Personal Thoughts of an Esteemed GOC Hierarch...

The personal thoughts of a serious and esteemed Hierarch of the GOC, a reason for our timely reflection

By Sotiris Tzoumas [Owner of the "Exapsalmos.gr" ecclesiastical news website]

 

I have never hidden from you—and those who regularly read my writings will know this—that I respect and honor the serious and honest people of the Church of the GOC in our homeland.

I follow them and always take note of their significant spiritual work.

You see, from my childhood, I was accustomed to observing with religious reverence my grandmother, an educated woman who wanted to follow the Old Calendar and attend services without fanaticism in churches and monasteries of both the New and Old Calendar.

"No one has ever been harmed by faith, even in excessive doses," she would tell me. "Atheism and indifference kill a person."

These words left their mark on me from that time. They became the formative impressions of my life!

And when I went to America for studies, I found refuge when I was emotionally burdened and nostalgic for my homeland at Saint Markella in Astoria, during the time when Bishop of Astoria, Petros Astyfides, a pure-blooded Chian and a maternal relative of mine, was at his height. A humble man but with a very creative mind.

There, I became acquainted with Elder Ambrosios of the Holy Fathers, that harmless and selfless clergyman.

With him, I learned to forgive people, especially those who harm me in life. He taught me to turn the page easily.

But at the same time, I also learned from him how to knead and bake bread.

Every Saturday, I would go, and after the church service, the two of us would begin kneading and baking!

My... reward for this was three loaves of bread!

And to this day, I commemorate him for this.

When I confessed to [New Calendar Archbishop] Christodoulos about this "misbehavior" of mine—as I thought he would label it—not only did he not rebuke me, but he told me that as long as I live in a foreign country, among strangers and so many dangers, I should do what satisfies my conscience and keeps me connected to our Greece and our Church.

But later, when I became familiar with this great and radiant personality, the [New Calendar] Archbishop of America Iakovos, I confessed to him that every Saturday I go to Saint Markella with the Old Calendarists, and indeed it was there that I learned to bake bread. He said to me with that profound demeanor of his:

"Convey my respects and love to the Elder (he meant Petros). He is a serious man, not a charlatan like the others! It's a pity we are like this… And when you bake bread, bring me some to try!"

And indeed, I did so. And I found myself in trouble because, from then on, he would ask me to make handmade bread for the Divine Liturgies. In fact, instead of the usual antidoron that hierarchs receive after the Divine Liturgy, he would eat the handmade bread with fresh orange juice.

I have many reasons to entertain such thoughts! And to subsequently reflect and feel pain about the fact that we, the Orthodox Greeks, are like this. On the one hand, being with the official Church, and on the other, there exists the Church of the GOC, which lives and shepherds our brothers and sisters who follow the Old Calendar in a healthy and proper way. An internal division that not only serves no purpose but also divides our Church and our people.

But this time, I felt double the pain because these thoughts were triggered by the blessings I received from a Hierarch of the GOC, whom I respect and hold in high esteem.

I am referring to the Metropolitan of Attica and Boeotia of the GOC, Chrysostomos, a serious, courteous, and thoughtful Hierarch.

I first met him during the trials faced by Christodoulos. Since then, I have maintained communication with him. Later, I got to know him better during the days of the orphanhood of the Monastery of the Holy Fathers in Chios, after the repose of Elder Ambrosios.

Without fanaticism or exaggeration, he managed with wisdom and prudence an explosive situation that, if it had been someone else, would have caused uproar and rebellion among the fanatical people. In their orphaned state following the death of their father and protector, Ambrosios, they simultaneously faced doubt and persecution. A monastery that, from its very foundation, had always followed the Old Calendar.

Thanks to this Hierarch, the people of Chios did not become fanatical and faced the hostility of the local Hierarch Markos with patience and prayer (who, in turn, was also advised by bad and ungrateful people to do what he did).

From this respected Hierarch, Chrysostomos, I received the following note:

"Many years, Sotirios!

Every blessing of our Blessed Mother in your life!

Did you fast both with the New and the Old Calendar?

A blessing!

What can I say, Sotiris? I say it with bitterness; this division among the Orthodox people was undeserved by our suffering Greece.

Mistakes were made...!

Today, the situation has spiraled out of control. Our youth, our Orthodox baptized children, are living a different 'Orthodoxy.' (Before the Orthodox wedding, they come to the church to marry with one or two children already.)

Not foreigners or those of other faiths, but Orthodox Greeks.

With the division among Orthodox clergy, the Orthodox future of our homeland has been ignored.

I am writing thoughts that torment me daily.

The officials consider us 'schismatics,' without the Church of Greece ever officially stating what the GOC of Greece is.

I remember the response given by the then (now Metropolitan of Kaisariani) Chief Secretary of the Holy Synod, Archimandrite Fr. Daniel Pourtsouklis, during the archbishopric of the late Christodoulos, when the Ecumenical Patriarchate asked the Church of Greece what the Old Calendarists of Greece are, particularly the Synod of Chrysostomos Kiousis.

And the response of the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece was that this is an internal matter concerning the Church of Greece. The Old Calendarists are neither schismatics nor heretics; they are the unruly members of the Church of Greece.

And the paradox? All the official Churches concelebrate with the Russian hierarchs whose predecessors gave us ordination. That is, those who ordained the GOC are entirely canonical, but the GOC are not. (Forgive me, this is sick and biased. Double standards.)

Yesterday it was the Old Calendarist issue in Greece; today, it is the Ukrainian issue with unpredictable developments...

We will all leave one day! What will we leave behind?

I am in spiritual pain.

I, Sotiris, was baptized at the font with the 'Old' [Calendar]. I met blessed clergymen—not these unholy frauds and charlatans today who pretend to be Old Calendarists.

I was blessed to concelebrate as a Hierarch with the priest who baptized me. I have holy memories and experiences.

I apologize if I have wearied you, but I wrote this prompted by your double fast.

Every blessing of our sweet Panagia in your life."

I was left speechless by this text!

I wanted to publish it immediately. But I had to FACE certain problems that God gave me to test me and make me a better person.

And today, I am doing it without asking for his permission, not for any other reason but only to avoid putting him in a difficult position.

After all, through his thoughts, you have discerned the modesty of this holy man.

You have observed his concern and pain for an issue that wounds our souls!

How many from the New Calendar truly reflect on these events, and how many genuinely care about what they will leave behind? Very few!

I present this text in the hope that it might ignite a spark and prompt us to address this issue with seriousness.

At one point, the late Archbishop Christodoulos had initiated a serious dialogue to perhaps "resolve" this issue and bring the serious members of the Old Calendar into our Church.

Unfortunately, the illness that certain individuals skillfully ensured would take root within him was the reason all of this came to a halt!

We are here to remind everyone and to say that together we can do better!

May God enlighten us and open the way!

 

Translated from the original Greek source: https://web.archive.org/web/20220815221448/https://www.exapsalmos.gr/2019/09/10/oi-prosopikes-skepseis-enos-sovaroy-kai-kataxiomenoy-ierarchi-ton-goch-aformi-gia-ton-epikairo-provlimatismo-mas/