Statement of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church

Statement of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church Заявление Священного Синода Русской Православной Церкви print version October 17, 2019 15:28 On October 17, 2019, at a meeting of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church, a statement was adopted on the situation in the Greek Orthodox Church after the Extraordinary Bishops' Council on October 12, 2019 on the Ukrainian church issue ( Journal No. 125 ). The members of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church got acquainted with the documents published in the media of the extraordinary Council of the Hierarchy of the Hellas Orthodox Church of October 12, 2019, in particular, with the communiqué of the Council and the report of His Beatitude Archbishop Jerome of Athens and All Greece “Autocephaly of the Church of Ukraine”, in which It is proposed to "recognize ... the autocephaly of the Orthodox Church of the independent Ukrainian Republic." Since the self-governing Ukrainian Orthodox Church, headed by Metropolitan Onufry of Kiev and all Ukraine, uniting 95 bishops, more than 12 thousand parishes, more than 250 monasteries and tens of millions of believers, is in canonical unity with the Russian Orthodox Church and has not addressed anyone for autocephaly, it is obvious that it is about the recognition of schismatic communities in this country. Earlier, Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople repeatedly declared that Metropolitan Onufry of Kiev and All Ukraine was recognized as the only canonical Primate of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine (the last such statement was made publicly on the Synaxis of Princes of the Local Orthodox Churches in January 2016). However, at the end of 2018, Patriarch Bartholomew changed his previous statements and, having no canonical authority, “restored to dignity” without repentance and renunciation of schism those who were expelled from him, anathematized or never had any canonical ordination, nor even a formal apostolic succession. The head of the newly created structure was a man who received his “ordination” from a former metropolitan of Kiev Filaret, who was erupted from the dignity and excommunicated from the Church. The latter was also “restored” in “bishop's dignity” by the Patriarch of Constantinople, but soon after that he left the newly established “church” and announced the restoration of his former schismatic community, which he calls the “Kiev Patriarchate”. About the difficult situation of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church after the anti-canonical legalization of the Ukrainian schism by Constantinople, about the violence and persecution against its faithful children, unfolded by the former authorities of Ukraine, the Russian Orthodox Church has repeatedly informed the Hierarchy of the Greek Orthodox Church. On October 9, 2019 - a few days before the said extraordinary Council of the Hierarchy of the Hellas Church - Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill addressed His Beatitude Archbishop of Athens and All Hellas Jerome with a fraternal message containing a call to refrain from unilateral actions and not to make “hasty decisions until then until the Holy Spirit gathers the Primate of all the Holy Churches of God and wise them together on behalf of the whole Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church to find a solution that will suit everyone and will serve to overcome the current crisis. ” It is sad that the need for a hasty and unilateral recognition of the non-canonical schismatic community, His Beatitude Archbishop Jerome, based on a series of erroneous and false arguments, repeatedly refuted not only by hierarchs, scholars and theologians of the Russian Orthodox Church, but also by many prominent archpastors, pastors and theologians of the Greek Orthodox. The statement of His Beatitude Archbishop Jerome that "the Orthodox Church of Ukraine ... always remained in the canonical church jurisdiction of the Mother Church - Ecumenical Patriarchate" does not correspond to reality. In 1686, by letters of honor of His Holiness the Patriarch of Constantinople Dionysius and the Holy Synod of the Church of Constantinople, the Kiev Metropolis was transferred to the jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate. For over 300 years, the canonical jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate over the Kiev Metropolitanate has been recognized by the entire Orthodox world, including the Greek Orthodox Church. Moreover, according to the holy canons of the Church, disputes about territorial jurisdiction have a limitation period of not more than thirty years (VI All. 25). All these facts were ignored by the two commissions of the Greek Orthodox Church, which were entrusted with the study of the Ukrainian church issue. In their conclusions, these commissions, according to Metropolitan Kifirsky and Antikyphira Seraphim, “lose sight of the more than three hundred-year-old living tradition of the dependence of the metropolitanate of Kiev and all Ukraine on the Moscow Patriarchate. And these realities were reflected in all the calendars of the Greek Church until this year. Perhaps they also lose sight of the fact that the present Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew recognized the canonical jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate over the Kiev Metropolitanate with his patriarchal letters of 1992 and 1997 and respected the canonical penalties imposed on the cleansed and restored schismatic clergymen. ” The statement of His Beatitude Archbishop Jerome does not correspond to reality that “due to the absence of the Moscow Patriarchate” at the Cretan Council in 2016 “there was no opportunity to discuss the issue of granting autocephaly”. In fact, the topic of autocephaly was excluded from the agenda of the Council much earlier, at the insistence of Patriarch Bartholomew. Now the reason for this is becoming apparent. Indeed, at meetings of the Inter-Orthodox Preparatory Commission in 1993 and 2009, representatives of all the Local Orthodox Churches agreed on the procedure for granting autocephaly, which implies a) the consent of the Local Council of the Mother Church of the Cyriarchal Church so that part of it receives autocephaly; b) revealing by the Ecumenical Patriarch of the consensus of all Local Orthodox Churches, expressed by the unanimity of their Councils; c) on the basis of the consent of the Mother Church and the pan-Orthodox consensus, the official declaration of autocephaly through the publication of the Tomos, which "is signed by the Ecumenical Patriarch and is testified by the signatures in it of the Most Beatiful Primate of the Holy Autocephalous Churches invited for this by the Ecumenical Patriarch." Regarding the last paragraph, only the procedure for signing the Tomos was not fully agreed upon, but this fact does not cancel the agreements reached on the remaining paragraphs. At the Synaxis of the Primate of 2014 and 2016, the delegation of the Moscow Patriarchate, along with representatives of several other fraternal Churches, insisted on the inclusion of autocephaly on the agenda of the Council. The Russian Church finally agreed to exclude this topic from the agenda of the Council only after Patriarch Bartholomew in January 2016, in the presence of other Primate, assured that the Holy Church of Constantinople has no intentions to carry out any actions related to church life in Ukraine , neither at the Holy and Great Council, nor after the Council. The arguments cited in the report of His Beatitude Archbishop Jerome and repeatedly refuted arguments follow exactly the position of the Patriarchate of Constantinople. However, doubts arise whether the fullness of the Greek Orthodox Church shares them. The absence of unanimity between the hierarchs of the Church of Greece on this issue and the fact that the voices of those who disagree with the recognition of the Ukrainian schism were ignored is evidenced by Metropolitan Seraphim of Kifir: “First, the white-haired gray-haired and very respectable metropolitans Karist Seraphim and Iliysky German, who with great wisdom and reasoned about this burning problem, recognizing that yes, the Ecumenical Patriarch has the canonical right to grant autocephaly on certain conditions, but the current situation I am very critical, and therefore requires extraordinary prudence and in-depth study and research of this whole complex problem without any haste. In the same vein, the speeches of the Most Reverend Metropolitans of Caesarianius of Daniel, Mesogeos Nicholas, Piraeus Seraphim ... and mine were sustained. The Bishops Metropolitans of Dryinopolsky Andrei and Aetolian Cosmas did not take the word, but joined the previously speaking Bishops. The Metropolitans Novosmirnsky Simeon and Nektariy of absent but written in writing stated their position with the same sensitivity and from the same point of view approached this serious Ukrainian question. ” Metropolitan Simeon of Novosmirn in his letter addressed to the Council of the Hierarchy and His Beatitude Chairman, notes that the provision of autocephaly to Ukraine under the conditions in which it was granted “has nothing to do with other autocephaly that was previously provided” by the Patriarchate of Constantinople. He emphasizes that "hasty recognition ... of schismatics and the so-called" sanctuaries "bypassing the canonical local Church, but also of the Moscow Patriarchate, which condemned the schismatics - and the provision of autocephaly to the new church structure raises legitimate questions and provokes opposition." He also points to the canonically unacceptable fact of the existence of “two parallel local Churches” in Ukraine and the re-split already occurred within the “new church structure that received autocephaly”. He directly mentions the interest of large geopolitical forces in hastily providing "autocephaly" to schismatics. Comparing the current situation of Orthodoxy with the events of the Great schism of 1054, he calls on the hierarchy "not to rush to take a position." “A violent and hasty approach to resolving the issue,” says Metropolitan Simeon, “will make us vulnerable and put our Church at risk.” It would be a mistake to consider that such an approach to the issue will serve as support to the Ecumenical Patriarchate. ” Metropolitan Nektarios of Kerkyra, who did not have the opportunity to attend the extraordinary Council of the hierarchy of his Church, addressed the Council with a letter calling for “to postpone the decision." He notes that the present “time is inappropriate to make a decision on this pressing issue, including for the reason that geopolitical conditions in the widest space are far from the norm, and as a result, whatever solution is likely, it will create difficulties to our motherland. ” He also calls on the Church of Greece to "assume the role of mediator" in order to start a dialogue between the Patriarchates of Constantinople and Moscow. Metropolitan Seraphim of Piraeus, known as a specialist in church and canon law, not only presented the Council with a comprehensive study, which convincingly refuted the argument presented in the report of the Primate of the Church of Greece, but also sharply criticized the so-called “unifying council” of schismatics in his oral speeches. . He emphasized that "the so-called" unification council "has no force, since it consisted of lay people, and the provision of autocephalous status to this non-existent" church "structure also turns out to be invalid." He further noted that all attempts to justify this “canonical lawlessness” by anomalous canonical practice, “with reference to the Ottoman capture of the Church” and the difficult period when a number of Local Churches depended directly on the Patriarch of Constantinople, “hush up the canonical church order of the Holy Ecumenical Councils." “I demanded,” says Metropolitan Seraphim, “from the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece to convene the Pan-Orthodox Council to resolve this difficult issue, which, unfortunately, is mixed with geopolitics, or even geostrategy, which affects all Primate of the Autocephalous Orthodox Churches. At the same time, I put on the face of the Synodal Commission on Inter-Orthodox and Inter-Christian Relations that it did not submit to the Permanent Holy Synod, His Beatitude Chairman of the Hierarchy of the Church of Greece, neither any report on the opinions on this issue of other Autocephalous Orthodox Churches, nor an assessment of the possible consequences for the unity of the Church in in the event of a breakdown in communication between the Russian Church and its recognition of the old calendarists in Greece. At the same time, I replied to the Chairman of the Church and Canonical Affairs Commission that Metropolitan Onufry had no opportunity to take part in the so-called “unification council”, as His Beatitude Archbishop of Athens could not have participated with the self-proclaimed “Archbishop of Athens”, Parthenius Vezireas - Deacon Church of Greece, erupted from the dignity. " The Communiqué of the Extraordinary Council of the Hierarchy reported on the decision taken following the discussion of this report. But who exactly made this decision and in what form remains unclear. A number of authoritative hierarchs drew the attention of the Council to the critical situation of world Orthodoxy, to the need for extreme caution and in-depth study of the problem - without any rush and pressure from outside. Several metropolitans, including those absent from the Council, wrote in writing to the Council with an appeal to postpone the resolution of the issue. Decisions of the Council of Hierarchy in the Church of Greece are made by voting of all participants. However, neither on the issue of recognition of Ukrainian non-canonical communities, nor on the issue of approving the decisions of the Permanent Holy Synod of the Hellenic Orthodox Church in Ukraine, the episcopate did not vote. This, in particular, was stated by Metropolitan Seraphim of Kifir: “As you know, decisions in our Church are made by voting: either by show of hands, either openly or secretly, or by interviewing all participants in the meeting. Perhaps a sufficient number of votes would have been cast in favor of autocephaly, but there would be a lot of those who hold the opposite point of view, as well as those who, with their silence, would join the second. ” There is no public access to the official document signed by the Greek archpastors, which could be considered evidence of a single conciliar decision of the Local Church. Moreover, news was quickly spread that the Greek Orthodox Church recognized Ukrainian autocephaly, which does not correspond either to the text of the communiqué or to the position of many participants in the Council. Serious fears arise that the conciliar decision-making method, sanctified by the words of the holy apostles: “It is pleasing to the Holy Spirit and us” (Acts 15:28), and the thousand-year history of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, was violated in this case. If the Ukrainian schism is truly recognized by the Hellenic Orthodox Church or its Primate - in the form of joint service, liturgical commemoration of the schism leader or sending him official letters - this will be sad evidence of the deepening of the separation in the family of the Local Orthodox Churches. The full responsibility for this division will fall, first of all, on the Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew and on those external political forces in whose interests the Ukrainian split was “legalized”. Instead of acknowledging the mistake made and trying to correct it through pan-Orthodox discussion, Patriarch Bartholomew blocked any negotiation initiatives in this direction and, according to many testimonies, exerted unprecedented pressure on the hierarchs of the Church of Greece, demanding that they recognize the schismatics. He repeatedly stated that the Greek Church recognized the non-canonical false hierarchs of Ukraine as a matter resolved, as if it was not an independent decision by the autocephalous Orthodox Church. The position of the Greek Church, which is significantly limited in its autocephalous structure, is complicated by the double jurisdiction of a significant part of its episcopate, canonically dependent on Constantinople: for example, circulars from the Patriarchate of Constantinople were sent to these hierarchs with the requirement to immediately recognize the newly created pseudo-church structure. Those who found the courage to openly expose the errors of the Patriarch of Constantinople and enter into a discussion with him were threatened, they were required to take disciplinary measures, they were accused of betrayal and lack of patriotism. It is sad that in this way the historical merits of the Greek people in the spread of Orthodoxy are exchanged for momentary political benefits and support for geopolitical interests alien to the Church. But these speculations on national sentiments will not succeed. They cannot undermine the unity of our faith, bought by the blood of the new martyrs and confessors of our Churches. They will not interrupt the unity of our ascetic tradition, built up by the exploits of many reverend fathers and ascetics. They will not destroy the centuries-old friendship of the Greek and Slavic peoples, paid for by the blood of Russian soldiers and tempered in the common struggle for the freedom of the fraternal Greek people. We cherish the prayer communion with our brethren in the Greek Orthodox Church and will maintain a lively prayer, canonical and Eucharistic relationship with it - through all those archpastors and pastors who have already opposed or will oppose the recognition of the Ukrainian schism, who will not tarnish themselves with congregation with schismatic false hierarchs, but he will set an example of Christian courage and firm standing for the truth of Christ. May the Lord strengthen them in the confession of arms, with the prayers of the saints Mark of Ephesus and Gregory Palamas, the Monk Maximus the Confessor and all those Greek saints whom they venerated and are honored with us in Holy Russia. At the same time, we remember that the sacred canons of the Church condemn those who enter into prayerful communion and ministry with those who are erupted from the dignity and excommunicated (Apost. 10, 11, 12; I Ephesians 5; Antioch. 2, etc.). In this regard, we stop the prayer and Eucharistic communion with those bishops of the Church of Greece who have entered into or will enter into such communion with representatives of Ukrainian non-canonical schismatic communities. We also do not bless pilgrimage trips to the dioceses controlled by the designated bishops. Relevant information will be widely distributed among the pilgrimage and tourism organizations of the countries that make up the canonical territory of our Church. The Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church authorizes His Holiness Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill to stop commemorating the name of His Beatitude Archbishop of Athens and all of Hellas in diptychs if the Primate of the Church of Greece begins to commemorate the head of one of the Ukrainian schismatic groups, recognizing and undertaking them Ukrainian church schism.