THE HEAD OF MOSCOW PATRIARCHATE GREETS THE LATIN MASS

[Priest Siluan]

THE HEAD OF MOSCOW PATRIARCHATE GREETS THE LATIN MASS AFTER SERVING THE LITURGY WHERE FOUR CATHOLIC BISHOPS WERE PRESENT
(Interxaf-Religion – Vertograd, Moscow)

The motu proprio Summorum Pontificum that provides more freedom to use the pre-Vatican II Missal 'is a positive fact,' the Head of MP Patriarch Alexey II said to comment on the Roman Catholic Church reintroducing her ancient liturgical form.

'We strongly adhere to the tradition. Without being faithful to her liturgy the Russian Orthodox Church would have failed to survive persecutions in 1920s and 1930s,' the Russian primate told the Italian daily Giornale on August 28, on the Feast of Dormition, after celebration liturgy in the Cathedral of the Dormition in the Kremlin.

Four Catholic bishops from Italy were present at that liturgy, as Russian edition of Interfax-religion reports. ( http://www.interfax-religion.ru/?act=news&div=20054 )

The patriarch opined that the pope's decision might contribute to establishing closer links with the Orthodox Churches, Giornale said.

The obligatory Latin Mass was abolished by the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965) when the Roman Catholic Church legalized liturgical use of modern languages hoping to attract more people. But the results were far from ideal, and the reform led to a schism as Archbishop Marcel Lefevre refused to accept it an faced excommunication in 1988.

Attached Photo: Patriarchial service in the Cathedral of the Dormition in the Kremlin on August 28, 2007. You can see Catholic Bishops among "Orthodox" bishops there.

From VERTOGRAD Orthodox Journal Newsletter No. 65, Sunday, September 2, 2007. 11:05 P.M.

[rafael.daher]

Fr. Siluan, bless!

This prouve one thing: the PM support both ecumenism and philetysm.

[Climacus]

What is 'philetysm' ?

-Shawn

[尼古拉前执事]

Phyletism is the heresy of Nationalism and says that a specific National Church is needed for certain specific nationalities or ethnicities in a certain area. So saying a certain jurisdiction is for a certain nationality or ethnicity, this would be phyletism. Just like having 2 bishops in the same city (i.e. a Greek, Serbian, Bulgarian, and Russian Church), each for a different ethnic or nationalistic type, this would be phyletism.

[patrick1000]

Phyletism is the heresy of Nationalism and says that a specific National Church is needed for certain specific nationalities or ethnicities in a certain area. So saying a certain jurisdiction is for a certain nationality or ethnicity, this would be phyletism. Just like having 2 bishops in the same city (i.e. a Greek, Serbian, Bulgarian, and Russian Church), each for a different ethnic or nationalistic type, this would be phyletism.

I don't understand the problem with ethnic-based churches. For example, a friend of mine of Anglo-Saxon heritage who is a convert to Orthodoxy from the Episcopals and presently attends a Russian Orthodox parish, went to Florida and attended a Greek Orthodox parish. He reported the Greeks treated him very nicely. He had nothing but good things to report.

[jacqueline]

Fr. Siluan, bless!

What is the MP saying here? Is he talking about the church in Russia or The Church in exile?

Without being faithful to her liturgy the Russian Orthodox Church would have failed to survive persecutions in 1920s and 1930s

[Priest Siluan]

Fr. Siluan, bless!

What is the MP saying here? Is he talking about the church in Russia or The Church in exile?

Without being faithful to her liturgy the Russian Orthodox Church would have failed to survive persecutions in 1920s and 1930s

Dear Jacqueline:

God may bless you!

I very glad for hearimg from you.

I think that they talk about the true Russian Church, the one which Metropolitan Sergy Stragorodsky (the "Father" together with Stalin of MP) betrayed in his "declaration" of 1927. But they also say to be "successors" of the true Russian Church to deceive people.

With love in Christ

Priest Siluan