EDITOR’S NOTE (Nick Stamatakis): In this important piece below, our friend George Michalopulos (Monomakhos.com) discusses a scenario that the grandiose, megalomaniac, egotistical Phanariots are hallucinating over for the past couple of years. In their warped imagination, they think they will unite all Orthodox jurisdictions in the U.S. under the “leadership” of this hornet’s nest called “Ecumenical Patriarchate”. Let me just say that the Patriarchate has lost the title Ecumenical since the time it “accomplished” the Schism with the Russian Church over the Ukrainian “Cacocephaly”. Its title should now be the “Istanbul Patriarchate”. As a result of the Schism, most Orthodox jurisdictions in the US will not participate in this Phanariot hallucination… What is more important, the Greek-American community who, since the times of Iakovos is demanding Panorthodox unity and autonomy, will move away from the political actors pretending to be men of God… They have already done it in many ways and only a small percentage (about 15%) are following the Phanariots…
WHY DO WE CALL IT “FALSE” PAN-ORTHODOX UNITY? Because the number one issue American Orthodoxy is faced with is not simply “ethnophyletism” (the many ethnically-based denominations) but the dependence of these denominations on foreign “leadership centers”. The Phanar is the worst of all those foreign centers… Administrative independence from ANY foreign center is a prerequisite for a true Pan-orthodox unity…
And a footnote: Does anyone wonder where did the Ottomans and the Modern Turks take their megalomaniacal and grandiose attitudes? The attitudes that now lead Erdogan to pretend that he is a “Regional Leader” with global aspirations? And in the process he has turned not only Turkey’s neighbors (Greece, Cyprus, Egypt, Israel, Armenia, S.Arabia, etc) but the whole world (France, USA – and even Russia – we all know that the Russo-Turkish cooperation is temporary) into enemies? Yes, my friends, it was the Phanariot tradition that gave Erdogan this “gift” of grandiosity, the same “gift” we have been watching in Bartholomew’s and Elpidophoros’ unrealistic behavior…) The 50,000 Mongol horsemen who came to Asia Minor from the depths of Asia ten centuries ago did not know left from right when it came to politics. It was the conniving Phanariots (who became “Grand Viziers” of “The Porte” after the Fall of Constantinople), who manipulated the Sultan and directed the Ottoman policies… In their grandiose utopian and exploitative mentality, these people – who are truly foreign bodies in today’s America – believe that they can lead the “stupid Amerikanakia” to a false religious unity…
If they don’t wake up soon from this hallucination, the fall from the upcoming cliff will certainly bring them down to earth in a very abrupt way…
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By George Michalopulos (monomakhos.com)
So this is a power grab, plain and simple. This new charter isn’t just about the GOA. It is a charter designed to unite the jurisdictions under the EP.
The creation of such a charter by an Archbishop in the GOA should come as no surprise. This is a tactic the EP has use before. Like when he told the world he speaks for the “entire” Church. If no one makes you quit saying you speak for the entire Church, it becomes fact, if only in your own mind. The EP thinks we’re the diaspora, under his care, and he and Elpi can darn well do what they want with us.
We have learned from a reliable source that the Ecumenical Patriarchate will set up offices in DC. This makes perfect sense if you ask yourself the following question: What would you do if you were the Eccumencial Patriarch and needed to “pack everyone up” to move to Rome?
Time will tell, but I would bet all my marbles that this new “charter” is going to be about unity across jurisdictions. No more “Greek” Church. It will be the “American” Church (I know, don’t laugh). Lord have mercy if the OCA goes along with this charade in order for its autocephaly to finally be recognized.
Sidebar: If memory serves, there was a certain fellow last year who predicted that the OCA was going to merge with the GOA. I wonder who that clever rascal was?
That Bartholomew’s & Francis’ intentions to reunite the Church is still “on,” is evidenced by recent news stories on the Catholic side concerning the problem with intercommunion between Catholics and Protestants in Germany.
The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) wrote last week to Bishop Georg Bätzing, president of the German bishops’ conference, saying that a proposal for a “Eucharistic meal fellowship” [with Protestants] would harm relations with Orthodox Churches.” https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/vatican-cardinal-pope-francis-concerned-about-church-in-germany-72694
They are seemingly making the Orthodox Church a priority. Why? Because it is the Pope’s intention to unite with Bartholomew and they don’t want the Orthodox Church to balk at the idea of opening up Eucharist communion with Protestants.
And then there is something put out by Elpi within the last couple of weeks “calling for much closer ties between the two branches of Christianity.” This is seemingly (there’s that word again) about unity with regard to Hagia Sophia, but since it is well after the fact, there is clearly another message behind the message:
https://usa.greekreporter.com/2020/09/22/archbishop-elpidophoros-calls-for-continued-orthodox-catholic-dialogue/
But wait! There’s more:
“. . . it is announced that His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros has convened an extraordinary teleconference of the Holy Eparchial Synod on Monday, October 12, 2020, in order to evaluate these new decisions of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
“ We have just received a wonderful opportunity to rebuild the Church in America from the ground up. Over the past one hundred years, great hierarchs led the Archdiocese of America, of which the later Patriarch Athenagoras and Archbishop Michael stand out, who consolidated and strengthened our communities. [Curiously, there is no mention of Ss John Maximovitch or Nikolai Velimirovich or any of the other the God-pleasing saints who worked here in America. –Ed.] Of course, Archbishop Iakovos was the one who, in his 37 years as Archbishop, transformed our Archdiocese, giving it a leading role in American society.
“ Today we feel especially blessed, because with this decision, the Ecumenical Patriarchate gives us the great opportunity to envision and design our Church together in view of its 100th anniversary. All together, clergy and laity, we will participate in a joint committee with our Patriarchate, and we will develop and complete a new plan with new perspectives on Orthodoxy in America for the next 100 years.
“ With the Ecumenical Patriarchate, we will establish a joint committee to study the current needs and the dynamics of our Archdiocese and prepare the plan for our new Charter.
“ I consider this decision to be divinely inspired and auspicious, because it comes a few days before the name day of the ever-memorable Archbishop Iakovos, during which we recall the glorious past, and prepare for a new century with new visions to strengthen our ministry and renew Pan-Orthodox cooperation. We are all grateful to the leader of Orthodoxy and the Holy and Sacred Synod that is with him.”
The full text of the Patriarchal Communiqué can be read at the following link:
https://www.goarch.org/-/ecumenical-patriarchate-communiqu–october-2020
What say you, fellow bloggers? Does this look like the mother of all power grabs or what?
