Reunion Between Orthodox and Uniates in Ukraine

Unrest and new movement in Ukraine.

(Kiev) Orthodoxy does not rest in Ukraine. At the same time there is a new movement in the country, which forms a transitional zone between the Latin and Greek churches. The Metropolitan of the new Ukrainian Orthodox Church and the Grand Bishop of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, unified with Rome, are said to have discussed the possibility of unification. Under what sign?

Historically, Ukraine belongs to the catchment area of ​​the Eastern Church and was originally under the Patriarchate of Constantinople. Because of the territorial principle of Orthodoxy, this fact is still relevant today in the field of jurisdiction.

The Ukrainians united with Rome

But the west of the country  was influenced by Poland and Lithuania for a long time and was therefore influenced by the Catholic Church. On the basis of the reunification of the Eastern and Western Churches at the Council of Florence in 1439, part of Ukrainian Orthodoxy established unity with Rome in the sixteenth century. The reason was the unauthorized elevation of Moscow as a "Third Rome" to patriarchy, after Constantinople had been conquered by the Muslims with its historic patriarchal seat.

The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church united with Rome is the strongest religious community in the three westernmost regions of Ukraine, Lviv, Tarnopol and Ivano-Frankivsk (Stanislau), which belonged until 1918, as part of the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, to Austria. They also celebrate like the Orthodox in the Byzantine rite.

The vast majority of today's Ukraine is Orthodox, but is divided into several, divided churches. The fault lines run along the question of statehood and the relationship with Moscow.

When the capital of the Byzantine Empire was overrun by the Ottomans in 1453, Moscow replaced Constantinople in the Russian area, which led to a split in Ukraine and gave rise to the Union of Ukrainian Orthodox in Poland-Lithuania with Rome.

About 10% of Ukrainians belong to the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church today. They live mainly in the extreme southwest of the country. The number of Roman Catholics is very low at less than one percent. All Catholics together make up about 10.5 percent of Ukrainians, as of April 2018.

Ukrainian independence movement and Orthodoxy

In the course of the first independence of Ukraine in 1919 and the second independence in 1991, the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kiev Patriarchate were created autocephalous, that is to say, Orthodox churches independent of Moscow, but yet not recognized by the Moscow Patriarchate.

After long conflicts, the two autocephalous churches of Ukraine in 2018 joined the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (Ukrainian Orthodox Church), which was recognized by the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople on January 6, 2019 as a canonical national church. For the recognition by Constantinople was waived on the Kiev Patriarch already established in 1991.

Religion in Ukraine (by region). In the Carpathian Mountains the new Ukrainian Orthodox Church is the largest religious community.

On 15 December 2018 Bishop Epiphanius was elected Metropolitan in the Kiev Sophia Cathedral to the first head of the new, autocephalous national church.

The Moscow-faithful part of Ukrainian Orthodoxy is affiliated to the autonomous Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate.

The three Orthodox churches that existed from 1991 to 2018 competed for recognition as a legitimate national church. It was mainly about the ownership of the church buildings. The Ukrainian government supported the formation of an autocephalous national church in order to strengthen state independence and reduce Moscow's political and religious influence. With the 2018 merger of the two independent, Ukrainian Orthodox churches, this goal was realized against the protest of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Two-thirds of Ukrainians profess to be orthodox Christians. However, the ongoing conflict between Moscow and Kiev means that some of the Orthodox do not want to attribute themselves to one or the other of the two churches. The different numbers of church affiliation of Orthodox Ukrainians can therefore vary considerably. The latest figures come from the Razumkov Center in cooperation with the All-Ukrainian Church Council of April 2018. Today, 47 percent of Ukrainians belong to the Ukrainian Orthodox National Church, which is particularly strong in Northwest and Central Ukraine. About 14 percent of the Ukrainians, who concentrate mainly in the east of the country and in the Crimea, profess the Russian Orthodox Church.

Patriarch Filaret dissatisfied with his role

Since its canonical recognition by Constantinople, the autocephalous national church has been headed by a metropolitan, although the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Kiev Patriarchate from 1991-2018 was headed by a patriarch. Most of the time, from 1995-2018, Filaret was its head.

Filaret, now 90 years old, is Honorary Patriarch of the new Ukrainian Orthodox Church. For several weeks, however, he has been in conflict with his successor and former secretary, Metropolitan Epiphanius. Filaret recently even threatened to annul Epiphanius's allegiance and establish an independent patriarchy. The elderly patriarch is considered to be the central figure of ecclesiastical independence of Ukraine. Recently, he was honored as the "Hero of Ukraine" with the highest honor in the country.

Patriarch Filaret (his successor Epiphanius to his right)

In 1990, Filaret was considered a potential candidate for the Moscow Patriarchate. But this did not happen. When the Soviet Union broke up in 1991, he sided with the Ukrainian independence movement and separated from the Moscow Patriarchate. With this step, he laid the foundation for Ukrainian autocephaly.

The main reason for the rupture now is that Epiphanius, according to Filaret, does not sufficiently seek to be close. The honorary patriarch is worried about the future of Ukrainian autocephaly since in the presidential elections on April 21 the previous "protector of the church", Petro Poroshenko, was voted out. As the new President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Selenskyj will be sworn in within a few days, and so far he has not distinguished himself either by his closeness to the National Church or his proximity to religion.

Selenskyj met with Metropolitan Epiphanius after his election victory, without making concrete promises to the head of the National Church. Epiphanius nevertheless announced the support of the future head of state.

Filaret also demands, as a patriarch, to be mentioned in all liturgies, which is the case in only part of the churches, while Epiphanius is mentioned everywhere. Filaret's letterhead continues to bear the inscription "Patriarchate of Kiev". He is convinced that the legal status persists as a patriarch. Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople had forced him to retreat in 2018 in return for the recognition of autocephaly, otherwise he would be church leader today and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church would have patriarchal status. Moscow is the only patriarchate of Oorthodoxy that could elbow between the historic patriarchates of Constantinople, Alexandria, Jerusalem and Antioch. Filaret wants to extend this claim to Kiev, because today's capital of Ukraine was originally the "mother of all Rus".

Association of Orthodox and Uniate?

Epiphanius has not yet commented on the criticism of Filaret. For other statements of the Metropolitan provide for discussion. In a statement for Espresso.TV he spoke of the "permissibility" of a possible union with the united with Rome Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, which is led by Major Archbishop Svyatoslav Shevchuk. There is very good agreement between Metropolitan Epiphanius and Grand Archbishop Svyatoslav.

Metropolitan Epiphanius (left) with Archbishop Svyatoslav of the Greek-Catholic Uniate.

The Metropolitan told Espresso.TV, "We are implementing many important projects with the Greek Catholics and are participating in numerous events". The two church leaders are said to have already talked about a possible union of the two churches. Epiphanius said:

"At a meeting with his Beatitude Svyatoslav, we talked about deepening our cooperation. In it we unfold a dialogue and do not know where it will take us. Theoretically, it is possible to get to the Union.”

Epiphanius is convinced that all Orthodox Ukrainians are destined to unite, meaning both the Orthodox Ukrainians of the Moscow Patriarchate and the Greek Catholic Ukrainians.

Text: Giuseppe Nardi

Picture: AsiaNews

Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com

AMDG

Bishop Schneider: "Personally Very Sad" About Rome's Letter to the SSPX -- "They Wouldn't Treat the Orthodox Like This"

(Lisbon) Just before Cardinal Gerhard Müller was dismissed on 30 June by Pope Francis as Prefect of the Congregation for Doctrine of the Faith, he sent Bishop Bernard Fellay, the Superior General of the Priestly Society of St. Pius X, a letter. In this he announced that the General Assembly of the Congregation for the Congregation, with papal approval, as a condition for a possible Church recognition of the Society, again demanded the doctrinal preamble of 2012.

On 14 July, Bishop Athanasius Schneider, Auxiliary Bishop of Astana, has asked, in the course of a lecture held in Fatima, about the abrupt turning-point in the discussions between the Society and the Holy See. The question came from a member of the Spanish-speaking Catholic news site, Adelante la Fe, who was the organizer of the event. One of the founders of Adelante la Fe is the countryman, deceased in 2015, by Pope Francis Bishop Rogelio Livieres of Ciudad del Este, whom Pope Francis had deposed without a hearing and without mentioning reasons in 2014. In a press release of the Holy See, it was said that the harmony had been restored in the Paraguayan Episcopal Conference. The following text is the title of an audio section. Bishop Schneider spoke Portuguese in Fatima:

Adelante la Fe: Recently, a letter from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith was publicly announced to the Superior General of the Society of Pius X, with which, as it seems, Rome returned to the point where the conversations under Benedict XVI. had broken down. The outcome of the current negotiations had given the impression that the problematic issues related to the Second Vatican Council in Rome might seem to be able to be the object of discussion, while now a priori a written agreement has been broached where agreement is demanded to the entire Vatican II and also to some parts of the post-conciliar Magisterium. Can you tell us something about this situation?

Msgr. Schneider: Personally, this document makes me very sad because I was one of the visitors of the Holy See who was sent to the Society of St. Pius X two years ago. There were four bishops. I was one of them. I have presented a report and proposed some solutions, and now almost everything we have done has proved to be useless. I think this is very anti-pastoral. For three years, the Holy See has encouraged visits and not followed a maximalistic path, but a pastoral way of integrating these realities of the Church, the FSSPX, pastorally to give it a chance to participate fully in the structures of the Church.

I think, therefore, that this is a very anti-pastoral gesture, and in contradiction to the whole mercy rhetoric that is being put forth - unfortunately. At the same time, on the other hand, implicitly, the entire Council is being made infallible, which is contrary to the whole tradition ... The Council is not infallible, according to its own statements, and the Popes John XIII. and Paul VI. have emphasized on numerous occasions that the Second Vatican Council had only pastoral aims. Paul VI. said many times that the Council has announced no new doctrines and that there is nothing in contradiction with the previous ones. So if nothing has been changed, then why this attitude? I see no justifiable reason for expressly declaring such a thing [expressly the recognition of the teachings of the Second Vatican Council and the post-conciliar period, as it is said in the letter of Cardinal Müller, Editor's note].

For example: Now we talk a lot of ecumenism, with particular generosity, and in the discussions with the Orthodox, the Lutherans are only required the minimum .... The minimum is required. Within the Church, however, one demands the maximum. The FSSPX, however, believes in the eternal dogmas. All dogmas. All. While the Orthodox Church, for example, denies the dogma of infallibility and of the papal primacy, and the Holy See does not even require the most indispensable.

For example, I know the Orthodox very well, because I am among them. I know their mentality. Regarding the conversion of Russia: This is not just for me, there are others who have seen it. A secret saint, who has perished in the persecution in Kazakhstan, shares the same opinion. He said, saying that the conversion of Russia ultimately means that the Orthodox Church will unite with the pope, with Rome. That is their conversion. I believe I hope it will be so. If the Russian Orthodox Church recognizes the primacy of the Pope, it will be a miracle to recognize the dogma of the Pope's infallibility, the dogma of the Immaculate Conception that she does not recognize today, and the Holy See says: "We accept all of your Dogmas, but the Second Vatican Council is strange to us: it is only pastoral, its language is not always clear, the whole about freedom of religion, ecumenism, etc. that does not convince us very much, and some statements of the Magisterium, we are here not sure. All the rest [the dogmas] we accept.

Imagine this: if the Orthodox Church were thus to be converted, the Holy See would at once grant the ecclesiastical communion without demanding what they did not yet agree with it. I'm sure. Of course one could ask oneself: "Would they do with the Orthodox what they do with the FSSPX?" No. I consider this to be very doubtful, but Divine Providence always works, and I also believe that the time is not yet ripe. It will take place when God wants it.

Text: Giuseppe Nardi Photo: Adelante la Fe (Screenshot)

 On July 26, was LifeSiteNews published the letter from Cardinal Müller, the interpretation that the former Prefect of the CDF wanted to put the talks with the SSPX on the shelf for the time being to save the Motu proprio Summorum Pontificum. At the beginning of July, a few days after Müller's letter became known, La Croix, the daily newspaper of the French Bishops'Conference, and the New York Times, had speculated that Pope Francis was allowing the recognition of the Society of Pius X in order to reverse Summorum Pontificum. Cardinal Müller, according to this interpretation, he had overturned the pope's plans and saved Summorum Pontificum.

 Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com AMDG

Islamists Attack Cherubim Monastery with Giant Jesus Statue, Which Stopped the War for Three Days

(Damascus) Islamist rebels have launched an offensive north of Damascus to Deir Atieh. In the city with a population of 25,000 there is a strong Christian minority. On 22 November the attack began with two suicide bombings. With the second attack wave, the hospital was taken and the patients and staff were taken hostage. The Islamists took time to destroy a museum with thousands of archaeological finds.

Christians in Prison

The Greek Orthodox Church is concerned about the fate of Christians in Deir Atieh. The churches of the city were targeted by the Islamists. The same applies to Alawi mosques. Civilians have been abused by Islamists in the street fighting being used as human shields. The attacks seem to be made according to a certain scheme. Conquest of the hospital, destruction of Christian and Alawite places of worship and hostage-taking. Also, in Deir Atieh the Christians of the city, which the Islamists were getting hold of, were prevented from escaping the city and held hostage. A Greek Orthodox priest succeeded in fleeing under adventurous circumstances, so that he could report on the situation in Deir Atieh.

Jesus statue

The Islamist attack on Deir Atieh is part of a larger offensive against the Qalamun Mountains after the Syrian army managed to retake the strategically important town of Qara. There is the city Sadnaya with several monasteries dating back to the first millennium AD. The rebels tried to take the monastery Cherubim, which is located at the highest elevation in Saidnaya. The monastery at about 2000 meters above sea level dates back to its origin from the Byzantine period. Above the monastery a 39 meter high statue of Jesus Christ was consecrated and erected on October 14th. In order to deliver the statue, the Christians had reached a truce of three days between the army and rebels. Meanwhile, the Islamists seem to have, however, changed opinion. The monastery is no longer considered a combat-free zone for them.

Repelled Attack

With the battle cry of Allahu Akbar, Islamists stormed the monastery, which was guarded by a small unit of the Syrian army with a tank. They were able to fend off the attack. "Currently, the location is quiet. We were attacked for two days. The rebels continued here also include snipers. The attack was repulsed, "said one soldier.

Text: Giuseppe Nardi Image: Tempi Trans: Tancred vekron99@hotmail.com Link to Katholisches....

The Arab Revolt Continues in Egypt as Christian Churches Are Burning

So much for the “Arab Spring”.  We predicted an Arab Revolt long before this happened, when the various media organs were rhapsodizing about the wonders of Democracy.

A report from Pro Christanis’ Facebook group reveals:

Update - Egypt - 14.08.2013
24 churches burnt down today15 orthodox7 catholic and 2 protestant churchesCopts' houses attacked in Cairo, Alexandria, Sohag, Minya and SuezChristians' shops and Bible publishing houses also attacked A priest and his wife were kidnapped and hold captive by Muslim Brotherhood

And the atrocities continue, link.

Coronation of Haile Salassie, Emperor of Ethiopia

Edit: I can't really think of a better tribute to the Emperor than this one.  He fought against the Italians in 1935, but held onto his throne after the war.  It's still yet another example of what happens when the Jacobins murder goodness.  The Emperor himself was probably murdered by them. In the words of Prof A.:

On 3 Apr 1930, Haile Selassie became Emperor of Ethiopia. An Ethiopian Orthodox Christian, Selassie was a member of the Solomonic Dynasty, which traces its origin back to King Menelik I, the son of King Solomon and Queen Sheba. The Ethopian Empire was abolished in 1973 by Communists who have brought nothing but poverty and death to the suffering people of Ethiopia.

Coptic Chant

Fallen to the Russian Schismatics: Former Benedictine Becomes Orthodox

Editor: Somehow, more blame belongs to the Benedictine Hermits of Switzerland than this poor, celebrated intellectual hermit. He's a lot more interesting than Thomas Merton, however, why don't Catholic publishing houses do more to celebrate men of his type, instead of men who are embarrassingly irreligious darlings of the literati class?

First he was a Benedictine. Then he lived twenty years as a hermit in Tessin. Now he has left the barque of Peter.

[kreuz.net] The famous Benedictine Hermit and spiritual writer, Peter Gabriel Bunge, has fallen to the Russian Schismatics.

This is according to the weblog 'prevoslavie.ru'

Bugne studied first of all at the Rhenish Fredrich-Wihelms-Unviersitaet in Bonn. He is working ffor a doctorate there with his work on Second Maccabees.

Then he entred the bi-ritual Belgian Benedictine Cloister Chevetogne.

For twenty years he belonged to the byzantine-slavic Rite.

With the permission of his superior he's lived since nineteen eighty as a Hermit in the area of the Community Capriasca in the vicinity of Lugano in the South Swiss Canton of Tessin.

He amed his cell "Hermitage of Santa Croce". There he celebrated the Mass at first in the Ambrosian Rite.

Then, after a few years, he changed to the Byzantine Rite.

As Hermit he was up to his apostasy under the old liberal Benedictine Cloister of Monks in Central Switzerland.

According to reports from Father Antoine Lambrechts from Chevtogne -- in an reader entry for the Blog 'eirenikon.wordpress.com' -- Bunge has been Orthodox in life and belief for the last fifteen years.

Bunge has secured for himself an international reputation as a spiritual writer.

He publishes books and countless articles in scholarly magazines.

His formal renunciation of the Church occurred on 27th August - on the eve of the Orthodox feast of 28 August celebrating the Assumption -- in the vigil of the Moscow Church Icon of the Mother of God, "Joy of All the Bereaved".

The church is located in the Bolschaja Ordynka street.

The presbyters present at his apostacy were Moscow Patriarch, Metroplitan Hilarion Alfayev von Volkolamsk and Metropolitan Kallistos Ware (76) of Diokleia -- a former Anglican.

Bunge belongs now to the Russian Schismatics.

Metropolitan Hilarion said to him: "You were a Catholic, but deep in your heart you were Orthodox. Today, on the vigil you have become orthodox and have closed your long spiritual journey in a natural way."

Hilarion wished Bunge well in his apostasy and gave him an Icon of the Mother of God "Joy of all Bereaved".

Russians Pilgrims Walking from Irkutsk to Jerusalem

14 September 2010, 17:27
Pilgrims going from Irkutsk to Jerusalem on foot covered about 3,000 km

Petropavlovsk, September 14, Interfax – Two residents of Irkutsk, who are carrying out a pilgrimage to Jerusalem on foot, arrived in Petropavlovsk in northern Kazakhstan, an Interfax correspondent reported.

Irkutsk Cossacks captain Vladimir Bragintsev, former policeman, now pensioner, started for a long journey on May 8 in Siberia, novice of St. Michael the Archangel Monastery Alexander Serebrennikov jointed him a little bit later. For more than four months pilgrims walked about 3,000 kilometers, visited Krasnoyarsk, Kemerovo, Novosibirsk, Omsk and other Russian cities and towns.

The pilgrims are going to walk to Jerusalem and worship Christian shrines.

The pilgrims have ordinary tourist set in their rucksacks – a tent, sleeping bags, a pot, matches, food supplies and a medicine box. They buy food on the way taking money from the banking card.

The pilgrims often sleep in the wood in their tent, but sometimes strangers give them a warm reception.

Bragintsev believes his trip to Jerusalem will take him not less that four years, but on his way he dreams of visiting Solovki and Valaam to pray for his relatives killed at World War II.

Link to Interfaxreligion...

Serbian Patriarch wants to meet to discuss end of Schism

In a development that may justly be called astounding, Patriarch Irinej Gavrilovic, the newly chosen head of the Serbian Orthodox Church, held a press conference on Jan. 28 to suggest that it was time the Pope and Orthodox leaders met to discuss ways of healing the longstanding schism with Rome.

He proposes that there be a grand summit in the year 2013 in the city of Nis, the birthplace of the Emperor Constantine, who issued the Edict of Milan in 313. The summit would also be a celebration of the 1700th anniversary of the edict that freed Christians from persecution for the practice of their religion in the Roman Empire. The patriarch envisions this meeting as a step toward full communion with the Holy See.

“This new path should be Christian and sincere with the desire of establishing one Church of Christ," he said.

The Vatican has responded favorably to the proposal. A pope has never visited Serbia, known as one of the Orthodox communions that has historically been most hostile to the Catholic Church.



http://www.fatima.org/news/newsviews/efnews020510.asp

Idealistic Young Priest Preached to Moscow's Muslim Immigrants

Voices From Russia

I last met with Fr Daniil just last week… I was going to write an article about his missionary school. He opened it two years ago at his parish, St Thomas church. Classes meet twice a week, the curriculum includes a comparative analysis of Islam and Orthodox Christianity, the strengths and weaknesses of each religion, and in-depth study of both the Koran and the Bible. Fr Daniil, himself half-Tatar in ancestry, was the only priest in Moscow who advocated preaching Orthodoxy amongst the migrants and guest workers. His clerical colleagues called him the “Orthodox Wahhabi” for the fire gleaming in his eyes and his passionate speeches.

Link to blog...

Breaking story...

Growing persecution of Copts in Egypt, here...