Elder Adrianos of Sinai (+2004): "I wept, seeing the spiritual division..."

Now I would like to write to you about an incident that I saw with my own eyes, concerning what happened between pilgrims of the Old and the New Calendar, a thing which saddened me greatly, and I wept seeing into what a snare those people have unfortunately fallen, who follow the new calendar of the antichrist pope.

Once I had gone on a missionary journey to Lamia, to a small town by the name of Domokos.

When the Great Week of the Lord’s Passion arrived, in April of 2003, I served in a church of the Patristic Calendar, the Life-Giving Spring. I concelebrated with the parish priest of the church, Father Athanasios. On Great Friday, as is customary, we made the procession of the Epitaphios, together with a multitude of faithful, up to the square of Domokos.

Likewise, the New Calendarists, with their own Epitaphios and a multitude of pilgrims, were coming from the road that leads to the square of Domokos. There, an encounter took place—how shall I describe it? I cannot, from my sorrow—somewhat hostile.

They, our brethren, Greeks—and we also Greeks—they with Christ upon their Epitaphios, and we with the same Christ upon ours. We with the Patristic Calendar, and they with the new calendar of the heresiarch pope. I was moved, I wept, seeing this spiritual division, the schism… Whereas before we were all united, all spiritual brethren, with one Archbishop, one Church, one Epitaphios, one festal calendar of the Fathers, which was established and sealed by the Holy Fathers—from the First Ecumenical Council in 300 [sic: 325 A.D.] until the Seventh Ecumenical Council. And they, instead of remaining with the festal calendar of the Holy Fathers, went, unfortunately, with the papal one.

Our Greek brethren were led astray and went with the calendar of the heresiarch pope Gregory XIII in the year 1582.

Fortunately, however, many of the faithful remained with the Patristic Calendar—millions from all over the world: Greeks, Russians, [Old Calendar] Romanians, Serbians, [Old Calendar] Bulgarians, Mount Athos, Jerusalem—where the Holy Light always comes forth according to the Patristic Calendar. We are obliged, brethren, to follow the Holy Fathers.

 

Translated from the original Greek.