sign in sign up
<<
Home , John of Damascus, Macarius of Corinth

FROM THE FATHERS

“THERE IS NOTHING either created or subservient in the , nor anything caused to be brought about as if formerly it did not exist and was afterwards introduced. Wherefore neither was the Son ever lacking to the Father, nor the Spirit to the Son; but without variation and without change, the same Trinity forever.” Gregory the Wonder-Worker, + 266 A.D.

“CONCERNING , it is impossible for us to say what He is in His essence; it is more fitting, rather, to discuss how He is different from everything else. For He does not belong among things that exist, not because He does not exist, but because He is beyond all existing things, and beyond even existence itself. For if all modes of knowledge are concerned with what exists, that which is beyond knowledge must be beyond existence, and likewise what is beyond existence must also be beyond knowledge.” Ven. John of , + 749 A.D.

“THE LORD’S words contain those two essentials of Chris- tianity: theology and active virtue. For by saying that it is necessary to baptize in the name of the Trinity, He handed down to us theol- ogy. And by saying that is it also necessary to teach the keeping of the commandments, He guides us in the way of active virtue.” Saint Theophylact of Ochrid, + ca. 1108 A.D.

1 A Synodal Ceremony on the Occasion of the Commemoration of the Holy Apostle Paul, 29th June, 2014

The Ecclesiocidal of Ecumenism Is Laying Waste to the Apostolicity of the † Metropolitan II of Oropos and Fili

1. Our indebtedness to the Holy Apostle Paul Today, in summer season, as we enjoy refreshment beneath the shade of the broad-leaved tree of our recent and God- pleasing union, the Grace of the Holy Spirit has gathered us to- gether to express prayerfully, in hymns and spiritual canticles, our exceptional gratitude to the Holy Apostle Paul: the traverser of the Heavens; the Enlightener of our Greek fatherland; the founder of the first Churches on European soil; the layer of the foundation of the local Holy of Athens; our Divinely impelled Initiator into the Mystery of Christ our Saviour; the most excellent expounder of mystical, empirical, and Eucharistic theology; and the inexhaustible fount of the Christocentric ecclesiology of .

We refer to St Paul with reverence, and our hearts turn to- wards our Holy Faith, which he entrusted to us, which is one with the perennial Faith of the Church, which, for precisely this rea- son is, and is called, Apostolic, and on account of which our Holy Church is, is called, and is confessed to be the Apostolic Church.

Yea, to be sure, “the advent of the Apostle Paul in Greece created a new , both for Europe and, above all, for our father- land.”1

Yea, indeed, “the Apostle Paul was ‘the father’ of Christian Greece; ‘the establisher and architect of Hellenic ’; ‘the great awakener of our nation’; the founder of our local Holy Greek Church.”2

2 Yea, it is true that St Paul, impelled by Christ, “this tent maker,” as the Divine Chrysostom succinctly says, “converted Greece, which was entirely barbarian,” on account of its , to the knowledge of the only true God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.3

Yea, it is unquestionably the God-bearing Paul who bap- tized us in the Name of the Holy Trinity, so that we might no lon- ger be “strangers and sojourners, but. . .fellow-citizens with the , and of the household of God, being built upon the founda- tion of the Apostles and Prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the chief cornerstone.”4

Yea, for all of these reasons, since times of old, in our day, and yet at this very moment, we crown the memory and the of the Holy Apostle Paul with sweet-smelling flowers of thanksgiving and glorification; with the noetic fragrance of faith, hope, and love; and, as well, with tears of self-reproach and repentance, in that we have not proved ourselves worthy of these heavenly gifts. * * * 2. The “Mystery of Iniquity” and syncretistic Ecumenism

Notwithstanding all of these truths, which are certainly a wellspring of inspiration and wakening, I would like for us to turn our attention, this evening, to the very timely subject of the Apos- tolicity of the Orthodox Church.

This fourth attribute of the Church, which is indissolubly conjoined with Her Oneness, Holiness, and Catholicity, is under unremitting and open attack in our day from the “ecclesiocidal” heresy of ecumenism.

The reference made by the Holy Apostle Paul to the “foun- dation of the Apostles and Prophets”5 is of the utmost significance today, since both the Prophets and the Apostles - and, of course, their successors - fought steadfastly against , that is, the mingling of the Holy Faith with the alien elements of idolatry and heresy; opposed the adulteration of the Truth; condemned the

3 gradual domination of indifference toward the Truth; and bore witness against the annulment of our relationship with the re- vealed God of truth and salvation.

We must be honest: a constantly increasing syncretistic es- trangement from the Truth, alteration of the Truth by means of falsehood, and equation of the Truth with error and heresy con- stitute the working, throughout the ages, of the “Mystery of Iniq- uity,”6 which precedes and prepares for the final “Apostasy,”7 until the manifestation and revelation of the “Lawless one”8 par excel- 9 10 lence, the “Son of perdition,” him “that opposeth,” namely, the “Antichrist.”11 Within this perspective, the so-called ecumenical move- ment, which appeared and evolved, during the past century, with the aim of reuniting divided and fragmented Christianity, is syn- cretistic in nature and forms part of the working of the “Mystery of Iniquity.”

The ecumenical movement was officially proclaimed in 1920; a few years later, in 1924, in order to implement its plan, it introduced the calendar reform, which sundered the unity of the local Orthodox Churches; thereafter, it demolished one thing after the other and moved the “eternal boundaries set by our Fathers”;12 and today, it talks openly of syncretism with a mere semblance of Christianity, • when it affirms that there is, supposedly, “room for the other [heterodox] Churches within Orthodox ecclesiology”; • when it “recognizes the ontological existence of other ec- clesiastical communities,” to wit, “the ecclesiality of other [hetero- dox] Churches”; • when it adopts an “inclusive, all-embracing attitude to- wards other Churches and Confessions”; • when it talks about an “‘expansive’ Orthodox ecclesiologi- cal theory of other Churches”; • when it espouses passing beyond an “archaic heresiology” as well as “ecclesiological and soteriological exclusivity.”13

4 It was only to be expected that this outright ecclesiological syncretism, which operates within the boundaries of Christianity, would also enter into the domain of other religions in the form of interfaith syncretism, ultimately, indeed, to be set forth by the Or- thodox ecumenists as follows:

The Orthodox Church acknowledges the existence of a Church in the broadest sense, or rather of churches outside the true Orthodox Church (ecclesia extra ecclesiam [church(es) out- side the Church]), and also of Christians outside Her walls and boundaries (extra muros [outside the walls]), to which the all- powerful saving Grace of God extends unimpeded.14 * * * 3. Apostolic Teaching and Succession

I noted previously that the Apostolicity of the Orthodox Church is being constantly and openly assailed by syncretistic ecumenism.

It is, therefore, necessary that I advert briefly to the two primary characteristics of Apostolicity, so that you might un- derstand yet more deeply why ecumenism is laying waste to the Church and why, consequently, ecumenism constitutes one of the contemporary expressions of the “Mystery of Iniquity.”

Orthodox Patristic teaching has always made a distinction between, firstly, the Apostolicity of teaching and secondly, the Apostolicity of succession and Consecration [the ordination of Bishops].

However, although a distinction is made between teach- ing and succession, they are indivisibly united, such that Apostolic teaching, on the one hand, is the basis of , while canonical Consecration is, on the other hand, that external hallmark that ensures unity with the Church founded by the Apostles.

In other words, Apostolicity of teaching makes the Church the mouthpiece of Christ and the Apostles, whereas Apostolicity

5 of succession and Consecration is that which binds the Minister of the Mysteries to Christ and the Apostles.

Thus, the Apostolicity of the Church is sundered and de- stroyed when Apostolic teaching alone or Apostolic succession alone is abrogated, and especially so when both are abrogated.

The Apostolicity of the Church connects the Body of Christ with the Source of Grace, with the very Upper Room of Pentecost: by way of canonical Orthodox Ministers in with the Church, the members of the Church drink from the Source of truth and life and are Christified through the Mysteries.

Apostolicity cut off from the Source of truth and life is de- void of ecclesiastical content, is spurious, is not churchly, and has fallen away from communion with Christ the Saviour, the first and greatest “Apostle,”15 and from communion with the “twelve Apos- tles of the Lamb.”16 St Athanasius the Great very pointedly inquires concern- ing the Arians: “How can those who have shaken off the Apostolic Faith belong to the ?”17

In conclusion: Apostolicity of teaching and Apostolicity of succession, coexisting irrefragably, mutually intertwined, and mutually corroborative, are those indispensable elements which guarantee the Uniqueness, the Holiness, and the Catholicity of the Church and attest to the authenticity of the Church—the distin- guishing characteristic of the True Church. * * * 4. Ecumenism is laying waste the Apostolicity of the Church

Heresies such as syncretistic ecumenism, which is, in fact, an all-inclusive heresy, a panheresy, constitute - as we said before - a fundamental component of the “Mystery of Iniquity.”

Let this not be considered hyperbolic: it is a Patristic teach- ing, as St reminds us:

6 “By the ‘Mystery of Iniquity’ [St. Paul] means the teachings of and their false doctrines. For they go before it [the Mystery], paving the way for it and providing occasion for deception; and heresies had already emerged in Apostolic times.”18

Likewise, let it not be forgotten that “there are no small or great heresies, nor any small or great deviation from Church teaching. Truth is never a matter of quantity. Our Orthodox Faith, the ethos of the Church, and the worship of the Church are a single and unique reality, one which is indivisible.”19

The Divine Chrysostom tellingly remarks: “For just as he who pares away a small part of the image on a royal coin renders the whole coin counterfeit, so he who deviates even to the smallest ex- tent from soundness of Faith becomes entirely corrupted, proceeding from this beginning to graver errors.”20

Syncretistic ecumenism has not deviated only to a small extent from soundness of Faith, but has laid waste to the Apos- tolicity of the Church. It always has been, and continues to be, alien to our Synodal and Patristic Tradition; it unites its lackeys to the so-called “broad ecumenical world family,”21 within which a de facto syncretistic process is at work, developing dynamically and simultaneously at many mutually interdependent levels (theol- ogy, worship, ministry, witness, education, dialogues, congresses, councils, publications, etc.), always on the basis - as the ecumen- ists exult in proclaiming - of the allegedly “pioneering and dynam- ic 1920 Encyclical of the Œcumenical ”!22

In order to substantiate my thesis, id est, concerning the destruction of the Apostolicity of the Church by the heresy of ecumenism, I will not turn to a multitude of testimonies, but will content myself with just one, which is of exceptional weight and importance, since it is synodal and collaborative in nature: “with the blessing and authorisation of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.”

23 We are referring to the Τhyateira Confession, which con- tains “completely heretical, Protestant, or… ecumenical teaching…

7 regarding the Orthodox Church,”24 as the Holy Confessor Metro- politan Philaret of the Abroad correctly th wrote on 6 December, 1975. Christians believe [so this ‘Confession’ teaches, among other heresies and errors] that Orthodox bishops, Roman Catholic bishops, Coptic, Armenian, and Ethiopian bishops, and Anglican bishops have and impart true ordination and priesthood… For this reason, the mysteries of the Anglicans are mysteries of the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic church, as are also the mysteries of the Roman Catholics … Orthodox Christians, Roman Catholics, Anglicans, Copts, Ar- menians, and Ethiopians, Lutherans and other Protestants are Christians baptized in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit … All of us Christians have become members, by the same baptism, of the Body of Christ, which is the Church.25

In this “Confession,” which is an official Confession of the fallen Church of Constantinople, it is as clear as day that the two components of the Apostolicity of the Church are abolished, since synodal recognition is hereby granted both to the teaching and to the succession and consecrations of the many different heresies of East and West, and especially of those which have been explicitly condemned by Œcumenical Synods. * * * 5. Our calling today

Glory to God for all things! The Holy Apostle Paul, the En- lightener of our nation and Founder of our most holy Church, has, by the prestige and authority of his Apostolic Grace, initiated us into the Apostolicity of the Church; has helped us to attain to a deeper awareness of the catastrophic nature of the anti-ecclesias- tical heresy of ecumenism; has made us more sensitive to the need for a sober and attentive analysis of the crucial aspects of heresy; and has strengthened us in exhibiting God-pleasing adherence to Apostolic teaching and to Apostolic succession and Priesthood.

Today, by the Grace of God, we are experiencing our unity in the love and truth of Christ our Saviour. We, the Orthodox anti- ecumenists who follow the traditional Church Calendar, now form

8 one Body, and indeed an international one. Having come togeth- er on a secure footing, to wit, our theological and ecclesiological text of confession, “The True Orthodox Church and the Heresy of Ecumenism,”26 we are called to offer an authentic witness, so that “the preaching of the Apostles and the doctrines of the fathers”27 might be our sure and unerring guide, and so that the “sound doc- trine”28 of the Evangelists and the Apostles might be preserved un- adulterated by the syncretistic influences of ecumenism. Every heresy, since it harms and destroys the Apostolic and Patristic nature of the Church, “constitutes another faith, another attitude towards life, which - as St Irenæus of Lyons says - ‘nei- ther did the Prophets preach, nor did the Lord teach, nor did the Apostles hand on’29”; “every heresy, as a system of error, is de- prived of precisely that method of healing the human condition which Christ revealed and which we see in the spiritual struggles and the Christ-imitating ethos of the Saints.”30 * * * May these humble thoughts and reminders be reckoned as a bouquet of gratitude to the Great Enlightener of our nation and fatherland, the Holy Apostle Paul, and also as a stimulus to ad- ditional prayer and wakening in the face of the “Mystery of Iniq- uity” that is now at work by means of the syncretistic panheresy of ecumenism. May the Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the Love of God the Father, and the Communion of the Holy Spirit be with us all, always, now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen!

To God the Bestower be glory and thanksgiving, unto the ages. Amen!

9 1) Pavlos Paloukas & Theodoros Anthimou, Our eternal debt to the Apostle Paul (Athens: 2002). 2) Ibid. 3) “Homily II on Romans,” §5, PG, Vol. LX, col. 407. 4) Eph. 2:19-20. 5) See note 4. 6) 2 Thess. 2:7. 7) 2 Thess. 2:3. 8) 2 Thess. 2:8. 9) See note 4. 10) 2 Thess. 2:4. 11) 1 John 2:18, 2:22, 4:3; 2 John 7. 12) Cf. Prov. 22:28. 13) Stylianos Ch. Tsompanides, “Church and Churches: The position of other Christian Churches in the ecclesiological self-understanding of the Orthodox Church in the context of ecumenical dialogue” (Athens: Ekdoseis “Harmos,” 2013). 14) Ioannes Karmires, “The salvation of the people of God outside the Church.” 15) Gal. 4:4; Heb. 3:1. 16) Rev. 21:14. 17) “Oration I Against the Arians,” §4, PG, Vol. XXVI. 18) “On 2 Thessalonians” (2:7), PG, Vol. XCV, col. 924AB. 19) Protopresbyter Basileios A. Georgakopoulos, “The mystery of the Church & the phenomenon of heresies.” 20) “Commentary on Galatians,” ch. 1, §5, PG, Vol. LXI, col. 622. 21) “Orthodox participation in ecumenical movement [sic]: ‘There is no alternative to dialogue’” (World Council of Churches Media Relations Office, Press Update, June 6, 2003), http://www.oikoumene.org/ en/press-centre/news/orthodox-participation-in-ecumenical-movement-there-is-no-alternative-to-dialogue. 22) Georgios Larentzakes, “Basic principles for the preservation and restoration of Christian unity: Orthodox viewpoints.” 23) Archbishop Athenagoras (Kokkinakis) of Thyateira & Great Britain, “The Thyateira Confession: The Faith & Prayer of the People of God, in English & Greek” (Leighton Buzzard: The Faith Press) 24) “The Thyateira Confession: An Appeal by Metropolitan Philaret to the Primates of the Holy Churches of God, and Their Eminences, the Orthodox Hierarchs,” http://hsir.org/p/idc 25) Archbishop Athenagoras, “The Thyateira Confession,” pp. 203, 159, 204. 26) “The True Orthodox Church & the Heresy of Ecumenism: Dogmatic & Canonical Issues,” http://hsir.org/p/fjp 27) of the Sunday of Holy 318 Fathers of the First Œcumenical Synod in Nicæa. 28) 2 Tim. 1:10; 2 Tim. 4:3; Titus 1:9, 2:1. 29) Against Heresies, I.8.1, PG, Vol. VII. 30) See note 19. N.B. We have omitted the Greek in the original footnotes and some of the page references to the Greek texts. g g g g g g g g g

“WHAT IS IT that makes us Christians? Faith, everyone will say. But how are we saved? By being born again, of course, through baptismal grace. How else could we [be saved]? Knowing then, as we do, that this salvation is secured to us through the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, shall we throw away the form of doctrine which we received? … It is the prayer of my inmost heart that with this confes- sion on my lips I may depart to the Lord; and I exhort those lips to keep the faith inviolate unto the day of the Lord, and to maintain the Spirit inseparable from the Father and the Son, jealously guard- ing the baptismal doctrine both in the profession of faith and in the ascription of praise.” Saint Basil the Great, + 379 A.D.

10 Order Within, Order Without. AMONG his many soul-profiting instructions to his disci- ples, Saint (ca. 506-570) teaches: “One must act ‘according to conscience’ with regard to God, his neighbour, and all things.” That we must act according to our conscience with regard to God and our neighbour everyone knows well - this is, after all, the essence of Christ’s dual commandment of love , - but that we must also act according to our conscience with regard to things is a less well-known spiritual principle. Saint Dorotheus explains what he means by this spiritual principle: “For one to ‘act according to conscience’ with regard to material things means that one does not misuse any object, or permit something to be destroyed or tossed aside. Even when one sees something lying around, let him not be oblivious to it, however insignificant it may be, but pick it up and put it in its place.” He goes on to give several practical examples of this principle in action, the gist of which the newly-reposed Metropolitan Chrysostomos sums up in his obser- vation that “a fundamental teaching of the , those great exemplars of the spiritual life, is that orderliness in external things reflects an inner orderliness of soul that prevails when one follows divine and precepts and the natural laws contained in the conscience.” In other words, mindfulness of one’s own in- ternal, spiritual state cannot but express itself as mindfulness of one’s external, physical surroundings - a process that works both ways: when one compels oneself to attend to prosaic and seem- ingly insignificant matters in one’s immediate environment, it has a salutary effect on the development of one’s inner universe. Thus, Saint Dorotheus urges, “Let us therefore be careful, brothers, to guard our conscience, as long as we are still in this world, without giving it cause to censure us for anything, trampling upon it in ab- solutely nothing, even the slightest thing. For heed well that from sneering at those things small and by nature lowly, as they say, we end up sneering at greater things. … Thereupon, one acquires an evil and perverted disposition. He then begins to ignore the

11 greater and weightier things and tramples upon his conscience. And so proceeding, he slowly risks falling to complete insensitivity (of conscience). Hence take care, my brothers, that we are not lax in small things. Take care not to ignore them as though they were trivial. They are not small; the soul is fed by them and they spawn bad habits.” Developing good habits, by contrast, is fundamen- tal to the acquisition of an Orthodox ethos, an ethos which em- braces such virtues as cleanliness, tidiness, frugality, temperance, solicitude, and conscientiousness. These are some of the impor- tant qualities we seek to inculcate in the students of Saint Photios Theological Seminary. Father Gregory, Registrar.

Taken from “The Grapevine,” a publication of the Saint Photios Orthodox Theological Seminary, Etna, California. The piece above by Archimandrite Gregory was printed alongside a picture of a notice posted in the kitchen and in all the “rest rooms” of the Seminary. It reads: “Remember it reflects an Orthodox mentality when you leave this room in a better condition than you found it!” Sadly the instruction given in this article and in the one on “Genuine Nobility” which we printed in our May issue was, a generation or two ago, something which parents by and large taught their pre-school and primary school children, but which nowadays seems mostly neglected by them, their attention being taken up by making sure their children “get on in the world.” g g g g g g g g g

“WHAT THE SOUL is to the body of man, the Holy Spirit is to the Body of Christ, which the Church is. What the soul does in all the members of one body, this the Holy Spirit does throughout the Church. But see that you are on your guard, see that you are re- strained, see that you fear God. It happens sometimes in the human body, that from this same body something is cut off: a hand, a finger, a foot. Do you think the soul follows the part thus cut off? While it belonged to the body, it lived. Cut off, it loses life. So likewise the Christian Catholic man: while in the Body he lives; becoming a here- tic he is cut off, for the Spirit follows no amputated member. If there- fore you wish to live in the Holy Spirit, hold fast to the bond of love, love the truth, long for unity, that you may attain to eternity.” Saint , + 430 A.D.

12 How to live in accord with the Gospel A translation of a Booklet published by the Synodal press in Russia in 1905, somewhat adapted to meet the needs of our times.

The Way to Eternal Life

BEFORE the preaching of the Gospel, - with the exception of some of them, namely the prophets of God, - people generally did not know what the Kingdom of God was, or where it could be found, when it would be revealed, or how it would be revealed. They always lived as if they had no connection with the Kingdom of God, and if, nonetheless, some did consider entering that King- dom, then, usually, they represent it in such a way that it is found somewhere outside of them, and therefore in order to enter into it they must needs cross over the border of their human condi- tion, and through the mercy of God enter into heaven. This was a grave error which effectively ruined people and ruined God’s work within people, because it naively suggests that they live only in the world and not within God’s Kingdom, and because of this they sev- er the world from God’s Kingdom, and thus make it a kingdom of sin ruled by the devil.

Christ destroyed this grave error of the people and revealed to them the truth which they had not known. He made it clear that, concerning the Kingdom of God, one cannot say: Lo here it is! or, lo there! - but to all who desire to find it can only be said: Behold, the kingdom of God is within you (Luke 17:21). Know that there is not even one separate corner of the world, but all God’s world is God’s Kingdom. Know that if anyone contemplates the world with

13 a religious understanding, for him heaven is the throne of God and the earth His footstool (Matt. 5:34-35), and all life upon the earth is the manifestation of God’s goodness and wisdom (Matt. 5:45; 6:28-29; 10:23; Luke 6:35; 12:27-28; 12:6-7).

So it is that people actually now already live in God’s King- dom. If any among the people does not think so, this is only be- cause such people themselves destroy the truth that the world is God’s kingdom by the unrighteousness of their own lives in this world. And on account of such an unrighteous life, wherever a man might exist, whether it be in heaven or on earth, all the same he is not made a member of God’s kingdom and consequently he does not apprehend it.

It follows that every person, actively desiring to apprehend the Kingdom of God, must strive not to change the earth by means of heaven, or change the existing world into another world, but rather that he should change himself into a different person, and in this regard change into a person who is a true man of God; and thus it is that moral perfection in human life might actually be manifested, that people might not be earthborn ones but rather creatures of God, and that in this way the Heavenly Father might be glorified through the human lives of people.

It is only through the application of such a change that peo- ple can perceive that they actually live in God’s world, in the King- dom of God, and it is only in such a condition that they can achieve a working basis to reflect on their eternal life, for God’s Kingdom is undoubtedly eternal, just as God Himself is eternal.

But that a person might truly become a man of God and tru- ly become a member of God’s eternal kingdom, it is necessary for him not only to recognize God as his God, but also to lay up in God the genuine purposes of his life with regard to eternity, because all his aspirations in temporal life only bear reference to his temporal life, and that means that they do not reach what is necessary for a person to exist eternally.

14 For this reason, if a person thinks about eternal life, but all the same only pursues the temporal aspirations of life, he can in no way achieve eternal life for himself, because in such a case he stands aside from eternal life and struggles only towards death. Eternal life is divine life, and therefore the only purpose relating to human life’s eternity is, quite evidently, the moral perfection of the person and his becoming an eternal image of the perfect Father (Matt. 5:48), though, in reality, for a person to achieve this end even many ages would not be enough.

… to be continued. g g g g g g g g g THE COMING MONTH THE GREAT FEAST OF PENTECOST opens the month of June to us this year, falling on the third of the month. It is one of the Twelve Great Feasts of the Church Year, and among the most pre-eminent of the twelve. It is the day on which the Holy Spirit came down upon the holy Apostles in the form of fiery tongues, and the day on which we, Orthodox Christians, particularly cel- ebrate the Mystery of the Most Holy Trinity. The name Pentecost actually pertains to the fifty-day sequence of feasts and commemo- ration which began on the day of Pascha, and which ends on this day. In the Gospel reading appointed for the feast, it is called the “last and great day of the feast.” At the Vespers service on the day of the festival, we kneel in church for the first time since Pascha, and three prayers are read beseeching our true God to bless all the peoples of the Church, both those who have gone before us to their rest and those still struggling in this life.

Yet, despite all this, it is a feast that is often neglected even by relatively conscientious and committed members of the Church. Perhaps this is because it is not preceded by a fast, or any overt

15 period of preparation. Pentecost-Trinity Sunday comes upon us quietly. We have had the contest of the Great Fast, the joyous cel- ebration of Pascha, the quieter mid-week festival of the Ascension, and we seem, according to our sin-warped understandings, to be getting back to normal. This is just another Sunday. In an attempt to remedy this malaise, we have included quotations from the Fa- thers this month which instruct us about the inner significance of this, “the last and great day of the feast.” Foremost among the celebrations of the Saints this month, we have the feast day of the Holy Chiefs of the Apostles, Pe- th th ter and Paul (29 June / 12 July) and again for this reason our principal article this month is about St Paul. Their feast day is pre- ceded by a fast of variable length, depending on the date of Pascha. As Pascha was late this year, the Apostles’ fast lasts only eighteen days. It can be as long as six weeks or as short as eight days, but it is never shorter than that. Within that period we also celebrate the feast of the Birth of Saint , which this year th th falls on a Sunday (24 June / 7 July).

Among the other Saints celebrated in June, we have: th th The holy Mark of Chios (5 / 18 June) was from Smyrna and worked as a travelling salesman. He was married in 1788. At the prompting of his brother, he eventually went and settled in Ephesus. There he became involved romantically with an- other Christian woman named Maria and they began an adulterous relationship. Caught in the act, they were both arrested and brought before the Agha. To escape punishment they converted to . Mark was adopted by the Agha and circumcised and now being the son of the Agha, he was externally hard on Christians. However his conscience began to bother him because of his denial of the Ortho- dox Christian faith. He went to a spiritual father to confess his sins of adultery and apostasy. Maria went to the same spiritual father. Maria pretended to be ill and they contrived to go to Smyrna for a cure. The Agha found out about their deception and sent a message to the Pasha of Smyrna to take them into custody. They heard of this

16 and tried to flee to Trieste. However they were forced to disembark in Venice. There, in 1792, they were chrismated and received back into the Orthodox Church. They were married (it seems that Mark’s lawful wife had died by this time), and they lived in repentance and contrition. Due to his former apostasy, Mark still felt unease, so he wandered with his family, until they arrived in Russia. Eventually he returned to the Turkish occupied territories and confessed to many spiritual fathers his ardent desire for martyrdom. All tried to dissuade him, saying that it was not only dangerous for himself but for other Christians, and that repentance sufficed for his salvation. But such was his desire to confess for the faith unto martyrdom that he returned to Kusadasi, the place where he had first denied his faith. Before doing so he prepared for martyrdom in Chios under the guidance of Saints , Nicephorus of Chios, and Athanasius of Paros. His spiritual father did not permit him to be martyred in Kusadasi, because the Turks were still enraged over the confession of the recently martyred Saint George, especially because a new church was being built there in his honour. Mark therefore returned to Chios where he visited various churches, fre- quently receiving Holy Communion and preparing for martyrdom. He presented himself before the Agha there saying: “I was a Chris- tian named Mark. My origins are in Thessalonica but I was born in Smyrna from Christian parents.” He then went on to confess his Christian faith and denied Islam. He pulled a cross out from his chest, kissed it and threw down his turban. The Agha asked him if he was crazy or drunk. Mark responded that he was neither crazy nor drunk, but that he was ready to spill his blood for Jesus Christ. He was arrested and locked in prison, with his feet bound in stocks. One of the officers wishing to punish him for his constant singing and prayers to God would adjust the device to cause him greater pain. But while being tortured, Mark would still melodiously sing hymns to God. The officer would kick Mark, forcing him to bleed from his mouth. However, Mark thanked God for his sufferings. He was made promises and sometimes threatened to deny his faith and return to Islam, but he refused. They would beat him, abuse and torture him, yet the Saint would constantly chant and say: “Lord, re-

17 ceive me, the one who denied Thee.” Certain Christians managed to enter the prison to encourage the Martyr. To them he also told of his struggles. While in prison Mark received divine revelations which helped strengthen him to end his struggle through martyrdom. The local church also managed to allow Mark to receive Holy Commu- nion regularly while in prison and be visited by a priest. From the moment the Saint was imprisoned many Christians strictly fasted and prayed for him. The churches daily held services for him, and not only in the churches, but also in the homes of the Christians. The Saint encouraged them to pray for him, but to not feel sorry for him. He would tell them to rejoice, not to be sad, for his wedding was tomorrow. He foresaw his death, and thus asked everyone’s forgive- ness, and sent his thanks to all those who prayed for him and stood by him. On Wednesday, 5th June, 1801, he was taken from prison to the Agha, and after a third confession he was sentenced to death by the sword. Mark left the court overjoyed, his face shining. And although his feet were crushed and hands were bound, he literally ran to the place of his execution as if he did not touch the earth. The guards could not keep up with him and even they, being spiritually blinded, said that a demon was upholding him. A crowd gathered as if they were about to watch a sporting event. The Saint knelt and told the executioner: “Come on, strike!” This put the executioner off and he was unable to behead him with one strike, and in fact his sword flew out of his hand. The Saint fell motionless, without being agitated or screaming. The executioner therefore snatched up the sword again, and with many strikes he beheaded Mark. The Chris- tians glorified God. They ran to the churches, expressing their joy by singing the praises of his martyrdom. Many sought to acquire some belonging or of the Martyr, whether it be soil soaked with his blood or a piece of his clothes. The Christians managed to recover the body of the Saint after giving much money to the authorities and they buried his holy . His life, written by Saint Athana- sius of Paros, records many miracles that have been attributed to the holy New Martyr Mark following his martyrdom. A service was composed for him by Saint Nicephorus of Chios. g g g g g g g g g

18 POINTS FROM CORRESPONDENCE

“WHY is it that some of the Orthodox have long hair as well as beards, and others do not?’ - F.P., Loughborough

IT IS PROPER that the Bishops, priests and in the Orthodox Church wear their hair long and have beards, and until very recent times this practice was adhered to universally. It is a sign that, like the Nazarites in Old Testament times, they are dedi- cated to God, that they are no longer just “one of the boys.” The monastic saints and those who were clergymen are always depicted in the holy with long hair. Particularly among the monks and nuns, this practice also has an ascetic aspect. The first monastics, living in caves and deserts, simply did not have the means to groom themselves. Nor did they wish to, avoiding vanity and self-absorp- tion. We follow their example in a little thing like this so that we might be reminded to do so also in greater things. This does not mean the hair has to be unkempt and untidy. It is usually parted down the middle, said, at least in folk tradition, to remind us of the two natures of Christ, and tied back neatly. Also in folk tradition it is said that the long hair is to remind us of Christ. There appears to be two reasons why this beautiful tradition has been undermined in the past few generations; one more acceptable that the other. The first, particularly evident among the more modernist Orthodox is that they wish to be in step with the times, do not wish to look odd, or stand out, - in short that the Church must be conformed to the world. Perhaps it is also so that they can on occasion put aside their clerical robes and be at one with the world. Indeed even in the relatively “conservative,” though obviously not traditionalist, juris- diction of the Moscow Patriarchate one sees that many even of the hierarchs, who are monastics, have short beards and trimmed hair these days. Were they to lay aside their robes for a period and put on lounge suits they would make reasonable approximations to be- ing businessmen or lawyers! Oddly enough one also notices that as the beards get shorter and more trimmed, the hats get more ec- centrically tall and portentous! The other reason why this valuable tradition is being lost is less culpable. It is because, especially in

19 the diaspora, Orthodox clergymen often have to support themselves and their families by also having a secular , and sometimes this means that to some extent they have to trim the hair a little, al- though happily, in the last few years beards have become fashion- able even in the “world” and so they are probably not so much of a problem. But even in this sphere, we should perhaps be somewhat shamed by people of other religions, who, even while living in the twentieth-first century, Western, secularist and materialistic world, maintain their traditions. g g g g g g g g g NEWS from the Richmond Diocese of the Church of the Genuine Orthodox Christians

GREAT WEEK & PASCHA THIS YEAR, because of our Synod’s blessing the Holy Chrism in Greece, Bishop did not follow his usual practice of spending part of Great Week and Pascha in England. In the event, Fr Nicolae Capitanu served at the Convent, and at Brookwood we were joined from Great Thursday onwards by Archimandrite Dan- iel from Germany, and later in the week by Fr Borislav Popov. This was a Godsend, as Fr Alexis was only able to serve for the Divine Litur- gy itself on Pascha night, and the visiting clergy helped Fr Sabbas lead the services and they heard confessions. After the midnight service we had our usual breakfast by the bonfire, and for the Agape Vespers service this year we had rather more people than usual, and, such were the numbers from various nationalities and with their linguistic skills that we were able to read the Gospel at that service in four- teen languages. Our previous best number in the thirty-six years we have celebrated Pascha here was thirteen! On the Monday and Tuesday of Bright Week, Father Nicolae joined us at Brookwood with numbers of the Romanian parishioners. And this year, we celebrated the Divine on every day of the week (except the Wednesday), on Thomas Sunday and on the following Monday, which was the fes- tival of the George the Trophy-bearer.

20 BISHOPS’ VISITS

BISHOP AMBROSE did come to England to be with the Sis- th th ters at the Convent for Myrrhbearers’ Sunday, 29 April / 12 May. On that day, Fathers Alexis and Sabbas from Brookwood assisted him. In his sermon he spoke of the difference in the virtues exhibited by women and by men, and touched upon the folly of the present-day preoccupation with sex reassignment. He was due to leave England on the Tuesday, but stayed an extra day to officiate at the funeral of Mother Ioanna (see below).

BISHOP SOFRONIE was in the United Kingdom over that weekend, but on the Sunday celebrated the Liturgy at Saint Edward’s Church. He was assisted by Fr Borislav Popov, Fr Nicolae Capi- tanu, Lucian Onofrei and Subdeacon Ioan Florian. The last two had travelled from Romania with the Bishop. Members of the choir from the Metropolitan Cathedral in Slatioara also attended, and thus the service was rather more majestic than what we are usually able to offer the Lord at Brookwood.

REPOSE OF MOTHER IOANNA

IN the evening of Myrrhbearers’ Sunday, the Nun Ioanna reposed at the Convent of the Annunciation in Willesden, af- ter a long illness. She had often been admitted to hospital, but had been brought home about ten days before her death, so that she could end her time on earth in the house of her repentance. On the follow- ing Wednesday, the feast of Saint Athanasius the Great, His Grace Bishop Ambrose celebrated the at the Convent, assisted by Fathers Alexis, Borislav, Nicolae and Sabbas. In his sermon he spoke of the witness of St Athanasius and of the spiri- tual importance of our adherence to Orthodoxy. Immediately after the Liturgy, the service of the burial of a monastic was chanted for Mother Ioanna. The service was conducted largely in English, with some Romanian and a little Greek and Slavonic. Before the last kiss, Bishop Ambrose told how, with the four other Palestinian disciples of Mother Elisabeth, Mother Ioanna (then Sister Katherine) had left her homeland in the Holy Land rather than join the spiritually com-

21 promised Moscow Patriarchate, how they had lived in exile in Jordan and then transferred to the Lesna Icon Convent in France. He told how Saint John of Shanghai had arranged for them to es- tablish their own monastic house in London, where Abbess Elisa- beth, a Russian emigrée, had spent her youth. He also spoke of the gentleness and innocence of Mother Ioanna, who for many years had been the Convent’s choir-mistress. She had been tonsured along with the other sisters by Archbishop Antony of Los Angeles, who had earlier been their spiritual guide in the Holy Land, and she was named after Saint John of Cronstadt, one of whose feast days fell on her birthday. After the service, Mother Ioanna was laid to rest alongside Mothers Elisabeth, Seraphima and Vasilia in Gunnersbury Cemetery. There the mourners were joined by Protopresbyter- stavrophore Milun Kostic of the , a long-time friend of the Convent and of our Brotherhood here at Brookwood. The Bishop then had to leave immediately for his flight back to Greece, and was provided with a picnic breakfast to eat on his way to Heathrow. The Brotherhood, who drove him, were also provided with a generous supply of foods. The rest of the mourners returned to the Convent where a Mercy Meal in memory of Mother Ioanna had been laid on. May Mother Ioanna find rest with the Saints and , having spent approximately seventy years in the monastic discipline, though with exemplary mo- nastic sobriety she never spoke of her achievements or struggles. She ended her earthly course in the midst of her sisters and on the anni- versary of the repose of one of the former chaplains of the Convent, Archpriest Georges Cheremetieff.

SIX BAPTISMS AT SAINT EDWARD’S

Bright Tuesday, 17th / 30th April: Edward, infant son of Octavian Moisa & Alexandra Magdei of Northolt. His name saint is our heavenly intercessor, Saint Edward the Martyr and his godparents are Codrin Munteanu and Elena Ancuta Moisa. Saturday, 28th April / 11th May: Sebastian, infant son of Adrian and Petronella Tabus of Witney, Oxfordshire. His

22 godparents are and Oana Ververis, and his name saint, the Holy Martyr Sebastian of Rome. On the same day: Dionisie, infant son of Georghe and Ga- briela Patrunsu of Redhill. His godparents are Marius Nistor, Ioan Arcaleanu and Cristina Nistor, and his name saint, Saint Dionysius the Areopagite.

Saturday, 5th / 18th May: Sebastian, the infant son of Petru and Florina Pista of Ware. His godparents are Bogdan and Mi- haela Ciontu. He too is named after Saint Sebastian of Rome.

Saturday, 12th / 25th May: Gheorghe, infant son of Gheor- ghe and Andreea Grigoras of Stanmore. His godmother is Ana Grigoras, and he was named for St George on whose day he was born.

Monday, 14th / 27th May: Florentia Pista, an adult, from Ware, Hertfordshire. Her godmother is Preoteasa Maria Capi- tanu, and she is named after Saint Florentius of Thessalonica. All the above mysteria were served by Fr Nicolae Capitanu.

BURIAL AT BROOKWOOD th nd ON THE FEAST of Mid-Pentecost, Wednesday, 9 / 22 May, Maria Stella Constantinou, late of Cottenham Park, was laid to rest by Father Chrisodoulos Christodoulou in Saint Edward’s Cemetery. The funeral itself had earlier been served at the Church of Saint George, Kingston-upon-Thames by Archimandrite Aemilianos and Fr Christodoulos. May our Saviour grant rest to His departed handmaiden Maria, and comfort to her husband Jules and her loved ones in their bereavement.

MEMORIAL BLESSING

ON Saturday, 5th / 18th May, the feast day of the Great Mar- tyr Eirene, after the Divine Liturgy, the tombstone of Reader Peter Butt was blessed, and numbers of his friends and acquaintances at- tended, - two had even come from Sweden. A mercy meal was pro-

23 vided by Tony Gore in the Old Mortuary building, and he had ju- diciously chosen the best caterers in the South of England, Baker’s Dozen in Brookwood village. So generous was their supply that we had left-overs for the evening meal and for the Parish Breakfast on the Sunday.

GROUP VISITS

Bright Friday, 20th April / 3rd May: Fifty pilgrims from Cyprus, led by Paraschos Anastassiades from the Greek Or- thodox Church of Sts Antony and John the Baptist in Isling- ton, visited. The pilgrims included Archimandrite Lazarus from Cyprus, and had on the same day made a trip to Windsor Castle.

Friday, 27th April / 10th May: Margaret Hobbs of the Brook- wood Cemetery Society brought visitors from the Chapter and Verse Book Group from Henley-on-Thames. On the same day: Fr Christodoulos Christodoulou from the Saint Nectarius Church in Battersea, London, visited. Thursday, 3rd / 16th May: The Farnborough Unversity of the Third Age Local Studies Group visited, led by Margaret Taylor. g g g g g g g g g PRACTICAL TIP THIS is just a minor “ritual” point, but has its importance, as everything in the church does. When, during the services, the con- gregation comes up one after another to venerate the Gospel Book, the icon of the day or a relic, then simply cross yourself and bow and kiss the holy thing, but do not pause there, or deliberately take your time. If you want to pray quietly before an icon or relic, do so at some other time, but do not show a lack of love for your brothers in Christ by taking your time, keeping them waiting in the queue, and perhaps, intentionally or unintentionally, demonstrating that you are “pious”!

24