Archbishop Augustine of Lviv and Halych on faulty reunions

June 13, 2008 (UOC) - Archbishop Augustine in his article "On Unity of the Chuch", published on the site of the Council of Bishops of the ROC, reflects on the causes of emerging of the church dissents and on the ways of their overcoming.

Commenting on the church canonical situation in Ukraine the hierarch points out that several aspects of the problem of preserving the church unity are to be considered: the canonical, dogmatic and moral ones.

"Today, as far as the church schism existing in our country is concerned, it is not unusual to hear from some people the appeals to refuse from certain church canons, which are declared to be outdated and to have sense only under particular circumstances, relevant to the historical past", - Vladyka Augustine noted. "As a rule, these declarations belong to representatives of quasi-church intellectuals or para-church political leaders taken with the ideas of national consciousness and the "state Church" and defend the initiators of both schisms. Quite a statement by his eminence here. Metropolitan Philip (Antiochian Orthodox) might disagree when last week he stated that there are three types of canons: dogmatic ("cannot be touched"), contextual ("in the context of time"), and dead (no longer relevant). He mentions that a canon says that a Christian should not receive medical help from a Jew. When he had his heart surgery 4 of his doctors were Jewish. Then he was told to go swimming for recovery. Another canon forbids swimming with Jews. "How do I do that in Miami?" he states. A good question.

Being unaware of the nature of the Church as a theanthropic organism, they put forward demands of immediate elimination of existing separations between the believers," Archbishop Augustine emphasizes. They argue that the modern life is different and the old canons has turned from instruments of order into the mechanism of breaking, which obstruct the development of the living spirit in the Church and making necessary transformations in it.

They suggest that one of the main conditions for the church development is overcoming schisms in a newly found manner in defiance the "old-fashioned" canonical ways. The reunion initiators "do not suggest reunification with the canonical Church through penance, but in any other way in order to evade the feat of moral choice", the hierarch notes. "The approach of the radical consolidators mentioned causes logically consequent indignation of the people who are well aware of the church tradition and are reverently concerned of its preservation. And this is understandable since the attempt against the canonical Law of the Church is unacceptable in terms of the evangelic morals."

As an example of a truly church solution of a similar problem archbishop Augustine mentioned the reunification of the Russian Church Abroad with the Moscow Patriarchate. He noted that "those modern influential politicians and representatives of the authorities, who consider their mission to be the support of the church reunification processes in Ukraine, are to learn by this example".

"The Russian Church Abroad was in dissent with the Moscow Patriarchate", emphasized Vladyka Augustine, "as a result of the Russian revolution of 1917, and it developed in its own way for many years, but by the beginning of the 21st century it realized that only the unity in love is the basic principle of being of the orthodox Church of Christ, which contains all plenitude of grace. The internal presupposition for the reunification of the two branches of the Russian Church became due and it took place willingly, naturally and without pressure from any party." In dissent? They "dissented" because their patriarch told them to as the Communists were slowly breaking down the autonomy of the Russian Orthodox Church. I see his point, though.

Today, states Vladyka Augustine, the initiators of the so-called "reunification of the two branches of the Orthodoxy", staying out of the fold of the canonical Orthodox Church, argue that this reunification is required by the interests of the state and the nation, and above all - this reunification is imposed by the necessity of freedom. "Of course it is not the freedom that is achieved by the comprehension of Truth, as the Apostle said, but by the freedom that headed the prodigal son to the distant land", he reminded the sense of the gospel parable.

In conclusion of his article the hierarch underlines that the return to the fold of the Holy Orthodox Church of the leaders and adherents of the so-called "Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church" and the "Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate" will be possible when the hostility is overcome and the Christian love is restored". Amen.