On the Relationship between the Romanian Old Calendarists and the Moscow Patriarchate

[Shared in light of the recent accusations of "Cyprianism" made by the Romanian Old Calendar Church towards the Church of the G.O.C. of Greece.]

Seraphim has brought up the question of the Romanian Old Calendarist Church.

Perhaps it would be interesting to members of the list to note that the Romanian Old Calendarist Church under Metropolitan Vlasie has a very good relationship and long-standing with the Moscow Patriarchate -- in fact, by mutual agreement, all of the future Romanian Old Calendarist clergy receive their theological education at the Kishinev Seminary in Moldova, which is under the Moscow Patriarchate.

When I was sent by the Synod of Bishops in 2006 to meet with Metropolitan Vlasie, I met quite a number of priests and seminarians, who all had spent, or were spending five years at the Moscow Patriarchate Seminary in Moldavia (where all of the instruction is in Romanian).

During their Seminary years, they all participated fully in the life of the Seminary, receiving Holy Communion there, and, as is usual in Seminaries, in their final year, they were tonsured Reader by a bishop of the Moscow Patriarchate, and then would return to Romania and be ordained by Metropolitan Vlasie or another of his bishops and sent to serve in parishes.

This arrangement has been going on for years.

Metropolitan Kyrill of Smolensk, the Head of the Department of External Relations of the MP, told me that the Moscow Patriarchate thinks quite highly of the Romanian Old Calendarists, and respects them for their dedication to tradition (remember, the MP is staunchly Old Claendar [sic]), and their standing up against the ecumenical excesses of the Romanian Patriarchal Church.

It should also be remembered that the Moscow Patriarchate has extremely strained relations with the Romanian Patriarchal Church for another reason -- the Romanian Church has set up a parallel ecclesiastical structure in Moldova, which the Russian Church considers its canonical territory.

With love in Christ,

Prot. Alexander Lebedeff

 

Source: Message #117731 of the orthodox-tradition Yahoo discussion list, Thu May 8, 2008 11:52 am.