe exampleof the many mrllronsof Russianmartyrs before the representativesof the pseudo-Patriarch.these lettersgive assuranceto any conspiratorsthat for the futurethev can act unimpedeo "Hoiy Masier.these iettershave astonishedeveryone in ihe Near Easi The resultberng ihai in o,'ficiaicii-cies whei'ecur Chur"chv'ras uniil very recentlyregarded for her courage.she has now iosther holyface "i-lcly lvlastei'.can it reallybe that all is over,and that thei'ers no more hope of i'eturningto our Churchihe sprrri of confessionaccording to whichshe livedand raisedher- children untrl thrs very day? Returnit to Her. returnit, Vladykal We are penshlng "YourBeatrtude's senrant. Unworthy Abbess Juliana. and sister's'

After not receivingany answerfrom tne Metropoiitanto ner tetter.{or even from his Secretaryon his order). Motheriuirana on juiy 8i2i againwrote Metropolitan Vrtaly the followrng short letter.

"Youi-Beatitude Holy Vladyka. Blessi 'r'ou "l ui'genilyask to respondto the questionsposed by me ion my ietterto you of July 4117,since I very much need your instructionsrn dectdingproblems which face us here daily VladykaMark's presence here is not clearingthe situationup since he does not informeither the Head of the Missronor us what sort of measureshe rs takrng and he l(eepseverythrng a secret "l askfcr yourholy orayers and blessrng.Your Beatitude's servant, unworthy Abbess juirana. and Sisters."

EvidentlyMother Abbess did not receiveany answerto this iettereither.

On July 12l25thAbbess Juliana widely circulated an Englishlanguage OPEN LETTERTO ALL ORTHODOX CHRISTIANS,quoted here rn rtsentrrety and exacilyas writien:

"DearFriends rn Chrrstt "we have recetvecimany messagesregaroing the presentcrisis in our noiy monastenes.[sicj everyoneseems dismayecibui aiso supporiiveof us. howeverihere is naiuraliyconfusion ancj we hope io ciear up whai we can bir this expianation. As time passes we are realizingthat under the simple but savage and rliegalseizure of our Hebron monasterylies a more complexweb of rntriguein high placeswhich cannotbe unraveledcompletely yet but which is obvious. Thoughcaught in its snares.we do trustthat God will bringtruth to light in His own [sic]time; meanwhilewe understandthrs much "1 Beforeleaving Russia io visit the Holy Land the Patriarchof Moscowsaid openlythat he intendedto take over the Holy Siteswhich have continuouslybelonged to the RussianOrthodox Chur-ch Abroad. This alertedus and we resoivedto guarcjthese SacredPlaces carefully as tne officiaistance of the ROCA has repeatedlyre-affirmed that, as written in the Ukaz of our Synod of Aprii 19. 1994, "THE CLERGYOF THE MOSCOW PATRTARCHATEARE NOT ALLOWEDTO CARRYOUT ANY KIND OF DIVINESERVICE (thai is, put on an epitrakhilion,perform a litiyaor prayer service,etc.) ON THETERRITORY OF OURMONASTERTES. "2. Therefore,when the Moscow Patriarchateappeared at the gate of the Convent of the Ascension with his entourageincluding hierarchs of the Grsek OrthodoxPatriarchate in Jerusalemand televisioncameras, and requested entry for the purposeof conductinga prayerservice at the tornbof ArchimandriteAntonin, Abbess Juliana, flanked bv o VladykaVarnava and Archimandrite Bartholomew,Chief of the RussianMission [to Jerusalemof ROCA].simply told him that she couldnot gate open the to him. She couldnot have done otherwisein good consciencewithoui scandalizing all who trusted 'welcome, in the integrityof the ROCA nor could she submitto be shownon TV readinga to a patriarch-- and takinga blessingfrom him -- with whomour church is not rn communion. .'HOWEVER; '97, WHAT WE DID NIOTKNOW VIAS THAT ON MAY 13. METROPOL|TANAND THE SYNOD REVOKED 'ADMIT THE PREVIOUSUKAZ AND INSTRUCTEDTHE MISSIONIN JERUSALEMTO THE PATRIARCH TO OUR HOLY PLACES,TO TREAT HIM \^'iITHDIGNITY AND RESPECTAND GIVE HIM TEA"! ThAtthiS WAS A WEII- kept secretseems clear in that when a Sisterinquired of Vladykafvlark regarding rumors that AbbessJuliana was tc be punished, 'Whir? [asking,] Are we in comrnunionvvith Moscow?' VladykaMarX, wno had arrivedsuddenly, assured her that'we are not.' lt is interestingtherefore that yesterday(July 11124)'befor"eleaving us Vladykasaid that the Ukaz had been revoked. Confusing,is it not? Therers more. "3" puzzling We are over faxes sent by MetropolitanVitaly regardingthe violent seizure of the Hebron Monastery. To the ApostolrcDelegate. Mgr.. Nougeinte.to Mgr Saoah Latin Patriarchof Jerusalemancj to the Armenian PatrlarchMankooian, he wrotefor supportin this time of iliegalseizure and inhumaneand brutalmaltreatment of our monastics.etc.' While to PatriarchDiodoros 'disobedience and to Arafat in vJry differentstyle, humbiy begging pardon for the of somemembers of our Mission'and promisingpunishment of them "certainly very contradicting[sic] nressagesregarding the attack rncitedby the Moscow patriarchateand accomplrshedby Arafat'sarmed thugs! "ln sharpcontrast to the manymessages of supportand encouragementwe are receivingfrom all sectionsof the OrthoooxChristran worid, we are surroundedhere by inexplicablehostrlrty and slanderswhrcn are beyond belref, especiaily comingfrom ciergyand monasticswhom we would expecito orsplay if not open support,at leastfear of Godi 'very Someexamples Metropolitan Vitaly. who surelyknows better. has said of Abbessiuliana that she is emotionaland has 'must no diplomacyand doesn't speak the truth'! He aiso says that she be i"eplaced.,\,\le have kept the Metropolitan fuily informedof the happeningshei-e and can only assumeihat thosepersons near him are misleadinghim with liesfor theircvr'n purposes "Bishop Varnavareturned to Francesoon after the eprsodeat the gate of the Mt. of Olives Convent,having shown supportfor"the Abbess's decision not to admt the Patriarch BrshopKyrill of San Franciscowas our guestfor a short time but cjid not become involvedin the conferencesheld darly rn the GethsemaneConvent. For two weeks Vladyka Mark attendedthese and on occasionthe Chief [of the Mrssron]was presentbut not usually. Althoughboth hierarchswere guests of AbbessJuliana, they ratherignored her to spendentrre days in sessionswith Abbess Anna of Gethsemaneand otnersof similarantipaihy toward her One of VladykaMark's few'efforts' in our Conventwas to forbid AbbessJuliana to receiveor makeany telephone calls regardrng the situationsaying thai he wouldhandle them himself. It also transprredthat AbbessAnna intervenedin thesecalls Duringthrs time thJ mcnxsv",ho had been beatenand driven out of Hebron Monasterywere also requiredto be present at the meetrngsheld by Abbess Anna and they confirmedthat everyone there showed hostiliiy toward Mother Juliana presumably for rnterfelngin the plans.' "lt is mosi unpleasantto reportsuch a situationbut it rs necessaryto presentthe truth insofaras we have been 'pians' able to observeit ourselves.At this point it appearsinevitable that these mysterious wiil resuitin great and regrettablechanges here in the Eleon Convent For instance,it seems lrketythat the presentChief of the Russian Missionwili be repiacei by ArchimandriteAlexis [Rosenihui](now in Ausiraiia) in the interestof iruth it rs necessary hereto remarkthat manyamong our Sistershave suffei"edfrom himwhen he was hei'ebefore and will i-unfrom here if he returns. FatherThecdosy has earnedthe sarnereputation and both cf these men wrll be very usefulin the serviceof antichrist,whose eager servants are so busypreparing for his arrivalrn hrscapital city. "FINALLY,Abbress Juliana and the Sisier"swho share her pure Orthodoxyand her love for immortalsouls will have to leavethis conventso loveoand caredfor. with deep sorrowand compassionfor those who must remain. We beg yourholyr orayers for them and for us who mustcontinue 'Father, to followchnst. May we all prayas He did in His sufferino. forgivethem FOR THEY KNOW NOT WHAT THEY DO!' "

A postscriptto the abovein the handof MotherJuiiana:

"12125July. 'the "l had [sic]phone cali from Met. V. who said that Greeks(Patr is not here, he is in Greece)& Arafatwant them{Synod) to take me & Fr. Bar-th.out -- we are evictedalreaoyl A Moslem 'Many 'iet interferesin our Synod'sdecisions. I said, wiii leavewith me.' them' -- lt is a very strangeand difficultto undersiandsituation, sure, the time of Antichrist s at hand! We thoughtit is far away. No! We do needfinancialhelpto take our books& tickets,maybe go by ship back to my belovedChile or where? i think 12-15people will go wiih me. Prayfor God'swill be done! | am sorryfoi- the rest of the srsters.Abb. Juliana" I

AbbessJuliana in her open letterrefers to twc formerChiefs of the Mission.Archimandrites Alexis (Rosenthul) and Theodosy(Clare). Eachof them,with their departure, left behinda very sorrymemory. ArchimandriteAlexis did not hesitateto enter nuns' cells,open thetrchests of drawersand turn upsidedown their lingerie. He forbadethe nuns to wear certainarticles of iheir iingerie. ArchimandriteTheodosy noi only persecutedAbbess Juliana for her oppositionto his politicsof communications with the MoscowPatriarchate, but in October1995 the ArchpriestMichael de Castelba.yac,Priest euentin de Castelbajac and Protodeaconlvanoff-Trinadzaty were writing to MetropoliianVrialy that "Abbess Juliana deservesrather to be rewardedand thanked.and not dismissed,"because if at that iime "we did not loose Hebronrs due exclusivelyto her effortsand often visitailonsof this hcly place". Probablyintending to hand oyer Hebronto the Mcscow patriarchate, ArchimandriteTheodos,' let 5 or 6 monksfr"orn Kievo-Pecherskaya Lavra live there. He was the one who askedfor a loanof $250,000from a bank(which has depositsfrom the MoscowPatriarchate) in orderto r"epair-a wall aroundconvent on the Mt of Olives In 1995 he petrtionedthe Synodof Bishopsto removeAbbess Juliana and replaceher with Moisseya.Some time ago tne lsraelipoiice made it knownthat they irst her as an agentof the formerUSSR. In addition, she was a memberof the Synodcommission which met with Arafatregarding the Hebroncase lt is very possiblethat thisparticular nun will be apporntedAbbess to replaceMother Jutrana The Chiefof the Mission,Archrmandrite Bartholomew via e-marlrelated many detaiisof the brutalseizui-e of Hebron,nameiy that monasticshad their hands twisted,were beaten,throvyn to the flocr of a truck or forced into passengercars Aii of this did not preventthe Moscow Patriarchatefrom makingstatements to the press that "the 'all membersof the Paiestiniansecurity forces were "actingproperly' and that the keys from premiseswere voluntarily gtvento the authoritiespresent to be transferredto tne lPatnarchate's]Ecclesiastrcai Mission in Jerusalem."This was saici on Juiy 15th by a spokesmanof the Moscow Patriarchates Departmentfor Foreign Affairs to a reporter of "Commersant-Daity"Not wishingto left out of the false statementsof the MoscowPatriarchate, the GeneralSecretary of the ierusaiemOrthodox Patriarchaie, the t/etropolitanof Lydda Timotheoson Julyi7th. 1997,published his own press releaseentitled "Russian monastery in Hebronis retui'nedto iis legal c'wner-- the MosccwPatriarchate" Metropolitan Timotheosshamelessly asserts. regarding the evicticnof representatrvesof tne ChurchAbroad ft"onr the monasteryof Hebron,ii shouldbe notedihat "afterthe voluntaryhandrng over of the xeysto the locatauihortes, they were offeredthe opportunityof leavingthe monastery. However,they refused to follow dtrectronsvtihch forced more orastic,??easuresoe taken against which them, were carriedout by the secunty forcestn orcierto executethe decistonof the teadership' of the PalestintanNational Authority.il The churchlocated nearAbraham's oak was completedrn fact onlyAFTER THE RUSSTANREVOLUTIoN with offerrngsfrom Russianrefugees and consecratedin'1921 by PatriarchDamian and MetropoiitanAnastasy laterthe secondFirst Hierarch of the RocA. The monasterybuilding was already burli The assaulton the inhabitantsof the Monasteryand bloodyface of MotherJuliana were shown around the world on the TV news channelCNN. reportedin al! the internationalpress and oniy the Moscowand Jer"usalempatriarchates are not ashamedto insistbefore the eniire world that the keys from the monasterywere "voluntarilyhanded over,'to Arafat'sforces by the owners! All the iniernationalpress which reportedthe tragedyin Hebronunanimously stressed that this was an extremely lmportantvictory of AlexisRidiger. Somepublications just reportedthe eventsaRd some offeredtheir congratulationsto the MoscowPatriarchate MeirooolitanTimoiheos, in the name of Brotherhoodof the Holy Sepulchre,congratulated Archimandrite Theodossy,the head of Mcsccw'sMission and askedthat his congratulationsbe fonwardedto the F-4oscowPatriarchate. The head of "The OrthadoxChurch in Arnerica",which gainedits "autccephaly"(r^ecognized to this day b!, no one else from the same MoscowPatriarchate, also joyfullygreeted the victoryof the Patriar'chatein his letterto AlexisRidiger of July 11. Only the Serbranmonastery in Visoki Dechaniexpressed through the Internettheir sympathywith the ROCA from BishopArtemije On July 3, 1997 ArchpriestAlexander Lebedev publishedon the Interneta short historicalessay on the establishmentof the ROCA,based upon the Ukazof PatriarchTikhon of November7ftA, rcz}, #362. Uponfinishing his explanations.He quitecorrecily notes. that "the ROCA did not'arrive'in Russiain 1990i li hasalways been an integral part of the Russiancatacomb church (in fact, many, if not most of the catacombcommunities commemorated the First Hierarchof the ChurchAbroad at their services." Yet he immediatelyconfesses that "there is much more constructive dialoguesgoing on betweenthe ROCA and the MP (at all levels) than some of these posts wouid indicate.The Archdioceseof Germanyand Great Britainhas held a seriesof round-tablediscussions with partictpationby bishops, rriests, and laymenfrom both sides. There is a ROCA protodeaconnow compietinghrs "candidate"studies at the ,vloscowTheological Academy (with the blessingof his bishop). Many priestsof the ROCAcorrespond by letter,e-mail, or telephonewith MP priests,and a great numberof contactsoccur duringvisits to Russiaby Synodalclergy and laity. The decisionof the Synod to receive PatriarchAlexei as pari of the delegationof the JerusalemFatriarch at cur churchesin Jerusalemis anotherindicaticn of attemptsat reasonablesoluticns. This does not mean that there are no difficultquestions to resolve." 8 Amongthe variousrnaterial received by our EditorialOffice was the followingletter: "To His Eminence,His BeatitudeMetropolitan VITALY, the FirstHierarch of the RCA fr-omprotodeacon Germain lvANo FF-TRINADTZATY", dared Jutv 14 t27 . 1997 . "YourEminence, Dear Vladyka Vitaiy. biess: "DearVladyka, you knowmy feelingsfor you. "For you me are our BANNER And for us, the rank and fiie. there is nothingmore painfulihan to see our Commander,the FirstHiei"arch. in ei"roi- "We knorvU/HAT YOU ihink.and vreare grievedwhen we see how ycu are beingMISINFORMED, how ycu are being MISLED,how your authorttyis used tr^rckingyou into 'higher srgningINSANE documents on the pretextof sornekind of diplomacy.'This diplomaclr is familrarto us froma longtime "While passing through Lyons you told me that Abbess Anna shoutdbe punrshedbecause she admittedthe false-PatriarchAlexis. And at this trmeyou expressedyour deep personalconvictions based upon our uncompromrsrng relationstoward the treacherousfalse-Patriarchate. Your inspinng Paschat Eprstiewas based upon this healthy confessionalview of the situation. 'apologize' "But WHAT is evidentfrom the ietterto Arafat which was grvento you to sign? We to him for. . breakingdown the doorsof our church.assaulting our monksand nuns and handingcver our propenyto Soviets! And after all that we are assuredthat all those who showed a uncompromisingstand againstthe false-patriarchwill be punished. "Rest assuredthat this ietteris ALREADYin Moscowand soon wrltbe knownto the entrreOrthodox world and we wiil becomethe laughingstock throughout the world... lt parnsme ro wrireihrs but rhrsrs the verytruth. which we haveto realizebecause only in this way can we recover. A mistakewas made a gravemistake but it does not meanwe haveto persistin it "Tomorrow the Meetingof the Synodof Bishopsivill open Prooaby ihe vei'ysame disinfoi-minE powei-s wili be influencingand persuadingyou tc appcinta newChief cf the Missronanc repace Abbess Julrana "Fr AlexisRosenthul is an outstandingiconographer a good in Cabrar"natahe attractedto the churcha multitudeof young people,but. as the late ArchbishopAnthony of Genevar-rsed to say one shouldnor appornta "cowboy" to a convent He is one. and anotherof his characteristlcsrs thai he rs very complianttoward the Moscow Patriarchate,that is exactlywhat the ENEMIESof the ChurchAbroad \,vant ano in particularwhat we SHOULDNOT PERMIT "l am not acquaintedwith Fr ArchimandriteBartholomew bui I knor,vonly tnat he bravelyshowed himself to be a uncornpromisingmember and representativeof the ChurchAbroad In cur Ispiritually]destitute times, this is not a commonoccurrence and so one shouldkeep him as the appleof one'seye "Abbess Julianais respectedand loved by her sisters ls rt possrblethat we want to destroythe Mt of Olives Convent.a bulwarkof our Church,with our own hands? "if we renouncebeing the BEARERSOF AN IDEAL we are gorngto iooseihe rightto existas a free part of the RussianChurch. We wiii iurn into some kinciof piiiful Evioqians rhe ciangerousforeign branch of the SovietChurch. [Metr.Evlogy was the leaderof a schismaticmovemeni rn Errropebefore Worid War lt ] "As you have writtenso often,nothing in the life of the Churchrs acodental. Everythinghappens according to DivineProvidence. THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW.July 16i29th is the 70ih anniversaryof the Deciarationof toyltty 'La [of Patr.Sergius to the Scvietatheists]l I wrote an rather"Icng artrclein our Frenchmagazine Vcie Orthcdcxe., 'lubrlee' I VERY MUCH HOPEthat the S!'nodwill officiallymar"k this We rnustutter a thunderousword, a forcefulword. The eventsnear Jerusalemgive us an opportunityfor" it ls it possrblethat we will mark these 70 years of panderingto the SergianistPatriarchate with the punishmentor removalof the UNCOMPROMISINGArchimandrite Barthotomew. AbbessJuliana. Sister Marrna and those with them? Maythis not happen! "Not New York. but Jerusaiemis the center of the world The historyof our Church is being written there TODAY.Wewill berespected.wewill betakentntoaccount onlyifweremaintruetoourselves. 'higher Andifforthesakeofa diplomacy'we abandonour positions,we willbe despisedandwe willdeserve it. "DearVladyka Metropolitan, I do not want to say anythinginsulting, but we must look straightat realityand have no rightto deceiveourselves and others:if the Synodreaches a decisionthat is not in accordancewith our consctence and the testamentsof your g'-eatpredecessors but to please some sort of interests,then the VERDIGT oF THE HISTORYwili be severe. In the nistoryof the Churcn it wiii be concludedthat during the tenure of Metropolitans Anthony,Anastasy and Phiiaretihe ChurchAbroad siood as an uncomprornisingherald of the TRUTHOF THE CHURCH rut in the laterdays. . the ChurchAbroad did an aboutface of her positionand beganto punishthose who defendthe anti-Sergianistpolicy. MAY THIS NOT HAPPENI "Undei"stand,Vladyko, that I know perfectlywell the purityof your convictions,but unbiasedhistory as well as many of our enemieswill bringforth JUST SUCHA VERDICT. Do understandthat with this letterI want to defendall of us, our Churchand YOU PERSONALLY.lt can be easilyimagined how yourauthority will topplein the consciousnessof I so manypeople both in Russiaand Abroad(already now manydo not understandour decisionsand actionsin Russia)if, God forbid,your namewere to be connectedwith the abandonmentof our positionsin this Jerusalemmatter. "l you, assure that everyonewith whom I happenedto discussthis matter,not a singlemember of the Church Abroad,understands what the situationis there,rrrhat is at issue. one thing is CLEARTo EVERYONE:Archimandrite Bartholomew and Abbessiuliana deserveihe warmestpraise from the .rpr"rn" churchauthorities for their ciefenseof the truthand the interestsof the Church "l wiil say openly: I and many others cannot understand,when there exist so many jurisdictions,Churches, ti"ends, why all thosewho iirelesslywant us to drawnear to Moscowand Constaniinopledo not themselvesjoin them and leave peace. us in lt wculd seernthat the existencecf the ChurchAbraad rndeed drsturbs many. And glcry be to Godl "Askingfor your holy prayer"s,I rematn your obedientend lovingdtscrple and of one mindwith you, Germain."

Sadly'this emotionalletter of Protodeaconlvanoff-Trinadizaty to MetropolrtanVrtaly has come at ieastsome ten years '1 too late. He does not understandthat even in 986 the ChurchAbroad became a victimof the cleverlyconceived plan gradually KGB to wearaway ali her basicprinciples and nowwe are witnessingthe resultsof thissecret work of the previous decade:the tragiccollapse of all ihe principiesand moralstandards which have beenwilied to her by three former First Hierarchs As the rnain executorof this satanicplan one should name Ar"chbishopMark, who long ago showedhis pro-Moscowsympathies Unfortunately,the criminalinactron of a whole seriesof bishopsand clergyof the ROCA helped ArchbishopMark to achieve a splendid victory for the Moscow Patriarchate lt is quite clear that MetropolitanVitaiy does not agreewith this new line of actlon,but due to his advancedage and aiso his character,he ts positton noi rn io fightfor the principieicieology of the ChurchAbroad and now drsgracefuilyhas abancionedall her basic positions. The fundamentalchange of reiationsof the Church Abroad wrth the lvloscowPatriarchate, supposedly was dictatedby "higherdiplomacy" and had in view tc betterthe relationshipwith ihe JerusalemPatriarchate, which invited Ridiger.and with which MetropolitanVitaly in ,r9BBwas seriouslyirnpclrte by not visitingthe Patriarchand asking his permission to serve in the Mission'schurches. However,Archbrshop Mark and those hrerarchswith him rnanagecto angef the Patriarch.They brreflyvisited the Patriarchate,but never met wrth the DeputyPatr"iarch, since the patrrarch was absent.and did not get permissionto serve in his patrrarchate As a result the GeneralSecretary of the Synod threatenedin the name of Patriarch,that all the clergyof Missronmrghi oe suspendeo The encjresult of this ,,higher diplomacy"brought Mother Juliana into the hospitaland thenexile to Chile assauttson a numberof monastrcsand the probabledeparture af 12 to'15 nuns with MotherJuliana the deposrnEof the Chrefof the Mission,Archimandrite Barthclomewwho, becauseof all the stresswas aiso placedin hosprraI Appeals by Mother Juliana and Prctodeaconlvanoff-Trrnadtzaty tc MetropolrtanVrtaly have had no effect whatsoever.A Jewishpaper, published in Jerusalem"The JerusalenrPost" dated August 4th very brieflystated that: "TheAbbess of the RussianOrthodox Convent on the Mt of Olrveswno refusedto admitAlexer ll patriarchof Moscow when he visitedtogether with Patr^iarchDiodoros I has been reirevedof her dutiesand sent cack to Chrle tne Synodof Bishopsof ihe ROCA said this weekenci.. ArchimanonteBarthoiomew nas been reiievedof his duiies ar nrs own request. BishopsBarnabas of Canneswho has been responsibiefor the expatriatechurch also has been relievedof that responsibility" Whatan horribieand ingloriousend to the ChurchAbroadl

FROMLIFE OF THERUSSIAN ORTHODOX FREE CHURCH

The Diocesanmagazine "Suzdal Palomnik" ('The SuzdalPilgrim") in its issue# 32 publishedan intervtew. grantedby ArchbishopValentine to reporterV Troshinin connectronwith decisions of the last Counci!of Bishopsof Mp Question: Your Eminence, cauld you please clarify for our readersyour feelings toward the latest events of the Russlan Orthodox Church and rn particular, ifs decrsrondeposing yau? Answerof Archbp Valentine.For me, the MoscowPatriarchate is a hereticalorganization and actualiy,I do not care of what those hereticsdecide on their, that is to say, "robbercouncils", where they raise and deliberatesome questions.Their decisionsaffect me as muchas would decisionsof heretic"non-Christians". All of it is an "emptyshot,,. I very well understand,what stands behind it and by who's directivesall of it was done. Well, the Lord wili be their Judge. Not to cieposeme would mean to ignore those who greatlycjesired ii. those with whom I did not enter into rgreement,did not go on to betrayOrthodoxy, their perfidy. ln historythere is no shortageof cases when hereiicalhierarchs and the mightyones of this worid "deposed" even such great hierarchsas St. Archbp. Chrysostom,St. Athanasios,St. PatriarchTikhon. By the way, not so far back they were afraideven.just to mentionthe name of PatriarchTikhon, because he was a vigorous"anti-Soviet", and 1C now they canonizedhim and prayto him Also MetropolitanAnthony Khrapovitsky was "deposed"by the hereticSergius Stragorodsky.Therefore, I sort of feel flattered that I also happenedto be in such lofty company. Question: Vladyka, and why in turn shoutd the Synod of 8r'shopsof the Free Russlan Church nof depose fhls heretic AlexisRidiger? Even more so, that, as far as ! know, you were tied with him by more than a decadeof friendship, that to say, from times, when in Estoniahe was an archimandriteand you a mank in Vilna monastery? Answerof Archbp.Valentine: Yes. I knewhim for 25 years. One cannotdefinitely say thatwe werefriends, but in many cases he helped me restore chui-chesand build rectories. For some reason t feel. that he remembersmy "gratitude" to the presentday, which he was urging me to express This "gratitude"was in a form of valuableantiqui rniter,also antiqueand valuablepanagias. cr-osses, chains, not to rnenticnvery valuablefoodstuffs, which he supposedly neededin orderto supplyforeigners and piukhtitsarnonastery. And as far as the deposrngmatier ts concerned...You know my co-brethrenand co-celebrantson numerous occasionsapproached me as the Presrdentof our Synod of Bishopswrth exactlythe same question I personallyfeel that if we are to deposeAlexis Ridrger tnen not him only, but a whole constellatronof bishopsof "the post-Nicodemus,' era. point But the is thai by receivingtheir orders not accordingto vlrllof the Holy Spirit,but from will of the Centrai Committeeof the CommunrstParty of the SovietUnion and the KGB they are alreadydefrocked according to the 30th ApostolicCanon: "lf any brshopcomes into possessionof a chui'chby meansof secularrulers. let him be deposedfrom office,and let him be excommunicated.And all thosewho are in communionwith him as well."

THECHURCHES IN SUZDAL-VLADIMIRDIOCESE OF THEROFC IN DANGEROF CONFISCATION

ArchbtshopVaientine. on April20. 1997,maiied the following ietter numered # 64. "To the Presicientof the LegislativeCouncil of ViadimirRegron KotovB y. "HonorableVitaly Yakovlevitch; "The SuzdalDrocesan Administration of the RussianFree Churchi'espectfully asks you to interferein a case which requiresyour decision,because it refersto a most importantsphere of the comrnunity- the generalpeace and harmony. Withrn the ViadirnrrRegion there is a viatatlanaf one of ihe rnalienablerEhfs of citizensof the Russian Federationguaranteed by the constitutionof the R[ussian]F[eder-atron] and internationalagreements of RF -- the rightof freedom of relignn "Duringthe past severalyears the Suzdal DrocesanAdminrstratron of the RussianOrthodox Free Church,the parishes and rndrviduaiparishioners of the ROFC have sufferedaii sortsoppressions anci insuits from ihe leadershipof VladimirDiocese of the MoscowPatriarchate's Archbishop Eulogy (Smirnov) who is supportedby individualclergy of the ,,of VladimirRegion administration, state propertiesand local [church-jrestoratroncommittee By this the RF law freedornof religion"is violated. " and farthfulof the Suzdaldiocese of the ROFC urgedby, the love of homelandtheir regtonand its history.without any help on part of the state,with therrown fundsand own labor-s,have restoredrn the oty of Suzdalten churches(of Tsar-Constantine.the HoiyVirgin of Sorrow Holy Cross-NrkolskyLazarus Anrypa Dormrtron,Cosmas & Damian.Trkhvrn. Eprpnany and iohn the Baptist)and also churchesrn the vrrlagesof KroekshaBorisovsk, pavlovsk lvanovsk.Omutsk and Ves rnthe Suzdalregion. Onceagain the divinebearrty began to shrne our beautifuiOrthodox historywas revived,peace and prayersreigned in these churchesrestored from berngruins But it does not pleasethe Moscow Patriarchateand ali those. who for decades have been persecutrngihe faithful inculcaiingin our society atheismand lcss of the rnemoryof our history. "ArchbtshopEulogy throughoutall the years he has been the head of the VladrrnrrDiocese of the Moscow Patriarchateaccused us in the press sometimesof being Catholics.sometimes of Protestantism.called us schismatics, heretics.who have sold ourselvesfor dollars We were threatenedwith berngdeposed and 'excommunicate' today ArchbishopEulogy even managedto threatento not only the clergy.but alsofarthfui of the crtyof Suzdal. "But this is also not enoughfor him Tociay.his effortsand intriguesin the corridorsof the governmentbrought upon us a dangerfrom the Vladrmrrregtonal administration. We are accusedberng supposedly the invadersof those churcheswhich we restored. These churchesare ciaimed as an "everlastingproperty" of Moscow Patriarchate,s administration(established by Stalinin 1943),and the faithfulof Suzdal,supposedly have nothingto do with them To our arguments,that we have spent huge amountof moneyand effortsin restorationof our churches,we hear that it ls betterto see a pile of stones,than to hand overa churchto the Free RussianOrthodox Church. "The Suzdal'sDiocesan Administration of the RussianOrthodox Free Churchis duly registeredin the Ministryof Justice of the RF (#239) as a religiousOrthodox society, independentfrorn the Moscow Patriarchaieand 'schismatic' all the tccusationagalnst us as beingsupposedly remainon the conscienceof our accusers "The RF law'on freedomof conscience'quite stronglyforbids the stirringup of enmityfor religiousreasons. [Hei-ethe 6th, 1Othand 1Sthparagraphs of the law are quoted.] "ArchbishopEulogy Smirnovand the regionalclergy supportinghirn with impunityand withoutany obstacles trampleover these law. 11 "ls it that the 'sDiocese of the MoscowPatriarchate has communitieswhich lack churches? There are no such communities,but there are ruinsof churchesand not one of them did the ieadershipof the VladimirDiocese of the MP restore.Yet it encroacheson somethingthat does not belongto it, now withthe help of the localadministration. "We do not pretendto monopoiizethe ownershipof churches.we serve Christand the Homelandand believe, that the enmity and hate comingfrom the leaciershipof Moscow Patriarchatein ihe VladimirDiocese serve only to deepenthe disagreementsin societyand may evokean counterreaction and a new opposition Who is to gain by this? ls peaceworse than quarrelsand enmity? |lA/^ l-*^-^^^t vvti u€seeutiyou to take measuresio bringto an end these insulisto oui-relrgious feelings and the kindlingof enmityand hate on the basis of religion.tc stop this humiliaticnand restcrethe rightsof faithfulpecple in accordance 'on with the constitutionof the RF and the law fr-eedomof conscience' "Our patienceis not endiessand in case of a continuationof these insultsand deprivationof our rights,we will be forcedto turn to the Russranand ,nternationalorganizations for defenseof our rights. We may hope that the regional organizationshave more importantwork than the enmitytoward the Orthodoxpeople, who are concernedwith rebirthof theirFatherland. its culture and monuments. "Respectfully.the Presidentof the Synodof Bishopsof the RussranOrthodox Free Church. "Vaientine,Archbishop of Suzdaland Vladimir."

ln the nextour issuewe will coverthe law concerningrestrictions of religtousactivities of somedenominations on Russianterritory, which at presenthas not beensigned by PresidentYeltsrn Thereis a gravesuspicron that the Russian OnhcdoxFree Church wili aiso be inciudecjamong the forbiddenreirgrons since rt happens io be the oniyimportant and ideoiogicalopponent of the hereticalMoscow Patriarchate.