Is There Grace in the Moscow Patriarchate?
And Other Related Points of Confusion Generated by Soviet Propaganda
By Protopresbyter Victor Melehov
Part I
The purpose of this article is to address a number of related questions and topics regularly demonstrated to be of concern to people previously from the Moscow Patriarchate (MP), currently in the Moscow Patriarchate, or, as is the case today, people formerly within the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (ROCOR) and, since 2007, unconditionally joined to the Moscow Patriarchate by Metropolitan Laurus (ROCOR-MP). The common thread of these three groups is their relationship to the Moscow Patriarchate.
Let us begin with the most important question: Is there Grace in the Moscow Patriarchate? That is how the question is usually posed. However, since as Orthodox Christians we confess that the “Holy Spirit is everywhere present and fillest all things,” the question needs to be refined more specifically in order to reach a more specific answer. What the above mentioned groups of people mean to say is: Is there Grace in the mysteries of the Moscow Patriarchate?To be sure, this question does not originate from our contemporary post-Soviet society. This question has been repeatedly asked for almost seven decades. Although rarely do events occur without substantial preparation, if one was to ascribe an official point at which this question became of paramount importance, it would have to be 1943; the year Stalin officially “blessed” Metropolitan Sergei to become patriarch, thus forming the MP.
From the time of the Bolshevik revolution the Russian Orthodox Church suffered extremely brutal persecutions at the hands of the Communist regime. However, there was never any question about Grace. The Russian Orthodox Church was an established and well-recognized local Church for centuries. All other local Orthodox Churches recognized the Russian Orthodox Church as legitimate and with Grace. Shortly after the revolution, the newly elected Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church, Tikhon, foreseeing the danger awaiting the Russian Orthodox Church within the newly forming Soviet Union, issued his now famous ukase (Ukase No. 362) establishing the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia. Here too, all other local Orthodox Churches recognized the ROCOR as legitimate and with Grace.
With the onset of persecutions against the Church, Metropolitan Sergei came forward to compromise with the God-hating regime. The majority of hierarchs, clergy and laity was against this compromise, and begged Metropolitan Sergei to reconsider. This majority was imprisoned, tortured and martyred. In order to survive, these faithful confessors of the Russian Orthodox Church went into the catacombs. There can be no doubt that the Russian Orthodox Church continued to exist, and continued to be with Grace, within the borders of the former Russian Empire, albeit with little external structure in the catacombs.
Metropolitan Sergei continued compromising with the God-hating regime in exchange for its recognition of his leadership. During his Soviet-permitted tenure, he presided over the destruction of churches and monasteries, and the torture and martyrdom of millions of people. To the rest of the world, he denied the existence of any persecutions. By 1943, there were few clergy left alive or in freedom. Similarly, there were few open churches and monasteries. Stalin rewarded Metropolitan Sergei for his loyalty by making him Patriarch. The Moscow Patriarchate was officially born.
Founded upon compromise and collaboration with an illegitimate, God-hating regime (officially called Sergianism), and established through the blood-soaked hands of a madman leading this regime, the question regarding Grace in the Moscow Patriarchate was legitimately raised.
Professor I. M. Andreyev(1894-1976) was a noted authority regarding the history of the Russian Orthodox Church, particularly for the period ranging from just before the Bolshevik Revolution through World War II. Professor Andreyev held three doctorate degrees: medicine, literature, and philosophy. He was a confessor of the Faith, who was present with the Petrograd delegation which went before Metropolitan Sergei begging him to renounce his collaboration with the Soviet government. He was sentenced to the Solovki prison camp. He managed to escape from the Soviet Union, and spent the last years of his life writing and teaching at the Holy Trinity Seminary in Jordanville, NY. In 1948, Professor Andreyev published one of his works, “Is the Grace of God Present in the Soviet Church?”Having lived through this horrific period, he writes with first-hand information, and is a source by himself. This work is highly recommended reading, and by itself, is more than sufficient to answer the title of this present article: “Is There Grace in the Moscow Patriarchate?”
Nonetheless, even as this became a question of major concern in 1943 when Stalin “blessed” Metropolitan Sergei to become patriarch, the question continues to be asked by both clergy and laity of the Moscow Patriarchate to this day. Apparently, these people continue to have their doubts. In 1948, Professor Andreyev tried to help such people by writing, “And can an Orthodox Christian approach the Holy Chalice with doubt?”
And today, has anything changed? Indeed, much has changed since 1948. Unfortunately, for the Moscow Patriarchate, this change has been for the worse. After World War II, Stalin intensified his persecution of the Church. Simultaneously, the Moscow Patriarchate announced to the rest of the world that there were no persecutions. Having eliminated virtually all dissent, the Soviet regime began building its own church. All new clergy were required to take an oath of allegiance to the Soviet Government (much like entering the Soviet Army). All clergy were vetted and required approval from the Commission onthe Affairs of Cultsunder the Presidium ofthe Central Executive Committee (established in 1929). Of course, the heresy of Sergianism (subjugation of the church to the government) was already in full force. To make matters even worse, the Moscow Patriarchate has embraced the heresy of Ecumenism, and today is seeking union with the Pope of Rome.
Given the changes since 1948 which have led to the present-day state of the MP, instead of pursuing the question of whether or not the Moscow Patriarchate has Grace in its mysteries, let us consider the possibility that even here, we are asking the wrong question.
Why? – Primarily because the Orthodox Church has no “meter” for Grace. Instead, the Orthodox Church has its Holy Canons. The canons define what is inside the Church, and what is outside the Church. The canons define heresy. The Moscow Patriarchate espouses the heresies of Ecumenism and Sergianism. We know that those who are in heresy are not inside the Church.
As for Grace, we know that the Holy Spirit will go and act as the Holy Spirit wills. The Holy Spirit is not bound by the formulas and desires of mankind. We know that God will not be mocked. We know that God is where He is “worshiped in spirit and in truth.”
There are some who say that MP mysteries are effective for those who believe they are so, and not so much for others. This is Protestantism, where the individual has his own personal relationship with his Saviour, regardless of the faith of the priest or bishop (or minister) leading him in prayer. Hence, we see the reason for the thousands of Protestant sects.
Let us ask ourselves, do the Protestants have Grace in their rituals? Most non-ecumenical Orthodox would quickly respond in the negative. But why? – How can this be proven? As we know, the reasons are many. They have no hierarchy, no priests, nor any apostolic succession. They do not recognize the Holy Theotokos and all the saints in a proper manner, etc. How do we come to such answers? What do we rely on to prove and support our logic? We seek the counsel of Holy Scripture and the Holy Canons. Here too, the answer does not come forward in terms of Grace, but in terms of heresy and canonicity.
Although there are many sincere people, as previously mentioned, who seek an answer concerning Grace in the mysteries of the MP, we must invariably come to the conclusion that this is the wrong question and the wrong approach. We must clearly recognize that the deceivers within the MP would like nothing more than for this debate to limit itself to the arena of only Grace, disregarding canon law.They understand that if we have no metrics for Grace, we cannot fully prove that Grace is not there. That is their point. Of course, the opposite is similarly true, and does not provide for even a tie, since the argument is clearly and artificially restricted by ignoring canon law. Nonetheless, the deceivers would gladly accept a lack of decision, rather than otherwise.
In pursuit of the correct question, and to provide for an informed answer, it is necessary to at least briefly revisit the history of this tragic period in order to bring into focus what transpired with the Russian Orthodox Church and the Russian Nation. We need to revisit the circumstances surrounding the illegitimate take-over of the government, the church, and the soul of this nation. To look upon the institution of the Moscow Patriarchate today, with its shining cupolas, its beautiful singing, and its magnificent vestments and services, one can almost no longer hear the groans and cries of the suffering Russian martyrs to this very day. Could the MP have absolved itself of its wholesale betrayal of these saints by performing a glorification for them, or were such glorifications performed using the more chilling Soviet logic; “dead men don’t talk”? We should remember, perestroika came with no apologies, not to mention forgiveness.
Let us begin with a review of the rise and fall of the Soviet Empire during the 20th century, its leaders, and their impact on the Church. Moreover, given the momentous capitulation of Metropolitan Sergei in accepting Stalin’s offer and “blessing” for him to become patriarch, let us look at the Moscow Patriarchate from the perspective of the Church that Stalin built.
By itself, to entertain the concept of “the church that Stalin built”might seem to imply that Stalin actually achieved certain accomplishments valued by civilization during his lifetime. However, to the contrary, it is the purpose of this article to reveal how Stalin, having embraced the dark powers of evil early in his life, paralleled the behavior of the enemy of mankind, Satan, with his every action.
Before the harsh and seemingly endless societal winter imposedby the illegitimate Bolshevik regime, toward the end of the 19th century, Russia, along with most of Europe, enjoyed a relatively good standard of living when compared to the rest of the world. Financially, it was third in the world in per capita wealth. An increasingly greater amount of people were receiving an education. Serfdom, as throughout the rest of Europe, was becoming a condition of the past. Unlike the United States during relatively the same period, Russian society never accepted, nor suffered, the evils of slavery. With an educated citizenry, the Russian nation was on its way to developing a representative government around its monarchy. The Church was reestablishing its Patriarch, missing since the position was taken away by Peter I. Of course, there were also causes for concern. Liberal factions were unsatisfied with any government involving a monarchy. Although Alexander II had extended many concessions to these liberal factions, and was moving at an accelerated pace towards a more representative government, they still assassinated him.
During this period of transitional development, the God-hating Bolsheviks began their attackon Russia’s social infrastructure. Having been indoctrinated with western secular ideology seeped in socialism, theyconsidered themselves intellectually and morally superior. They were well-prepared and organized. Their funding came from the West, where they often retreated for refuge, education, and reorganization with the intent of soon returning for more revolutionary work. It would be naïve to accept the Soviet propaganda that simple peasants organized their shovels, rakes, and axes to overthrow the Empire. Even as we find today, people had to work for a living. The average person had no time, money or desire for a revolution.
These well-schooled revolutionaries conducted a systematic psychological onslaught directed at various levels or Russian society. Whenever their funding ran low, they would rob banks. When exposed and punished for their criminal actions, the liberal press (as it still does to this day) would predictably engage by exaggerating the circumstances to create the most possible sympathy and support for the criminal; trying to make him a hero at the expense of people and laws working to maintain social decency.
As an example, one such attack was aimed at the simple faithful, with the hope of destabilizing the Church. With impunity, these socialists tempted the faithful,saying, “Look, your churches are laden with gold and silver, while you have such poverty and beggars outside their doors.” Unfortunately, neither the Church nor the Monarchy was prepared to conduct the psychological warfare necessary to contain and eliminate the virus infused into the body of its society. The battle for the mind of the Russian Nation began, and then quickly it was turned towards its soul. Soon, the veryFaith of the nation was to become challenged.
This is but a glimpse of one aspect of a much more complicated arena of events preplanned to violently unfold. Yet, this glimpse is important in that it serves to expose the very core, the darkness of the Soviet regime. It serves to underscore the fact that everything said, everything promised, everything doneby this God-hating regime was an enormous lie aimed at seizing illegitimate control of the Russian Nation, while simultaneously destroying Christ’s Holy Church. For during Stalin’s time, what happened to the poor? The churches and monasteries were plundered and destroyed. The gold and silver was taken and used to exclusively adorn the glory of the God-hating regime. And again, what happened to the poor? They were not to be seen begging at the demolished or desecrated churches and monasteries any longer. They were nowhere to be found.However, the Regime knew where they were. So that they not besmirch the glory of the Soviet Union with their unsightly existence, they were unceremoniously gathered by the authorities and sent away to their elimination.
Another area which needs to be addressed and set aright is the repetitive propaganda attacking the integrity of the Russian monarchs. The Soviets promote self-serving stories about self-centered and careless czars needlessly punishing people for little or no offenses. They forever remind all who will listen of the soldiers who opened fire on a crowd of innocent protesting people, etc. Of course, some of these accounts are not proud moments of Russian history. On the other hand, these accounts are presented to us in a discolored and exaggerated form by Soviet apparatchiks intent on exalting themselves at the expense of honest Russian history.
For the sake of our discussion, let us allow for every point made by these propagandists in each of such accounts. Then, using the figures provided by these same Soviet “historians,” let us produce a sum of all the executions and imprisonments of each and every individual, whether correctly or erroneously judged, which was ordered by the government of all the Russian monarchs, from Vladimir to Nicholas II.
We can be confident that the number, the total sum, would pale in its insignificance when compared to the mass annihilation of innocent Russian people conducted by Stalin alone, not to mention Lenin, Khrushchev and others of this dark dynasty. If we add the atrocities of all the leaders of this blood-soaked and illegitimate Soviet lineage, we will find that the Russian nation has lived through the darkest, cruelest, and most sorrowful century (the 20th century) in the history of all of mankind.
So, what were the so-called accomplishments of this hapless man, Stalin, who was perhaps the most evil, and God-hating tyrant to ever be unleashed upon mankind in all of history? There were no accomplishments in the positive sense to be had. Instead, one may call themanti-accomplishments.
Some might ask, why state the obvious? Because time has the tendency to erase memories, and on occasion, put certain events in a different light, or at least, out of focus. The atrocities committedagainst humanity and the Church, the torture and annihilation of tens of millions of people some 70 years ago might not appear quite so tragic to a fifteen-year-old today, as it might have been to a child who just lost his family to such slaughter at that time.
Furthermore, in the West, many youths, and adults, know nothing about Stalin. At best, some confuse him with Hitler, an evil monster in his own right. In Russia, people whose families were affected by persecution, torture, forced starvation, and endless murder of innocent souls were afraid to speak about it, even to their own children. Such was the dread and horror forced upon all by that God-hating regime. The Soviet school books certainly would only present Lenin and Stalin in a most favorable light. And, how many stories have we heard about a teacher standing before her classroom of schoolchildren, while holding up an icon or cross and asking, “Has anyone ever seen anything like this before?” And, the simple children would say, “Yes, my parents have that at home.” Soon thereafter, there would be a knock on the door at night. The apartment would be searched by agents of the Regime, and if religious items were found, the parents would suffer the loss of their jobs, orperhaps worse, they wouldbe given a sentence in Siberia and be called an “enemy of the people.” Out of such fear, believers began to hide their faith even from their children. These children, if they are still alive, are now grandparents and great-grandparents. In all too many cases, the truth about the persecutions, about the tortures, the truth about all the murders, the truth about Stalin, was not fully passed on. Their children, for the most part, are misinformed about their past, and uncertain about their future.
How do we know this? Given the economic instability of the post-Soviet times, some people in Russia have resorted to yearning for the not too distant semblance of security provided by Stalin;who ironically himself was an insecure tyrant. Today, there are some who actually wish to glorify Stalin as a saint. Of course, this says very much about the successful brainwashing undertaken by the God-less Regime of the last 90 years.
Then, there are those glorifying the Soviet Union’s WW II victory over Hitler. True, there is a sincere and loving, albeit misplaced, nostalgia to honor the sacrifices of their grandparents. However, the success of a deranged tyrant and his God-hating regime, while simultaneously persecuting his own people, over another deranged monster is hardly an event worthy of celebration. One must only consider the world-wide danger which began at the moment the West rewarded Stalin for his participation in WW II. By recognizing his Communist regime, Roosevelt and Churchill allowed Stalin to tighten his bloody grip of persecution over the Russian people within the Iron Curtain. While some were marching, celebrating their victory in Red Square, their brothers and sisters were languishing in rotten prisons, suffering torture, or perhaps alsomarching, but to their death. For the rest of the world, Stalin’s empowerment plunged it into a nuclear arms race and the beginning of the Cold War.
There are some, nonetheless, who will insist that conquering Hitler’s Germany was important and necessary to keep the Germans from occupying and ruling Russia. Through this achievement they say, the Motherland had been preserved, and Russia continued to be ruled by Russians. Of course, one can only theorize regarding a world in which Hitler might have prevailed. Most will agree that such a result would be horrible for humanity. At the same time, we must not allow ourselves to repeat the propaganda prepared for us by the Soviets to deflect our minds away from the reality of the situation, and towards Stalin’s “heroic victory.”
Let us consider those times. Stalin’s regime was yet quite fragile.While instilling fear in many, he endeared very few. Meanwhile, the White Army was still a threat.Although Stalin’s tenure was already longer than Lenin’s, he continued lock-stepwith the same vision established by his mentor.Stalin spent most of his time destroying the ways of life and government developed over nearly 1,000 years of Russian civilization. He had imposed his personal rise to power through the murder of millions of people. He had stolen the Nation’s wealth, from individuals, churches, and government. Moreover, he had stolen the entire Nation through his (and Lenin’s) illegitimate seizure of its leadership. Given the full-time commitment required by such an agenda, Stalin had little time, nor perhaps interest, for diplomacy; domestic or international. Stalin’s foreign policy reflected his bludgeoning “leadership” style.
Hitler had a well-disciplined and experienced army, a virtual fighting machine. Stalin had murdered many, if not most, of Russia’s most experienced, capable and educated people. These were people who knew how to operate the country; from its industry, to its military, to its government. Stalin replaced them with his own thugs, criminals and cowards who obeyed him out of fear for their lives. When Hitler first attacked the Soviet Union, he made significant inroads into the country, and seized a number of major cities. At first, many Russians viewed him as a possible liberator. Even as many refused to work in Stalin’s collective farms, here too, people refused to fight. Many surrendered at the first possibility. As many World War II Russian refuges have said, only after learning what was happening to the Russian prisoners of war in Germany did the Russian people decide that it was best to fight. Simultaneously, Stalin, fearing that he would be overrun, began to open churches and easing the persecution of Christians. Only then, in spite of its inexperience in the battlefield and technological inferiority, did the Red Army begin to have success. Here too, however, this came at the expense of many lives.
And so, what is there to celebrate? Was Russia really preserved? Perhaps to some this is a small technicality, but the Russian Empirehad been usurped by illegitimate forces and foreign interests tobecome the Soviet Union. That battle was already lost. The Motherland had fallen into the hands of the enemy of God and His people. It must be remembered that the White Army was still trying to take back Russia. Unfortunately, the West had other interests, and clearly did not support the movements of General Vlasov, or those before him. Regrettably, the victory over Hitler did not preserve Russia; rather it solidified the concept of a new Soviet Union with unanimous recognition from the West. Stalin is shown together with Roosevelt and Churchillat Yalta,all grinning over their success. The persecutions resumed with a vengeance.
Another piece of propaganda regularly repeated is that we must rejoice over the Soviet Union’s WWII victory, “Russia remained under Russian rule.” Is that so? Indeed, it did not fall to the Germans. However, fall into foreign hands it already had. The so-called revolution was not masterminded nor funded by the Russian people. The peasants did not take-over the rule of the land. The overthrow of the Russian Empire was funded by the West. Marxism, socialism, communism were all ideologies fomented in Europe, and looking for a nation within which to set-up a socio-political experiment. So, whose rule was Russia under both before and after Hitler’s demise? Indeed, the new Regime spoke the language of the land, but its soul was from a foreign place.
For Russia to ever be free again, and return to self-governance, its people must be ever vigilant and cognizant of the ongoing psychological onslaught, which began at the end of the 19th century. To date, this has not stopped, nor even slowed.
The psychological propaganda machine tells us to celebrate Stalin’s victory over Hitler. Yet, celebrating this victory only serves to legitimize the Soviet regime, betray Russia’s own history, and betray the millions of new martyrs and other innocent Russian people who suffered and lost their lives at the pleasure of a God-hating regime. Perhaps we may now come to an understanding that this celebration is an anti-celebration?
Is it that most do not know, and the others have forgotten? Do we not see all the wounds and scars throughout the countryside and within Russian society today? Yet, why do wenot ask the proper questions? Who did this, and why? Is it possible that nobody actually cares?
Russia,as a nation, will never recover, neither physically, nor psychologically, nor spiritually, until it comes to grips with its past. The wounds will not heal until they are uncovered and brought to light. The Russian people need to know the names and sentences of the persecuted. They need to know the names of the traitors who betrayed the persecuted. They need to know the names of the persecutors. Only then will it be possible to correct the path of the past and restore an honorable, dignified and legitimate government led by people who truly “love God above all else, and their neighbor as themselves.”
By some accounts, 90 million people were annihilated by the Communist regime. By other accounts, 40 million people were slaughtered. In either case, this is no small number. Only God knows for sure the exact number of souls who were persecuted, tortured, and prematurely sent to their graves. If we were to contemplate the significance of these numbers for a moment, we soon see that everyone who is of Russian descent, and is alive today, has at least one relative who suffered from the Soviet God-hating regime.
The present-day regime in Russia, which “converted to Democracy” in 1991 is operated by the very same people who participated in the previous regime. There was no purge, no confession, and no repentance. Lenin and Stalin remain as their parents. They all know what happened. They are hoping for time to take away any and all attention from them. Then, the grand theft will be complete. They will have usurped a legitimate government and the soul of a once great nation, and no one will remember why or how. This has already happened in the West.
The regime knows all-too-well who the persecuted were, and why they were persecuted. It knows all of the traitors. And, it knows very well the identity of each persecutor responsible for these atrocities. If the Russian people do not fully understand and learn their past history, it is doubtful that they will ever recover, and probable that they may come to repeat it.