The other night I was speaking with someone who was a rather close friend of Platina in its early days. He said that he was given the impression that the Fr. Seraphim and Fr. Herman had built a kind of personality sect around themselves. The attitude at the Platina monastery seemed to be that all Orthodox jurisdictions are more or less the same (and no one there, residents or visitors were allowed to say anything to the contrary - it was a rule there) but in actual fact, the Platina monastery considered itself as ABOVE any and all jurisdictions, including the Synod - a sort of 'supra-Orthodox mini-church' of it's own, part of the persecuted 'Northern Theibaid 'monastic movement, etc. Looking back I have to admit that was one of the impressions I was given, too, through their publications. [I discovered The 0rthodox Word in 1986.] In fact, it was one of the qualities that attracted me, since neither did I have trust in the "institutions."
We got the impression that the fathers kept to their mission despite lack of cooperation from their hierarchs and despite interference from their hierarchs. It is very possible that Fr, Alexey's joining the Antiochians has nothing to do with his "not getting it" about the royal path as I said a few days ago. It could be this idea that one must follow their calling and fulfill their mission, and since all 0rthodox are more or less the same, the idea is to find the jurisdiction that will offer the least opposition to your goal.
Another thing is that Fr. Alexey was greatly shocked by learning about Fr. Herman ... ahem ... being a sex pervert. It is a rather disorienting thing and difficult to come to terms with.
So, I'm withdrawing what I wrote about Fr. Alexey "not getting it". I should not make conclusions about things I do not understand. All I know is that I myself do not have any special calling or mission - and I am miserable in a jurisdiction where I can not love, trust, and look up to my shepherds [bishops].
