I don't want to sidetrack too much but I'd like to share this article from Orthodox Life. Perhaps someone who knows the Greek "situation" more can explain where ROCOR shifted their stance. The Greek situation seems to have always been a confusing situation in relationship to the Church Abroard. Language barriers, new splinter groups being formed, etc.
THE OLD CALENDAR CHURCH OF GREECE
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Behold how good and joyous it is for brethren to dwell
together in
unity (Ps. 132:1)
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Concerning the Union of the ROCA and the TOC of Greece
In our days, when the Church is assailed from all sides by heresy and
schism, the knowledge that we are not
alone in our struggle for purity of faith can be extremely comforting.
Recently, a day of great significance in the
resistance against apostasy occurred: the entering into full sacramental
communion of the Russian Orthodox
Church Outside of Russia and the True (Old Calendar) Orthodox Church of
Greece, headed by Metropolitan
Cyprian of Oropos and Fili. As a visible display of unity, Archbishop
Anthony of San Francisco and Bishop
Kyrill of Seattle of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, and
Metropolitan Cyprian, and Bishops Chrysostomos
of Etna and Auxentios of Photiki of the True (Old Calendar Church) of
Greece concelebrated on the feast day of
Saint Vladimir, Equal to the Apostles and Enlightener of the Slavs, on
July 15/28, 1994, in the Cathedral of the
Mother of God, Joy of All Who Sorrow in San Francisco, California.
The history of the Old Calendar Church of Greece is a radiant example of
strength in persecution and
uncompromising love for the Holy Orthodox Faith. The Church of Greece
uncanonically introduced the New,
Gregorian Calendar in 1924. Initially, only a small group of laymen
resisted this innovation. Gradually, a number
of priests began to return to the Old Calendar, especially following the
miraculous apparition of the Cross above
a church outside of Athens which followed the traditional Church
calendar during the Feast of the Elevation of
the Holy Cross according to the Julian (Old) Calendar. The majority of
clergymen at this time (1924-1935) were
monks of the Holy Mountain who travelled throughout Greece, founding
parishes and monasteries. Throughout
this time, the State Church persecuted the Old Calendarists: services
were interrupted, clergy were arrested,
processions were broken up, and churches were closed. Despite these
measures, by 1934 over 800 communities
had been formed throughout Greece following the Old Calendar.
A breakthrough occurred in 1935 when three bishops of the State Church
returned to the Old Calendar:
Metropolitan Germanos of Demetrias, Metropolitan Chrysostomos of
Zakynthos and Metropolitan
Chrysostomos of Florina, who later became known as the leader of the
True Orthodox Christians of Greece.
These three went on to consecrate four more bishops: Germanos of the
Cyclades, Polykarpos of Diavleia,
Christophoros of Megara, and Matthew of Vrestheni. However, sadly,
Metropolitan Chrysostomos of
Zakynthos and two of the newly consecrated bishops, Polykarpos and
Christophoros, returned to the State
Church. The remaining four bishops formed the first Holy Synod of the
Church of True Orthodox Christians of
Greece.
In 1937, Metropolitan Chrysostomos of Florina, when asked whether the
State Church still possessed
sacramental Grace, replied that, although it was wrong in accepting the
New Calendar, nonetheless it still
possessed Grace, for it had not been condemned by a pan-Orthodox
council. This statement caused division;
Bishops Matthew and Germanos separated themselves from Metropolitan
Chrysostomos, tragically weakening
the strength of the Old Calendar movement. A positive event occurred
however, in 1945, when Bishops
Polykarpos of Diavleia and Christophoros of Megara were reunited to
Metropolitan Chrysostomos, followed, in
1950, by Bishop Germanos of the Cyclades.
The fiercest persecutions of the Old Calendarists occurred starting in
1949, when Archbishop Spyridon was
elected primate of the State Church. Priests and monastics were
arrested, beaten, and forcibly shaved; churches
were seized; Old Calendarists were barred from theological schools.
Metropolitan Chrysostomos himself was
arrested in 1951. Yet the members of the True Church remained firm in
their defense of the Faith, preferring
persecution to compromise. Only in 1954 did the persecution come to an
end. Unfortunately, however, Bishops
Polykarpos and Christophoros once again returned to the State Church,
leaving Metropolitan Chrysostomos
alone, unable to consecrate a successor before his blessed repose.
In 1960, two bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad consecrated
to the episcopacy Archimandrite
Akakios. Shortly thereafter, a third bishop from the Church Abroad,
along with Bishop Akakios, consecrated
further bishops.
Following the repose of Archbishop Akakios, Archbishop Auxentios of
Gardikia was elected Archbishop of the
True Orthodox Church of Greece. Following a period of growth and
strengthening, the direction of the church
began to wane under Archbishop Auxentios' poor guidance.
Therefore, in February, 1979, with the encouragement and agreement of
Archbishop Auxentios, Metropolitan
Callistos of Corinth and Antonios of Megara consecrated eight new
bishops in order to strengthen the Church.
Unfortunately, however, Archbishop Auxentios' fellow bishops refused to
accept these consecrations. Thus, a
new synod was formed by Metropolitans Callistos, Antonios, and the newly
consecrated bishops. During this
time communion was established with the Old Calendar Church of Romania.
Following a period of confusion,
Metropolitan Cyprian of Fili and Oropos was established as president of
the Synod.
Metropolitan Cyprian is one of the most influential and respected
hierarchs in modern day Greece. He was a
spiritual son of the Blessed Archimandrite Philotheos (Zervakos) and is
the founder and abbot of the Holy
Monastery of Saints Cyprian and Justina in Fili, a spiritual center for
all of Greece. His ecclesiastical stand is
significant for its moderate, yet uncompromising, view. While separating
from the State Church for reasons of
faith, he refuses to declare them devoid of Grace, following the
position of Metropolitan Chrysostomos of
Florina. It is precisely this point which separates his Synod from the
other, extremist, Old Calendar groups.
The Synod of Metropolitan Cyprian has parishes and monasteries
throughout Greece, Africa, Australia, Sweden,
and North America. It is in full ecclesiastical communion with the Old
Calendar Church of Romania, headed by
Metropolitan Vlasie, the Old Calendar Church of Bulgaria, headed by
Bishop Photios, and now, the Russian
Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, headed by Metropolitan Vitaly.
Bishop Photios, the sole Old Calendarist hierarch in Romania, was
consecrated to the episcopacy by
Metropolitan Cyprian and Bishops Chrysostomos of Etna and Pahomie of the
Romanian Church. Bishop Photios
was a student and disciple of the renowned confessors of faith and
theologians, Archimandrites Seraphim and
Sergey of Bulgaria. Vladyka Photios concelebrated with Metropolitan
Vitaly and several other bishops of the
Russian Church Abroad on July 4/17, 1994, in the Church of Saint John
the Baptist in Mayfield, Pennsylvania.
It is our hope that the holy alliance of our sister Churches may be a
show of resistance against the tide of
ecumenism and modernism which have had such a devastating effect on the
Church.
The Editors
Source: The Old Calendar Orthodox Church of Greece by Archimandrite
[Bishop] Chrysostomos with Hieromonk [Bishop] Ambrosios and
Hieromonk [Bishop] Auxentios (Center For Traditionalist Orthodox
Studies, Etna, CA, 1985).
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Extract From the Minutes of the Council of Bishops
of
The Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia
On 28 June/11 July, 1994, the Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox
Church Outside of Russia addressed
the question of the possibility of entering into communion in prayer and
the Eucharist with the group of Old
Calendarist Greeks headed by Metropolitan Cyprian.
Circumstances of the case: A petition from the synod of Metropolitan
Cyprian on this matter was received by
the Synod of Bishops in 1993, but was not acted upon. Soon after, a new
request was received, asking that the
matter be reexamined. On 21 July/3 August 1993, the Synod of Bishops
appointed a committee to study this
question and present a report to the Synod of Bishops. In Connection
with this, the Council heard the following:
1) The report of the Committee, which consisted of Their Graces,
Archbishop Laurus and Bishops Daniel and
Mitrophan, who studied the question of the existing divisions within the
Greek Old Calendar Church;
2) A short history of the Greek Old Calendarist Church from its
beginnings to the present day;
3) During deliberations, attention was also given to statements of those
opposed to the union, in which
questions were raised as the canonicity of Metropolitan Cyprian's groups
and their allegedly un-Orthodox
teaching on grace. The remarks of private individuals were also heard
concerning this question;
4) In addition, petitions from the Romanian Old Calendarists and the
Bulgarian Bishop Photios, and from several
private individuals, all urging the reception of the groups of
Metropolitan Cyprian into communion of prayer,
were heard;
5) During the deliberation of all the question outlined above, it was
established that:
a) The Synod of Metropolitan Cyprian adheres wholly to the exact same
ecclesiological and dogmatic principals
as our Russian Church Outside of Russia. This is set forth in detail in
their pamphlet, "An Exposition of the
Doctrine Concerning the Church, for Orthodox Opposed to the Heresy of
Ecumenism";
b) In 1986, the Synod of Archbishop Chrysostomos II tried and deposed
Metropolitan Cyprian in absentia for
allegedly holding to heretical teaching and for refusing to unite
himself to their synod. But as the history of the
Old Calendar divisions shows, Metropolitan Cyprian had never entered the
synod of Archbishop Chrysostomos
II, which was only formed in late 1985, but was a member of the synod of
Metropolitan Callistos in 1983,
Metropolitan Cyprian headed the synod of the former. Metropolitan
Cyprian had never submitted to his
authority; the latter therefore lack the competence to discipline him.
After deliberation and analysis of all aspects of these questions, the
Council of Bishops holds that at the present
time, when apostasy is spreading and many official representatives of
Orthodoxy, such as the Patriarchate of
Constantinople and other patriarchates, are succumbing to and embracing
the position of the modernists and
ecumenists, it is very important for the true Orthodox to unite, stand
together and oppose the betrayers of the
Orthodoxy of the holy fathers. In connection with this, the Council of
Bishops has decided:
1) To establish communion in prayer and the Eucharist with the Greek Old
Calendarist synod of Metropolitan
Cyprian, as well as with His Grace, Bishop Photios of Triaditsa, who
heads the Bulgarian Old Calendar diocese.
2) All parties refrain from interfering in each others' internal
ecclesiastical affairs. If any questions arise which
require deliberation, it is essential to take counsel together.
RESOLVED: 1) To communicate the above-cited decision to Metropolitan
Cyprian and Bishop Photios.
2) To inform our clergy and flock of the Council's decision through
publication in church periodicals.
The Council of Bishops
Published in Orthodox Life, Vol. 44, No. 4 (July-August 1994), pp.
46-50.