Posted on 10/28/2017 12:08:35 PM PDT by NRx
As delegates to the North American Faith and Order Study Conference, appointed by His Eminence, Archbishop Michael, to represent the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of North and South America, we want to make the following preliminary statements.
We are glad to take part in a study-conference, devoted to such a basic need of the Christian World as Unity. All Christians should seek Unity. On the other hand, we feel that the whole program of the forthcoming discussion has been framed from a point of view which we cannot conscientiously admit. "The Unity we seek" is for us a given Unity which has never been lost, and, as a Divine gift and an essential mark of Christian existence, could not have been lost. This unity in the Church of Christ is for us a Unity in the Historical Church, in the fullness of faith, in the fullness of continuous sacramental life. For us, this Unity is embodied in the Orthodox Church, which kept, catholikos and anelleipos, both the integrity of the Apostolic Faith and the integrity of the Apostolic Order.
Our share in the study of Christian Unity is determined by our firm conviction that this Unity can be found only in the fellowship of the Historical Church, preserving faithfully the catholic tradition, both in doctrine and in order. We cannot commit ourselves to any discussion of these basic assumptions, as if they were but hypothetical or problematic. We begin with a clear conception of the Church’s Unity, which we believe has been embodied and realized in the age-long history of the Orthodox Church, without any change or break since the times when the visible Unity of Christendom was an obvious fact and was attested and witnessed to by an ecumenical unanimity, in the age of the Ecumenical Councils.
We admit, of course, that the Unity of Christendom has been disrupted, that the unity of faith and the integrity of order have been sorely broken. But we do not admit that the Unity of the Church, and precisely of the "visible" and historical Church, has ever been broken or lost, so as to now be a problem of search and discovery. The problem of Unity is for us, therefore, the problem of the return to the fullness of Faith and Order, in full faithfulness to the message of Scripture and Tradition and in the obedience to the will of God: "that all may be one".
Long before the breakup of the unity of Western Christendom, the Orthodox Church has had a keen sense of the essential importance of the oneness of Christian believers and from her very inception she has deplored divisions within the Christian world. As in the past, so in the present, she laments disunity among those who claim to be followers of Jesus Christ Whose purpose in the world was to unite all believers into one body. The Orthodox Church feels that, since she has been unassociated with the events related to the breakdown of religious unity in the West, she bears a special responsibility to contribute toward the restoration of the Christian unity which alone can render the message of the Gospel effective in a world troubled by threats of world conflict and general uncertainty over the future.
It is with humility that we voice the conviction that the Orthodox Church can make a special contribution to the cause of Christian unity, because since Pentecost she has possessed the true unity intended by Christ. It is with this conviction that the Orthodox Church is always prepared to meet with Christians of other communions in inter-confessional deliberations. She rejoices over the fact that she is able to join those of other denominations in ecumenical conversations that aim at removing the barriers to Christian unity. However, we feel compelled in all honesty, as representatives of the Orthodox Church, to confess that we must qualify our participation, as necessitated by the historic faith and practice of our Church, and also state the general position that must be taken at this interdenominational conference.
In considering firstly "the nature of the unity we seek," we wish to begin by making clear that our approach is at variance with that usually advocated and ordinarily expected by participating representatives. The Orthodox Church teaches that the unity of the Church has not been lost, because she is the Body of Christ, and, as such, can never be divided. It is Christ as her head and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that secure the unity of the Church throughout the ages.
The presence of human imperfection among her members is powerless to obliterate the unity, for Christ Himself promised that the "gates of hell shall not prevail against the Church." Satan has always sown tares in the field of the Lord and the forces of disunity have often threatened but have never actually succeeded in dividing the Church. No power can be mightier than the omnipotent will of Christ Who founded one Church only in order to bring men into unity with God. Oneness is an essential mark of the Church.
If it be true that Christ founded the Church as a means of unifying men divided by sin, then it must naturally follow that the unity of the Church was preserved by His divine omnipotence. Unity, therefore, is not just a promise, or a potentiality, but belongs to the very nature of the Church. It is not something which has been lost and which should be recovered, but rather it is a permanent character of the structure of the Church.
Christian love impels us to speak candidly of our conviction that the Orthodox Church has not lost the unity of the Church intended by Christ, for she represents the oneness which in Western Christendom has only been a potentiality. The Orthodox Church teaches that she has no need to search for a "lost unity," because her historic consciousness dictates that she is the Una Sancta and that all Christian groups outside the Orthodox Church can recover their unity only by entering into the bosom of that Church which preserved its identity with early Christianity.
These are claims that arise not from presumptuousness, but from an inner historical awareness of the Orthodox Church. Indeed, this is the special message of Eastern Orthodoxy to a divided Western Christendom.
The Orthodox Church true to her historical consciousness declares that she has maintained an unbroken continuity with the Church of Pentecost by preserving the Apostolic faith and polity unadulterated. She has kept the "faith once delivered unto the saints" free from the distortions of human innovations. Man-made doctrines have never found their way into the Orthodox Church, since she has no necessary association in history with the name of one single father or theologian. She owes the fullness and the guarantee of unity and infallibility to the operation of the Holy Spirit and not to the service of one individual. It is for this reason that she has never felt the need for what is known as "a return to the purity of the Apostolic faith." She maintains the necessary balance between freedom and authority and thus avoids the extremes of absolutism and individualism both of which have done violence to Christian unity.
We re-assert what was declared at Evanston and what has been made known in the past at all interdenominational conferences attended by delegates of the Orthodox Church. It is not due to our personal merit, but to divine condescension that we represent the Orthodox Church and are able to give expression to her claims. We are bound in conscience to state explicitly what is logically inferred; that all other bodies have been directly or indirectly separated from the Orthodox Church. Unity from the Orthodox standpoint means a return of the separated bodies to the historical Orthodox, One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church.
The unity which Orthodoxy represents rests on identity of faith, order, and worship. All three aspects of the life of the Church are outwardly safeguarded by the reality of the unbroken succession of bishops which is the assurance of the Church's uninterrupted continuity with apostolic origins. This means that the uncompromised fullness of the Church requires the preservation of both its episcopal structure and sacramental life. Adhering tenaciously to her Apostolic heritage, the Orthodox Church holds that no true unity is possible where episcopacy and sacraments are absent, and grieves over the fact that both institutions have either been discarded or distorted in certain quarters of Christendom. Any agreement on faith must rest on the authority of the enactments of the seven Ecumenical Councils which represent the mind of the one undivided Church of antiquity and the subsequent tradition as safeguarded in the life of the Orthodox Church.
We regret that the most vital problem of Ministry and that of the Apostolic Succession, without which to our mind there is neither unity, nor church, were not included in the program of the Conference. All problems of Order seem to be missing in the program. These, in our opinion, are basic for any study of Unity.
Visible unity expressed in organizational union does not destroy the centrality of the spirit among believers, but rather testifies to the reality of the oneness of the Spirit. Where there is the fullness of the Spirit, there too will outward amity be found. From Apostolic times the unity of Christian believers was manifested by a visible, organizational structure. It is the unity in the Holy Spirit that is expressed in a unified visible organization.
The Holy Eucharist, as the chief act of worship, is the outward affirmation of the inner relation rising from unity in the Holy Spirit. But this unity involves a consensus of faith among those participating. Intercommunion, therefore, is possible only when there is agreement of faith. Common worship in every case must presuppose a common faith. The Orthodox Church maintains that worship of any nature cannot be sincere unless there is oneness of faith among those participating. It is with this belief that the Orthodox hesitate to share in Joint prayer services and strictly refrain from attending interdenominational Communion Services.
A common faith and a common worship are inseparable in the historical continuity of the Orthodox Church. However, in isolation neither can be preserved integral and intact. Both must be kept in organic and inner relationship with each other. It is for this reason that Christian unity cannot be realized merely by determining what articles of faith or what creed should be regarded as constituting the basis of unity. In addition to subscribing to certain doctrines of faith, it is necessary to achieve the experience of a common tradition or communis sensus fidelium preserved through common worship within the historic framework of the Orthodox Church. There can be no true unanimity of faith unless that faith remains within the life and sacred tradition of the Church which is identical throughout the ages. It is in the experience of worship that we affirm the true faith, and conversely, it is in the recognition of a common faith that we secure the reality of worship in spirit and in truth.
Thus the Orthodox Church in each locality insists on agreement of faith and worship before it will consider sharing in any interdenominational activity. Doctrinal differences constitute an obstacle in the way of unrestricted participation in such activities. In order to safeguard the purity of the faith and the integrity of the liturgical and spiritual life of the Orthodox Church, abstinence from interdenominational activities is encouraged on a local level. There is no phase of the Church’s life unrelated to her faith. Intercommunion with another church must be grounded on a consensus of faith and a common understanding of the sacramental life. The Holy Eucharist especially must be the liturgical demonstration of the unity of faith.
We are fully aware of deep divergences which separate Christian denominations from each other, in all fields of Christian life and existence, in the understanding of faith, in the shaping of life, in the habits of worship. We are seeking, accordingly, an unanimity in faith, an identity of order, a fellowship in prayer. But for us all the three are organically linked together. Communion in worship is only possible in the unity of faiths. Communion presupposes Unity. Therefore, the term "Intercommunion" seems to us an epitome of that conception which we are compelled to reject. An "intercommunion" presupposes the existence of several separate and separated denominations, which join occasionally in certain common acts or actions. In the true Unity of Christ’s Church there is no room for several "denominations." There is, therefore, no room for "'intercommunion." When all are truly united in the Apostolic Faith and Order, there will be all-inclusive Communion and Fellowship in all things.
It has been stated by the Orthodox delegates already in Edinburgh, in 1937, that many problems are presented at Faith and Order Conferences in a manner and in a setting which are utterly uncongenial to the Orthodox. We again must repeat the same statement now. But again, as years ago in Edinburgh, we want to testify our readiness and willingness to participate in study, in order that the Truth of the Gospel and the fullness of the Apostolic Tradition may be brought to the knowledge of all who, truly, unselfishly, and devoutedly seek Unity in Our Blessed Lord and His Holy Church, One, Catholic, and Apostolic.
Bishop Athenagoras Kokkinakis, Chairman
Very Rev Georges Florovsky
Very Rev Eusebius A. Stephanou
Rev George Tsoumas
Rev John A. Poulos
Rev John Hondras
Rev George P. Gallos
The Orthodox Church is a great church of history, older than even the RCC. But we talk of a ‘church’ as a gathering of those who come to hear of Christ, to worship Him, to AGREE with principles and to reform, to repent.
This statement of ‘unity’ is I believe a wise one. Christians are to a great extent already united in faith and belief. It is the administration of the historical teaching and the development of faith where many sects and groups have evolved and developed over the centuries that has created an appearance of division.
The two great Christian Churches, the Roman Catholic and the Eastern Catholic (Orthodox) share a great number of similar teachings and practices in liturgy. The ‘unification’ of these two great Churches rests not so much on uniting their treatment of the Gospel as it does on merging the ‘management’ of the organizations. That is always a problem in general business.
As I read it, the article tells me as a methodist that I don’t fit in yet. That really is no change. I accept any denomination’s right to define itself. Nor do I want any to pursue a union of convenience. I felt the sincerity of the writers when they mentioned a type of union that gathers infrequently and shares a sacrament. I, too, sensed the shallowness of such a thing
My hope is that a serious, deep unity might come about in some way on this side of eternity.
And at the same time I admire Orthodoxy’s insistence on being true to their identity.
I would agree with the above statement but would remove the word “Orthodox” from it.
The article further states, “We are fully aware of deep divergences which separate Christian denominations from each other, in all fields of Christian life and existence, in the understanding of faith, in the shaping of life, in the habits of worship. We are seeking, accordingly, an unanimity in faith, an identity of order, a fellowship in prayer. But for us all the three are organically linked together. Communion in worship is only possible in the unity of faiths. Communion presupposes Unity. Therefore, the term "Intercommunion" seems to us an epitome of that conception which we are compelled to reject. An "intercommunion" presupposes the existence of several separate and separated denominations, which join occasionally in certain common acts or actions. In the true Unity of Christ’s Church there is no room for several "denominations." There is, therefore, no room for "'intercommunion."....“When all are truly united in the Apostolic Faith and Order, there will be all-inclusive Communion and Fellowship in all things.”
My translation of the above statements is, “When all Christians agree with the Orthodox church in doctrine, there will be all-inclusive Communion and Fellowship in all things.”
We have this same posture coming from Roman Catholic and other churches. Orthodox, Roman Catholic and other churches have assigned themselves as being the sole authority over Christ’s body on earth. They can't all be right!!
The Russian Orthodox are being courted by the Bergoglio Vatican. Will they also keep to the narrow road of unity, plainly laid out in history and tradition, just as strictly as the Greek Orthodox, here in this article?
Didn’t an Orthodox prelate take part in the abominable inter-religious Assisi prayers?
I believe so. The ROC has long sought cooperation with the Holy See in areas of mutual interest and where there is no danger of diluting essential points of faith. Examples would include charity, and resistance to the wave of hyper aggressive secularism in Europe as well as responding to the ongoing persecution of Christians around the world. But there has never been any hint of doctrinal compromise and the idea of communio in sacris has never been seriously entertained. At least not by the Orthodox.
I think so, and he was roundly condemned for it. The letter from the monks of Mt. Athos was scathing.
Yet those churches go back to the apostles.
The Orthodox Church is distinguished as the oldest, closest to the Levitical origins. Their history is also distinguished by rejection to any ‘change’ in the divine liturgy, there has been no change in it in nearly 2000 years, hence there has been no other ‘doctrine’ other than the original. In fact, Orthodox scholars will argue there is no ‘doctrine’ other than what was laid down by Saints Paul and Peter, that was, is, and forever will be. This is important as Protestants flee from their churches to Orthodoxy to escape doctrinal changes that they know in their hearts are wrong. The Orthodox Church provides them refuge and helps them to heal before returning to their protestant church with renewed strength. This is a wonderful attribute of the Orthodox Church.
There are though some divisions in Orthodox administrations but such arguments and divisions are of purely human origin, never spilling over into the liturgical customs. Those divine customs are forever the same, never changing, reflecting the Eternal.
For me personally, I am an admirer of the history of the King James Bible. To me, that was a miraculous event in history. However, if I ever become confused, I seek the calming influence of the Orthodox Church.
They never change. They are not granted any means to change, it is impossible.
The Orthodox Church and the RCC have been in talks for decades over matters of unity and unification. This letter clarifies the current state of affairs.
"This letter" is sixty years old.
So? It never changes.
60 years, 90 years, it never changes. Time is irrelevant.
So are Greek & Russian Orthodox equally and strictly traditional? I know Bergoglio has sent his “ecumenical” courtiers to Russia. I bite my nails when they try to influence.
In the 1970s, Russian Orthodox Metropolitan Nikodim of Leningrad temporarily allowed intercommunion with the Roman Catholic Church within the borders of his diocese. The rare and very controversial practice, however, did not become widespread and was eventually terminated.
http://www.orthodoxanswers.org/can-roman-catholics-receive-communion-in-the-eastern-orthodox-church-and-vice-versa/
I think the Orthodox know better than to buy whatever Bergoglio is selling.
Orthodoxy is worldwide, every continent.
Greek and Russian are merely two groups under various Patriarchs. Orthodox organization is not centralized, not vertically arranged in a chain of command. They are all different, independent to a large extent from each other. But what makes them Orthodox are the divine rites and the Divine Liturgy which is always preserved and maintained, never questioned or modified.
American Orthodox are self-reliant, patriotic, apolitical. These are generalities, the averages.
The Russia Orthodox were split from the Bolshevik revolution. They split into the Russian Orthodox and the Russia Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (ROCOR) http://www.synod.com/synod/indexeng.htm
ROCOR was the remnant of Russian Orthodox from Tsar Nicholas II who was a true devoted Christian. Tsar Nicholas was the Head of the Orthodox Church including its churches, monasteries, and convents in Jerusalem and throughout Eastern Europe. He inherited the Temple on the Mount, The Garden of Gethsemane, The Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron, numerous other holy sites. So although the Bolsheviks murdered his Christians in Russia, the Russian Orthodox Church outside Russia remained strong and vibrant, and importantly a refuge for those fleeing Russian communism and its murderous bloodbath.
The Bolsheviks destroyed most Orthodox Churches in Russia until they realized that the Orthodox faith simply went underground. To spy on who was continuing to adhere to Orthodoxy as a proxy for Tsarist elements, the Bolsheviks developed spies to infiltrate the Church. Communist successors in the KGB managed to turn the Patriarch of Moscow Aleksei to become an informant. Because of this betrayal, the Russian Orthodox Church is still viewed suspiciously by Orthodox outside Russia, although efforts are in play to integrate the Patriarchy of Moscow back into rest of Orthodox Christianity.
These are matters of Church Politics but they in no way affect the Divine Liturgy. The sacred rites are passed from generation to generation unchanged. They are repeated without change.
Inside the Orthodox Churches, there are no pews, there are no priests lecturing or sermonizing what the Gospel means. There are readings that are part of the liturgical rites. All of the scripts are the same as they were nearly two thousand years ago with apologetic recounts by Orthodox Saints.
When inside the Church, one stands and faces the altar, bowing one’s head in continual prayer and making the Orthodox cross when compelled by the spoken prayers and and pleadings of Saints. One is free to wander and visit the icons and stations of the Church, stopping to pray and reflect, to meditate, to inwardly consider one’s own soul in the presence of the Eternal.
After the Divine Liturgy and Sacred Rites are completed, the human element is reentered outside the Church as pertaining to Church affairs, socials, lunches, dinners, projects. The meeting place for the socials may be in the Church basement or in an outside dining hall. The Divine Liturgy is a world apart from the human elements which is why it is never changed. There is no way to change it. There is no provision to amend it or modify it.
The Orthodox Church’s strength stems from its Monks and Nuns. Priests are allowed to marry and are encouraged to have large families to set an example for members of the Parish because many of the offspring become Monastics and so perpetuate the order.
Monks are celibate, highly educated, highly skilled. They live in Monasteries but make visits to Churches. They build each Orthodox Church according to a precise prescription while providing their own labor and skill. They are expected to never take a penny from any parish, instead operating businesses that are blessed by the Church. Some businesses operated by Monks are for example coffee roasting, police dog training, Christmas Card production. Monks are usually very physically strong and quiet. They write scholarly articles and attend to the Churches by ensuring the Divine Liturgy is followed to perfection.
Nuns are likewise self-reliant and are instrumental with Church mothers. They are closer to members of parishes than Monks but are no less important to the strength of the Church. One Orthodox Nun was a granddaughter of Queen Victoria and was considered in line for the Crown. She was also recognized as the most beautiful woman in all of Britain and Europe. She married into Russian nobility and converted of her own free will from Protestantism to Orthodoxy.
https://oca.org/saints/lives/2016/07/18/101915-grand-duchess-elizabeth
As far as the Roman Catholic Pope, it is not possible that Roman Catholicism can influence Christian Orthodoxy as the Orthodox have no means to revise their inherited faith patterns. There is no way, for example, to write a letter or epistle to instruct how the Orthodox Church must treat the remarried, or to view same-sex marriage inside the rites of the Church. Outside the Church, perhaps in its basement, or its offices, or on the porc of its entrance, such questions may be addressed, but never during rites and ceremonies.
The impact of Pope Francis’s emissaries is restricted to greetings, salutations, lunches, agreements to pray together. It is impossible such relationships could produce anything more. The Orthodox Church ‘doctrine’ or ‘dogma’ is enwrapped in its Divine Liturgy which can never be changed. This is what appeals to so may Orthodox and non-Orthodox regarding Orthodox Christianity.
Nikodim of Leningrad during the USSR era was not viewed as Orthodox, rather as a state agent. This was not a change in Orthodoxy. Read #17 to better understand.
I began life in the Catholic Church and some personal experiences made me decide to go the 'agnostic route" from the age of 14 until the age of 50.
Over the years, I tried different churches but it wasn't until I was sitting in a non-denominational church that I clearly heard the message of the love of Jesus and asked Him to be my Lord and Savior.
When I went to a gathering of Christians that "cut to the chase" and spent a LOT more time talking about Jesus than any of the religious churches I had been to, instead of worrying about their own "flavor" of side rules and telling me that me + Jesus = me missing out on Heaven because I really needed some other mortal men to pave the way...yada yada yada.
Ironic that God sent Jesus in the form of a man in order to foster a personal relationship and then we are told by some that relationship doesn't count without the intercession of other mortals....
But as Hebrews Chapter 10 states it is important not to forget the fellowship.
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