The Romanian Old Calendar Church on "Archbishop" Gregory of Denver

 

Communiqué addressed to the Christians of the Old Calendar Orthodox Church of Romania

 

"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven." (Matthew 7:21)

 

BELOVED FAITHFUL,

 

Man, created by God in His image and likeness, has the possibility, once he is in the right faith and performs the works of faith, to attain salvation. The devil, having fallen from heaven due to pride, will always wage war against God's creation, a struggle that affects the entirety of right-glorifying Christianity. At the beginning of the Christian era, this struggle took the form of pagan reprisals; later, infiltrating from within, the devil devised heresies, using suitable individuals. Likewise, through dubious and controversial figures, the devil struck at the Orthodox Church by introducing the Papist calendar.

Coming to our days, the devil has once again changed his tactics. This time, he makes use of technology, of this spider's web called the internet (net/web meaning "web" in English). Information circulates freely and at dizzying speed from one place to another across the entire world. Unfortunately, information can come from dubious sources and be full of questionable elements. Moreover, through various photo editing programs, many documents can even be falsified.

This communiqué is not intended to misinform or denigrate anyone, but on the contrary, to try to protect our Christians from false information.

Before refuting the information being propagated, we will attempt to present here some of the information we have regarding Archbishop Gregory, who resides in the United States of America. We do not wish to slander or incriminate this "hierarch," but rather to warn you about the kind of person he is and the manner in which, without any basis, he makes unfounded accusations against our Church. We believe it is absolutely necessary to defend our faith, just as our grandparents and great-grandparents did when the calendar was changed in Romania and when communism tried to extinguish the flame of Orthodoxy.

From his official website, under the "Autobiography" section, we realize that we are dealing with a proud man, as he begins with the statement that he "descends from an illustrious Orthodox family in Syria." Reading through the content of the "autobiography" and analyzing only the chapter titles, we can discern that this individual has passed through most of the Old Calendar Synods, remaining only briefly in each. It is likely that none of those Synods were capable of matching his level of theological preparation or his "exalted" spiritual life. These Synods include: ROCOR (the Russian Synod Abroad), G.O.C. under Archbishop Chrysostomos Kiousis (the Old Calendar Church of Greece), the Synod of Kallinikos of the Dodecanese, the Makarian Synod—both in Greece—and ROAC (the Synod of the Russian Autonomous Church). He also passed through Mount Athos in his attempt to become a bishop, a goal that was achieved when he was "consecrated" in 2002 by the "Synod" of Suzdal.

To see who this "Archbishop" truly is (a very grand title—he leads a "church" that is practically nonexistent both in terms of faithful and doctrine), we will also publish a portion of a decision from the Synod of Suzdal, of which he was a member. In Document No. 48 from July 2/15, 2004, the following is stated about the aforementioned individual:

"During its session, the Synod of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church analyzed numerous complaints received from the clergy and laity of the Russian Orthodox Church, as well as from other True Orthodox Churches, regarding the actions of His Eminence Gregory (Abu-Asaly) from Denver, Colorado:

1. Demanding baptism for true Orthodox Christians coming from other Churches to be received into ROAC.
2. Disobedience to the lawful decisions of the Synod of Bishops.
3. Interference in church affairs beyond the borders of his own diocese, particularly ordaining a confessor there without the consent or knowledge of the local Church authorities.
4. Tyrannical and unfounded repressions against the clergy under his authority."

Failing to correct himself, he was deposed by his own Synod in 2004 but continued, going on to found GOCA, the "Church of the Genuine Orthodox Christians of America."

From these lines, we can draw a conclusion: Archbishop Gregory is afflicted with religious fanaticism, a fanaticism condemned even by the Holy Apostles and stemming from a diabolical pride. In this pride, he convinces another "bishop" to form this "church" in which he continues to operate to this day. The "bishop" in question, Ambrose Moran, was an unbaptized Catholic who claimed to have "apostolic succession" from a schismatic synod in Ukraine. Many photographs circulate online of this Ambrose dressed in Catholic vestments and serving in their churches. The two consecrated a new "bishop" in 2007, John. Later, Ambrose Moran left Gregory's group, leaving the latter with only "Bishop John."

Therefore, dear ones, this Gregory boasts in his videos that he is "the only bishop untouched by stain, heresy, and schism." Do these words sound familiar to you? Do they resemble, perhaps, those of the Pope of Rome, who considers himself infallible? With devilish audacity, he "invited" the Synod of our Church to receive a "blessing" from him, claiming that we are fallen and must seek forgiveness from a "true bishop." What pride, what madness!

Since no Synod in the world wished to have anything to do with the "archbishop," Gregory has recently launched a campaign of denigration against all Old Calendarist churches worldwide. Thus, in some of his presentations, he includes the Old Calendar Orthodox Church of Romania as a subject.

It is clear that what he is now doing with our Church is a staged theater, orchestrated by others, with him as a servile executor who has received his thirty pieces of silver and reads what is written for him.

We will not delve into details nor bother to counter his false theories, as they are plainly visible, and the faithful of our Church know the history of the Old Calendar Orthodox Church of Romania as well as its canonical continuity.

However, how does he dare to denigrate Saint Hierarch Glicherie? From the comfort of America, it is easy to say anything about anyone. Gregory did not live in the cold of the forest, surrounded by wild beasts. He was not dragged through a barbed-wire fence. He was not struck by gendarmes with the butt of their rifles. But we are firmly convinced that our faithful know well the sacrifices made by Saint Glicherie and how he gave himself entirely to carry forward the banner of faith.

Moreover, we are even more convinced that many of you, dear brethren, have experienced miracles performed by our Saint. Therefore, we will not go into further details. As for the person of Metropolitan Galaction, we can only be grateful for his return to the bosom of the true Church and for the fact that he elevated us as a church institution. Regarding the two (Saint Glicherie and Metropolitan Galaction), we have an extensive presentation prepared two years ago, which can be accessed at the following link: https://manastireasfantulglicherie.ro/parinte-este-credinta-ortodoxa-de-stil-vechi-singura-canonica-si-adevarata/

But since our Church is sprinkled with martyrdom's blood, and our ancestors gave their lives to defend it, the devil brings all kinds of temptations to weaken our faith, to make us renounce it, and to embrace falsehood. We are struck from within by the former metropolitan’s struggle against the Church he led for 30 years. Then comes Gabriel Ilășoaia, who, like an unskilled politician, fabricates all sorts of accusations, especially against our hierarchy. From the outside, here is yet another danger for us and for the faithful under our pastoral care.

At one point, we mentioned that this Gregory is an "archbishop" of a "church" with very few followers. We believe that he seeks naive people to follow him, in order to gain certain benefits. He has already established two "parishes" on our territory, in the Transylvania region. In this regard, I wish to inform you that it is not canonical to participate in his "services" or those conducted by his clergy. His mission is to divide and to pull Christians away from the bosom of the true Church. Therefore, I urge you to be vigilant and not fall prey to his lies.

Therefore, I felt the need to draw your attention to this dubious and controversial figure from the United States and to sense the stench of the wolf hiding beneath the sheep's clothing he wears. Be followers of the Church founded, as mentioned above, on the martyr's blood shed by Saint Hierarch Glicherie, as well as by other clergy and laity. Even though we are going through a less favorable period, the Good God will not abandon us; we consider this period a time of trial and temptation, but if we succeed in overcoming it, with the Lord's help, we will become more steadfast, more spiritual, and more elevated in our faith. In this regard, we humbly ask you, dear brethren, to bend your knees in prayer, to raise supplications for the peace of the Church, for the peace of the whole world, for deliverance from enemies, for the conversion of the wicked to good, and for the salvation of all Orthodox Christians.

Yours in prayer to God,
+Bishop Sofronie of Suceava

Translated from the original Romanian.