True Orthodox Unity

[Mark Templet]

All:
I would like to have a calm and rational discussion of what the True Orthodox Christians on here believe it would take to begin seeing official unity happen in our midst.
I realize that there are some nuances of the past that would need to be sorted out in several specific cases, but I want to confine the discussion here to a more generalized format. Rather than getting bogged down in the specific requirements that would be necessary for this group to reconcile with that group, I want to consider that these conditions are meet and proceed with some theoretical "what ifs." I want to try to stay at the 30,000 ft. view of things to start with. I want to accentuate the positives here.

I will give you an example of what I am talking about:

GOC and RTOC are definitely talking to one another and there is some promising progress being made. ROAC has no real issues with RTOC nor GOC, so could the beginning be GOC--> RTOC-->ROAC. Assuming that these three groups officially acknowledged each other as True Orthodox Churches, who would be the next most likely group that would be willing to have talks?

Let me stress once again that I am not talking about any administrative unity, only the acknowledgment of each others Orthodoxy and the allowance of concelebration. This, in my opinion, would be the first step.

[Priest Siluan]

I think like you do, dear Father... In my very humble opinion, our divisions are only for personal questions from the hierarchy, it is not any dogmatic question...

[Ephrem]

At the First Ecumenical Council there were many disagreements between the bishops present that were non-dogmatic in nature. Seeing this, and realizing that the importance of this council was beyond the squabbles of the different bishops, the emperor ordered that all mutual accusations be placed in an urn and burned. From this, it could be deduced that two things would be very beneficial: firstly, that we put aside grudges and squabbles, and secondly, that there be present an Orthodox emperor!

God grant us what we need and save us from ourselves!

[Macrina]

Sometimes I think disunity is part of unity.

[Cyprian]

Greetings reverend fathers,

It would seem to me that before we delve very far into this conversation, some clarification is needed. Is there not more than one synod that lays claim to the title GOC? If I may, specifically which "GOC" synod is the ROAC engaged in communications, and making promising progress?

As to whether or not there are any substantive differences between the ROAC and a certain GOC, I cannot say for certain. But it is manifest that there are very real and substantive differences between what some so-called "GOC" bishops in America teach and what the holy fathers of the Church have handed down to us.

I will shun the communion of any so-called bishop who promotes or tolerates:

1) Ecumenism, including Cyprianism (i.e. crypto-ecumenism)
2) the heresy of Evolution.
3) Hagiomachy (slander and calumny of God's holy saints), and a distorted teaching of Original/Ancestral Sin, such as was held by John Romanides, and currently by his disciples in HOCNA, HOTCA, etc.
4) Iconomachy, including rejection of the so-called New Testament Trinity icons wherein the Beginningless Father is depicted as the Ancient of days.

I would be curious to learn ROAC Bishop Andrei's view of these issues.

Correct me if I am wrong, but after leaving the GOC synod (Abp. Nicholas of Athens and All Greece) under, shall we say, nebulous circumstances, didn't the then Fr. Michael Maklakov head straight to Gregory of Dormition Skete, who I believe was then a bishop in the ROAC, and who makes no secret of his hatred for St. Matthew of Bresthena and the GOC of Greece that continues in the saint's unswerving path? Has there ever been any official explanation surrounding why Fr. Michael left the the so-called Matthewite synod of Abp. Nicholas, and went straight to that calumniator Gregory of Dormition Skete, who slanders the saints and promulgates false teachings to justify his rejections of certain icons? Is it an unreasonable request to ask Bp. Andrei to explain the circumstances under which he left the Matthewite synod?

Do we know whether Bp. Andrei accepts veneration of holy icons wherein God the Father is depicted as the Ancient of days, or in the same manner of Gregory of Dormition Skete, does he openly reject them? Does Bp. Andrei disagree or agree with the slanders and calumnies hurled by Gregory (Abu-Assaly) toward the memory of St. Augustine of Hippo?

Can one have any confidence in Bp. Andrei until questions like these are resolved and an account is given for his departure from the GOC of Greece?

Cyprian

[Mark Templet]

Dear Cyprian,

I have two points I would like to make:
1) I don't believe that you are sticking with my initial proposal for this thread. I believe that you are attempting to bring personal issues into a discussion that I intended to be the exact opposite. Rather that imply defects of Vladyka Andrei (which you seem ironically interested in doing, versus your disgust of those who are critical of St. Augustine of Hippo), I wanted this to be a discussion on progress rather than a rehash of the past.

2) You seem to be bit like a prosecutor in a courtroom who is asking Vladyka Andrei to prove his innocence, while you use coy words like "nebulous circumstances," if they are so nebulous then why does your tone sound as if you want a potential reader to believe that nebulous is equivalent to nefarious? Since when in the Orthodox Church does a priest or bishop answer to a laymen, on a message board no less?
But I digress, let me reverse the challenge on you: if you really want to know his personal history, then ask him yourself, his phone number is (347) 321-4870. He is out of the country at the moment, but in a few weeks you can get the answer you feel so entitled to.

[Ephrem]

On another note, I think you may have misread Father's statement.

If I may, specifically which "GOC" synod is the ROAC engaged in communications, and making promising progress?

Whereas, he did not say that the ROAC and GOC are engaged in communications.

GOC and RTOC are definitely talking to one another and there is some promising progress being made.

I'm not saying that they aren't engaged in communications. I just wanted to clarify in case that brought on any confusion.