ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΟ ΠΡΩΤΟΤΥΠΟ ΚΕΙΜΕΝΟ ΑΚΟΛΟΥΘΕΙ
By Michail Tsakiridis
Thessaloniki, 13/2/2026
Archbishop of America Mr. Elpidophoros,
By the grace of God, I am an Orthodox father of ten children, blessed with many children, and having the good concern spoken of by Saint Paisios, and listening to Saint John Maximovitch who said that in the end of times every Christian will be responsible for the whole Church, and observing what is happening in our Orthodox sphere, and seeing the sacrilege of your joint prayer which took place a few days ago at the Holy Trinity Church of New York of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, I thought to pose to you some questions:
Was your joint prayer with this whole rabble of heretics done with the knowledge of the Ecumenical Patriarch (with whom you seem to be competing in offenses against our faith)?
Some of the Holy Canons that do not permit joint prayers with heretics are the following:
A) Canon I of the Holy Apostles:
“If anyone prays together even at home with one who is excommunicated, let him also be excommunicated.”
B) Canon XLV of the Holy Apostles:
“Let a bishop, presbyter, or deacon who has only prayed together with heretics be excommunicated; but if he has permitted them to perform anything as clergy, let him be deposed.”
C) Canon VI of the Local Council of Laodicea:
“Concerning not permitting heretics to enter the house of God while they persist in heresy.”
There are also dozens of other Holy Canons from the time of the Apostles that condemn joint prayers with heretics.
Were the Holy Apostles, the Holy Fathers, and the Local and Ecumenical Councils mistaken?
Were they all perhaps victims of the ancient evil serpent?
Were the modern Saints Paisios, John Maximovitch, Justin Popovich, Philoumenos, Nektarios, and many other Saints—who followed in the footsteps of the former as ‘following the Holy Fathers’—mistaken?
You also brought into the Holy Church a representative of the abomination of sins, the lesbian Lutheran bishop Katrina Foster.
Did you turn the Holy Church into a theater with blasphemous performances against our Triune God?
Did you confuse the office of Archbishop with the role of chief actor?
Unfortunately, the word “shame” pales before these actions of yours.
Soon the curtain will fall for all of us, and we will stand before the judgment seat of the impartial Judge, our Lord Jesus Christ.
I wish that you sincerely and publicly repent and that you do not meet the end of Arius or of the monks at the Great Lavra of Mount Athos who concelebrated with Papists and came out unleavened and swollen?
With respect,
Tsakiridis Michail
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Διαθρησκειακή δέηση σε Ορθόδοξο ναό» – Ανοιχτή επιστολή προς τον Αρχιεπίσκοπο Αμερικής κ. Ελπιδοφόρo
Μιχαήλ Τσακιρίδης
Θεσσαλονίκη 13/2/2026
Αρχιεπίσκοπε Αμερικής κύριε Ελπιδοφόρε
Με τη χάρη του θεού είμαι ένας ορθόδοξος υπερπολύτεκνος πατέρας 10 παιδιών και έχοντας την καλή ανησυχία που έλεγε ο Αγιος Παΐσιος και ακούγοντας τον άγιο Ιωάννη Μαξίμοβιτς που έλεγε ότι στα έσχατα χρόνια κάθε χριστιανός θα είναι υπεύθυνος για όλη την εκκλησία και παρακολουθώντας τα τεκταινόμενα στο χώρο της ορθοδοξίας μας και βλέποντας το ανοσιούργημα της συμπροσευχής σας που έγινε πριν λίγες ημέρες στον Ιερό Ναό Αγίας Τριάδος Νέας Υόρκης του Οικουμενικού Πατριαρχείου σκέφτηκα να σας θέσω κάποια ερωτήματα:
1) Ήταν εν γνώσει του Οικουμενικού Πατριάρχη (με τον οποίο συναγωνίζεστε από ότι φαίνεται στα ατοπήματα εις βάρος της πίστης μας) η συμπροσευχή σας με όλο αυτό το συρφετό των αιρετικών;
Κάποιοι από τους Ιερούς κανόνες που δεν επιτρέπουν τις συμπροσευχές με αιρετικούς είναι οι εξής:
Α) Κανών Ι των Αγίων Αποστόλων
Ει τις ακοινωνήτω καν εν οίκω συνεύξηται ούτως αφοριζέσθω.
Β) Κανών ΜΕ των Αγίων Αποστόλων
Επίσκοπος ή πρεσβύτερος ή διάκονος αιρετικοίς συνευξάμενος μόνον αφοριζέσθω ει δε επέτρεψεν αυτοίς, ως Κληρικοίς ενεργήσαι τι καθαιρείσθω.
Γ) Κανών ΣΤ της εν Λαοδικεία Τοπικής Συνόδου:
Περί του μη συγχωρείν τοις αιρετικοίς εισιέναι εις τον οίκο του Θεού επιμένοντας τη αιρέσει.
Υπάρχουν επίσης και δεκάδες άλλοι Ιεροί κανόνες από την εποχή των Αποστόλων που καταδικάζουν τις συμπροσευχές με αιρετικούς.
2) Μήπως έκαναν λάθος οι Άγιοι Απόστολοι, οι Άγιοι πατέρες, οι Τοπικές και Οικουμενικές Συνόδοι;
3) Μήπως ήταν όλοι αυτοί θύματα του αρχεκάκου όφεως;
4) Μήπως έκαναν λάθος οι σύγχρονοι Άγιοι Παΐσιος, Ιωάννης Μαξίμοβιτς, Ιουστίνος Πόποβιτς, Φιλούμενος, Νεκτάριος και πλήθος άλλων Αγίων που ακολούθησαν τα ίχνη των προηγουμένων ως «επόμενοι τοις Αγίοις Πατράσιν»;
Εισάγατε επίσης στον Ιερό ναό εκπρόσωπο του βδελύγματος των αμαρτιών την λεσβία λουθηρανή επίσκοπο Katrina Foster.
5) Μήπως περάσατε τον Ιερό Ναό θέατρο με βλάσφημες παραστάσεις εις βάρος του Τριαδικού Θεού μας;
6) Μήπως μπερδέψατε το αξίωμα του Αρχιεπισκόπου με το ρόλο του Αρχιθεατρίνου;
Δυστυχώς η λέξη ντροπή ωχριά μπροστά σε αυτές τις ενέργειες σας.
Σε λίγο θα πέσει η αυλαία για όλους μας και θα παρουσιαστούμε στο βήμα του αδεκάστου Κριτού Κυρίου ημών Ιησού Χριστού.
Σας εύχομαι να μετανοήσετε ειλικρινώς και δημοσίως και να μην έχετε το τέλος του Αρείου ή των μοναχών στη Μεγίστη Λαύρα του Αγίου Όρους οι οποίοι συλλειτούργησαν με παπικούς και βγήκαν άλειωτοι και τυμπανισμένοι;
Μετά τιμής
Τσακιρίδης Μιχαήλ
Well said, but is he the only person concerned with such matters? Why is everyone so quiet?
In Greece, there may be a bit of an excuse, because people aren’t familiar with many of the “finer” details of what Elpidophoros does…the Greek media doesn’t really focus on his “activities”, so they are largely ignorant on these matters…however, it is the circulation of letters like these that will help “awaken” those in Greece about what exactly is transpiring across the Atlantic…
In the diaspora, it’s a different answer…after 6 decades of “innovative relaxed criteria” on “how” Catechism is conducted, “how” Catechumens are permitted to become Orthodox without truly “shedding” their prior belief system, and even how the traditional rules around who could be married in the Church were “relaxed”, the sad reality is there is a large (spiritually misguided) percentage of those who label themselves “Greek Orthodox” who actually applaud this kind of ecumenist abominable Uniate behavior…this large block of “weekly candle purchasers” (donors) actually feels these innovations are “the best thing since sliced bread”… Furthermore, when you have anti-traditionalist “academics” such as the Fordhamites promoting caustic language such as “Fundamentalists” or “extremists” to label anyone who dare to quote Patristic teaching, the lines of schism become clear…
200 years ago Elpidophoros (and many other “hierarchs” of today) would have been deposed very quickly by the Synod for much less scandalization than what we see in the photos…nowadays, in contrast, many members of the Constantinopolitan Synod are recorded on internet videos “bowing down and kissing the hand of the Pope”…The ancient Romans used to say “who is watching the watchers”?
it’s 1439 all over again, unfortunately, but in 1439, it was the laity who rejected the “traitors of the Faith”, and forced them to resign…
Ecumenism is clearly pushed in Ukraine, even Elpi acknowledges it:
https://uoj.news/news/86392-abp-elpidophoros-ukraine-will-shape-the-future-of-inter-orthodox-relations
And there were many critics in Greece concerning the creation of the schismatic OCU, which I think at least in part Elpi is responsible for:
https://spzh.eu/en/news/91195-greek-metropolitan-on-recognition-of-ocu-it-was-a-real-crime
I hope the next patriarch will be better. I hope Elpi is not going to be pushed in, just like OCU was pushed in, against the will of the people.
I am not quiet. The hypnotized church attendees are quiet. They continue to vote yes with their coins in the basket. Start a letter here. I will add my name if it is similar in spirit to the one in this article.
Bravo to you Mikael for writing this to Archbishop – who didn’t seem to hear my memo 📋 when I talked to him long ago; it was like ‘nobody’s home’ with AB.
But good luck Mr Tsakiridis of 10 children – your life is truly a noble mission!
Spot on, Mr. Tsakiridis! Thank you!
He is too busy criticizing the leaders of the Russian Church and refuses to see the disasters he creates in the Church he leads, reducing himself to an instrument of the powers of the western world.
https://uoj.news/news/86249-abp-elpidophoros-russian-orthodox-church-reduced-to-an-instrument-of-the-kremlin
He is a pie faced liar.
I sincerely doubt His Eminence cares about this letter at all.
Not because there isn’t a scandal here, but because this letter is dripping with contempt. One of the key teachings of the Holy Fathers is that you have to actually LOVE the person you’re criticizing for it to be salvific (for the person hearing it) and not a sin (for the person doing the criticizing). I’m not talking about a sentimental liking of the person, but an actual love for the person rooted in respecting them. If you don’t respect someone, you are of course free to say what you like, but you aren’t going to touch their hearts and it is a grave temptation for us, as it gives voice to anger that is not as righteous as we tell ourselves.
I see some real vitriol online directed at the man, and they aren’t even under him!
“Ecumenism” has layers to it. If an Orthodox Priest who is an Army Chaplain serves an “Ecumenical Service,” are they anathema? If they pray with their brother Chaplains at the annual prayer breakfast, are they to be defrocked? If I pray the Lord’s Prayer with my Protestant mother, am I excommunicated?
The Canons were written with an Orthodox Empire as the background. People who criticize the claims of the Ecumenical Patriarchate to authority speak of “dead canons,” but that is often selective and self-serving.
I think boundaries have to be kept. Certainly no shared Chalice. But at the same time, I think we have to be careful about how we speak about such things. Nobody has broken communion for a reason. I personally would have stayed away from this event, but I think we have to be measured in our speech. Now more than ever.
Please try to clear the confusing “salad” of your thoughts… the author talks specifically about the canons of our church and whether the Patriarch and Elpidophoros follow them. Do you have anything to comment on this issue? Are they “canons” or just “suggestions”?
Dave, The current Greek Orthodox Christian hierarchy is attempting to remake itself for the consumption of the modern world.
David,
About the military chaplains, I don’t consider them real priests, because according to the gospel, you cannot serve 2 masters!
They decided their boss to be the Pentagon and enjoy the financial security that comes with it… But accepting the AIPAC led government as their boss, they have to follow their boss’s orders and bless every bloody intervention is decided worldwide…
What I want to say to you can’t be printed (and would be moderated). I will only reply with this: Have you had actual real life interactions with Unit Ministry Teams, and do you know what they actually do (especially deployed)? This post says to me that you don’t.
Signed,
A former Religious Affairs Specialist/Chaplain’s Assistant (SGT),
US Army Chaplain Corp
We know very well what you are doing. You are providing comfort to those unlucky people who chose to work for the most sophisticated butchery in the modern world. Who is going to provide comfort to the thousands of PTSD veterans and the millions of victims around the globe?
So you haven’t. Ok.
The UMT’s mission is a lot more than some vague notion of “comfort.” There are Orthodox Christians in the US Military. When they are deployed, how are they supposed to attend Liturgy or receive the Mysteries? We also cover PTSD too (I once had to calm a soldier down who was suffering PTSD stress).
Has anti-Americanism and anti-military sentiments become part of the “Orthodox phronema”? I wasn’t unlucky. I’m a 3rd generation military man (military brat and enlisted in my early 20s). The only reason I got out was because I hate camping, running, and suck at shooting (in 5 years of active service, never shot Expert once—–Sharpshooter rating on a good day, max).
It is baffling (with a capital B, 300 font) to me to see traditionally Far Left vitriol against the military coming from “conservative” sources. Are you a Greek Greek (as opposed to a Greek-American) and just have a chip on your shoulder about America? I get that. Go into any VFW or talk with veterans at large and you’ll hear some opinions.
With that said, Orthodox Chaplains are priests (the majority are from the OCA, with GOA in 2nd place). To say otherwise is….again, a reply that would be moderated. War itself is butchery. There is nothing particularly sophisticated about a 50 cal machine gun taking a man apart or a bomb blowing up a building. The Russians and Ukrainians are doing quite the number these days. The Israelis too.
I’ll leave it at that.
David,
“Certainly no shared chalice” you say, but Elpidophoros has held the opinion for several years now that non-Orthodox should be offered Communion…
Are you ready to criticize Elpidophoros now, since he openly disagrees with your position on “no shared Chalice”?
The Canons were put in place by the Church Fathers for good reasons, and in order to protect the Church from heresy, apostasy, and moral corruption among other things…if Elpidophoros, or any other hierarch didn’t like the Canons, why would they literally make a “Confession” of Faith and Alignment with the Ecumenical Councils at their Ordination? Why would any bishop with a real conscience begin his reign with a violation of the 10 Commandments…a blatant lie that they will uphold the decisions of the Ecumenical Councils?
And in this light, you as a military man should consider for a moment on how much “love” and “respect” the military code of justice administers when it handles traitors, defectors, spies, saboteurs, and those who don’t follow the rules of the military in general…ESPECIALLY those officers who theoretically take an oath of “Commissioning”…and why does the military still employ the “dishonorable discharge” with its long-term associated penalties in the post-military life of the one “convicted”? Shouldn’t the “Church militant” on Earth also have rules that need to be followed? And given that the Church’s “court martial” (spiritual court) has long been corrupted to ignore its duty to keep rogue and “innovative” bishops in check, shouldn’t the people be enraged and do what they need to do to express their dissatisfaction with the “ravaging” of their Church?
Corrupt and provocative bishops acting pompous and dismissing the rage of the people who have seen their Church soiled on the pretext that they should be more “gentle” is preposterous, a position totally contradicts history, especially in light of the role that the people played in 1439 in rejecting the delegation and its decisions after the treasonous pseudo-Council of Ferrara…defending such bishops is also preposterous.
I agree with what this letter says, but here in America Elpidoforos has long time ago opened the doors of the churches to the heretics…
With his permission the Masonic lodges of AHEPA are meeting in our churches, desecrating them. AHEPA is not a religious organization, in fact they are accepting people from all monotheistic religions! So, you can imagine what mosaic of interfaith is meeting in our churches when we are not there and without our permission!
Furthermore, AHEPA is actually anti-Christian, since they care only about their members interest and give scholarships ONLY to AHEPA members children!
Perhaps I should have been more clear and concise in my post. This letter went straight to the trash can, because you can’t correct/rebuke someone (in a Christian way) you have contempt for. It doesn’t work like that. We see that all too clearly in the current internet space.
For the Bishops, the Canons are guidelines, guard rails, and precedents to help them to “bind and loose.” There is nothing in the Canons about Orthodoxy existing in a modern, secular Republic, because nothing of the kind existed when those canons were written. The Bishops have to read the canons, and apply the principles as best they can, given the uncharted territory the Church finds itself in. Orthodoxy has only existed outside of an imperial framework (Byzantine, Ottoman, Russian) a little over a century. That is the blink of an eye in historical terms. The Catholics had to figure it out when they lost the Papal States and the Hapsburg Monarchy, and we have to figure it out now. We’ve kicked the can down the road and sought refuge in the quasi-imperial frameworks of America and modern Russia, but the reckoning is coming. I think the current schism between Moscow and Constantinople shows how untenable our position has become. I think it was Soloviev who made that very point: The Greeks and Russians actually don’t like each other and don’t want to be under the other. When that full realization sets in, Orthodox unity will collapse.
That doesn’t mean we toss out the canons wholesale or embrace the spirit of the world. But it means we have to face some hard realities about how Orthodoxy exists in a post imperial framework.
David,
You play the good guy and you advise us to be polite with the heretics, while you admit that the answer you want to give to me cannot be printed!
What should we do? Ask politely the Archbishop to resign or stop bringing heretics in our churches? Some things cannot be said politely. Masonic lodges are meeting in our churches behind our back, but you don’t seem to care about that… Your comments are like Avramopoulos style. Ask someone Greek to explain to you what that means…
Regarding the military chaplains, if they claim that they serve the Lamb of God, then they cannot work at the same time for a “butchery”, metaphorically speaking… You cannot serve 2 masters!
That isn’t playing at anything. My reply to a Bishop I disagree with would be quite different than the reply I would give to some rando on the internet talking feces about our military clergy. The latter would receive saltier language.
My whole point was that the letter was useless and pointless, because the person who wrote it clearly holds His Eminence in contempt.
You ask what should we do? I’ll tell you—-don’t be an anus, when talking to/with/about people. That isn’t being “a nice guy.” That’s just Courtesy 101. What you wrote about our chaplains made me angry, but I was reserved in my response. If he’s a Bishop, we should treat him like one. Perhaps that is the issue—cultural differences. The genteel and reserved approach is too Anglo? Is this a Greek thing?
I’ll end my replies with this note: We don’t serve “butchery.” The Chaplaincy serves the soldiers. Chaplains don’t carry weapons. This is the Creed of the Chaplain Corp: Nurture the Living, Care for the Wounded, Honor the Dead. Any priest worth their salt does exactly this. Are the Russian priests serving the Russian Army serving Butchery? The Ukrainians might think so. I DON’T.
David,
I will make it more clear, because you pretend you don’t understand:
“You cannot serve 2 masters”
Matthew 6:24-26
Military chaplains obviously are under the orders of the AIPAC led US governments and are depended financially from them. These governments that are your employer, your boss:
1. They have bombed and killed around 2,000 Serbian Orthodox Christian civilians in 1999!
2. These governments were giving and still give an abundance of free weapons to Israel. Israel used these weapons to flatten Gaza. The Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Porfyrios in Gaza was hit with these bombs and 18 Orthodox Christians were killed! Also churches in Lebanon were hit and a priest of the Greek Orthodox patriarchate of Antioch and all his family was killed!
How the Orthodox chaplains conscience permits that? How they can sleep in the night knowing what their employer and Zionist partner are doing to the Orthodox Christians?
God gave you the right to choose. So choose wisely, choose Jesus instead of Mammon…
Chip on the Shoulder about America. Got it.
If you can’t differentiate between the US military and the Administration that is in office at any given time, then I can’t help you there. The motto of the US Army Chaplain Corp is PRO DEO ET PATRIA “For God and Country.” Notice which comes first. Of course, it’s in Latin, so you might get worked up about that.
We’re done here.
I guess you don’t have any problem if American bombs are killing Orthodox Christians… That indifference shows mentality of a secular public servant, not an Orthodox priest… If the Orthodox priests don’t care about the killing of innocent Orthodox Christian civilians, who else will care? However you dismiss it, the dilemma is still there: Jesus or the money?
David,
He has also been rebuked by other bishops, especially when he perpetrated the fiasco in Glyfada, when he introduced multiple spoons, and of course well before they made him archbishop, when he introduced the heretical view of “primus sine paribus” when referring to the bishop of Constantinople….all those rebukes went into the trash can too. That’s because the rebukes are not coming from where they should be coming (the corrupt Synod of Constantinople)…it’s neither because they were done “respectfully” nor “with contempt”…The closest we came to a “real” Synodal rebuke was when (if you remember correctly), the assembly of Canonical bishops threatened him with a ceasing of Communion if he were to proceed with making that defrocked “Belya” a bishop…a short time later a scandal that affected the chairman of the assembly “leaked to the press”, but to the assembly’s credit, they sent a second letter after the chairman resigned and was eventually deposed by his Synod that they would still cut ties if the defrocked “Belya” were to become a bishop….it would be real nice if we see more action by the assembly of bishops going forward…
So let’s recap…what are you trying to say? That we can’t and shouldn’t exercise our Canonical right to yell “ANAXIOS” (that epithet is not respectful, but it’s definitely Canonical and allowed to be used by the laity) in the face of these anti-Canonical and anti-Traditional provocations, just because spiritual courts within the Synod of Constantinople are so corrupt these days, that they won’t listen to the voices that are yelling? That’s not an honorable request…
Thank you so much Michail!
Markos,
I never said we shouldn’t criticize. I said HOW we criticize makes all the difference. It’s akin to Democrats who call President Trump all kinds of names. He isn’t inclined to listen to them, is he? And he can (and does) dismiss their criticisms. And Vice Versa.
UOJ-USA is an example of criticism done the right way, in my view (no anuses there—-direct, pointed, but respectful—-Aaron Hickman’s write-up on the visit of the EP to America is the best critique I’ve read across the internet). You mistook me for someone who sympathizes with hyper-ecumenism, perhaps. I think some ecumenism is inevitable in our time (no Canons exist that directly address the situation of religious pluralism, which didn’t exist when they were written). But there are boundaries, and His Eminence in my view crossed them.
What to do? I have no patience for the Monarchist LARP or those pining for “pre-modern days.” Nostalgia is worse than useless, it is destructive. Call it out, absolutely. But again, HOW is everything. That is the point I was making. My deeper point: Which Ecumenism is acceptable and which isn’t? I argued that some ecumenical prayer (and gatherings) is inevitable in America due to the unique nature of our Republic. I used the military chaplain example to illustrate the dangers of being to strident in our condemnations. I then got side tracked my some dude (?) who decided he wanted to vent his bile about American foreign policy. My point stands: I think we should be careful about how we criticize and when. That’s it.
This will definitely be my last comment on this article. Anybody can have the last word. I’m grateful for the conversation, no matter which way it goes.
David,
Dialogue is not about “who has the last word”, you are correct. The Ecumenical Synods took months and years to conclude…not a just a couple of exchanges on the internet…
Respect is earned. So is contempt. High levels of provocation with no apologies or repentance result in high levels of contempt. When the initial hubris is perpetrated by someone that “doesn’t listen to anyone’s criticism”, even if it is “packaged nicely”, there is really no argument around how nice or not nice that criticism is… Anaxios = Anaxios in that equation. The perpetrator will reap what he sowed, even if it is a mass exodus of faithful from GOARCH. However, we prefer his resignation and departure from the governance of the Church.
The military chaplain example is a whole different topic that can require days to untangle, but ultimately the defense of “acceptable” boundaries of “spiritual economy” in battlefield conditions requires solid Orthodox convictions and conscience. In the Roman days, “common prayer” in the military involved sacrificing to idols, too…St. Demetrios and several others didn’t partake, and they were tortured & executed… and you can certainly argue that St Demetrios was a (non-ordained) pioneering “military chaplain” and “apostle” up until the point where he became a martyr. There are muslim and buddhist chaplains, too…what does “common prayer” mean with them in that case, either? When the “other Christian denominations” believe in a different definition of the Holy Trinity (aka a different God) due to the Filioque clause, what does “common prayer” mean in that instance? Common prayer to which God, exactly (whose understanding of God)? It’s a tough situation in the US military, not because of what it “could be”, but because of “what it turned into” for the corps of military chaplains over the years…the spiritual flaws in the military system cannot be corrected by the current secular state or society…each man has a God-given conscience to figure out what the boundaries are in those “abnormal” conditions. There are definitely ways for an Orthodox chaplain to “survive” spiritual challenges even within that environment, but those details aren’t appropriate for public discourse at the moment. However, to focus on similarities and ignore dogmatic differences in the interest of “humanism and sensitivity” is the exact goal of the “pan-heresy” of Ecumenism…and to see that being perpetrated by Orthodox hierarchs and priests “outside the military” is absolutely disgusting and provocative.