The Tale of Two Flags and A Subdued Vespers At Saint Bart’s…

By Nick Stamatakis

For the past two days, we have been receiving information from the omnipresent “Helleniscope Team” about the “Great Vespers” at the “Gay Temple” of St. Bart’s NYC, where the Archbishop and his entourage decided to to “honor” Pat. Bartholomew.  Many thanks to all of you guys – you are unbelievable!! Do you realize that we are part of a new era in journalism where this community uses its vast reporting abilities – we are everywhere!! – and Helleniscope as a vehicle?  All of us should be very proud!!

First things first: The Change of the Flags.  As we all know, AB Elpidoktonos has repeatedly refused to raise and honor the Greek and American Flags at Saint Nicholas of Ground Zero, while his “assistants” constantly murmur inconceivable arguments about the “ecumenicity” of the “Shrine”… But everybody saw and honored the huge Rainbow Flag outside St. Bart’s…

But wait!… This was not the same Flag we saw yesterday!! This was from last year!! Why did they change to a new Rainbow Flag – the one below?

Yes, my friends, this is the new “All Inclusive”, “Intersex Progress Pride Flag,” or “All inclusive Pride Flag”, or any other combination of progressive adjectives that denote that you …lost your natural gender and you are … trying to find who you are now…”  Who is included in this new flag?  Transgenderism of course!! Don’t be surprised at all, if you see it outside the 79th Street headquarters!  Why hide our “Pride”?  We are run by the “Gay Brotherhood” of Phanar, and our Flags should denote that!! We are not Americans or Greeks! We are a new “species”, with no gender, no nation, no religion, but somehow we have ecumenical qualities….

A subdued Vespers at Saint Bart’s Last Saturday Evening…

Right after the Vespers, I started receiving photos and comments that were basically saying that this was a “very subdued gathering”, “not in the main church but in a side room”, “very few people”, “not a fading smile in Elpidoktonos’ face”, etc… It was a small gathering for sure and the verification came from goarch.org itself where these two photos were posted:

They barely show any faithful attending at the vespers where you can see about fifteen priests and cantors…  The photo that shows the Archbishop among the cantors (with the tired, dark, and sad face of Elpidoktonos) is significant:  One member of the chanting team sent a group email to all the rest telling them that “he is not coming, because of the gay flag and the despicable events this church promoted – esp. the gay flag around the Holy Cross!!”  This alone could explain the dark face of Elpidophoros during the Vespers!… Also, in contrast to the last time, there was no dinner or coffee afterwards! A name day celebrations without offering something? Hmm…

But the Archbishop found the courage to give his prepared “Homily” – you can read it below, and those of you with greater theological knowledge than mine can analyze it… But when a homily starts with praising the heretic Patriarch for being a “politically correct” “Green Patriarch”, you do not need much theological knowledge… You just need a strong stomach… Because he was trying to dress heresy with sanctity, we all know that this has the same effect as trying to put lipstick on a pig!.. Impossible!…

He refers to Jesus’s pronouncement, “I will never cast out the one who comes to Me”, but he fails to mention that Jesus blessed the marriage and family between a man and a woman… And he fails, even more, to explain that Jesus has open arms for all of us, the sinners, but he expected us to repent from our sins!! He did not approve and did not bless our sins!!

Will Elpidoktonos EVER find the courage to utter these simple words?  “Our Church is open to all, and our hearts are open to all sinners!  But we in Orthodoxy will stick with the Bible and the Apostles and will never redefine sin!!” If he could say these simple words, all our Churches would be packed with faithful every Sunday!!  But he will not! Because he is a “leader for hire”, in other words, he is a “puppet” like Zelensky! Those who control him have instructed him to redefine sin!  And it is not simply about homosexuality!  Please look at our big cities across America, from New York to Chicago to San Fransisco:  In all our cities, the most basic biblical Commandment, “no theft”, is being redefined on orders of the Globalists.  And Elpidophoros is doing perfectly well in his job of blessing the thieves!! Did you ever hear him say otherwise? No, and you never will…

June 12, 2023, n.stamatakis@aol.com   www.helleniscope.com

DISCLAIMER: The views and statements expressed in this article constitute constitutionally protected opinions of this author.

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Homily by His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America at the Great Vespers on the Feast of the Holy Apostle Bartholomew

Saint Bartholomew’s Church

New York, New York

June 10, 2023

Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

Christ is in our midst!

Once again, we engage in an ecumenical salute to the Spiritual Father of Orthodox Christianity, His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, Archbishop of Constantinople-New Rome. We have come again to the magnificent Saint Bartholomew’s Church, one of the great aesthetic achievements of Manhattan.

I wish to express my gratitude to Bishop Andrew Dietsche of the Episcopal Diocese of New York, and to the Right Reverend Dean Wolfe, Rector of this extraordinary parish, for their Abrahamic hospitality in welcoming us for this festal vespers.

We celebrate the Ecumenical Patriarch’s nameday here in a church of another Christian community, because His All-Holiness is the very definition of ecumenicity. He, following in the footsteps of our Lord, God, and Savior Jesus Christ, is continuously reaching out to those beyond his own circle and family of faith. The Ecumenical Patriarch is a spiritual father for all people, whether they realize it or not.

For His All-Holiness has deep concern and care for all of creation. We know of his steady and strong advocacy for the environment – his commitment to a sustainable planet for the whole human family, all eight billion of us.

How can one love creation but disdain the creatures who inhabit it? It makes no sense, and it is contrary to the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. His All-Holiness acts like a spiritual wheel in the world – holding the traditions fast in the hub of the Holy Mother Church. But he reaches out as well through spokes that extend in love and compassion to all people. No one is ever beneath or unworthy of the love of God. How could it be otherwise for us?

Being in this church, borrowed from another Christian tradition, is a sign of our expansive and embracing love for all people. It is a symbolic act that many will try to interpret through their own filters of grievance, prejudice, and lack of basic human kindness. But the truth of our presence and prayers here tonight is the same as the vision of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, which he enunciated a few years ago:

It is our belief and, at the same time, our hope that Christianity can be viewed as a religion of love and dialogue. The visions of the Gospel are what the Orthodox Church seeks to incarnate and support in the modern world. *

Because of this vision, His All-Holiness has stood – an immovable rock of faith and piety – against the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the complicity of the Russian Orthodox Church in its shameful support for this unconscionable war of aggression.

The Church is to be a place of love, acceptance and redemption. It was the Lord Himself Who said:

I will never cast out the one who comes to Me. †

What a difference from those who promise the Kingdom for being death-dealers, rather than death-healers!

His All-Holiness has now served on the Apostolic Throne of the First-Called Disciple Saint Andrew longer than any hierarch in the history of Christianity. This alone stands as a cause for great rejoicing and gladness. But more than his long and glorious tenure, he has opened the Mother Church’s embrace to the world, by engaging world leaders at every level. And now, with World Orthodoxy on the brink of fragmentation, he has stood firm for the truth of the Gospel. The truth that we are subjects of the Prince of Peace, not the common warlords of this world. The truth that the love of God is for all People, without reservation and without condition, as the Apostle reminds us:

“But God gave sure and certain proof of His own love for us, because while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”‡

Therefore, brothers and sisters in Christ,

Let our evening prayer arise like incense among all the glories within this sanctuary.

Let us give thanks to our Merciful God, Who has bestowed upon the Church and the entire human family such a person as the Great Ecumenical Patriarch, His All-Holiness Bartholomew – Archbishop of Constantinople-New Rome.

And let us cry out: Many Years, Most Holy Master!

Ἕτη Πολλά, Παναγιώτατε Δέσποτα!

Christ is truly in our midst!

Who was, and is, and shall ever be.

Amen.