EDITOR’S NOTE (Nick Stamatakis): The report below was published by exapsalmos.gr of Sotiris Tzoumas and is an objective evaluation of the visit of AB Elpidophoros in Mt.Athos. We have independently verified what is described below as accurate. In summary:
- The visit was clouded by the historically rare, if not UNPRECEDENTED, letter to Pat. Bartholomew by ALL TWENTY Monasteries of Athos, where they expressed their concerns and rejection of Elpidophoros’ heresies regarding same-sex marriage, based on his actions in July 2022 in the infamous “gay baptism”.
- The Executive Directors of Mt.Athos (Holy Epistasia) were absent during his visit.
- The climate overall was subdued.
- He limited his visit to monasteries with a special relationship with the Patriarchate or the Church of America.
- FINALLY, he failed to use photo-ops to suggest that Athos approves his heresies.
BELOW SEE EXAPSALMOS.GR REPORT IN ENGLISH AND GREEK
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The Chronicle of the visit of the Archbishop of America to Mount Athos
Written by Special Contributor
We present you in detail the visit of the Archbishop of America Elpidophoros to Mount Athos, as told to us by respected Fathers who had direct contact with the events and saw exactly what happened. Let’s say that he himself asked to have the power of the police and a police dog. We did not see something similar happen even during the visit of the Patriarch or another Primate. Elpidophoros has other needs and other fears. And he is, of course, allowed! Fear of God if he had, everything would be different! And he will find this in front of him!
The timeline of the visit
His reception in the Monasteries he visited was particularly subdued. Many fathers were absent because they had objections to receiving him after the decision letter of the First Community. He was not accepted “with open arms”, as some blogs falsely state.
He visited the Xenophontos Monastery, where he maintains close ties through the Ecumenical Patriarchate. (Even there few fathers joined the reception).
The Monastery of Simon Petras, with which they have strong financial “ties” through the Simonopetra Athonite Foundation – https://simonopetrafoundation.org/about-us/
The Philotheou Monastery, due to the presence of the 20 Monasteries of blessed Elder Ephraim in the jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of America.
The Monastery of Karakallou, where there was no official reception. He worshiped in the church, and Elder Philotheos was called afterwards to greet him.
Pantokratoros Monastery, where the personal friend of the Archbishop of America, hieromonk Theofilos, who was also secretary-general of the Holy Community, is particularly active.
The complete absence of the Greek State during the visit is remarkable. Even the deputy governor of Mount Athos, Mr. Kasmiroglou, who is always present at the receptions of officials and indeed at the Xenophontos Monastery, of which he is a spiritual “child”, was absent.
THE HOLY COMMUNITY AND THE HOLY EPISTASIA.
After much discussion and with the agreement of all the Monasteries, with minimal exceptions, the Holy Community, after the December 18th Announcement, with which it expressed the absolute opposition of Mount Athos “to any form of marriage or procreation, which is against in the evangelical teaching”, they decided to send a letter to the Ecumenical Patriarch regarding the position of the Archbishop of America on the subject and at the same time to avoid any official reception of America during his visit to Mount Athos, either through the 20 Representatives, or through of the Holy Episcopacy.
The Holy Epistasia, as an executive body of the decisions of the Holy Community, certainly did not welcome Archbishop Karyes, despite intense pressures to the contrary.
The Archbishop’s entourage worshiped, like all pilgrims, the icon of “Axion Estin”, while he refused to get out of the car to worship, apparently disturbed by the absence of the Holy Epistasia. He seemed to be talking on the phone while the annoyance and discomfort was all over his face.
It should be noted here that the police requested a search with special dogs inside the Temple, for the possible presence of explosives. Such an investigation was not done even when Patriarchs or heads of state were received, and of course, it was not allowed.
The following photos from the reception of the blessed Archbishop of Cyprus Chrysostomos, with the presence of the Representatives of the 20 Holy Monasteries and the deputy governor, give us the picture of the typical official reception of an Archbishop on Mount Athos:
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Το Χρονικό της επίσκεψης του Αρχιεπισκόπου Αμερικής στο Άγιο Όρος
Γραμμένο από Ειδικό Συνεργάτη
Το χρονικό της επίσκεψης!
Η υποδοχή του στις Μονές που επισκέφθηκε ήταν ιδιαιτέρως υποτονική. Πολλοί πατέρες απουσίαζαν, επειδή είχαν αντιρρήσεις να τον υποδεχθούν, μετά και από την απόφαση-επιστολή της Ι. Κοινότητος. Σε καμμία περίπτωση δεν έγινε δεκτός «μετά βαΐων και κλάδων», όπως αναφέρουν ψευδώς κάποια ιστολόγια.
Επισκέφθηκε τη Μονή Ξενοφώντος
Τη Μονή Σίμωνος Πέτρας, με την οποία έχουν ισχυρούς οικονομικούς «δεσμούς» μέσω του Simonopetra Athonite Foundation – https://
Τη Μονή Φιλοθέου, λόγω της παρουσίας των 20 Μοναστηριών του μακαριστού Γέροντα Εφραίμ στη δικαιοδοσία της Αρχιεπισκοπής Αμερικής.
Τη Μονή Καρακάλλου, όπου δεν έγινε επίσημη υποδοχή.Απλώς προσκύνησε στην εκκλησία και κλήθηκε εκ των υστέρων ο Γέροντας Φιλόθεος για να τον χαιρετήσει.
Τη Μονή Παντοκράτορος, όπου δραστηριοποιείται ιδιαιτέρως ο προσωπικός φίλος του Αρχιεπισκόπου Αμερικής ιερομόναχος Θεόφιλος, που διετέλεσε και αρχιγραμματεύς της Ιεράς Κοινότητος.
Είναι αξιοσημείωτη η παντελής απουσία της Πολιτείας κατά την επίσκεψη. Απουσίαζε ακόμα και ο υποδιοικητής του Αγίου Όρους κ. Κασμίρογλου, που είναι πάντα παρών στις υποδοχές επισήμων προσώπων και μάλιστα στη Μονή Ξενοφώντος, της οποίας είναι πνευματικό «τέκνο».
Η ΙΕΡΑ ΚΟΙΝΟΤΗΤΑ ΚΑΙ Η ΙΕΡΑ ΕΠΙΣΤΑΣΙΑ.
Μετά από μεγάλη συζήτηση και με τη σύμφωνη γνώμη όλων των Μονών, πλην ελαχίστων εξαιρέσεων, η Ιερά Κοινότητα, μετά από την Ανακοίνωση της 18ης Δεκεμβρίου, με την οποία εξέφρασε την απόλυτη αντίθεση του Αγίου Όρους «σε κάθε μορφὴ γάμου ή τεκνοθεσίας, η οποία αντίκειται εις την ευαγγελικήν διδασκαλίαν», αποφάσισε να στείλει επιστολή προς τον Οικουμενικό Πατριάρχη αναφορικά με τη στάση του Αρχιεπισκόπου Αμερικής στο εν λόγω θέμα και παράλληλα να αποφύγει οποιαδήποτε επίσημη υποδοχή του Αμερικής κατά την επίσκεψή του στο Άγιον Όρος, είτε διά των 20 Αντιπροσώπων, είτε διά της Ιεράς Επιστασίας.
Η Ιερά Επιστασία, ως εκτελεστικό όργανο των αποφάσεων της Ιεράς Κοινότητος, βεβαίως δεν υποδέχθηκε τον Αρχιεπίσκοποστις Καρυές, παρά τις ισχυρές πιέσεις περί του αντιθέτου.
Η συνοδεία του Αρχιεπισκόπου προσκύνησε, όπως όλοι οι προσκυνητές, την εικόνα του «΄Αξιον Εστίν», ενώ ο ίδιος αρνήθηκε να κατεβεί από το αυτοκίνητο για να προσκυνήσει, προφανώς ενοχλημένος από την απουσία της Ι. Επιστασίας.Έδειχνε να μιλά στο τηλέφωνο ενώ η ενόχληση και η δυσφορία ήταν διάχυτη στο πρόσωπό του.
Εδώ να σημειωθεί ότι η αστυνομία ζήτησε να γίνει προηγουμένως έρευνα με ειδικά σκυλιά εντός του Ναού, για τυχόν παρουσία εκρηκτικών. Τέτοια έρευνα δεν έγινε ούτε όταν έγινε η υποδοχή Πατριαρχών ή αρχηγών κρατών και βέβαια δεν επετράπη.
Οι παρακάτω φωτογραφίες από την υποδοχή του μακαριστού Αρχιεπισκόπου Κύπρου Χρυσοστόμου, με την παρουσία των Αντιπροσώπων των 20 Ιερών Μονών και του κ. υποδιοικητή, μας δίνουν την εικόνα του τυπικού της επισήμου υποδοχής Αρχιεπισκόπου στο Άγιον Όρος:
An Archbishop on Mt. Athos in fear of explosives so dogs and police got called in? How unseemly and unprecedented… but it’s Elpi who created this plight.
Είναι τέτοιο το υπόβαθρό του που
Και το κατάντημά του που θα πρέπει
να του απονεμηθεί ο τίτλος του ΓΥΡΟΛΟΓΟΥ ΕΠΙΣΚΟΠΟΥ. Ναι του
Επισκόπου γι’αυτούς που δεν το γνωρίζουν οι βαθμοί της Ιερωσύνης είναι τρείς. Διάκονος, Ιερεύς, Επίσκοπος, όλα τα υπόλοιπα είναι
ΣΟΥΛΟΥΜΑΔΕΣ.
Το να επιδιώκεις να πας κάπου παρά την θέληση των άλλων είναι πράξη
ακαταλόγιστη , είναι πράξη ατόμων
χαμηλού επιπέδου.
Μετά το γράμμα του Αγίου Όρους προς
τον Πατριάρχη που με περισή ευγένεια
ζητούσε να μην του δώσει την άδεια
και οι δύο Επίσκοποι στα μάτια των
Ορθοδόξων Χριστιανών ήταν βουτιά
προς την κόλαση. Τα πάντα πρέπει να έχουν το μέτρο τους ακόμη και η
ανθρώπινη ματαιοδοξία.
All will be forgotten,(forgiven) if APB will ask forgiveness from all Orthodox in America, confess his sins, repent, honorably resign his position and find a monastery, away from North America, to live out his life.
In theory, being a hierarch of the Orthodox Church, the “grand reception” described in the words of the Compline prayers should be the “reception” that he is more concerned about….
“And at the time of my exit, send away (from my soul) the dark images of the evil demons….”
But, with his track record of repeated anti-traditional gaffes and misdeeds, the faithful have long been asking, “does he even believe in anything whatsoever at this point”?
If the monks serving in the Garden of the Theotokos (Mt. Athos) don’t show up for him, how would he expect the Theotokos to show up for him on that “last day”, as the prayers of Compline indicate for us?
Markos, you would be correct if Elpi or the other rats were really believers. The only thing they believe in are their fine clothes and fat salaries, cars and drivers etc for doing very little but prance around like Byzantine princelings.
Virtually every yiayia and babushka that I know is closer to the Kingdom of God than these posers. Kylie eleison!!
Succinctly told Markos & only grand reception Elpidoktonos is heading for is in afterlife where demons he served await his arrival
The Archbishop was welcomed at Xenophontos, he was welcomed at Simonos Petros, he was welcomed at Philotheou, he was welcomed at Karakalou, and he was welcomed at Pantokrator. He was welcomed at five different monasteries on a four day visit. I think Karakalou wasn’t even on the original itinerary. He was welcomed everywhere he went.
The narrative that he was unwelcome was completely false.
Archbishop Elpidophoros is also not the head of an autocephalous church, so it’s an unfair comparison to compare his visit with the Archbishop of Cyprus.
It’s absolutely your right to hallucinate!! Nobody will stop you!! The rest of us know how to read TWO official announcements by Mt.Athos as well as how to evaluate their impeccable timing!!!
Not receiving the customary reception for an Archbishop on Mt. Athos is not the same thing as being unwelcome, though.
The abbots of all the monasteries that the Archbishop visited came out and personally welcomed him.
Let’s be clear. If he was unwelcome, then the abbots wouldn’t have personally welcomed him. There is a difference between being welcomed and being unwelcome.
As I said you have the right to hallucinate all you want. But the rest of us look back in history and cannot find any similar announcements by the Abbots of Athos. It is UNPRECEDENTED. What is not unprecedented is to find heretic Bishops, Metropolitans and even numerous Patriarchs. Orthodoxy dealt with those heretics, like Bartholomew and Elpidophoros, in Panorthodox synods and got rid of them. The same should happen now. Other Archbishops and Patriarchs can call a Panorthodox Synod and remove Bartholomew.
The Monasteries in Athos are deeply Christian. By definition they cannot close their doors to any sinner. But they can warn heretics like Elpidophoros and Bartholomew, that they will be treated as such.
Joseph I feel sorry for you;
you clearly lack cognizance of the horrible dark agenda of The Elpidoforos Sexual Deviancy Tour
he’s been trying to sell on holy Church but the Monks of Mount Athos do NOT accept this sick heresy!
PLEASE… go join Episcopalians sir.
The heresy is all prophesy. It’s supposed to happen and the cleansing period will begin. Woe to all clergy on the wrong side. As they say; The path to hell is paved by priest’s, and bishops. Lord have mercy on us.