EDITOR’S NOTE: The reactions about the shameless act of the Greek Parliament continue. I see them as a quite positive sign as they show the resilience of the faith among the people. This is where battles are won, among the people and not behind closed doors where “deals” are made… Below you can read in English and in Greek the epistle from the Gregoriou Monastery in Mt.Athos regarding this despicable event – which they call a re-crucifixoion of Christ…
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CHRIST IS BEING CRUCIFIED AGAIN
An epistle from the Athonite Grigoriou Monastery
The following is an epistle from the Mt. Athos Grigoriou Monastery that has been circulated amongst Greek believers after the passing of the “same-sex marriage” law in Greece on February 15, 2024.
“The princes of men gathered against the Lord and against His Christ” (Matins on Great Saturday).
In the Greek parliament, Christ is again being crucified.
He Who rules the entire universe endures revilement from lawless judges, with the exception of a few, who deserve praise.
The “anointed of the Lord”, our baptized people, is under attack. The powers of darkness from without and within the country are co-conspirators in this initiative. “The dragon was wroth” against those who “have testimony of Jesus Christ” (Rev. 12:17). Those who do not enter into compromise with the orders of the globalists are entering into a great temptation. This is the beginning of tribulations.
The Church, the Synod, the clergy, and the people have said their word, and raised their voices to heaven: “This is a crime!” But the ears of the rulers did not hear it.
O evil day! The fall of Constantinople and the Asia Minor catastrophe pale before it.1 But there is also the eye of justice.
Serious consequences are falling upon our shoulders and the shoulders of our children. The aged, the young, and the yet unborn are all experiencing them. Especially innocent children, for whom the most shameful “blood tax”2 is being prepared.
All this theomachy that has been legalized has put down roots as supposed “social progress”. Fornication, abortion, and no-fault divorce. Now “same-sex marriage” will speed up “progress”. We are falling lower and lower. We are sinking into man-centeredness, into idol worship. All for the sake of ease, and with ease. Ionesco with his song, “Rhinoceroses” was absolutely right. In Paris, one after another were becoming rhinoceroses. Only one opposed it, saying, “I’ll remain a man.”
We knew and survived the calamity of soviet godlessness. Now we are experiencing the horrors of “white demonism” (St. Nikolai [Velimirovich]).
But we shall be courageous. Christ said, I have overcome the world (Jn. 16:33). The Church will live throughout the ages.
We are left with only one option: to revoke this law in practice. We will strengthen our children in virtues and chastity. And this will be a great deed. We will remain with Christ. Some trust in chariots, and some in horses, but we will call upon the name of the Lord (Ps. 19:8). Our strength is prayer. The Church must hide in the “desert”, no matter what this prophetic desert may be. In any case, it is far from consent to sinful laws and lawless legislators. We will not be afraid of poverty, or social and psychological isolation. We are accompanied by the Light of the Resurrection. In similar instances our holy fathers were victorious through their courage. They preferred the labor of virtues, and when necessary, exile, sorrow, and deprivation—whether it came to heretical dogmas or morals that contradicted the Gospels. In Babylon the three youths preferred endurance in the furnace over the good life.
Under Julian the Apostate, the Patriarch of Constantinople preferred boiled wheat instead the food that had been offered to idols, which was being forced upon Christians at the market. It is a symbol of voluntary poverty for Christ’s sake, so that our conscience would remain pure, and not subject to the influence of temptations.
Victory belongs to the Sacrificial Lamb. In the end, Christ Crucified, and those who will be of Christ, crucified together with Him, will be victorious. He expects us to follow Him. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing (2 Cor. 6:17), so that He would remain in our lives.
Soon the Lenten Triodion period will begin, and Great Lent is approaching. The life of repentance is not folklore and not an appearance of piety. It is the departure from all iniquity, manifested in deed and pain of heart. For the Resurrection awaits us!
1 Two events that Greeks consider the most grievous day in their Christian history: the fall of Constantinople to the Ottomans in 1453, and the exile of the Greek population from Asia Minor that began in 1922.
2 Here is meant the so-called devshirme—a practice in the Ottoman Empire, when Christian boys were forcefully taken from their families and given over to the Sultan’s complete disposal. Many of them ended up in harems. This is a reference to the possibility presented by the new law of the legal adoption of children by same-sex couples.
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Ιερά Μονή Οσίου Γρηγορίου Αγίου Όρους: Στη Βουλή ο Χριστός ξανασταυρώνεται
«Ἄρχοντες λαοῦ συνήχθησαν κατά τοῦ Κυρίου
καί κατά τοῦ Χριστοῦ αὐτοῦ» (Ὄρθρος Μεγ. Παρασκευῆς)
Στήν Βουλή τῶν Ἑλλήνων ὁ Χριστός ξανασταυρώνεται.
Ὁ Κυβερνῶν τά σύμπαντα ὑβρίζεται ὑπό κριτῶν ἀνόμων, πλήν τῶν ἀξιεπαίνων.
Ὁ «χριστός Κυρίου», ὁ βαπτισμένος λαός μας, στό στόχαστρο. Οἱ δυνάμεις τοῦ σκότους, ξένες καί ἐγχώριες, συνένοχοι στό ἐγχείρημα. «Ὁ δράκων ὠργίσθη» κατά τῶν «ἐχόντων τήν μαρτυρίαν Ἰησοῦ» (Ἀποκ. 12, 17). Ὅσοι δέν συμβιβάζονται μέ τίς ἐντολές τῶν παγκοσμιοποιητῶν εἰσέρχονται σέ μεγάλο πειρασμό. Ἀρχαί ὠδίνων ταῦτα.
Ἡ Ἐκκλησία, ἡ Σύνοδος, ὁ Κλῆρος καί λαός, ὡμίλησαν, ὕψωσαν φωνήν οὐρανομήκη: «εἶναι ἔγκλημα»! Ἀλλ΄ εἰς ὦτα ἀρχόντων μή ἀκουόντων.
Ἡμέρα ἀποφράς. Ὠχριᾷ ἡ Ἅλωσις· καί τῶν Πατρίδων, ἀκόμη, ἡ ἀποστέρησις. Πλήν, ἔστι δίκης ὀφθαλμός.
Οἱ βαρειές συνέπειες πέφτουν πλέον ἐπάνω στούς δικούς μας ὤμους, καί τῶν παιδιῶν μας. Καί ὁ ἡλικιωμένος, καί ὁ νεαρός, καί ὁ ἀγέννητος, ὅλοι θά τίς ὑποστοῦμε. Ἰδιαίτερα τά ἀθῶα παιδιά, γιά τά ὁποῖα ἑτοιμάζεται τό πιό ἐπαίσχυντο παιδομάζωμα.
Ὅ,τι ἀντίθεο νομοθετήθηκε, ἑδραιώθηκε ὡς κοινωνική δῆθεν πρόοδος. Καί ἡ μοιχεία, καί ἡ ἔκτρωση, καί τό αὐτόματο διαζύγιο. Τώρα ὁ “ὁμοφυλοφιλικός γάμος” θά ἐπιταχύνει τήν “πρόοδο”. Πέφτουμε ὅλο καί πιό χαμηλά. Παρασυρόμαστε στόν ἀνθρωποκεντρισμό, στήν εἰδωλολατρεία. Γιά εὐκολία, καί μέ εὐκολία. Εἶχε ἀπόλυτο δίκαιο ὁ Ἰονέσκο. Στό Παρίσι ὁ ἕνας μετά τόν ἄλλον γίνονταν ρινόκεροι. Ἕνας μόνο ἀντιστάθηκε λέγοντας: «Ἐγώ θά μείνω ἄνθρωπος».
Γνωρίσαμε καί ζήσαμε τά δεινά τῆς σοβιετικῆς ἀθεΐας. Τώρα ὑφιστάμεθα τά φρικτά τῆς «λευκῆς Δαιμονίας» (ἅγιος Νικόλαος Ἀχρίδος).
Ὅμως, ἄς ἔχουμε θάρρος. Ὁ Χριστός εἶπε: «Ἐγώ νενίκηκα τόν κόσμον». Ἡ Ἐκκλησία μένει εἰς τόν αἰῶνα.
Ἀπομένει νά ἀκυρώσουμε τόν νόμο στήν πράξη. Νά στηρίξουμε τά παιδιά μας στήν ἀρετή καί τήν σωφροσύνη. Καί αὐτό θά εἶναι κάτι μεγαλειῶδες. Νά μείνουμε μέ τόν Χριστό. «Οὗτοι ἐν ἄρμασι καί οὗτοι ἐν ἵπποις, ἡμεῖς δέ ἐν ὀνόματι Κυρίου ἐπικαλεσόμεθα» (Ψαλμ. 19, 8). Δύναμή μας ἡ προσευχή. Ἡ Ἐκκλησία ἄλλωστε ὀφείλει νά καταφεύγει στήν «ἔρημο». Ὅποια καί ἄν εἶναι αὐτή ἡ προφητική ἔρημος. Μακρυά πάντως ἀπό τήν σύμπλευση μέ ἁμαρτωλά νομοθετήματα καί ἄνομους νομοθέτες. Ἄς μή μᾶς ἐπηρεάσει ὁ φόβος τῆς φτώχειας, τῆς κοινωνικῆς καί ψυχολογικῆς ἀπομόνωσης. Μᾶς συνοδεύει τό Φῶς τῆς Ἀναστάσεως. Σέ παρόμοιες περιπτώσεις οἱ ἅγιοι Πατέρες μας νίκησαν μέ τήν ἀνδρεία τους. Προτίμησαν τόν κόπο τῆς ἀρετῆς, καί, ὅταν χρειάσθηκε, τήν ἐξορία, τήν θλίψη, τήν στέρηση. Εἴτε ἐπρόκειτο γιά αἱρετικά δόγματα, εἴτε γιά ἀντιευαγγελικά ἤθη. Στήν Βαβυλώνα ἡ καλοπέραση δέν ἦταν τό φρόνημα τῶν Τριῶν Παίδων, ἀλλά ἡ ὑπομονή στήν Κάμινο.
Ὁ πατριάρχης στήν Κων/πολη, ἐπί Ἰουλιανοῦ τοῦ Παραβάτου, συνέστησε κόλλυβα ἀντί γιά τά ἐπιβεβλημένα στήν ἀγορά εἰδωλόθυτα. Σύμβολο τῆς ἑκούσιας πτωχείας, χάριν τοῦ Χριστοῦ. Γιά νά μείνει καθαρή ἡ συνείδησή μας, ἀνεπηρέαστη ἀπό δελεάσματα.
Ἡ νίκη ἀνήκει στό ἐσφαγμένο Ἀρνίο. Τελικά θά νικήσῃ ὁ Χριστός, ὁ Ἐσταυρωμένος, καί ὅσοι θά εἴμαστε τοῦ Χριστοῦ, συνεσταυρωμένοι μαζί Του. Ἀπό ἐμᾶς περιμένει νά Τόν ἀκολουθοῦμε. «Ἐξέλθετε ἐκ μέσου αὐτῶν καί ἀφορίσθητε, λέγει Κύριος, καί ἀκαθάρτου μή ἅπτεσθε» (Β΄ Κορ. 6, 17). Γιά νά μείνει στήν ζωή μας.
Ἀνοίγει σέ λίγες μέρες τό Τριώδιο, πλησιάζει ἡ Μεγάλη Τεσσαρακοστή. Ἡ ζωή τῆς μετανοίας δέν εἶναι φολκλόρ, οὔτε εὐσεβοφάνεια. Εἶναι ἡ ἔμπρακτη καί ἔμπονη ἀποστασιοποίηση ἀπό κάθε ἀνομία. Γιατί μᾶς περιμένει ἡ Ανάσταση!
Ἱερά Μονή Ὁσίου Γρηγορίου
16.2.2024
ANAXIOS on Judas Betraying Greece!
Thank God the Holy Epistasia monks of Mt. Athos are calling out for excommunication of Parliament officials who voted bill for gay unions and adoption, they’re time is going to come.
I bet these monks still believe the earth is flat.
But this paragraph is really convoluted.
And I quote “” Here is meant the so-called devshirme—a practice in the Ottoman Empire, when Christian boys were forcefully taken from their families and given over to the Sultan’s complete disposal. Many of them ended up in harems. This is a reference to the possibility presented by the new law of the legal adoption of children by same-sex couples.””
They are suggesting that adoption of children by a homosexual couple is due to sexual attraction!. That is sick and only dark minds would produce such thoughts. There are laws that protect children from such a situation. In America there have been adoptions by same sex couples for years. There never has been such an occurrence.
They simply refer to a very painful part of Greek history, devsirme, and they refer to the higher powers that insisted that this law be adopted in Greece. If you don’t understand that this happened against the will of the Greek people there is no point for discussion…
Nick. Of course I know what devsirme is. And the monks are trying to connect it to child adoption by homosexuals, meaning that they want to adopt children for their gratification. As the Sultans did. That is sick. They live in the middle ages. There are laws in place to protect children. Besides, there’s plenty child abuse by non homosexual people. I dont hear them saying anything about that.
I am not sure you understand it well. Greeks experienced devsirme not only under the Ottomans but also during the Civil War by the Communists. It does not have a sexual connotation necessarily. It means the removal of the kids from their natural parents. No need to exaggerate and exasperate. The monks know well what they are talking about. Take a deep breath and see the light.
Lampro,
Read the Greek text, and compare it to the English…the word you are taking offense to was part of a footnote insertion by the editor (#1 & #2), and not by the monks…so you seem to have plenty of energy to engage in libel and slander of monks, but the letter from Gregoriou monastery never published that word… :)
The word the monks used was παιδομάζωμα, which also applies to what the Bulgarians did in WW1 & 2, and the Communists in Civil War, as well as the Turks with their Janissary program, by taking infants and raising them to be molded into whatever they wanted, and even to kill their own biological parents without knowing the truth about them…
Something parallel is happening here, too…the natural product of a male and a female is “taken legally” (by “force of law” / edict of the State), and handed off to two individuals that can’t “naturally” produce their own combined genetic offspring…undoubtedly, they will raise and teach the child to believe that this “unnatural” situation is “normal”, and they will forever point to secular law as justification of this ethical paradox…
In essence, these “unnatural parents” will undoubtedly take the infant, a “normal product of nature”, and raise it to believe that the “unnatural” is “normal” (i.e. that it is “normal” for a child to have 2 dads or 2 moms)… That’s the definition of insanity, my friend…when the “inmates” start “running the asylum”…
And at the end of the day, nobody asked the child…the child apparently has no rights in this barbaric process… Nobody asked the child if it was ok not to have a mother, or not to have a father figure, a situation which child Psychologists have warned against for many years as causing a ton of irreparable problems down the road…so there’s obviously a big hole being created now in those so-called “Laws to protect the well-being of children” that you reference…
That is actually the true definition of “sick”, here…spiritual illness & barbarism and “abductions without the child’s consent”, legalized by Secular States, only to placate the “feelings” of a small minority of the population that wants to somehow “feel equal” by ignoring the fact that they can’t produce children of their own as “Dad 1 & 2”, or “Mom 1 &2″…
I did not read the Greek part. It seems those two paragraphs were deleted from the English translation. Only Nick can tell us which version is correct.
However, the letter is still over the top when it compares adoption to paidomazoma. If anyone takes a child without the parent’s knowledge, then, he is committing kidnapping. If the monks have any such illegality, on file it should reported. Non only to Greek authorities, but the European Union. Otherwise, they are blowing hot air, .
The Greek version is correct. The two paragraphs were from Orthochristian.com which provided explanations for a wider audience. My apologies.. Again, this is a one-man show and sometimes things slip…
Once again Sodom and Gomorrah was warned by God to stop engaging in adultery and homosexuality!
they did not therefore he destroyed them even children so homosexuality will not be reproduced. Those citys
are called The Dead Sea now; (meaning no form of life) so these evil fools that passed this which is part of their pledge to the New World Order They dont know whats coming! Whats next for Greece legalizing polygamy ? and other acts which is against Gods creation! I want to know why that evil Patr Bartholomew has not stood up against this? For only one reason probably is he one of them and part of this darkness! Drope tous especially to him and Em Elpidophoros for supporting this. And then they go around to various holidays to churches and be seen as our Christian Orthodox leaders! BEWARE of these type of FALSE prophets as the Bible states. Along with Mistotakis and other politicians they have sold their souls to the devil for power money and control! But God sees all of this wrong doing and he will intercede on their corruption!
Too many “super Christians are condemning homosexual proclivity because its easy to do. After all, only 4% of people are homosexual. If someone is inclined to be homosexual, he was made by God. Why would a just God make some people homosexual and not others. Ans why would God punish everyone, including children, as the one who speaks to God, Zoon (sorry, Zoey) knows that will happen?
The ones we need to be aware of are the finger pointers. They are hypocrites. God has a punishment for them. After all, Christ mentioned hypocrisy 47 times. Not once did he say anything about homosexuality.
So, the monks, along with other assorted “super Christians”, should look after their own sins. And they have many.
We all have sins – but this does not mean that we should not be able to distinguish right from wrong, ethical from unethical. Especially the monks whose life work is to be a beacon of Orthodoxy.
Nicj.
Yes. We do have the right to judge others’ actions. But not to condemn them. When I watched Netflix’s Alexander, seeing two men kiss, turned my stomach. As a free-thinking person, I did what I felt was right for me. I turned it off. And will boycott the whole show. Alexander’s history is written elsewhere without focusing on turning him into some gay flag waving, pride marching, cross dressing Hollywood version of today’s morality. Is it unethical? Us hetero can call it whatever we want. And we are, because its easy to condemn homosexuals, since we weren’t born with that proclivity. And it is something that they are born with. Otherwise, how can you be attracted to the same sex, if it doesn’t come from within. And let’s not forget that throughout history, many of the fiercest critics of homosexuals were themselves homosexuals.
Lambro,
Unfortunately that allusion about “inclination” is heretical. To be “made by God” to sin implies that God is now responsible for that 4% sinning. That cannot stand against our 2000+ year understanding of the human “fall”, sin in general, Christ and Salvation…this position clearly falls under the category “new teachings and new dogma.” Very dangerous to fall into that trap. Everything we know about sin and repentance comes down to one thing…an individual has to reach a point where they are disgusted by what they are doing, in order to be in a position to truly repent. That is the exact opposite of “Pride” that is being pushed today. Such examples of robbers becoming saintly monks, or even of St. Mary of Egypt abound in Church History…someone who is serious about their salvation will always struggle to “run from their passions”. Someone who has “surrendered to the enemy” won’t fight at all….Seeking “justification” for continuing to sin, especially with a blasphemous point of view that “God made me this way”, is not an exhibition of such seriousness, and creates false dogma.
Instead, our Orthodox understanding embraces the notion of weakness, and the “fall” of humanity into a sinful state. God told Adam and Eve not to eat of that fruit…they got attracted to it, and they ate it, and the rest is history…God eventually had to write down the 10 Commandments because of egregious apostasy…not because these Commandments were anything “new” (these were “natural laws” as per our Church Fathers teachings), but because gradual decline into sin made people bury their “God-given conscience”…
Similarly, the fact that someone today may attracted to sinful behavior (by the way, we have to admit that sinful behavior can also include pre or extra-marital affairs between hetero couples as well which run rampant in today’s society), and that over time Secular Law tolerates or “legalizes” this behavior doesn’t mean that it isn’t antithetical to God’s Law, and that we can now start saying “God made me this way” for all sin…
Life is like a menu at a restaurant…there are many things to order and enjoy in whatever way your free will leads you to choose….but can you afford the “spiritual bill” that will appear at the end of your life? That’s what our Church has been teaching us for 2000 years. Interestingly enough, when a doctor tells us that our favorite food that we were gluttonous with will end up killing us, many people “cut that passion (food)” immediately, because they love life more than the food… Wouldn’t it be an interesting world if we all loved “eternal life” more than our sins that prevent us from it?
There are two spiritual paths available (see the Didache of the Apostles), and each day there are snares to avoid that will lead us down a wrong path and false dogma…There is a reason why the New Testament includes the readings where Christ says “Truly I do not know you” to those who claimed that they “did things in His name”…
False dogma is an automatic violation of one of the 10 Commandments…”Thou shalt not Lie…” (especially about how God made humanity)…
Inclination is heretical you say.
God did not make a perfect world, as we imagine it should be. After all, God made the blind, the lame and the sick, he made the rapists and the murderers.. As he also made the homosexuals. And he also made Hitler. If God didn’t, then, who did?
Do you also believe that the earth is flat? If you believe the earth is round and was not made five thousand years ago, then, you are heretical. Have you given all your possessions to the poor. Have you opened your door when a homeless person is knocking?. Have you visited prisons? Have you never had sex outside of marriage? You can lie to the above and other Christian parameters, but, you won’t be believable. As I said. Its easy for you, hypocrites to condemn homosexuality because it is a proclivity that most people are free from. Again, you fall into the trap of condemning others, while not looking at your own sins. What we are taught as Christians is a way of life. yes, homosexuality is one of the sins that we need to stay away from. As are many others. Are you avoiding all sins? If you’re not, then, you are violating the amendment of “shall not lie’.
You are the perfect example of the Greek proverb, “A teacher who is teaching and was not following his own teachings.” The ones who overstep God’s commands have their own explanation to give you their maker when they meet him. Pay the bill” as you said. And I agree with that and that’s what I’ve been explaining in these posts. They know what they should or shouldn’t do. Just as you are. Moreover, Christ said “Whoever wants to follow me. Matthew 16:24-25. You can’t force anyone to follow Christ’s teachings.
So, mind your own sins and stop condemning others’.
Lambro,
Sadly, it is quite clear that you don’t grasp the Orthodox understanding of how a person is created by God, and how subsequently that same person loses control of his/her 5 senses and logic in a manner that leads to a variety of sins…including CHOOSING to eat a particular forbidden fruit in Paradise (if you happen to remember that story)…
It is also clear you don’t grasp basic Orthodox understandings of sin & heresy, as well as how to distinguish between dogmatic and soteriological “red lines” and other concepts or debates that might not be soteriological and dogmatic in nature…
And to be honest, it’s not our obligation to teach you, either (nor did we ever have delusions that you are even “teachable”, in order to waste our efforts in that direction)… ὁ ἔχων ὦτα ἀκούειν ἀκουέτω…the posted responses here are for the benefit of other readers, in general.
Per the letter to Titus, after someone who promotes non-Orthodox rhetoric has been advised once and twice, that man becomes self-condemned when persisting in his own twisted “theology”.
Remember that discussion about Aristotelian Axioms that we talked about several days ago, where if two parties can’t agree on basic axioms (things that are accepted but not tangibly “provable”), they cannot have a constructive debate, but devolve into a circular argument?
Your emotionally charged tirade of illogical and diversional questions is useless, because these questions are based on a cerebral universe of axioms that is not congruent with Orthodox teaching. Again, that’s really not anyone else’s problem but your own to solve…
Nevertheless, whenever anyone provokes readers by presenting non-Orthodox rhetoric or dogma as fact, that person should expect to be challenged in any forum, not just Helleniscope… It seems from the tone of your responses that these challenges are angering you, but interpreting and complaining that such challenges to your rhetorical positions exhibit “non-Christian” behavior is quite laughable, non-scholarly, and lacks all seriousness…
WRONG Lampro!
God did Not make homosexuals,
they’re free will “chose” to be.
Hey you libs love to be free to “choose” right?
Why. you dont like having a choice? Since you know that God didnt make homosexuals, then, who made them? They are made in the image pf God.
“Homosexuality” is one of the biggest sins! Mr.Lambros obviously you arent educated as to what Gods sins are and written in the bible/scriptures about homosexuality: Genesis19;Leviticus 18:22-20:13;Corinthians6:9-10;Timothy1:10;Romans 1:26-27; Now you tell me Mr.Lambros where in bible/scriptures is homosexuality accepted and NOT a sin?; please reference it. As far as to why are some born homosexuals thats an even dipper subject of the sins of their ancestors; forefathers that are passed down Exodus 34:7