A
CONFESSION OF FAITH
AGAINST
ECUMENISM
From a Convention
of Orthodox Clergymen and Monks
Greece, April 2009
(Editor’s Note:
We are publishing one of the latest pronouncements against the heresy
of ecumenism that has infected most of the orthodox churches in recent
days. We urge the readers of The Voice of Orthodoxy to read it
in the right spirit of orthodoxy and make a self- examination of our
attitudes towards ecumenism, which is another form of religious liberalism
that destroys true orthodoxy and endangers the salvation of the orthodox
faithful. We agree with the essence of this Confession, which
is also one of the objectives of thevoiceoforthodoxy.com.
– Chor-Episcopos Kyriakos, Chief Editor)
Those of us who by the Grace of God have been
raised with the dogmas of piety and who follow in everything the One,
Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, believe that:
The sole path to salvation
of mankind[1] is the faith in the Holy Trinity, the work
and the teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ, and their continuance within
His Body, the Holy Church. Christ is the only true Light;[2]
there are no other lights to illuminate us, nor any other names that
can save us: "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there
is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be
saved."[3] All other beliefs, all religions that ignore
and do not confess Christ "having come in the flesh,"[4]
are human creations and works of the evil one,[5]
which do not lead to the true knowledge of God and rebirth through divine
Baptism, but instead, mislead men and lead them to perdition. As Christians
who believe in the Holy Trinity, we do not have the same God as any
of the religions, nor with the so-called monotheistic religions, Judaism
and Mohammedanism, which do not believe in the Holy Trinity.
For two thousand years, the one Church which
Christ founded and the Holy Spirit has guided has remained stable and
unshakeable in the salvific Truth that was taught by Christ, delivered
by the Holy Apostles and preserved by the Holy Fathers. She did not buckle
under the cruel persecutions by the Judeans initially or by idolaters
later, during the first three centuries. She has brought forth a host
of martyrs and emerged victorious, thus proving Her divine origin. As
Saint John the Chrysostom beautifully expressed it: "Nothing is
stronger than the Church... if you fight against a man, you either conquer
or are conquered; but if you fight against the Church, it is not possible
for you to win, for God is the strongest of all."[6]
Following
the cessation of the persecutions and the triumph of the Church over
Her external enemies - in other words, the Judeans and the idolaters
- the internal enemies of the Church began to multiply and strengthen.
A variety of heresies began to appear, which endeavored to overthrow
and adulterate the faith once delivered, such that the faithful became
confused, and their trust in the truth of the Gospel and traditions
was debilitated. In outlining the ecclesiastical state of affairs that
was created by the dominance for over 40 years - even administratively
- of the heresy of Arius, Saint Basil the Great says: "The dogmas
of the Fathers have been entirely disregarded, the apostolic traditions
withered, the inventions of the youth are observed in the Churches;
people are now "logic-chopping" not theologizing; precedence
is given to the wisdom of the world, pushing aside the boasting in the
Cross. Shepherds are driven out, and in their place cruel wolves are
ushered in, dispersing Christ's flock."[7]
That which happened because of external enemies
- religions - also happened because of internal ones - heresies. The
Church, through Her great and enlightened Holy Fathers, demarcated and
marked the boundaries [perixarakose] of the Orthodox faith with
decisions by Local and Ecumenical Synods in the cases of specific, dubious
teachings, but also with the agreement of all the Fathers (Consensus
Patrum), on all the matters of the Faith. We stand on sure ground when
we follow the Holy Fathers and do not move the boundaries that they
have set. The expressions "Following after our Holy Fathers"
and "Not withdrawing the boundaries that our Fathers have set"
are signposts for a steady course of spiritual advance and a guardrail
for [remaining within] the Orthodox faith and way of life.
Consequently, the
basic positions of our Confession are the following:
1. We maintain, irremovably and without alteration,
everything that the Synods and the Fathers have instituted. We accept
everything that they accept and condemn everything that they condemn;
and we avoid communication with those who innovate in matters of the
Faith.[8] We neither add, nor remove, nor alter any
teaching. Even from the apostolic era, the God-bearing Saint Ignatius
of Antioch in his epistle to Saint Polycarp of Smyrna wrote: "Anyone
who says contrary to what has been decreed - even if he is trustworthy,
even if he fasts, even if he lives in virginity, even if he performs
signs and prophesizes, let him appear to you as a wolf in a sheep's
hide, aspiring to the corruption of the sheep." Saint John the
Chrysostom, in interpreting the Apostle Paul's words "If any man
preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him
be anathema" (Gal. 1:9), observes that the Apostle "did not
say if they should proclaim something contrary or if they should overturn
everything, but that even if they should preach even the smallest thing
that has not been delivered to you, even if they should simply provoke
it, let them be anathema."[9] Upon
announcing its decisions against the Iconoclasts to the clergy of Constantinople,
the 7th Ecumenical Synod wrote: "We have followed the tradition
of the Catholic Church, neither loosening [the matters of faith] nor
making any superfluous addition, but, having been taught in the apostolic
manner, we maintain the traditions we have received, accepting and respecting
everything that the Holy Catholic Church has received from the first
years, unwritten and written... for the true and straightforward judgment
of the Church does not make any allowance for innovations within Her,
or for attempts to remove anything. We, therefore, by following the laws
of our Fathers, having received Grace by the one Spirit, have duly safeguarded
without any innovations and reductions, all the things of the Church."[10]
Along with the Holy
Fathers and the Synods, we too reject and anathematize all the heresies
that appeared during the historical course of the Church. Of the old
heresies that have survived to this day, we condemn Arianism (still
surviving, in the pseudo-Witnesses of Jehovah) and Monophysitism - the
extreme form of Eutychius and the more moderate form of Sevirus and
Dioscorus - according to the decisions of the 4th Ecumenical Synod of
Chalcedon and the Christological teaching of the great Holy Fathers
and Teachers such as Saints Maximus the Confessor, John of Damascus,
Photios the Great and the hymns of our worship.
2. We proclaim that Roman Catholicism is a womb
of heresies and fallacies.[11] The teaching of the "Filioque" -
that is, the procession of the Holy Spirit AND from the Son - is contrary
to everything that Christ Himself taught about the Holy Spirit. The
entire chorus of Fathers, both in Synods and individually, regard Roman
Catholicism as a heresy because apart from the Filioque, it produced
a host of other fallacies, such as the primacy and the infallibility
of the Pope, the unleavened bread (host), the fires of Purgatory, the
immaculate conception of the Theotokos, created Grace, the purchasing
of absolution (indulgences)... it has altered nearly all of the teaching
and the practice pertaining to Baptism, Chrismation, the Divine Eucharist
and the other Sacraments, and has converted the Church to a secular
State.[12]
Contemporary Roman
Catholicism has deviated even further than the medieval Latins from
the teaching of the Church, to the extent that it no longer comprises
a continuance of the ancient Church of the West. It has introduced a
swarm of new exaggerations in its "Mariology," such as the
teaching that the Theotokos is a parallel redeemer (co-redemptrix) of
the human race. It has reinforced the "Charismatic Movement"
of Pentecostal (supposedly Spirit-centered) groups. It has adopted eastern
religious practices and methods of prayer and meditation. It has introduced
additional innovations into Divine worship, such as dances and musical
instruments. It has shortened and essentially ruined the Divine Liturgy.
With respect to Ecumenism it has set down the bases for a unification
of all religions (panthriskeia) with its Second Vatican Council,
by recognizing "spiritual life" in the people of other religions.
Dogmatic minimalism has led it to a diminishing of moral requirements,
on account of the bond between dogma and morality, resulting in the
moral failures of leading clergymen and an increase in moral deviations
such as homosexuality and pedophilia among clergymen.[13]
By continuing to support "Uniatism" - that caricature of Orthodoxy
with which it victimizes and proselytizes faithful - The Vatican is
sabotaging the dialogue and is contradicting its supposedly sincere
intentions for union.
Generally speaking,
after the Second Vatican Council there has been a radical change in
Catholicism and a turn towards Protestantism, and even an adoption of
various "spiritual" movements of the "New Age."
According to Saint Simeon of Thessaloniki, the Mystagogue, "Papism"
caused more damage to the Church than all the heresies and schisms combined. We
Orthodox have communion with the pre-Schism Popes and we commemorate
many Popes as Saints. However, the post-Schism popes have all taught
heresy; they have ceased to be successors to the throne of Rome; they
no longer have Apostolic succession, because they no longer have the
faith of the Apostles and the Fathers. It is for this reason that, as
St. Symeon states, with each such pope, "not only do we have no
communion, but we also call him a heretic." On account of their
blasphemy against the Holy Spirit with their teaching of the Filioque,
they forfeited the presence of the Holy Spirit and therefore everything
of theirs is deprived of Grace.[14]
Not one of their Mysteries (Sacraments) is valid, according to Saint
Simeon: "Therefore the innovators are blaspheming and are far away
from the Spirit, by blaspheming against the Holy Spirit, hence everything
of theirs is graceless, inasmuch as they have violated and have demoted
the Grace of the Spirit... which is why the Holy Spirit is not among
them, and there is nothing spiritual in them, as everything of theirs
is new and altered and contrary to Divine tradition."[15]
3. The
same things apply to an even greater degree to Protestantism, which
as the offspring of Papism has inherited many heresies, but has also
added many more. It has rejected Tradition, accepting only Holy Scripture
(Sola Scriptura), which it misinterprets; it has abolished the Priesthood
as a unique Mystery (Sacrament), as well as the veneration of the Saints
and of the holy Icons; it has failed to honor, or even, in some cases,
slighted the person of the Most Holy Theotokos (Mother of God); it has
discarded monasticism; among the Holy Mysteries, it accepts only Baptism
and the Divine Eucharist, which are understood in a way that deviates
sharply from the teaching and the practice of the Church; it teaches
such things as absolute predestination (Calvinism) and justification
through faith alone. Furthermore, its more "progressive" sector
has introduced Priesthood for women and marriage between homosexuals
- whom they even accept into the ranks of the clergy. But above all,
it lacks a proper ecclesiology, because the Orthodox understanding of
the nature of the Church does not exist among them.[16]
4. The only way that our communion with heretics
can be restored is if they renounce their delusion (plani) and
repent, so that there may be a true union and peace: a union with the
Truth, and not with delusion and heresy. For the incorporation of heretics
into the Church, canonical precision (akriveia) requires that
they be accepted through Baptism.[17] Their
previous "baptism," performed outside the Church (without
the triple immersion and emersion of the one being baptized in water
sanctified by a particular prayer) is in no way a baptism.[18]
All attempts at baptism outside the Church lack the Grace of the Holy
Spirit (Who does not remain within schisms and heresies) and as such,
we have nothing in common that unites us, as Basil the Great points
out: "those who had apostatized from the Church had no longer on
them the Grace of the Holy Spirit, for it ceased to be imparted when
the continuity was broken...they who were broken off had become laymen,
and, because they are no longer able to confer on others that Grace
of the Holy Spirit from which they themselves are fallen away, they
had no authority either to baptize or to ordain."[19]
That is why the new attempt by Ecumenists to
push the idea that we have a common baptism with heretics is unfounded.
Indeed, upon this nonexistent baptismal unity they want to base the
unity of the Church, which supposedly exists wherever a baptism may
exist.[20] One enters the Church, however, and becomes
Her member, not with just any baptism, but only with the "one baptism,"
that uniformly performed baptism, officiated by Priests who have received
the Priesthood of the Church.
5. As long as the heterodox continue to remain
in their errors, we avoid communion with them, especially in common
prayer. All those holy canons which address the matter of common prayer
are unanimous in prohibiting not only common officiating and common
prayer in the temple of God, but even ordinary prayers in private quarters.
The Church's strict stance toward the heterodox springs from true love
and sincere concern for their salvation, and out of Her pastoral care
that the faithful be not carried away by heresy. Whosoever loves, reveals
the truth and does not leave the other in falsehood; otherwise, any
love and agreement with him would only be counterfeit and false. There
is such a thing as a good war and a bad peace: "...for a praiseworthy
war is superior to a peace that separates one from God" says Saint
Gregory the Theologian.[21] And Saint John the Chrysostom recommends:
"If you should see devoutness infringed upon, do not prefer a oneness
of mind to the truth, but stand fast until death... in no way betraying
the truth". And elsewhere, he recommends with emphasis: "Do
not accept any false dogma on the pretext of love."[22]
This stance of the Fathers was also adopted by the great defender and
confessor of the Orthodox faith against the Latins, Saint Mark of Ephesus,
who concluded his own Confession of Faith in Florence with the following
words: "All the teachers of the Church, all the Councils and all
the divine Scriptures exhort us to avoid heretics, and to refrain from
communion with them. Therefore, am I to disregard them all, and follow
those who under the pretense of a manufactured peace strive for union?
Those, who have counterfeited the sacred and divine Symbol of Faith
(The Creed) and who introduced the Son as the second cause of the Holy
Spirit? [...] May this never happen to us, benevolent Comforter (Paraclete),
and may I never fall away from my own duteous thoughts, but, by following
Thy teaching and the blessed men who were inspired by Thee, may I be
added to my fathers, by bringing in, if nothing else, this: devoutness."[23]
6. Up until the beginning of the 20th century,
the Church has steadfastly and immutably maintained a dismissive and
condemnatory stance towards all heresies, as clearly formulated in the
Synodicon of Orthodoxy which is recited on the Sunday of Orthodoxy.
Heresies and heretics are anathematized, one by one; furthermore, in
order to ensure that no heretics be left out of the anathema, there
is a general anathema at the end of the text: "Let all heretics
be anathematized."
Unfortunately, this
uniform, steady and unswerving stance of the Church up until the beginning
of the 20th century has begun to be progressively abandoned, following
the encyclical that was released by the Ecumenical Patriarchate in 1920, "Unto
the Churches of Christ Everywhere," which for the first time officially
characterized heresies as "churches"[24]
that are not alienated from the Church, but are familiar and related
to Her. It recommended that "the love between the Churches should
above all be rekindled and reinforced, and they should no more consider
one another as strangers and foreigners, but as relatives, and as being
a part of the household of Christ and ‘fellow heirs, members of the
same body and partakers of the promise of God in Christ."[25]
The path is now open
for the adoption, the shaping and the development of the heresy of Ecumenism
wthin the sphere of the Orthodox Church - this "pan-heresy,"
initially of Protestant inspiration, now with Papal acceptance, which
adopts and legalizes all heresies as ‘churches' and assaults the dogma
of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. This new dogma regarding
the Church, this new ecclesiology, is now developed, taught and imposed
by Patriarchs and bishops. According to this new teaching, no Church
is entitled to demand for itself exclusively the designation of the
catholic and true Church. Instead, each one of them is a piece, a part,
and not the entire Church; they all together comprise the Church.[26]
All the boundaries
set by the Fathers have fallen; there is no longer a dividing line between
heresy and Church, between truth and delusion. Heresies are also ‘churches'
now; in fact, many of them - like the Papist one- are now regarded as
'sister churches' to which God has entrusted, jointly with us, the care
for mankind's salvation.[27]
The Grace of the Holy
Spirit now also exists within heresies, and therefore their baptisms
are - like all the other mysteries - considered valid.[28] All
who have been baptized into a heretical group are now considered members
of Christ's Body, the Church.
The condemnations and
the anathemas of the councils are no longer valid and should be stricken
from liturgical books. We are now lodged in the "World Council of
Churches" and have essentially betrayed - with our membership alone[29]
- our ecclesiastical self-awareness. We have removed the dogma regarding
the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church - the dogma of "one
Lord, one Faith, one Baptism."[30]
7. This inter-Christian syncretism has now expanded
into an inter-religious syncretism, which equates all the religions
with the unique knowledge of and reverence for God and a Christ-like
way of life - all revealed from on high by Christ. Consequently, it
is not only the dogma of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church
in relation to the various heresies that is being attacked, but also
the foundational and unique dogma of revelation and salvation of mankind
through Jesus Christ in relation to the religions of the world. It is
the worst delusion, the greatest heresy of all ages.
8. We believe and confess that salvation is possible
in Christ alone. The religions of the world, but also the various heresies
do not lead man to salvation. The Orthodox Church is not merely the true
Church; She is the only Church. She alone has remained faithful to the
Gospel, the Synods and the Fathers, and consequently She alone represents
the true catholic Church of Christ. According to the blessed Elder Justin
Popovitch, Ecumenism is a common name for the pseudo-churches of Western
Europe; their common name is "pan-heresy."[31]
This pan-heresy has
been accepted by many Orthodox patriarchs, archbishops, bishops, clergymen,
monks and laity. They teach it, "bareheaded," they apply it
and impose it in practice, communing with heretics in every possible
manner - with common prayers, with exchanges of visits, with pastoral
collaborations - thus essentially placing themselves outside the Church.[32] Our
stance, per the Conciliar canonical decisions and per the example of
the Saints, is obvious. Each one must now assume his responsibilities.
9. There are of course collective responsibilities
also, and chiefly in the ecumenistic conscience of our hierarchs and
theologians, towards the Orthodox people (pleroma) and their
individual flocks. To them, we declare with a fear of God and with love
that this stance of theirs and their involvement in ecumenistic activities
are condemnable from every aspect, because:
a) they actively impugn our Orthodox-Patristic
Tradition and Faith;
b)
they are sowing doubt in the hearts of their flock and unsettle many,
leading to division and schism, and
c)
they are luring a portion of the flock into delusion, and thus, to spiritual
disaster.
We, therefore, declare that, for the aforementioned reasons, those who
endeavor within this ecumenist irresponsibility, whatever rank they
may hold within the Church Body, contradict the tradition of our Saints
and are thus stand in opposition to them. For this reason their stance
must be condemned and rejected by the entirety of the Hierarchy and
Faithful.[33]
[1] See treatise by Gennadius II Scholarios, Patriarch
of Constantinople: "Regarding the only way to the salvation of
mankind," to George Scholarios "The complete extant works
- Oevres Completes de Georges Scholarios," Volumes I-VII, Paris
1928-1936, publ. L. Petit - X. Siderides - M. Jugie, Vol. III, 434-452.
[2] John 8:12 "I am the light of the world
- whosoever follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the
light of life." John 3:19 "The light had come to the world
and men loved the darkness rather than the light."
[3] Acts 4:12.
[4] 1 John 4:2-3: "Every spirit that confesses
Jesus had cometh in the flesh, is from God; and every spirit that does
not confess Jesus Christ had cometh in the flesh, is not from God. And
this is what you have heard regarding the antichrist: that he cometh
and is now already in the world."
[5] See "Didaches" (Teachings) of St.Cosmas
of Aetolia, of I. Menounos, "Cosmas of Aetolia teachings"
(and biography), Tinos publications, Athens, Didache A1, 37, page 142:
"All faiths are false, counterfeit, all of them the Devil's. This
I realized as being true, divine, heavenly, correct, perfect, both by
my word and by your word: that the faith of the pious and Orthodox Christians
is good and holy, and that we must believe and be baptized in the name
of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit."
[6] "Homily prior to the exile" 1, ΕΠΕ
33, 186.
[7] Epistle 90, "To the most holy brothers
and bishops in the West" 2, ΕΠΕ 2, 20.
[8] This refers to those who provoke and innovate
with regard to the Faith. It does not mean that Orthodox Christians
should have no contact with non-Orthodox in the context of missionary
outreach and witness, which would mean the cessation of all evangelism,
missionary work, sharing of our Faith, etc. -Ed.
[9] Galatians. 1, 9. To Gall. Homily chapt. 1,
PG 61, 624.
[10] Mansi, 13, 409-412.
[11] In our age of "political correctness"
this statement may seem outrageous and unnecessarily inflammatory. It
is, however, "soft" in comparison to the writings of the Holy
Fathers (e.g., note the language of St. Photios the Great throughout
his 10th-century treatise against the filioque
clause, On the Mystagogy of the Holy Spirit
- and this was long before many other heresies were introduced). The
Holy Fathers have, for centuries, viewed the Roman Catholicism as a
womb of heresies, beginning with the adoption and promulgation of the
filioque clause.
Consider the following statements from another Confession of
Faith from modern times, the Patriarchal Encyclical of 1848: "As
soon as [the filioque] was introduced into the Churches of the
West it brought forth disgraceful fruits, bringing with it, little by
little, other novelties, for the most part contrary to the express commands
of our Savior in the Gospel-commands which till its entrance into the
Churches were closely observed.... It drove the theologians of the West,
as its defenders, since they had no ground either in Scripture or the
Fathers to countenance heretical teachings, not only into misrepresentations
of the Scriptures, such as are seen in none of the Fathers of the Holy
Catholic Church, but also into adulterations of the sacred and pure
writings of the Fathers alike of the East and West."
Similar language is found in the the Patriarchal Encyclical of 1895:
"[B]ut the present Roman Church is the Church of innovations, of
the falsification of the writings of the Church Fathers, and of the
misinterpretation of the Holy Scripture and of the decrees of the holy
councils, for which she has reasonably and justly been disowned, and
is still disowned, so far as she remains in her error.... [A]s has been
said before, the Western Church, from the tenth century downwards, has
privily brought into herself through the papacy various and strange
and heretical doctrines and innovations, and so she has been torn away
and removed far from the true and orthodox Church of Christ." If
some find the language of the "Confession of Faith Against Ecumenism"
offensive, they might consider whether this is due to a lack of familiarity
with the writings of the Holy Fathers, and past confessional statements
of the Orthodox Church. - Ed.
[12] Again, see the Patriarchal Encyclicals of
1848 and 1895, which lay this out in great detail. - Ed.
[13] The moral laxity and decadence, even among
the clergy, had already been noted at the beginning of the 15th century,
by Saint Simeon of Thessaloniki (see 'Dogmatic Epistle 16' in D. Balfour,
by Simeon of Thessaloniki (1416/17-1429) "Theological Works,"
Vlatades Gleanings 34, Thessaloniki 1981, page 218: "And furthermore,
that they did not regard fornication at all entailing Hell, not even
among their priests, but instead, they would unscrupulously have concubines
and youths for fornication and would every day officiate." Ibid,
15, page 216: "They also do not follow an evangelical lifestyle; for,
every kind of luxury and fornication to them is not a reprehensible
matter, nor anything else that is forbidden for Christians.") The
moral decadence that is observed of late even among the Orthodox clergy
is the result of liberalism which accompanies ecumenism and of secularism.
[14] The term "Grace" is often misunderstood
today. The Patristic teaching on the subject was best expressed by our
Venerable Father Diadochus the God-bearer, Bishop of Photike in Epirus.
As he writes in his Hundred Texts on Spiritual Knowledge
and Discernment: "Before holy baptism Grace encourages the
soul towards good from the outside, while Satan lurks in its depths,
trying to block all the intellect's ways of approach to the divine.
But from the moment we are reborn through Baptism, the demon is outside,
Grace is within." And, in our own days, Blessed Archbishop Seraphim
of Sophia writes concerning the two forms of Grace: "According
to the teaching of the Holy Fathers, the Grace of the Holy Spirit is
manifest in two forms: firstly, as an external, providential Grace,
which acts in and throughout the lives of everybody, enabling anyone
to accept the True Faith; and, secondly, as an internal, salvific Grace,
which revivifies, redeems, and functions solely in the Orthodox Church."
Here the Confession refers to the latter form of Grace. The general
operation of the Holy Spirit among all men is not in question. - Ed.
[15] Dialogue 23, PG 155, 120-121. Epistle regarding
blessedness 5, in D. Balfour, Simeon Archbishop of Thessaloniki (1416/17-1429),
"Theological Works," Vlatades Gleanings 34, Thessaloniki 1981,
page 226. These comments of Saint Simeon should be interpreted on the
basis of the Patristic teaching on Grace, as referred to in note 14
above. - Ed.
[16] Here the Confession speaks generally of Protestantism.
Given that there are 26,000+ denominations, it is impossible to make
a succinct statement about Protestant tenets that applies accurately
to them all. The Confession is admittedly painting with a broad brush,
but these are all aspects of Protestantism that apply more or less to
all Protestant groups, unless otherwise specified as speaking to particular
confessions (such as Calvinism). - Ed.
[17] "Canonical precision" or akriveia,
is the norm, as it is most consistent with the theological principles
under-girding the Canons concerning Holy Baptism. Nevertheless, the
authors of the Confession would agree that, when canonical presuppositions
existed, "canonical dispensation", or oikonomia,
has been employed. It is also the case, however, that, in almost every
case today, those presuppositions (such as triple immersion) do not
exist. - Ed.
[18] The reception of a convert into the Church
by oikonomia, when indeed it is done within the canonical prescriptions
and leads to the same end as akriveia, in no way can be interpreted
as altering Orthodox ecclesiology. Employing oikonomia in the
reception of non-Orthodox does not mean acceptance per se of
non-Orthodox mysteries. The acceptance per se of non-Orthodox
mysteries by some Orthodox representatives in the ecumenical movement
is impossible to reconcile with Orthodox ecclesiology and is to be rejected
as contrary to the Orthodox Dogma of the Church. - Ed.
[19] Canonical Epistle Ά, To Amphilochios of
Iconion, 1st Canon.
[20] In the text of the 9th General Convention
of the World Council of Churches in Porto Alegre, Brazil in 2006, which
was accepted by the representatives of the Orthodox churches and was
titled "Called to be the One Chuch," in paragraph 8 it states:
"All those baptized in Christ are united in His name." In
paragraph 9: "That we all belong in common to Christ through baptism
in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, gives the
churches the possibility and it invites them to walk together, even
when they disagree. We assure that there is one baptism, exactly as
there is one body and one Spirit, one hope in our calling, one Lord,
one Faith, one God and Father to all of us (see Ephes.4:4-6)."
The Metropolitan of Pergamos John (Zizioulas) in his work "Orthodox
Ecclesiology and the Ecumenical Movement," Sourozh Diocesan
Magazine (England, August 1985, vol.21, page 23), had paved the
way for this position, by stating: "Within baptism, even if there
is a break, a division, a schism, you can still speak of the Church...
The Orthodox, in my understanding at least, participate in the ecumenical
movement as a movement of baptized Christians, who are in a state of
division because they cannot express the same faith together. In the
past this has happened because of a lack of love which is now, thank
God, disappearing."
[21] Apologetics on the flight to Pontus 82, ΕΠΕ
1, 176.
[22] To Romans, Homily 22, 2, PG 60, 611. To Philippians,
Homily 2.1, PG 62, 119.
[23] Confession of faith displayed in Florence,
in Documents relatifs au Concile de Florence, II, Oeuvres anticonciliaires
de Marc d'Ephèse, par L. Petit, Patrologia Orientalis 17, 442.
[24] That is, "churches" in a more or
less real, ecclesiological way, implying mystical union with the one,
true Church of Christ, the Orthodox Church. - Ed.
[25] See I.Karmiris', "The Dogmatic and Symbolic
Monuments of the Orthodox Catholic Church," vol. 2, page 958.
[26] One recent example of this is found in the
declaration of the 9th General Convention of the World Council of Churches
in Porto Alegre, Brazil in 2006, which was accepted by the representatives
of the Local Orthodox Churches and was entitled "Called to be the
One Chuch." In section II, paragraph 6 of the document, which is
a common declaration of Orthodox and heterodox, we read: "Each
church is the Church catholic and not simply a part of it. Each church
is the Church catholic, but not the whole of it. Each church fulfils
its catholicity when it is in communion with the other churches."
But, as it would be expected, this "new dogma" takes on a
wide variety of expressions, from including only two churches, such
as (in the "two lung" theory) Roman Catholicism and the Orthodox
Church, or three churches, as in the classic Branch Theory of the Anglicans,
or including many churches, as has been expressed in the "invisible
church" ecclesiology of the World Council of Churches and the "baptismal
unity" theory. That which binds these various theories together
is a rejection of "ecclesiological exclusivism" and an ecumenism
"of return." A sentiment that is said often and by many, including
Orthodox primates and hierarchs, is that "a Catholic will not become
an Orthodox and vice versa, but we must approach the altar together"
(Bishop Tichon, Diocese of Central and Western Europe of the Patriarchate
of Bulgaria on his visit to the Pope, October 22nd, 2009;
See http://www.zenit.org/article-27299?l=english).
[27] See joint statement by Pope John-Paul II and
Patriarch Bartholomew during the latter's visit to Rome on the 29th
of June, 1995. The same had been proclaimed at an earlier date by the
Combined Theological Committee for the Dialogue between Orthodox and
Papists, in Balamand, Lebanon in 1993.
[28] The term "valid" here means accepting
heterodox baptism "per se", in and of itself, apart from the
Church, and has ecclesiological implications which the kat'oikonomia
reception of the non-Orthodox can never imply.
[29] This is a question of methodology, the "essential
betrayal" being an abandonment of the patristic methodology of
witness, wherein the Scriptural command, "a man that is an heretic
after the first and second admonition reject" (Tit 3:10) is followed,
if not in word than in spirit. Rather, we have "lodged" ourselves
in the World Council of Churches as full organic members, even committing
ourselves to dialogue without presuppositions or limits. This disregard
for patristic and scriptural guidelines to proper witness inevitably
has lead to a betrayal of the Church's self-understanding.
[30] Ephesians 4:5.
[31] Archimandrite Justin Popovitch, Orthodox
Church and Ecumenism, Thessaloniki 1974, page 224.
[32] What is not meant here is an institutional
departure from the Church by excommunication or anathema. And this is
clear by the use of the terms "essentially" and "placing
themselves." Rather, what is meant is that by their actions
and their words they have separated themselves in essence from
the Church - from Her Fathers, Her Way and Her Life. They have essentially
removed themselves from the Church by no longer following the Holy
Fathers, no longer expressing the Orthodox Faith.
The passage draws on the 15th canon of the 1st
-2nd Synod. The understanding behind the phrase "essentially
placing themselves outside the Church" is clearly implied in the
canon when it states: "For not bishops, but false bishops and false
teachers have they condemned..." The 15th canon, although praising
those who cease commemoration of their bishop, who is teaching heresy
"bareheaded", does not make ceasing commemoration a requirement.
It leaves the particular coure of action - based on the canons and councils
and fathers - to the discretion of each. The Confession follows
suit, clearly naming the heresy and calling all to appropriate response
("Our stance, per the Conciliar canonical decisions and per the
example of the Saints, is obvious.), but leaving the particulars to
each one's discretion ("Each one must now assume his responsibilities").
- Ed.
[33] As of Janurary 30, 2010 17,250 clergy, monks
and laymen have signed this Confession of Faith against Ecumenism. http://www.impantokratoros.gr/ABF82395.el.aspx
