An excerpt from “ROCOR's Anglican Scandal Continues - and it gets worse (Part 2),” by Simon Dennerly, posted on VirtueOnline.org, “The Voice for Global Orthodox Anglicanism,” on March 28, 2019.
ROCOR's WR Expansion
The secret behind ROCOR's WRV new
expansion is taking Anglican clergy, mainly from the Continuum [i.e., a general
term for breakaway groups from the Anglican and Episcopalian churches in
response to the modernism in their respective churches since the 1970s], giving
them quick ordinations and getting them involved in church planting. From [Fr. Mark]
Rowe's account of applying for ROCOR "We then made our applications
to the ROCOR Western Rite Vicariate, which were accepted and blessed by
Metropolitan Hilarion, and ordination dates were set for the three of us to be received
and ordained to the sacred priesthood." I spoke with one
Continuing Anglican priest who wanted to leave his church but did not know were
he would go, five weeks later he was ordained for ROCOR's WRV and starting a
mission parish.
A Facebook post for ROCOR WRV's
Holy Cross Parish from 02/010/2018:
"NEW WESTERN RITE
ORTHODOX MISSION-PLANTS
Fr Mark Rowe, Vicar General of
the Western Rite Communities of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia,
has just announced that there are now ROCOR Western Rite Missions in formation
in the following cities:
CHATTANOOGA, TN
ATLANTA, GA
SAN FRANCISIO, CA
ORLANDO FL
If any of our readers are near
these cities and are interested in joining a forming Western Rite mission
church please contact FR. Mark Rowe by email at: (address removed-ed)
The ROCOR Western Rite
Communities continue to grow and the Western Church continues to be rebuilt,
Church history is being written. You can be the first of tomorrow (Western
Orthodox) rather than the last of yesterday (Anglican or Roman traditionalists).
We love being Orthodox. You will too. Come and see!"
The main issue with this is
although the Continuum was formed by and still contains many good clergy who
left the Anglican Communion out of conscience, it has a well deserved
reputation of having attracted or ordained clergy who are charlatans, and those
who 'turn their coats often'- and now Archpriest Mark Rowe, a former Continuum
priest who turned coat many a time is recruiting from them. Have you been
expelled from a seminary on sex abuse and drug allegations? Not a problem! Or
was that a case of "don't ask, don't tell"? Compared with the
Catholic Church's Personal Ordinariates which requires a background check and
psychological test before even being accepted into a two year priest formation
period, while embedded in an Ordinariate community to meet the requirements to
be ordained.
Last year in the Global Western
Rite Orthodoxy Facebook page a ROCOR WR priest, Fr Michael Wood made the
following claims against the first Vicar General of ROCOR's WRV, Bishop Jerome
Shaw in a discussion whether there would be a WRO bishop (screen shot seen by
editor of Virtue Online):
"Michael
Wood: Mark Atkins We had one, he messed up in a big way and got forcible retired.
Michael John:
Michael Wood: (emoji -- sad)
Dane Garrett:
Michael Wood People were ever looking for an excuse to oust him.
Jim
Polyzoidis: Mark Atkins it's called Western-phobia
Michael Wood:
Dane Garrett No actually they weren't. He forged documents the synod found out
about it and forgery of ordination certificate is a hanging offence no matter
who does it."
This would seemingly explain the
2013 decree of the extraordinary Synod which effectively sort to shut down the
WRV as it stood down the heads of the WRV, "To halt the ordination of new
clergymen for parishes adhering to the Western Rite." And the examination
of those who had been ordained WRV clergy, and transition Western Rite parishes
into the 'mainstream liturgical practice' of ROCOR i.e. the Eastern Rite. This
would suggest ROCOR's WRV has had major issues with integrity, and who they ordain,
from the beginning.
Where some believe WRO is Eastern
Orthodoxy with a Western mask, ROCOR's version could be described as the worst
of the Anglican Continuum with an Orthodox mask. ROCOR has not shown the
virtuous behaviour of the "One True Church" they claim to be a part
of; indeed they are acting like the non-virtuous women with a thing for bad
boys. My deep concern is someone, indeed many someones, will get seriously hurt
by ROCOR's lack of standards - but at this stage anyone who gets involved with their
Western Rite Vicariate will only have themselves to blame.
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