four recent news articles about actions and statements of the Moscow Patriachate

FW: Sharing: For Study: A short selection of four recent news articles about the actions and statements of the Moscow Patriachate, from "Russia Religion News"    Inbox

Dan Everiss <oregdan@hotmail.com> Sat, May 14, 2016 at 3:37 PM Reply | Reply to all | Forward | Print | Delete | Show original  My brief disgusted comment: Endless further evidence that the leadership of the Moscow Patriarchate is but a servile political tool of the  morally debased and depraved current KGB/FSB mass-murdering gangster government in the Kremlin, nothing more and nothing less.  It is not part of the Holy Orthodox Catholic and Apostolic CHURCH! They call what is manifestly terrible evil, 'good' and what is clearly good, 'bad'. They are loyal sons of their father, the Father of Lies, The Devil. And we know that the Devil NEVER TELLS THE TRUTH! GOD...IS...TRUTH!...and He cannot tolerate liars! These wicked apostate people are bringing on the total wrath of Almighty God upon the Russian land and upon all of  its inhabitants, and when GOD is done, there may not be a 'Russia' of any sort upon this earth. He may entirely wipe it CLEAN off this planet. Then, where will there be any 'Russian national pride'?.. or any more lies and mass murdering of the innocents,  both in invaded suffering Ukraine and as Putin's military and propaganda help to the vicious and evil Assad dictatorship in mass butchering his own Syrian people, men, women, babies and all,  whose innocent blood CRIES!... to the heavens for Divine revenge...both on the Assad dictatorship, and also upon the PROUD  Russian land, which  through Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, [ whom we are told, 'most Russians view  as their 'national  hero'],  is supplying most of the bombs and bullets and poison gas, etc.  which are mass-killing the innocents  there. Few ISIS are killed. Who then are truly, 'the terrorists'? Putin and Assad are the chief terrorists. This is bringing on World War III, Armageddon, the final end of all human civilization upon this earth. And...'HOLY   Patriarch Kyrill'...blesses all that Putin does or says!  LINK: http://www2.stetson.edu/~psteeves/relnews/00currentchoices.shtml RUSSIA RELIGION NEWS Russian church deals with criticism from within Orthodoxy SYNOD OF BULGARIAN CHURCH CRITICIZES DOCUMENT OF PAN-ORTHODOX COUNCIL RIA Novosti, 22 April 2016 The Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church (BOC) called a number of provisions of one of the documents of the Pan-Orthodox Council, "Relations of the Orthodox Church with the Rest of the Christian World," "completely unacceptable," and it introduced a number of changes into it, the website of the synod reports. In particular, it considered a letter of Metropolitan of Lovech Gabriel regarding the aforementioned document, which was also signed by priests of the Lovech diocese, and a similar letter of Metropolitan of Plovdiv Nicholas with signatures of 240 priests. According to a report of the synod of the BOC, in point 5 of the document "Relations of the Orthodox Church with the Rest of the Christian World," where it says that "contemporary bilateral theological dialogues . . . have the goal of seeking the lost unity of Christians," it is necessary "to clarify that the Holy Orthodox Church, which is one and catholic, has never lost unity in the faith and communion in the Holy Spirit among Christians, and it will so continue to the end of the world." Regarding point 6 and a number of other points of the document, the BOC synod pointed out that "besides the Holy Orthodox Church, there do not exist other churches, but only heresies and schisms, and to call the latter 'churches' is theologically, doctrinally, and canonically completely incorrect." The hierarchs of the Bulgarian church also called attention to point 12, which says that "the goal of theological dialogues common for all is the final restoration of unity in the true faith and love." "This is completely incorrect and unacceptable, because it is necessary to clarify and emphasize that a return to the true faith applies to heretics and schismatics and not in any instance does it apply to the Orthodox Church," the synod's statement says. It also notes that in 1998 the Bulgarian Orthodox Church withdrew from the World Council of Churches (WCC), expressing its disapproval of its activity, because it cannot be a member of an organization in which it is considered to be "one of many churches or some branch of the one church, which are aspiring to and fighting for unification through this World Council of Churches." "The resolution adopted will be presented and defended as the unchanged position of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church regarding the text of 'Relations of the Orthodox Church with the Rest of the Christian World' at the Great and Holy Council of the Orthodox Church on the island of Crete in 2016," the website of the synod reports. Earlier a number of hierarchs of the Greek, Georgian, and some other local churches expressed criticism of the aforementioned text and of the document "The Mission of the Orthodox Church in the Modern World." !!!In particular, the Bishops' Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia (ROCOR-M P) under Hilarion Kapral published a statement, which pointed to "serious shortcomings" in some documents of the Pan-Orthodox Council.  Thus, in the opinion of the ROCOR-MP hierarchs, one of the drafts of documents speaks incorrectly about Christian unity as about something that has been "lost," while nowhere in the text is the division among Christians defined as the consequence of schisms and heresies, following the rules of the Holy Fathers and canons of the ecumenical councils. The ROCOR -MP synod's statement notes that it is necessary in the council's document "to declare that the real absence of unity among Christians today is the loss of the heterodox's unity with the Orthodox Church, and the path to its healing, which can give humanity genuine unity, is repentance for schisms and heresies and return to the One Church, whose unity has never been lost." In his turn, the head of the Department for External Church Relations (OVTsS) of the Moscow patriarchate, Metropolitan of Volokolamsk Ilarion, declared that in improving drafts of the documents for the council the Russian church will take into account constructive criticism, which has come from various hierarchs and theologians. He said that the key point is "the question about the reception of decisions of the Pan-Orthodox Council." The head of OVTsS noted that the documents have been published, and they have met "certain criticism . . . from various parties and from various local churches, and it is impossible not to pay attention to this factor." "Constructive criticism is important so that after the adoption of the decisions at the council, they will not evoke rejection on the part of our believers," the metropolitan noted. (tr. by PDS, posted 23 April 2016)           SYNOD SUPPORTS COURSE NAVIGATED BY THE CHURCH Interfax-Religiia, 16 April 2016 Members of the Holy Synod expressed support for the church course in the area of external relations. "To recognize the historic character of the meeting of Patriarch of Moscow and all-Rus Kirill and Roman Pope Francis in Havana and to note its importance in the business of uniting efforts in defense of Christians who are experiencing persecution in the Near East and in Africa and of the establishment of peace and justice in the land of Ukraine. To approve the joint declaration signed on the basis of results of the meeting," the synod's decision, which was published on the website of the Russian church, says. The synod called bishops and clergy to explain to the clergy, monastics, and flock the significance of the joint declaration of the patriarch and pope, "the text of which does not touch upon theological, doctrinal, and ecclesiological matters but points to acute social, political, and moral problems of the present time." "The joint declaration of Patriarch Kirill and Pope Francis facilitated the achievement of a ceasefire on Syrian land and thereby it helped to save thousands of lives," the hierarchs noted. They pointed to the importance of the call addressed to the international community that is sounded in the joint declaration of the patriarch and pontiff "for immediate actions for preventing further displacement of Christians from the Near East" and for the use of all possible efforts "to put an end to terrorism with the help of common, joint, coordinated actions." They also recognized the timeliness of the concern expressed in the joint declaration for discrimination against Christians and the crisis of the family in a number of countries as well as of the call for respect for the inalienable right to life, including of infants who are in the mother's womb. Along with this the session participants touched on topics of Ukraine, which also was reflected in the declaration of the patriarch and pope. Members of the synod emphasized that the Unia (Greek Catholicism) "remains an open wound in Orthodox-Catholic relations," and they declared the importance of the call for a truce between Orthodox and Greek Catholics which sounded from the lips of the patriarch and pope. The synod hopes that the call of the heads of the Russian and Catholic churches "will be heard by all sides of the civil confrontation in Ukraine," and it calls the adherents of the church schism in Ukraine "to return to the saving bosom of the Orthodox Church." In addition, the hierarchs also touched on the discussion regarding preparation for the Pan-Orthodox Council, which will be held in June on Crete. "Members of the Synod unanimously noted the impermissibility of condemnation of the hierarchy because of the above mentioned external church events from a position that does not contain any theological argumentation and is, as a rule, only 'emotional assessment,'" the head of the synod's Department for Relations of Church and Society and News Media, Vladimir Legoida, told journalists at the conclusion of the synod, as quoted by his press service. (tr. by PDS, posted 22 April 2016) Russia Religion News Current News Items Editorial disclaimer: RRN does not intend to certify the accuracy of information presented in articles. RRN simply intends to certify the accuracy of the English translation of the contents of the articles as they appeared in news media of countries of the former USSR. If material is quoted, please give credit to the publication from which it came. It is not necessary to credit this Web page. If material is transmitted electronically, please include reference to the URL, http://www.stetson.edu/~psteeves/relnews/.  ============================================================================================================================ Church discipline against dissenters in Moscow patriarchate PRIEST IN POLAR REGION PUNISHED FOR REFUSING TO COMMEMORATE PATRIARCH AFTER HIS MEETING WITH PONTIFF Interfax-Religiia, 27 April 2016 Bishop of Naryan-Mar and Mezen Yakov inhibited from ministry a priest of the diocese, Alexander Borichev, who refused to commemorate the patriarch in the divine liturgy. "Priest Alexander Borichev became a stumbling-block by posting on the Internet his video message with accusations of the hierarchy of the Russian Orthodox Church," the diocesan press service reports. As noted in the report, the dean of the Ust-Vashka district, Archpriest Vladimir Strelnikov, and parishioners of the city of Mezen "confirmed the fact of the schismatic actions of the cleric." Earlier there appeared on the Internet a video report of this priest in which he accused the patriarch of the "heresy of ecumenism" after the meeting of the primate with Roman Pope Francis. (tr. by PDS, posted 29 April 2016) REPRESSION IN RPTsMP GATHERS STRENGTH. CONFESSOR PRIEST ALEXANDER BORICHEV BANNED FROM MINISTRY Moscow-Third Rome, 28 April 2016 Arctic: Priest Alexander Borichev, who refused to commemorate the head of the RPTsMP in the divine liturgy after his meeting with the pontiff was inhibited from ministry. We note right off that any discipline on the part of a heretical hierarchy applied to a priest or layman, using the 15th rule* of the First-Second Council [Constantinople, A.D. 861], does not have force and submission to a false archpastor is not necessary. (tr. by PDS, posted 29 April 2016)   *Rule 15 of the 861 council: "But as for those persons, on the other hand, who, on account of some heresy condemned by holy Councils, or Fathers, withdrawing themselves from communion with their president, who, that is to say, is preaching the heresy publicly, and teaching it barehead in church, such persons not only are not subject to any canonical penalty on account of their having walled themselves off from any and all communion with the one called a Bishop before any conciliar or synodal verdict has been rendered, but, on the contrary, they shall be deemed worthy to enjoy the honor which befits them among Orthodox Christians. For they have defied, not Bishops, but pseudo-bishops and pseudo-teachers; and they have not sundered the union of the Church with any schism, but, on the contrary, have been sedulous to rescue the Church from schisms and divisions." Source: "Canons of the Regional Councils; The First-Second Council" Russia Religion News Current News Items Editorial disclaimer: RRN does not intend to certify the accuracy of information presented in articles. RRN simply intends to certify the accuracy of the English translation of the contents of the articles as they appeared in news media of countries of the former USSR. If material is quoted, please give credit to the publication from which it came. It is not necessary to credit this Web page. If material is transmitted electronically, please include reference to the URL, http://www.stetson.edu/~psteeves/relnews/ Patriarch concerned about recent developments in Ukraine PATRIARCH KIRILL ASKS UKRAINIAN AUTHORITIES NOT TO INTERFERE IN CHURCH AFFAIRS Interfax-Religiia, 1 May 2016 Patriarch of Moscow and all-Rus Kirill called Ukrainian authorities not to try to reshape the religious sphere for political purposes. "It is necessary to remind all authorities (of Ukraine—IF): do not touch the religious convictions of people, do not dabble in church life, do not try to reshape this life in favor of political goals," the patriarch declared in an interview on television channel NTV. The primate emphasized that this is dangerous, "and what is most important, it never leads to the results that the initiators of such pressure on the church would consider to be desirable for themselves." The current actions of Ukrainian authorities with respect to believers reminded him of soviet times, when the canonical church was subjected to persecutions and support was given to schismatics, the so-called "renovationists." "Unfortunately, in Ukraine today they are turning to the very same devices in the name of the consolidation of society. Wasn't it in the name of the consolidation of society in soviet Russia that persecutions were unleashed? It was necessary to either reshape or remove socially and ideologically alien people. If the same thing were to happen in Ukraine now, it would be a catastrophe," the patriarch declared. In Ukraine three Orthodox religious organizations are operating: the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow patriarchate and two that are not recognized in the Orthodox world, the Kiev patriarchate and the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church. Since the start of military actions in Ukraine, dozens of UPTs churches have been seized by schismatics, often with the help of nationalists and local authorities. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has previously often called for the creation in the country of a local Orthodox church. One of the goals of the initiative is to separate the UPTs from the Moscow patriarchate. Recently a draft law was registered in the parliament concerning the special status of religious organizations whose administrative center is located in a state recognized as an aggressor country. The authors are deputies from the "Petro Poroshenko Bloc." The UPTs has criticized this draft law and sent an appeal to representatives of the European Union. (tr. by PDS, posted 2 May 2016) Background articles: Ukrainian Orthodox seek international support against proposed law April 29, 2016 Ukrainian president pushes anti-Moscow moves April 24, 2916 Ukrainian president says Ukrainians want their own church April 23, 2016 Russia Religion News Current News Items Editorial disclaimer: RRN does not intend to certify the accuracy of information presented in articles. RRN simply intends to certify the accuracy of the English translation of the contents of the articles as they appeared in news media of countries of the former USSR. If material is quoted, please give credit to the publication from which it came. It is not necessary to credit this Web page. If material is transmitted electronically, please include reference to the URL, http://www.stetson.edu/~psteeves/relnews/   Moscow patriarch justifies Russian troops' actions PATRIARCH: WAR WITH TERRORISM IN NEAR EAST IS HOLY WAR RIA Novosti, 6 May 2016 Patriarch of Moscow and all-Rus Kirill called the war with terrorism in the Near East, in which Russian armed forces also are participating, a "holy war." On Friday the primate of the Russian church, on the day of commemoration of St. George the Conqueror—the celestial patron of troops-- performed the divine liturgy in the church of St. George on Poklonnaya Hill. "Today, when our troops are participating in military actions in the Near East, we know that this is not aggression, this is not occupation, this is not imposing ideology on anybody, this is not support of some particular governments, this is a struggle with that terrible enemy who carries within itself evil not only for the Near East but for the whole of humankind. This is the evil that we today call terrorism," the patriarch said. He noted that terrorists kill peaceful people who are not in any way fighting them nor representing any danger and they kill "in order to intimidate, in order to break somebody's resistance, and terrorism has brought so much suffering and innocent victims." "Therefore today the war with terrorism is a holy war. And God grant that everybody in the whole world would understand this, so that nobody would divide terrorists into good ones and bad ones and nobody would connect the achievement of any of their own often undeclared but powerful in a political sense objectives with the war against terrorism," the RPTs primate said. He recalled that the Great Patriotic War also was called "holy" from the very beginning. "We did not start the war, but the enemy invaded our land and began from the first days of military action to display incredible cruelty, to destroy the civilian population, to burn villages and to destroy cities," the patriarch said. He said that the Russian troops "can safely be called Christ-loving troops because they were fighting for the truth, for the motherland, for their own land, and for the people against a treacherous and cruel enemy." "And we pray that the armed forces of our fatherland will always, in any circumstances, remain faithful to that spiritual line that presupposes the participation of the armed forces only in the struggle against evil and the struggle for justice and for the salvation of human life," the patriarch concluded. (tr. by PDS, posted 7 May 2016) Russia Religion News Current News Items Editorial disclaimer: RRN does not intend to certify the accuracy of information presented in articles. RRN simply intends to certify the accuracy of the English translation of the contents of the articles as they appeared in news media of countries of the former USSR. If material is quoted, please give credit to the publication from which it came. It is not necessary to credit this Web page. If material is transmitted electronically, please include reference to the URL, http://www.stetson.edu/~psteeves/relnews/