Report from the trip to Russia of Bishop Akakije to Metropolitan Photios Secretary of the GOC Synod

To the Secretary of the Holy Synod His Eminence Metropolitan Photios of Dimitriados

Your Eminence, Bless!

I am writing You from the road, on a trip to France and Spain, and I am writing on my telephone so I ask forgiveness if there is anything confusing.

My trip to Russia, that is my visit with the Hierarchs of the RTOC and ROAC was more of an informative character, and as such I can say that it was successful. For me the first question in our discussions was their stance towards union between the Russian jurisdictions.

Αἴτηση Ἐγκαθιδρύσεως Κοινωνικῆς Ἐκκλησιαστικῆς Κοινωνίας

Πρός τήν Ιερά Σύνοδο

τῆς Ἐκκλησίας τῶν Γνησίων Ὀρθοδόξων Χριστιανῶν Ἑλλάδος

Αἴτηση Ἐγκαθιδρύσεως Κοινωνικῆς Ἐκκλησιαστικῆς Κοινωνίας

Τῇ 1ῃ/ 16ῃ Ὀκτωβρίου 2015

Τοῦ Ἁγίου Ἱερομάρτυρος Διονυσίου τοῦ Ἀρεοπαγίτου

Μακαριώτατε, Σεβασμιώτατοι, καὶ Θεοφιλέστατοι Ἀρχιερεῖς τῆς Ἁγίας Ἐκκλησίας τῶν Γνησίων Ὀρθοδόξων Χριστιανῶν Ἑλλάδος,

            Συγκινούμενοι ἀπό τήν ἐντολή τοῦ Κυρίου ὅτι ἡ ἐνότητα καί ἡ ἀγάπη μεταξύ τῶν μαθητῶν Του ἀποτελεῖ μία τῶν κυριοτέρων πιστοποιήσεων τῆς γνησίας ἀφοσιώσεως εἰς Αὐτόν καί εἰς τό Θεῖον Θέλημά Του, καί ζηλοῦντες νά ἐκπληρώσωμε τήν ἐντολή τῆς ἐνότητος τῆς Ἐκκλησίας, ἀπευθυνόμαστε ταπεινῶς πρός Ἐσάς αἰτούμενοι νά κάνωμε ὅ,τι δυνατόν νά ἐγκαθιδρυθῇ κανονική ἐκκλησιαστική κοινωνία μεταξύ τῶν ἀδελφῶν Ἑκκλησιών μας πρός δόξαν Θεοῦ. 

Petition for the Establishment of Canonical Communion between the STOC and the Greek GOC

TO THE HOLY SYNOD OF THE CHURCH OF THE GENUINE ORTHODOX CHRISTIANS OF GREECE

Petition for the Establishment of Canonical Communion

Your Beatitude, Your Eminences, and Your Graces, Hierarchs of the Holy Church of the Genuine Orthodox Christians of Greece:

Moved by the commandment of the Lord that unity and love between His disciples is one of the main confirmations of true loyalty to Him and His Divine Will, and zealous to fulfill the commandment of the unity of the Church, we humbly address You with a petition to undertake with us all that is within our power to establish canonical communion between our sister Churches to the Glory of God.

The Unity of the True Orthodox

September 6/19 2015                                                               To the Holy Synod of

Commemoration of the Miracles                                    The Russian True Orthodox Church

 of the Holy Archangel Michael

Our Common Duty:

The Unity of the True Orthodox in Truth and Love

By this all will know that you are my disciples:

if you have love for one another.

John 13:35

Your Eminence, Your Graces, Most Honored Brother Hierarchs in the Lord!

Please allow the least and youngest of Your brothers to address You with this humble letter of plea for the unity of true Orthodox Christians.

The Greek TOC Under Archbishop Kallinikos Has United with the Family of ''Cyprianite'' Synods

          With a majestic divine service on the Sunday of the Veneration of the Cross, 23 March, at the Monastery of St Nicholas in Paiania on the outskirts of Athens, the argreement of union was confirmed between the Greek TOC on one side, presided over by the Archbishop of Athens and Greece, Kallinikos, and on the other side the now-defunct Synod ''in Resistance'' (Cyprianites), the Romanian TOC presided over by Met. Vlasie of Slatioara, the Bulgarian TOC presided over by Bishop Photios of Triadia, and the jurisdiction under Met. Agathangel which  claims to be the sole canonical inheritor of the fallen Russian Church Abroad. 

IS THE STOC SCHISMATIC?

IS THE SERBIAN TRUE ORTHODOX CHURCH SCHISMATIC?

An Analysis of the Greek TOC’s Encyclical of August 9/22, 2011

     The events surrounding the consecration of Bishop Akakije of Serbia by bishops of the Russian True Orthodox Church in August, 2011 are complex, and their canonical evaluation – difficult. The reason for this is simple: the body of Orthodox canon law as contained in The Rudder was completed over twelve centuries ago, and did not envisage the creation of new autocephalous Churches, still less the re-creation or resurrection of autocephalous Churches after their fall into heresy. At the same time, I believe that there is sufficient evidence to be found in the holy canons, the writings of the Holy Fathers and the history of the Church to come to the firm conclusion that the consecration of Bishop Akakije was valid, and his condemnation as a “schismatic” by the True Orthodox Church of Greece – unjust. However, there are still many who believe that Bishop Akakije is a schismatic; so the purpose of this article is to revisit this controversy now that, as we may hope, the dust has settled after the battle of 2011. As a framework for the discussion, I propose to analyse the encyclical of August 9/22, 2011 signed by all the hierarchs of the True Orthodox Church of Greece headed by Archbishop Kallinikos of Athens.[1]

The Serbian Church, Serbian People, True Orthodoxy, and the Greek GOC

The Serbian Church, Serbian People, True Orthodoxy, and the Greek GOC

           

We rejoice now with great joy as the Serbian Church's episcopate has finally been renewed.  The canonical hierarchy of the Russian True Orthodox Church has consecrated a Serbian bishop - Akakije, Bishop of Resava and Shumadia.  The bishops of the Russian TOC are the successors of the once glorious Russian Church Abroad - a church so close to our Serbian People.  Our Russian brothers, in our most difficult moments, offered unconditional help to their Serbian brothers.  When we say unconditional, we mane to say that they have not the least intention of getting involved administratively with Serbian Church territory, with the organization and internal affairs associated with the rebirth of the Serbian Church.  Their genuine brotherly love consists in providing the basic conditions necessary for the rebirth of the Serbian Church, of which the most important is the renewal of her episcopate.  The only further involvement of the Russian TOC will be brotherly support in the sense of a good relationship between two local churches, including the very important aspect of consultation on questions of church administration, order of the Church services, and, in general, providing the wisdom already obtained through previous experience in church organization.

A BROTHERLY PLEA

A Brotherly Plea

13/26 July 2011

To the Holy Synod of the Russian True Orthodox Church

Your Eminence, Your Eminences the Holy Archbishops of the Russian True Orthodox Church,

We the True Orthodox Christians of Serbia are turning to You for help concerning the renewal of a canonical episcopacy in our much-suffering fatherland of Serbia.  As You know, after the Second World War and Communist overturn, the hierarchy of the Serbian Church fell into the apostasy of Sergianism and the pan-heresy of Ecumenism.  In the mid-90’s, a True Orthodox Christian movement appeared in Serbia under the leadership of Hieromonk Akakije, which turned for primary help to the Greek Old Calendar Synod, which was lead by Archbishop Chrysostomos of blessed memory.  We were given help from the Greek Orthodox Church in the form of the ordination of priests and sharing of antimins and holy chrism. Through the first years it was already clear to us that a bishop that is a thousand kilometers away  could not rule the life of the Serbian Church. For more than a decade, not one of the Greek bishops visited us.

OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT

OFFICIAL   ANNOUNCEMENT

of The Administrative Council of the Serbian True Orthodox Church,  addressed to the  Holy Synod of the Genuine Orthodox Christians of Greece under the presidency of His Beatitude k.k. Kallinikos, Archbishop of Athens and All-Greece.

23/5 August 2011

Your Beatitude, Your Eminences:

In the name of the Administrative Council of the Serbian True Orthodox Church, we wish to inform Your Eminences of the conciliar decision we have taken to re-establish the independent autocephalous status of our Holy Serbian True-Orthodox Church. Expressing its profound gratitude to the Holy Synod of the Church of the True Orthodox Christians of Greece for its temporary spiritual care for the Serbian True-Orthodox flock in the course of the last ten years, the Administrative Council of the STOC had decreed that contemporary church life demands that we take more decisive measures to re-establish the fully-empowered canonical structures of the True Serbian Church, coming out from under the administrative governance of the Synod of the Church of the Genuine Orthodox Christians of Greece under the presidency of His Beatitude k.k. Kallinikos, Archbishop of Athens and All-Greece.