The Shepherd, August 2004
NEWS SECTION
ROME-CONSTANTINOPLE RAPPROCHEMENT
ON THE OCCASION of the Roman Catholic celebration of Sts Peter and Paul this year, His All-Holiness Patriarch Bartholomeos of Constantinople, the Œcumenical Patriarch (but not the Leader of World Orthodoxy!), visited Rome and joined Pope John Paul II in the celebrations, even, contrary to canonical norms, taking part in the Roman Catholic Mass. During his four-day visit to Rome, in the presence of Cardinals Walter Kasper (the president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity) and Camillo Ruini (the Pope’s vicar for Rome), and Archbishop Leonardo Sandri (substitute for general affairs of the Vatican Secretariat of State), the Patriarch inaugurated the liturgical use of the Church of St Theodore on the Palatine, a restored church which was given to the Greek community in Rome by the Pope in the Jubilee year, 2000.
At the end of the Patriarchal visit to Rome, the Pope and Patriarch signed an eleven-point Joint Declaration, published on 1st July. The declaration traces the forty year history of ecumenical contacts between the last Œcumenical Patriarchs and the Papacy. It acknowledges that there are obstacles to union, and mentions the difficulties in ecumenical relations which have arisen as a consequence of the profound political changes that have taken place in Eastern Europe in that period. It sees the envisioned unity as a panacea for many of the ills of modern society: healing the wound of terrorism, infusing a hope of peace, restoring to the European continent an awareness of its Christian roots, constructing a real dialogue with Islam, nourishing an awareness of the sacredness of life, operating so that science will not deny the divine spark that every man receives with the gift of life, collaborating so that this earth is not disfigured and creation is able to preserve the beauty God has given it, and “above all to proclaim with renewed commitment the evangelical message, showing contemporary man how much the Gospel can help him to find himself and to build a more humane world.”
Some of these utopian ideas seem laudable, others seem frankly quite potty. Nor is it at all clear how the union of Rome and Constantinople will in any way further any of these causes. Furthermore, one notes that the whole direction and purport of the proposed union is this-worldly, rather than that we might obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory (2 Tim. 2:10). And except for two brief references there is no mention of the one thing needful to be addressed: doctrine.
Nonetheless, the meeting has buoyed up the hopes of ecumenists, and Cardinal Kasper spoke of the meeting as “the most friendly visit” of the Patriarch to the Pope, and said that the meetings between them have facilitated the future of ecumenism. He spoke of the ecumenical journey as being now “irreversible,” and “a commitment for anyone who believes in Jesus Christ.”
ROCA-MP RAPPROCHEMENT
ARCHIMANDRITE LUKE (Murianka) has published the fullest report on the First Meeting of the Negotiating Committees to come to our notice. His report was written at the request of Metropolitan Lavr, the First Hierarch of the Russian Church Abroad, and as it is published with this fact headlined one assumes that it is perhaps one of the most trustworthy descriptions of the encounter. However the report, which runs to approximately one and a quarter sides of A4, and in that short compass also describes both the preliminary meeting which the ROCA delegation held in Munich in June before meeting with their Moscow Patriarchate counterparts in Russia and some impressions that Fr Luke had of church-life in Moscow, describes only the tenor of the meetings. It gives little or no idea of their content.
Although the rapprochement process is only in its earliest stages - (as our own Archbishop Mark e-mailed us about a specific question on 15th June: “Our talks with Moscow have not even entered into the stage of negotiations. We have been merely been exchanging nice words. Negotiations are going to start in 10 days but, even they will be of no significance until the two committees will have reported to their respective Synods and the Synods will have reported to their Sobors and these will eventually, possibly take decisions. I think that this may indicate to you how long the way will be. So, why worry before the baby has even been born?”, - it appears that the process is already making some impression in the day to day practice of the Church Abroad. Archpriest Alexander Lebedeff posted some news from the Holy Trinity Seminary in Jordanville on the internet on Thursday 22nd July. In this it is reported that Metropolitan Lavr has blessed two seminarians to attend the Orthodox Inter-Seminary Movement with students from St Vladimir’s, St Tikhon’s, HolyCross and St Herman’s Seminaries (three of them OCA, and one, HolyCross, Œcumenical Patriarchate). An Instructor from St Vladimir’s and the Dean of St Tikhon’s have also addressed the Jordanville seminarians, and Archbishop Evgenii of Vereia, Rector of the Moscow Theological Academy and Seminary, will address the Holy Trinity Seminary Colloquium this year. Such encounters, although they fall far short of inter-communion, mark a shift from the position taken by the two previous First Hierarchs of the Church Abroad. This would seem to indicate that the rapprochement is in progress.
LITURGY AMID BURNED RUINS IN KOSOVO
ON THE SYNAXIS of the Archangel Gabriel (13th/26th July), Bishop Theodosije celebrated the Divine Liturgy in the burned ruins of the Holy Archangels Monastery near Prizren. The Monastery had been desecrated by Islamic extremists in March this year. In his sermon, the Bishop reminded the worshippers that the monastery had earlier been destroyed when its stones were taken to build Sinan Pasha’s mosque in Prizren, but that it had then been rebuilt, demonstrating that Christ’s holy Church cannot be destroyed. During the celebration, the Serbian faithful were guarded by Italian and German KFOR forces, whom the Bishop thanked for their protection.
On 23rd July, the Acting Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Kosovo and Metohija, Charles Brayshaw, told the media that UNMIK had set aside a half a million euros, in addition to an earlier one million, for the restoration of churches and monasteries destroyed during March’s violent pogrom against Orthodox Christian holy places. The truth is, however, that so far work has not begun on the restoration of the 30 churches and monasteries desecrated at that time, nor on the 110 destroyed in the previous five years since NATO forces “restored peace” to that land. Serbian church authorities estimate that the whole sum allocated for the work of restoration is in any case woefully inadequate to repair the damage. Given this fact and the delays in doing anything more than talking about the work, the Serbians are asking whether the nuns of Devic Monastery and the monks of the HolyArchangels Monastery will have to spend the winter months in the portable containers in which now, after the barbaric destruction of their historic houses, they are compelled to live.
KURSK ROOT ICON TO VISIT ENGLAND
WE HAVE RECENTLY HEARD that the Wonderworking Kursk Root Icon is going to visit England again. It will be brought to London for the feast of the Dormition at the London Russian Orthodox Church on Harvard Road. On Bank Holiday Monday (30th August n.s.) a hierarchal Divine Liturgy will be celebrated before the Icon at the Convent of the Annunciation in Brondesbury Park. The Icon will be at Saint Edward’s Church, Brookwood, on Tuesday 31st August and Wednesday 1st September (n.s.). The holy icon will then be taken to Ireland for the next weekend, and after a couple more days its short and unexpected visit to London will end, and it will be taken back to Germany.
POLICE ACTION AGAINST SCHISMATIC CHURCH
AFTER the fall of the communist regime in Bulgaria, a portion of the clergy and people separated from the official Patriarchate and elected their own Patriarch, accusing the official church of being compromised on account of its too close relations with the communist state. That schism has continued to this day. In 2001, a law was passed handing over the properties of the break-away group to the official Patriarchate, however nothing was done until recently. BBC News reported on 21st July that now some 25 churches of the dissident group, who claim some 200 churches in all, have been forcibly closed by the police. The move which led to scuffles and scenes of violence has been condemned by the local group of the Helsinki Committee, which called the move “unification by government decree.” It should be noted that both these factions are separated solely on the matter of the Church’s perceived relationship with the former anti-Christian regime. There is also a third, smaller group in Bulgaria, of Traditionalist Orthodox Christians, who have separated from the official Church to maintain traditional Orthodox teachings, they are headed by His Grace Bishop Fotii.
NEWS FROM SHANGHAI
ENTERTAINMENT INSTITUTIONS will be ejected from premises of St. Nicholas Church and the Cathedral named in honour of the Icon of the Theotokos named “Surety of Sinners,” which remain intact in Shanghai, reports Interfax. This was stated by Liu Guchang, China’s ambassador to the Russian Federation, at a meeting with Metropolitan Kyrill, head of the Department of External Affairs of the Moscow Patriarchate. In the future, the buildings will have a cultural purpose connected with the history of Russia’s presence in China. Thus China responded to an earlier request made by Metropolitan Kyrill. The ambassador also assured that China is ready to cooperate in organising Russian citizens’ visits to Russian military burial places on the territory of the Peoples’ Republic of China, including visits by priests of the Russian Orthodox Church to serve memorial services for fallen soldiers. Liu Guchang expressed readiness to develop fruitful cooperation with the Russian Church in the future. [From an internet posting. The Surety of Sinners Cathedral was the church in which St John of Shanghai the Wonderworker used to serve - ed.]
CONVENT JUBILEE
ON THE FEAST of the Holy Peer of the Apostles Mary Magdalene (22nd July / 4th August) this year, Mother Vikentia and her sisters at the Convent of the Annunciation celebrate the jubilee of the founding of their Sisterhood in this country. Led by the ever-memorable Abbess Elisabeth, the sisters arrived in England as refugees on 16th June, 1954, and on the feast of St Mary Magdalene, having set up their chapel, they had it blessed and celebrated the first Liturgy there. As a way of marking this important anniversary and offering thanks, the sisters have published the English translation of Saint Ignatii (Brianchaninov)’s “Blessed is the Man,” which we serialised in two earlier issues of this magazine. The translation, which was published in The Shepherd, has been slightly corrected and amended, and this beautiful piece is published by the Sisters in booklet form, matching that of The Cup of Christ, which they produced in memory of the late Abbess Seraphima (+ 2nd/15th August, 2000).
SAINT ELIZABETH MISSION, BIRKENHEAD
UNABLE to visit the Birkenhead mission on the day of their dedication festival, Fr Alexis went there on the 10th and 11th July, and served with their pastor, Fr Paul Elliott. It was a joy to see the chapel yet further adorned and with many icons from the St Nicolas Chapel of the Russian parish in Bradford, Yorkshire, which has now been closed. After the Sunday Liturgy, Presbytera Elizabeth Jane and others provided us with a delicious buffet lunch, and then very kindly, - and, it must be remarked, joyously! - the parishioners let Father make a speedy exit so that he could travel back to Brookwood in time for the Vigil for the festival of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul.
SAINT BONIFACE MISSION, RYDE
SAINT BONIFACE’S DAY fell on a Friday this year and the Liturgy was celebrated at Brookwood. The next day, we had a celebration for the Mission at Ryde and were joined by some Romanian Orthodox Christians. After the Divine Liturgy and a brief coffee, we made our way to Bonchurch, near Ventnor, where a little church dating back to Norman times stands at the place where St Boniface is held to have preached the Faith on the island. There we chanted a moleben and then enjoyed a picnic lunch on the clifftop.
In July, the Liturgy was celebrated at Ryde on the day of the New Royal Martyrs (4th/17th) - the Royal Martyrs were themselves frequent visitors to the Isle of Wight, often staying at Queen Victoria’s residence at Osbourne. Before the service the three new icons of the Saviour, the Mother of God and St Nicolas on the iconostas were blessed (St Boniface was already in situ). The icons, hand-painted in Byzantine style, are the work of the sisters of the Convent of St Elizabeth of Russia at Etna, California. 
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