Father Arseny, an Invented Literary Figure?

[Anastasios]

I referred this article to Dr Peter Bouteneff, whose mother I believe translated this book. I asked him if he wanted to respond, but he declined saying that in his opinion this is one of those accusations that is so far out that it's impossible to respond to in a reasonable way--where would you start?* he also said the St Tikhon's Institute is not exactly a bastion of modernism. His final comment was that the great thing about Fr Arseny is there is nothing of politics in his story--he is not an apology for the MP--there is nothing to distract from his witness to Christ in this book.

I personally found the article to be overly polemical and that leads me to believe it is untrue.

• (For instance, there is a guy online that claims that Retilian aliens rule the world, and has all sorts of proof of it. Is it possible to rebut him? Maybe, but how do you even start??)

[TomS]

I referred this article to Dr Peter Bouteneff, whose mother I believe translated this book. I asked him if he wanted to respond, but he declined saying that in his opinion this is one of those accusations that is so far out that it's impossible to respond to in a reasonable way--where would you start?*

Total BS response.

[尼古拉前执事]

I think many people who have been members of Russian Churches and gotten to know the people and kin of those that had to suffer in the gulag would not think the story of Father Arseny to be fictitious or exaggerated.

I agree with Anastasios that the book is NOT pro-MP and Father Arseny is known to have left the prison and join the Catacomb Church rather than staying with the MP.

I am guessing many of you have not read the second book called Father Arseny: A Cloud of Witnesses. Here is a description of it: "The stories of Father Arseny and his work and life on the Soviet prison camps have captured the minds of readers all over the world. Here, in this second volume, readers will find new narratives about Father Arseny freshly translated from the most recent edition. Through the memories of Father Arseny's spiritual children, his "cloud of witnesses," readers once again see the light and compassion of Christ shine through this man of God."

[Anastasios]

I referred this article to Dr Peter Bouteneff, whose mother I believe translated this book. I asked him if he wanted to respond, but he declined saying that in his opinion this is one of those accusations that is so far out that it's impossible to respond to in a reasonable way--where would you start?*

Total BS response.

Nope. The response of a person who has a life and doesn't spend every waking hour surfing the net responding to wackos.

[TomS]

[quote="anastasios"

Nope. The response of a person who has a life and doesn't spend every waking hour surfing the net responding to wackos.

The book is held up as a true story -- how is it "wacky" to ask for documentation that this person existed?

His response is typical by those who can not back back up their claims, so they try to put the focus back on the "real reason" the person asked the question.

[Schultz]

Actually, Tom, it is the responsibility of the accuser to provide the proof. All that exists in that article are paper accusations and allusions to proof, but no real proof that is demonstrable nor verifiable.

[TomS]

Actually, Tom, it is the responsibility of the accuser to provide the proof. All that exists in that article are paper accusations and allusions to proof, but no real proof that is demonstrable nor verifiable.

In the US -- yes. But how does someone PROVE that someone did not exist when there are no documents to prove that the person DID exist.

The Russian Orthodox Church is full of "miracles" and other such stories because it still has an uneducated Russian peasant mindset.