God Will Reveal Whom to Commemorate

[Maria]

Dear in Christ, Ephrem,

Thank you for your very interesting words about Fathers John the Romanian and Philoumenos. Many times I heard from some Greek old Calendarists about they do not considered them as saints because while rejecting the old calendar and ecumenism, were communion with JP bishops. Whether this is true or not, I personally think that Father Philoumenos' case is quite particular, because he died as a true martyr for sake of Christ at the hands of the Jews, in this case the blood of his martyrdom could wash away up any "irregularity" on him (?) (of course, we know the St John Chysostom's about the sin of schism)

On the other hand, if they were true confessors and were glorified by the ecumenists, concealing or falsifying their true stories, it would not be strange, the MP does the same thing often, a very significant example is the St. Maria of Gatchina's case who preached against the treachery of the Met. Serge and for this reason she and many of her disciples were martyred.

Similar cases of disinformation have been seen in Greece, where ecumenists were forced to canonize by popular acclaim two 20th Century Saints: St. Nicholas Planas and St. Nectarios of Aegina. Interestingly both of these saints were persecuted by Metropolitan Theokletos and Metropolitan/Patriarch Meletios, who was known to be an ecumenist.

[Ephrem]

Yes, in Greece this has of course become very common practice. It is not uncommon, for instance, for the New-Calendarists to write about Elder Ieronymos of Aegina as if he were part of their church, whereas it is well known that he was a zealot.

The situation of Mount Athos is especially interesting. The popular book, Contemporary Ascetics of Mount Athos by Archimandrite Cherubim, for instance, contains many lives of zealot fathers who were very holy and worked miracles. This is ignored in Fr. Cherubim's account, however.

An excerpt from a New-Calendarist life of Haralambis the fool-for-Christ, a very recent holy man from Greece, is a classic example of the "censoring" that is done to such biographies:

The Orthodoxy of Haralambi was very simple and his personal piety was one of exactitude. He believed the Calendar reform caused much confusion and was a hard-line enemy of the change to the New Calendar. When the so-called "Genuine" Orthodox Church created a schism with the Church of Greece, he joined the schismatics and was closely associated with Panagoulaki Monastery in Kalamata. However, his adherence to the Old Calendar was out of his great love for Orthodoxy and his simplistic way of life. His purity of heart allowed him to transcend the Calendar issue so that he became a vessel of grace to the people of Kalamata. This allowed him to work many miracles and emanate the uncreated light of the Holy Trinity. Without anyone to properly correct him, God overlooked his errors as He has done with other such examples in Church history and gave him a prophetic spirit and the clear eye of clairvoyance.

So in this way, the writer affirms the holiness of the man, yet belittles his zealotry as "simple"! This is not the way to learn from holy people! We cannot ignore the parts that offend or challenge us!