Russian rail-car churches

More pictures available at English Russia.

Rome seeks coordination with Moscow on defending human life

VATICAN CITY (CNS) - Catholics in Russia must work together with the country's much larger Orthodox community to defend human life and the family and promote strong moral values, Pope Benedict XVI said.

The pope met the four Catholic bishops of Russia Jan. 29, the last day of their "ad limina" visits to the Vatican to report on the status of their dioceses and just two days after the Russian Orthodox Church elected a new patriarch.

In a situation where Catholic-Orthodox differences involving theology, church structure and practice make formal dialogue a challenge, the pope said, the bishops must engage in dialogue on a personal level.

"Such contacts contribute to greater mutual understanding, thanks to which it is possible to work together in areas of common interest," he said.

"It is important that Christians unite to face the great cultural and ethical challenges of the present moment concerning the dignity of the human person and his inalienable rights, the defense of life at every stage, the safeguarding of the family and other urgent economic and social questions," the pope said.

In a country like Russia, so deeply marked by more than 1,000 years of Orthodox tradition and culture, "it is essential to take into account the necessity of a renewed commitment to dialogue with our Orthodox brothers and sisters," Pope Benedict said.

While again offering his best wishes to Patriarch-elect Kirill of Moscow, the pope also prayed that God would "confirm us all in the commitment to walk together on the path of reconciliation and fraternal love."

Pope Benedict told the Catholic bishops he understood the challenges of ministering in Russia and he praised their efforts to "relaunch liturgical-sacramental participation, catechesis, priestly formation and the preparation of a mature and responsible laity" after decades of communist repression of church activities.

In addition to the lingering effects of communist atheism, he said, Russia also is experiencing a crisis in family life, a sharply declining birthrate and other problems common to Western industrialized nations. Where, in Russia, 64% of pregnancies end in abortion with similar numbers in former Soviet states.

"These problems also worry government authorities, with whom it is therefore advisable to collaborate for the good of all," he said.

Pope Benedict told the bishops not to let themselves be discouraged when results do not seem to match the amount of effort they put into pastoral programs.

"Nourish in yourselves and in your collaborators an authentic spirit of faith, trusting that Jesus will make their efforts bear fruit in time," he said.

Back from the Dominican Republic

I have returned from the Dominican Republic. While my family enjoyed 20 degree weather, the worst ice storm since the 1980s, and a power outage, I was forced (forced I say!) to stay in a hotel by the beach, eat sancocho, and watch the dancing of El Diablo Cojuelo. I have a wonderful wife who managed to watch all the kids, make it to doctors' appointments, and coordinate all the rest while very pregnant.

Orthodox voices for life

Moving and powerful posts from the AOI blog.

From Metropolitan Jonah (OCA) ...

From Fr. Aris Metrakos ...

Fr. Aris Metrakos, priest at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in San Francisco, California, delivered this address at a memorial service for the victims of abortion held at the St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Cathedral on the eve of the West Coast Walk for Life on January 23, 2009. In his talk, Fr. Aris offers reasons why abortion on demand became accepted in the culture, and what Christians must do to restore a culture of life.

Download audio file (Metrakos-Compromise-Or-Kingdom.mp3)

Traditional Anglican Communion a Personal Prelature?

(Telegraph) - The Pope is preparing to offer the Traditonal Anglican Communion, a group of half a million dissident Anglicans, its own personal prelature by Rome, according to reports this morning.

"History may be in the making", reports The Record. "It appears Rome is on the brink of welcoming close to half a million members of the Traditional Anglican Communion into membership of the Roman Catholic Church. Such a move would be the most historic development in Anglican-Catholic relations in the last 500 years. But it may also be a prelude to a much greater influx of Anglicans waiting on the sidelines, pushed too far by the controversy surrounding the consecration of practising homosexual bishops, women clergy and a host of other issues."

Here is Anthony Barich's report in full. My guess is that, if this happens, Anglo-Catholics in the C of E will move to Rome in unprecedented numbers under a similar arrangement. More on this later. Also, see American Catholic, which broke the story on the web...

Complete article here.

And for those not familiar with this term:

Personal prelature: "Personal prelatures exist to carry out specific pastoral missions in the Church, and are part of the jurisdictional, hierarchical structure of the Church. Personal prelatures have a prelate, secular priests, and men and women lay faithful, united as a single organism to carry out the prelature's mission."

U.S. Ukrainian Orthodox Church building a museum

(uocofusa.org) - In 2001, the 15th Sobor approved the development of the Historical and Educational Complex of our Church which includes the Patriarch Mstyslav Museum. It has taken a very long time to become a reality. After much planning, adjustments, obtaining approvals from township officials, and overcoming other challenges, the time to commence construction has finally arrived.

Since the ground breaking in the summer of 2007, from the windows of the Consistory offices we have seen endless numbers of dump trucks hauling in and hauling out the fill needed to satisfy the township codes. Then came the compactors and tampers that made the walls of the consistory shake. Then we heard the ceaseless sounds of table saws as wood was cut to make the forms and molds for the cement footings and foundation walls. Along with that was the sound of water gushing though the consistory pipes as the contractors accidently cut a water line, and left the building without water pressure. Then the cement trucks turned their mixers as they poured their contents into the prepared forms.

Finally, on Monday, January 19, 2009, at 7am, the first of eleven trucks, each loaded with 12 to 15 tons of steel, pulled into the Cultural Center parking lot at 135 Davidson Ave. The following day, an additional four trucks arrived. By Tuesday afternoon, steel beams and gerters were arranged in neat piles around the nearly two acre fenced in construction site.

The costs expended to date exceed $1.6 million. This figure includes all the planning and architectural and engineering work, site preparation including foundations and footings, and structural steel. We have been blessed to be the recipients of generous bequests for the museum from individuals such as Mykhailo Werbiany, Sviatoslav Kybaliuk, John Kozel, Marie Krotiuk, George Chaplenko and others, as well as many donations from individuals, churches and organizations, among them Self Reliance NY Federal Credit Union, the Ukrainian Orthodox League, St. Mary Protectress Sisterhood in S. Bound Brook, the Ukrainian Information Bureau, the Virginia Farrah Foundation and many others. The United Ukrainian Orthodox Sisterhoods of the UOC of the USA made fundraising for the museum construction project its priority, and has to date, raised over $350,000 towards that end.

As soon as the structure is up, which will be in the next several months, we will be faced with another huge challenge.

We will need to raise an additional $2,500,000 to complete and furnish the museum. We are faced with many challenges in today’s world, but with God’s blessings, we can do this. It’s an exciting time, a time of change. The museum is an integral part of our complex as it will preserve our past and educate future generations. If you would like more information on becoming a supporter, founder or benefactor of the Museum, please contact Dr. Stephen Sivulich, Development Officer at (412) 276-1130 or ssivulich1@juno.com.

New Patriarch of Moscow

(Russia Today) - Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad has been elected the new head of the Russian Orthodox Church. The Council, which comprised clergymen, monks and laymen, announced on Tuesday the results of the voting for the post of Patriarch of Moscow and all Russia.

Kirill has been temporarily in charge of the church since the death in December of Aleksy the Second.

Kirill had previously been head of the external church relations department. He also hosted a TV programme popular among Russian believers and viewed on one of Russia’s main television channels.

Kirill was an active supporter of the reunification between the two branches of the Russian Orthodox Church, which was completed in May 2007.

Metropolitan Kirill was born in St. Petersburg and is believed to be on friendly terms with many of Russia’s top officials. He has, himself, become a prominent personality throughout the country.

Originally, three Metropolitans - Kirill, Kliment and Filaret - had been short-listed by the Archbishop Council as potential successors to Aleksy II, who died last month. They were elected by secret ballot on Sunday from 145 potential candidates. Filaret later withdrew from the race in favour of Kirill.

For the first time, international candidates were eligible to stand. Patriarchs from Ukraine, Moldova and Germany were in the Russian capital for the voting.

A podcast to check out - Thy Word

Thy Word is a verse-by-verse Bible study from an Orthodox Christian perspective. Thy Word features Fr. James Early and the adult Bible study class at St. Joseph Antiochian Orthodox Church in Houston, Texas.

The Icon New Media Network people also have other podcast for your review; including Generation Orthodox, The Man in Black, and others.

Also, apologies for infrequent posting this week. I'm in the Dominican Republic where Internet quality and available time are variably accessible.

Iraqi martyrs' relics presented to Pope of Rome

(AsiaNews) - The Iraqi Chaldean bishops have given Benedict XVI the liturgical robe of Archbishop Paul Faraj Rahho and the stole belonging to Fr. Ragheed Ganni. Both men were killed in Mosul, Archbishop Rahho in 2008, Fr. Ragheed in 2007. The gifts were given during the concluding audience for the ad limina visit made recently by the Eastern bishops. The pope received the relics "with emotion," and recalled the "victims of violence in Iraq during these years" - and in particular the two martrys and the many other priests and faithful - saying that "their sacrifice is a sign of their love for the Church and their country."

In his address to the bishops, the pontiff emphasized the "irreplaceable" value of the Chaldean Church in the history of the East, and of Iraq in particular, and exhorted them to continue this mission in the service "of the human and spiritual development" of the country. For this reason, he said that "it is necessary to promote a high cultural level among the faithful, especially among the young. A good formation in the various areas of knowledge, both religious and secular, is a valuable investment for the future."

He also asked the Iraqi faithful to carry out "a role of moderation" in the construction of the country, in order to shape relationships of understanding among Christians and Muslims, specifying that "the Christians who have always lived in Iraq are full-fledged citizens with the same rights and duties as all, without distinction of religion."

The pope addressed more directly the "daily violence" directed against the Christians. He asked the bishops to support their faithful by "urging them to love the land of their ancestors, to whom they remain profoundly attached." At the same time, the bishops must "appeal to the authorities responsible for the recognition of their human and civil rights."

To the problem of violence in the country is also connected the problem of the diaspora and of emigration. Benedict XVI thanked all of those who in various countries are welcoming the Iraqis who "for a certain period of time must unfortunately leave Iraq," and asked the bishops to care for the faithful of the diaspora. "It is indispensable," the pontiff specified, "for the faithful to preserve their cultural and religious identity, and for the young people to discover and appreciate the rich heritage of their ancestral Church. In this perspective, the spiritual and moral assistance required by the faithful scattered throughout the world must be taken into serious consideration by their pastors, in fraternal relations with the bishops of the local churches."

The pope also emphasized the importance of synod assemblies among the bishops, urging them to "communion and to living interepiscopal charity" in order to "elaborate common pastoral directives." In this regard, the synod of Chaldean bishops scheduled for last December was delayed until May of 2009, despite all of the urgencies presented by the situation in the country.

Finally, Benedict XVI asked the bishops to be close to their faithful, and to urge them on by example, to "remain close to the people in need or in difficulty, the sick, the suffering," and praised the efforts of many Christians who are giving a "testimony of unselfish charity . . . without distinction of origin or religion."

The pope concluded with a wish: "May the prayer and help of your brothers in the faith and of many people of good will accompany you, so that the loving face of God may continue to shine upon the Iraqi people who have known such great suffering."

Close vote in first round of patriarchal election

(Reuters) - The Russian Orthodox Church's Council of Bishops Sunday nominated three candidates to succeed Patriarch Alexiy II, who died last month.

The church's Local Council, made up of about of 700 priests, monks and laymen, will convene Tuesday for a final vote on who will be the next patriarch.

Following are brief descriptions of the three shortlisted candidates:

METROPOLITAN KIRILL, 62: Received 97 (two short of necessary 99) votes of the 197 valid ballots cast in the Council of Bishops.

He heads the Church's department for external relations, the same role filled by Alexiy II before he became Patriarch, and has been named acting head of the church.

An articulate public speaker, Kirill is seen by many Russians as the public face of the Church, with frequent public appearances on television programs.

Many hope he will establish better ties with Catholics if elected the next Patriarch. In December 2007 Kirill held a rare meeting with Pope Benedict in the Vatican. Kirill said he was increasingly optimistic about better relations with Rome.

Orthodox theologian Jean-Francois Colossimo said: "Kirill was the rector of the Leningrad seminary, which was the one most open to the West. He is very open to international questions and speaks very well."

Kirill was born in Leningrad -- now St Petersburg -- into a priest's family and was ordained a priest in 1969.

METROPOLITAN KLIMENT, 59: Picked up 32 votes in the Council of Bishops. He is a prominent figure within the hierarchy and manages the Church's economic affairs. But compared with Kirill, he is considered to be closer to the government, said a church source.

Kliment was born in the Moscow region and enrolled in a Moscow seminary in 1970. He completed his studies in 1974 after serving two years in the Soviet army, according to his biography on the www.patriarhia.ru website.

Apart from ministering in the United States and Canada in the 1980s, the website reports he held a succession of prominent positions in the Church in the 1990s.

In 2006 he was appointed to a state role, to chair a committee of the Russian Federation's Public Chamber responsible for the country's spiritual and cultural heritage.

"Kliment is a man of the...system," said Antoine Niviere, editor of the Orthodox Press Service in Paris. "He took an official trip to the U.S. in the 1980s, which means he was considered loyal to the state."

"Kliment gives the impression of being conservative and dependable. Kliment represents continuity in the tradition of a Russian Orthodox Church subservient to the state. Kirill is ... seeking an alliance, a partnership with the state."

METROPOLITAN FILARET, 73: The Metropolitan of Minsk and Slutsk received 16 votes. Based in Belarus, Filaret has developed cordial relations with the nation's President Alexander Lukashenko who has been accused by Western governments of quashing democratic freedoms.

In striking contrast to many senior clergy in Russia, Filaret has good relations with local Catholics. But at the same time he lobbied for the adoption of a law on religions which proclaimed Orthodoxy the main faith in Belarus.

In 2004, Filaret angered Belarus's opposition and human rights activists when he asked Alexiy II to decorate a Belarussian special forces commander with a top Russian Orthodox Church order. The opposition said the officer was responsible for kidnappings of its activists in the 1990s, but Alexiy eventually decided to decorate the man.

Filaret currently heads the Theological Commission of the Church's Holy Synod.

Bells to be rung for new Patriarch of Moscow

Moscow, January 25, (Interfax) - Bell ringers of Christ the Savior Cathedral are going to revive one ancient Russian bell ringing pattern which will accompany the enthronement of the 16th Patriarch of Moscow next Sunday, February 1.

"This ancient patriarchal ringing was first described by foreign travelers in the 17th century. We want to revive and ring it during the enthronement of a new Patriarch," Igor Konovalov, artistic director of bell ringing of the Moscow Kremlin and Christ the Savior Cathedral told a correspondent of Interfax-Religion.

According to Konovalov, this ringing pattern was played during the services celebrated to enthrone Patriarchs of Moscow and All Russia to the patriarchal see beginning from the middle 17th century to the epoch of Tsar Peter the Great, when the Patriarchate was cancelled.

Besides, all bells of the main Russian cathedral will ring during the enthronement.

Konovalov also mentioned that particularly solemn ringing was played on five bell towers of the cathedral - four main towers and one over-the-gate Spaso-Preobrazhensky tower - on Sunday morning before the opening of the Archbishops' Council which has to elect three candidates for the patriarch's office. This ringing was repeated on the Ivan the Great Tower in the Moscow Kremlin.

St. Vladimir's seminarians March for Life

(SVOTS) - Twenty-six St. Vladimir’s seminarians, along with family members, seminary staff, and SVS Chancellor Archpriest Chad Hatfield, joined a large “Orthodox Christians for Life” contingent in the annual “March for Life” in Washington, D.C. on January 22, 2009. This year marks the 36th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark 1973 decision legalizing abortion, and the SVS delegation traveled to the nation’s capital to show their compassionate and protective stance toward the unborn and to express their strong disagreement with the Supreme Court decision.

“Personally,” said Fr. Chad, “the ‘culture of death’—a term made popular by Pope John Paul II—had its beginning in the cultural acceptance of the killing of our pre-born children. The voiceless need our voice, and this March for Life is a powerful way to keep the horror of abortion before our nation and the world.”

Metropolitan Jonah, primate of the Orthodox Church in America (OCA), led the Orthodox delegation in the March for Life under a large iconographic banner, and was the first religious leader to speak at the related rally on Capitol Hill. His pastoral letter for Sanctity of Life Sunday (January 18th) has been posted on the OCA webpage.

SVS students gathered in solidarity with their fellow seminarians from St. Tikhon’s Orthodox Theological Seminary in South Canaan, PA; the rector of St. Tikhon’s, His Grace, Bishop Tikhon of Philadelphia and Eastern Pennsylvania, also addressed the marchers on Capitol Hill. This was the second year that SVS seminarians have joined in the March for Life, and Metropolitan Jonah challenged all the marchers to triple their presence in 2010.

St. Vladimir’s seminarians received a several helping hands during their journey to present their pro-life stance. First, the seminary had received $1,800 in donations to cover the cost of their travel. “With our tight budget,” said Fr. Chad, “this made our participation safe and possible.”

Second, Archpriest Constantine White, Dean of St. Nicholas Cathedral, the OCA cathedral in Washington, D.C., and his parishioners hosted the SVS group for a meal at the parish before they made the trip back to New York. Fr. Constantine is an alumnus of SVS (’79).

Click here to view more of photos of the March for Life.

View comments and photos from SVS participants in the 2009 March for Life on the St. Vladimir's Seminary Facebook page.

Metropolitan Kirill defends WCC membership

Moscow, January 23, (Interfax) - Patriarchal Locum Tenens Metropolitan Kirill says that accusations of the Russian Church leaders in betrayal of Orthodoxy are groundless.

"I can't understand those who repeat old, long ago disproved myths about "betrayal of Orthodoxy," "confusion of confessions" and so on," the Metropolitan said in his interview published by the Rossiiskaya Gazeta on Friday.

Thus, he commented on the opinion of some Orthodox believers who speak against participation of the Russian Church in work of the World Council of Churches and any contacts with representatives of other Christian confessions.

"I would like to assure everyone interested that I am rather critical about this organization and I see both positive and negative sides of our participation in it. We carefully monitor all recent developments in the World Council of Churches, especially in the field of its contacts with extremely liberal wing of modern Protestantism," Metropolitan Kirill said.

He noted that until now the Moscow Patriarchate together with other Orthodox Churches "has managed to keep the World Council of Churches from sliding to this dangerous side."

"However, we should be ready to make decisive steps any moment, including to suspend our membership. It's important that decisions on our membership in international Christian organizations are taken on basis of wide theological discussion among those who know the discussed subject very well and are capable of making responsible decisions," the Patriarchal Locum Tenens summed up.

More on Syriac Catholic bishops' visit in Rome

VATICAN CITY, 23 JAN 2009 (VIS) - This morning in the Vatican, Benedict XVI received bishops of the Syriac Catholic Church, led by His Beatitude Ignace Youssif III Younan, recently elected as patriarch of Antioch of the Syrians by the Synod of Bishops of the Syriac Catholic Church, meeting in Rome from 18 to 20 January.

The Pope began his remarks by asking the Lord to concede "the grace of the apostolate" to the new patriarch, that he may "serve the Church and glorify her Holy Name before the world". He then greeted Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches, who presided over the recent synod; Cardinal Ignace Moussa I Daoud, prefect emeritus of same dicastery; His Beatitude Ignace Pierre Andel Ahad, patriarch emeritus of Antioch of the Syrians, and all the prelates who came to Rome "to carry out this most important act of synodal responsibility".

"Since the origins of Christianity", he continued, "the Apostles Peter and Paul were intimately associated with Antioch where the disciples of Jesus first received the name of Christians". He also mentioned various illustrious Fathers of the faith from that region, including St. Ignatius and St. Ehprem, "whose spirituality continues to illuminate the universal Church".

"The new patriarch is the main guardian of this heritage", he said, "yet each of you, as brothers and members of the synod, will have to help him in his task in a spirit of authentic episcopal collegiality. In the hands of the new patriarch and of the Syriac Catholic episcopate I place, first and above all, the duty to maintain unity, both among pastors and within ecclesial communities".

The Holy Father then went on to refer to the ecclesial communion requested of him by the new patriarch, underlining how he had granted it "willingly, thus performing a part of the Petrine ministry which gives me particular pleasure. Communion with the Bishop of Rome, Peter's Successor, established by the Lord as the visible foundation of unity in faith and charity, guarantees the bond with Christ the Pastor and introduces the particular Churches into the mystery of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church".

Having reviewed the biography of the new patriarch, who was born in Syria but spent his episcopal ministry in America, Benedict XVI affirmed that "the diaspora has also contributed to giving the Syriac Church her new patriarch. In this way, even stronger ties will be forged with a motherland that so many Eastern Christians have had to leave in search of better living conditions".

"My hope is that in the East, where the Gospel was first announced, Christian communities may continue to live and bear witness to their faith, as they have over the centuries. At the same time I hope that all those outside their homeland may receive adequate pastoral care so as to maintain the bond with their religious roots". The Pope then expressed the hope that the Eastern communities, "wherever they may be, are able to integrate themselves into their new social and ecclesial surroundings without losing their own identity and conserving the imprint of their Eastern spirituality, so that, using the words East and West, the Church may speak effectively of Christ to modern mankind".

The Pope concluded by indicating that the members of the Syriac Catholic Church should "be peacemakers in the Holy Land, Iraq and Lebanon", where their historical presence has been "much appreciated".

Scantron not your saints

H/T: Orthodukso

Quite a different opinion I think would be taken in other countries. I expect the hierarchs in other locales would be tickled pink to have the saints from their respective countries in the running.

(BBC) - A row has erupted in Georgia after a TV show called Top Ten Best Georgians included 18 saints in its shortlist.

Representatives of Georgia's most senior cleric, Patriarch Ilia II, have called for the programme to be banned.

A spokesman for the patriarch, who is the head of the Georgian Orthodox Church, said it was wrong to ask the public to put saints in rank order.

But the show's editors have refused to comply and say production of the next edition is going ahead as planned.

In a country where the word of the Church is seen as supreme, this contest was always going to be controversial.

The TV program, modeled on the BBC's 100 Great Britons, asked viewers and contestants to vote on 500 candidate personalities from Georgia's past.

Among them were well-known national cultural figures, as well as those who have been canonized.

And that is where the row started.

Subordinates of Patriarch Ilia II had voiced their concern about the format of the TV show from its outset.

At first those calls mostly went unheeded.

Then, voting by more than 300,000 viewers put one of Georgia's most widely celebrated medieval kings - now known to the Church as Saint David the Builder- into the top 50.

A further 13 saints also made it on to the shortlist.

At once the Georgian Orthodox Church protested that saints should never have been part of the contest because it was, in their words, unjustified to make the public put them in rank order.

Reports say the board of the TV channel that airs the show has been deadlocked as to how to respond.

It is rare for anyone in a position of authority - even leading politicians - to oppose the view of the Georgian patriarch.

But now the program editors say that they will not be hurried into a decision and recording for the next edition will go ahead on Thursday.

As with a similar public debate in Ukraine last year over its version of the contest, the row has polarized Georgian society.

Many believe that the patriarch is more important than the law.

As the show continues to reduce the shortlist to a top 10 over the coming weeks, the debate looks set to continue.

A tiff about marriage

CЯЦISIИG DOШИ ТНЕ СОДST OF THE HIGH БДЯБДЯEE has a post on a back and forth he is having with a woman on marriage. I found it engaging.

Because I find it amusing, I will respond to this woman's salvo against my post on marriage, at least until I get bored.

If your partner is hospitalized in the ICU after a critical accident, you don't have family visitation rights. Why?

Because you're not family. Best friends also don't have visitation rights. Even best friends who are roommates. But when best friends who are roommates also have sex, then they should have special rights? Why there is a social imperative for homosexual couples to have a number of the privileges you listed is, so far, unjustified by you. I lived next door for a while to a couple of aging sisters that lacked a number of the privileges homosexuals are asking for and are, at least by your arguments, equally entitled to them. They loved each other. They cared about each other. They shared a house, and at their age, they weren't going anywhere--but no special joint-filing status, no special joint property rights, and so on. No one is advocating for their rights.

And as a Ron Paul supporter, I would think you would support the hospital's right to set its own visitation policy. I do. Regarding the specific issue of visitation rights, I think privately owned hospitals should be able to set whatever rules they want.

"If we legalize gay marriage, we're going to start seeing pressure to legalize multiple marriages!"

That's not the argument I made. I was simply pointing out that legal precedent for denying special privilege to certain kinds of cohabiting people in sexual relationships already exists, as opposed to making a slippery-slope argument. This is because arguments for gay marriage often turn on a "fairness" claim that is already contrary to legal precedent.

if we were to legitimize marriage between family members, it would turn into a medical snafu of the highest degree,

There are no laws banning marriage between people whose children are at a high risk for genetic defect, or banning sex between older couples whose children are at a high risk for Down's. So this is kind of a bad argument against banning incest, unless you're going to put the government in charge of deciding who is and isn't genetically fit to mate. Also, this is immaterial to arguments based on fairness. Homosexual couples, especially men, are at higher risk for medical problems. Her argument against polygamy, which I didn't reprint, was that it would make life hard for the IRS--so now rights should be granted or restricted based on how difficult it makes the tax code?

So does this mean that any sexual activity other than penis-in-vagina intercourse is considered immoral and sinful, and other rhetorical questions?

I doubt most of these were intended to be answered, but I'll just give the general paradigm here: When it comes to most of the body's functions and organs, people are generally quite competent at agreeing that they have a "normal" purpose. When it comes to sex, however, people come entirely unglued, and suddenly, my body's purpose and function is defined by my will alone. People who can agree that noses are for breathing and eyes are for seeing most strenuously and vigorously deny that reproductive organs are for reproducing. People who agree that lungs are not for smoking and lower backs are not for lifting are for some reason unable to say that rectums are not for reaming. There simply is not a consistent view of the human body here. Yes, my view of sex is procreative, and my understanding of what the family is builds on that. At least it's consistent, both philosophically and biologically.

Are they looking for the same basic rights as a committed couple so that they can share property ownership and power of attorney and health insurance and retirement? Yes. What does that have to do with the act of sex?

That is precisely my point. Why should homosexuals have special rights and privileges that best friends, roommates, caring siblings, and so on do not? Because they have sex with each other? If this has nothing to do with sex, then what? And again, why limit it to two? What if three gay men really love each other, have tons of triple-butt-sex, and live together?

A common mis-argument of the gay lobby is that marriage law is about love. While love is foundational for marriage, marriage law isn't about love; it's about the socio-economic effects of procreation. People often get married out of political, social, and economic necessity/convenience. Family law in general, which touches other aspects, such as the transferral of property and inheritance, has little at all to do with love. If people simply grew out of the ground and sex were merely for fun, we wouldn't have marriage law at all. Furthermore, it is not the government's job to judge whether or not two (or more!) people love each other. It is its job to protect its citizens--and regular sex has this tendency to create new little citizens.

Thus, the government does not create families, it recognizes them and accords them certain legal duties and privileges in order to for society to function (this is the basis of common-law marriage, btw). Families happen regardless of whether or not the state is paying attention due, yes, to sex. We need good marriage law (which we don't always have in this country) to prevent a man from creating lots of new little citizens with lots of different women (which is a major social liability), to protect women from being economically devastated by an unfaithful spouse, to ensure that the people who create the children provide for them, to make sure women are not left economically unmoored, and so on. Because of procreation, sex has huge effects on social and economic life. That's why we have marriage law. It has nothing at all to do with love.

Homosexual relationships simply do not create any such social concern. Homosexuals do not produce children, and so their relationships do not produce any kind of socio-economic gender inequality resulting in the need for special property rights and protections for their couplings (or triplings--homosexual sex is in no way limited to two). For the same reason, we do not have special laws enshrining the rights of best friends, cohabiting siblings, or other loving, caring relationships.

She asks, "What does the law have to do with sex?" I ask, "What does the law have to do with love?"

Mixed marriages in Russia - unequally yoked

H/T: NFTU

While this deals with Russia, it is universally applicable. This not membership in a club, but participation in a faith that fundamentally affects your life, the lives of your children, and the salvation of all involved.

Jan 19 (Georgian Daily) - Vienna, January 19 – Many Russian Orthodox priests believe that "mixed" marriages between committed Christians and committed Muslims are unlikely to work, while many Muslim leaders are convinced that such marriages are not only possible but desirable, a reflection of the very different consequences the two groups see such unions as having.

As the number of such marriages has increased in Russia – in some regions, they may form almost a third of all unions – debates have broken out among and between Orthodox clergy and Muslim religious leaders over the likelihood that such "mixed" marriages will last and over the broader impact of such unions on the future.

In these debates, a sample of which Regions.ru provides in an article posted online today, most participants tend to agree on three things: First, the official support interethnic marriages received from communist ideologues in Soviet times opened the way for unions between men and women of different religious faiths.

Second, many of the marriages outsiders count as religiously "mixed" are not because one or both of the partners is in fact not religiously "active" but rather is simply an "ethnic" Christian or an "ethnic" Muslim who is a member of a nation that historically has been associated with one or the other faith.

And third, almost all such marriages are between nominal or committed Christian men and nominal or committed Muslim women, a combination that plays out very differently in predominantly Muslim areas where the Muslim partner tends to gain the upper hand and in non-Muslim areas where the reverse is often the case.

Given how sensitive such issues are and the difficulty sociologists have in tapping into this most private of spheres, some of the responses individual Christian and Muslim leaders offered to the Regions.ru site are worth noting, even though in every case they reflect personal judgments rather than more objective data.

Archpriest Vladislav Sveshnikov, an Orthodox pastor in Kulishki, said that there are few marriages between committed believers but that those which do occur require that "for the preservation of a happy marriage, [one or both of the parties] will be forced to sacrifice their religious convictions."

Meanwhile Father Sergii, an Orthodox missionary who also serves as priest at the Lazarevsky cemetery, said that Orthodox canon laws prohibiting marriages with non-Christians retain their importance because when people of different faiths marry, one or both either have to give up their faith entirely or reduce its importance in their lives.

But Akhmed-khadzhi Tagayev, the first deputy chairman of the Muslim Spiritual Directorate [MSD] of Daghestan, takes an entirely different view. He sees such marriages as a positive factor to the development of society and suggests that those who are opposed to such unions "fear the strengthening of Islam" in the Russian Federation and elsewhere.

And Chuvash Mufti Albir-khazrat Kurganov said everyone should be more relaxed about such marriages. "We live in a multi-national and poly-confessional state, and today we all understand this." Thus it should not come as a surprise to anyone that "more than 30 percent of marriages in Tatarstan and Bashkortostan" are now between people of different faiths.

These arguments of Muslim leaders, however, do not appear to impress many Orthodox leaders who clearly fear that Russian Orthodox women who enter into them will convert, a development that will mean that both they and their offspring will be lost permanently to the Church.

Among those taking that view is Andrey Yefimov, the dean of the missionary faculty of the Orthodox St. Tikhon Humanitarian University. "A genuine and integral mixed marriage as a rule will not happen," he said. Most such unions "simply fall apart" or the woman involved becomes a Muslim if she lives in a Muslim area.

The situation is different if such marriages take place in a non-Muslim area such as Moscow, he continued. "In such circumstances, happy marriages will occur but only if the husband is only nominally a Muslim. Otherwise, [the wife] will have to become a Muslim," something she "should know about in advance."

Of course, the mathematician turned missionary was prepared to concede by way of a conclusion, there can be "completely successful mixed marriages" because "everything is possible," even that, in Russia today.

The Syriac Catholic Church has a new patriarch

(Kaldaya) - A few days ago the Synod of the Syriac Catholic Church, that last year failed to elect a new patriarch to replace Mar Ignace Pierre VIII Abdel-Ahad who in January had resigned, after its meeting in Rome came in a short time (3 days) at a decision. The new patriarch of the Syriac Catholic Church is, since yesterday January 20, the bishop of the Diocese of Our Lady of Deliverance for the United States and Canada, Mar Ephrem Joseph Younan who will take the name of Mar Ignatius Joseph III Younan. On Friday 23, the new patriarch will meet the Holy Father, and in mid-February there will be an official ceremony at the patriarchal headquarters in Lebanon.

H.E. Ephrem Joseph Younan


Bishop of Our Lady of Deliverance of Newark, Apostolic Visitator for the Catholic Syriacs in Central America and Venezuela.

H.E. Ephrem Joseph F. Younan born to Farjo & Khatoun (Khabot) Younan on November 15, 1944 in Hassakeh, Syria and baptized on December 8th at Assumption Parish. He is the middle child of nine children, having four brothers and four sisters.

Bishop Joseph Younan attended Assumption Parochial School and after graduation went on to study at Our Lady of Deliverance Seminary in Charfet, Lebanon. He continued to pursue his priestly formation and career at "Propaganda Fide" and earned a double Licentiate (Masters) in philosophy and theology from Urbaniana University in Rome.

Bishop Joseph was ordained to the priesthood on September 12, 1971. After ordination he was appointed as teacher in the Seminary in Charfet where he was director of the major Seminary for two years. He returned to his home Diocese of Hassakeh where he functioned as Diocesan Director of Cathechesis. He remained in this position as director for seven years. He was then appointed pastor of the Church of the Annunciation in Beirut in 1980, where he remained until 1986.

In March of 1986 he was assigned to the United States where he was to establish a mission in the New York/New Jersey Metropolitan area to gather Syriac Rite Catholics. Soon after his arrival, with the guidance and assistance of The Most Reverend Archbishop Theodore E. McCarrick (Archbishop of Newark) he established the first mission of Our Lady of Deliverance. In 1988, he was further appointed by the Sacred Congregation for Eastern Rite Churches as coordinator among his colleague missionary priests in the United States and Canada. And in 1991, he was officially appointed "Apostolic Delegate" by the same Congregation to represent the Congregation and the Syriac Rite to the Catholic hierarchy of North America.

In June of 1991, Father Younan was elevated to the rank of "Corbishop" by the Patriarch, Mar Ignatius Antoun II Hayek. The ceremony took place at Our Lady of Deliverance Mission in Newark, New Jersey.

Since this time, Corbishop Younan traveled from the East Coast to the West Coast (California) on a monthly basis to help establish another mission. Soon after his initial visits, the mission of The Sacred Heart was established in North Hollywood in 1991. Three years after, he reached out again to establish a further mission Church in San Diego called Our Mother of Perpetual Help.

On November 6, 1995, Pope John Paul II appointed him first Bishop (Eparch) of the newly established Diocese (Eparchy) Our Lady of Deliverance Syriac Catholic Diocese for Syriac Catholics in the United States and Canada. He was consecrated Bishop on January 7, 1996 at Saint Peter and Paul's Church in Kamishly, Syria by His Beatitude, the Patriarch Hayek.

Currently, Bishop Younan resides in Union City, New Jersey.

He fluently speaks Arabic, French, Aramaic, Italian, German and English.

Muslims-only scouting set up in Scotland

(copts.com) Boy Scouts in Dundee will be able to pledge allegiance to ‘Allah’ and drop the traditional oath to God and Queen, says the Scout Association in Scotland.

The Association has given its backing to starting Dundee’s 45th troop which will specifically target Muslim boys.

In the oath Muslim recruits will be able to replace the name ‘God’ with “Allah, the Most Beneficent and the Most Merciful”, and pledge to honour “the country in which I am now living” instead of the Queen.

The Scout Association is already open to all faiths and Muslim boys are currently part of existing troops, but according to the Association they are aware of some who might be opposed to the traditional pledge.

A spokesman for the Scout Association Drummond Cox claims the change “represents a tweak rather than a major change”.

He said: “The Scouts may have been a Christian organisation originally but we have long been non-denominational and inclusive.

“This new troop will in no way be exclusionary and non-Muslim boys may join if they wish in an initiative that has the support of the Muslim community.”

Mr Cox added: “There are already Muslim boys in troops around Dundee but until now we do not have one catering for Muslims specifically. It is affirmative action.”

But Richard Cook of the Campaign Against Political Correctness said: “This is a disappointing development and many people will worry about the sad loss of much-loved traditions.

“Many Muslims in this country are proud monarchists, so it seems wrong to alter the pledge.”

Mr Cook warns: “Quite apart from the risk of creating a two-tier Scout movement, there is also the question of how helpful it is to set up a group that specifically aims to recruit young Muslims when we are trying to be more inclusive of other communities.

“Doesn’t this just perpetuate the divisions at the expense of cherished traditions?”

My church is noisy

My Quiet Church is a plush (soft-sculpture) church that plays like a portable dollhouse. Roof and side wall unzip and open, revealing easy access into the church. Contains stuffed dolls of priest, nun and family, pews and altar. Convenient carrying handle. Designed for girls ages 3-9. Accessory kits will be available including outfits for baptisms, weddings and first communions.

In talking to a friend about children in church we commented that visitors to the parish are at times put off by the noise of children. At the same time I came across this new toy and, on further reflection, have put people in two (oversimplified) groups:

• Those that consider the liturgy to be a personal time of reflection and taking in of the "experience" of the Divine Liturgy. Noisiness, running about, and the occasional unnecessary discussion are a distraction and should be kept to a minimum.
• Those that consider the church to be a family. That consider the children to be the "hope" of the parish. That know in excluding any one of us it is a slippery slope from where the other imperfect specimens - the old, poor, ill-dressed, socially awkward, the talked-about sinner - should adjust to the norm or sit somewhere where they won't be bothersome.

The church is a hospital and not a courtroom. For some the medicine is still new and different, but it saves them all the same.

People converging on Moscow for election of Patriarch

Moscow, January 21, (Interfax) – Delegates start coming to the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church which is to elect a new Patriarch, the Forum’s organizational committee has told Interfax-Religion.

According to the recent information, 711 people representing 64 countries of the world are going to participate in the work of the Local Council, which is to be held on January 27-29.

One of the last Commission sessions will be held on January 22, Thursday, the Synod will meet in Moscow next day - its members will sum up and preparatory work for the Bishops’ and Local Councils.

According to the interviewee of the agency, now they are completing final lists of delegates basing on the documents received from dioceses and reserving places for guests.

“Members of the pre-council commission focus on creating all necessary conditions for the delegates, they should be well-accommodated, fed and to feel at ease in Moscow as for many of them it will be their first visit to the Russian capital,” the Committee official said.

He also reminded that an extensive program is in store for the guests: after Council work, they can visit shrines of the Holy Trinity St. Sergius Laura, the Donskoy Monastery and other popular sites for pilgrims.

Onion Dome: Iconographer has new plan for fundraising

The always funny Onion Dome...

CLEVELAND – Iconographer Ilya Kuriakin, working in St. Vladislav Parish here, has pitched a fundraising technique to the parish council that might just revolutionize the prevalence and practice of iconography across the United States.

Inspired by the 1966 Tarkovsky classic film, Andrei Rublev, Kuriakin – who is working on a fresco of the Last Judgment – is offering parishioners and others a chance to memorialize the noted and notorious in its figures.

St. Vladislav Parish is paying Kuriakin just over $20,000 for the two-year project involving a 12-foot by 20-foot wall and hundreds of figures. The iconographer has also had to work around an awkwardly placed “EXIT” sign, which Theophane the Greek never had to deal with, he says.

When Kuriakin expressed concern to the parish council about making rent payments, members gave their blessing for the iconographer to bring in additional funding.

“It’s not much different from selling brass plaques on pews,” said Dean (St. Dimitri the Many-I’d) Brunhoffer, parish council president, “and much less flagrant.”

Here’s the price list:

• Loved one among the righteous – $50
• Representation of disliked professional class among hell-bound sinners – $100
• Specific face among hell-bound sinners – $200
• Having specific face NOT included among hell-bound sinners – $500

Interest has been very lively for the various placements, and several people have already paid to have their least favorite legislator painted among the unrighteous. Kuriakin has also received photographs and $500 checks from several people inside and outside the parish who apparently think there’s a danger of appearing among the naughty rather than the nice.

“It seems to be going pretty well,” Kuriakin said. “And next summer, I might add another fund-raiser suggested by the film: balloon rides.”

Bishop Nikolai sues Orthodox Church in America

(OCA News) - The Courthouse News Service reported yesterday, January 15th, that the former Bishop of Sitka, Nikolai (Soraich) filed papers on January 12th in the Nassau County Supreme Court for an $11 million "wrongful termination in breach of contract" lawsuit against the Orthodox Church in America. The summary of docket #09-00495 states:

"The defendant forced plaintiff Nikolai to retire from his position as bishop without any cause. That position is supposed to last for life according to the defendant's statute. Nikolai was placed at the center of the defendant's politics and used as a scapegoat for its own already existing interior scandals and financial and leadership breakdown. Nikolai has sought exile in an Australian monastery and has no way of earning an income. $11 million."

If this sounds familiar it is because the OCA has heard many of these charges before. Speaking to the Associated Press in 2006 about his client, former Chancellor of the OCA, Robert S. Kondratick, attorney Harry Kutner is quoted as saying his client was dismissed because ".... leaders of the denomination (the OCA) are scapegoating Kondratick to maintain their authority in the church."

The similarities between the two complaints are not all that the deposed priest and retired Bishop share. Representing the retired Bishop of Sitka is attorney Lloyd Weinstein, of The Weinstein Group. Weinstein's small legal firm is a "Hauppauge NY group of attorneys focusing attention on all aspects of litigated matters, on specialized immigration work permits and asset recovery matters." He is perhaps better known (at least throughout the OCA) as the attorney who has replaced Harry Kutner for Robert S. Kondratick in his ongoing $25 million lawsuit against the OCA.

Celebrating Holy Communion in India

For those who have never seen an Indian Orthodox service, this will still have a familiar feel for liturgical Christians.

Cardinal Kasper on Week of Christian Unity

19 Jan 09 (RV) - The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity has begun, with this year’s theme, “that they may become one in God’s hand” was drown from the Book of Ezekiel. The week is organized by the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity and the World Council of Churches. The President of the Pontifical Council, Cardinal Walter Kasper spoke to us about the challenges facing Ecumenism today, but also about the progress that is being made. Audio interview here.

Oriental Orthodox committee met in Lebanon

01/15/09 (IOCN) - Following the meeting of the Executive Committee of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) on 15 January, the members of the Standing Committee of the Oriental Orthodox Churches in the Middle East, met in the evening at the Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia, Antelias (Lebanon).

H.E. Metropolitan Bishoy and H.G. Bishop Mark represented the Coptic Orthodox Church, and H.E. Metropolitan George Saliba and H.G. Bishop Daniel represented the Syrian Orthodox Church. His Grace Bishop Nareg represented the Armenian Orthodox Church. The General Secretary of MECC also attended the meeting.

In the first part of the agenda they discussed the relationships of the Oriental Orthodox Churches in the region with the MECC and the World Council of Churches, and the status of theological bilateral dialogues. In this context they discussed the implications of the visit of His Holiness Aram I to the Vatican on the life of the churches in the Middle East. In the second part, they discussed two forthcoming meetings. One, the Oriental Orthodox and Roman Catholic theological dialogue to be held in the end of January, and two, the meeting in May 2009 of the Heads of the Oriental Orthodox Churches in the Middle East, H.H. Pope Shenouda III, H.H. Patriarch Zakka I Iwas, and H.H. Catholicos Aram I.

Archbishop Yussef makes a visit

On Sunday Archbishop Yussef (Kallas) of Beirut came to our parish for a wedding. He spoke no English, but some people came with him to assist and some of our Melkite parishioners were quite pleased to see him.

Christian Unity Week in Turkey

Istanbul (AsiaNews) – The decision to start the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity at the Aya Triada Kilisesi of Kadikoy, i.e. the Church of the Holy Trinity of Chalcedon (pictured to the right and below), was not fortuitous. Chalcedon, today’s Kadikoy, is a posh residential neighbourhood on the Asian side of Istanbul, on the shore of the Sea of Marmara, facing glorious Saint Sophia, the ancient basilica-turned-mosques-turned museum by decree of the Turkish government. Here in the country that saw the first councils, where the Church first split, attempts are underway to put back together the many broken pieces of the centuries-old, but still lively Christian community.

Whatever their rite or confession Turkey’s Christians—a tiny minority representing 0.2 per cent in this country of 70 million—have opened the doors of their churches ever since Athenagoras and Paul VI embraced in this city in 1965. Through a thousand acts of solidarity and communion, they have embarked on the inescapable path of ecumenism.

Thus, symbolically embodying leaders and ordinary people in their daily and weekly experiences, Christians will meet to pray together starting tomorrow till next Saturday in any one of the many churches that are found among the buildings of modern Istanbul.

They will meet first at the Greek Orthodox church, followed by the German church, and then the Evangelical church; then they will visit Santa Maria Draperis Catholic church, where some years ago the Friars Minor created an “International Fraternity for Ecumenical and Inter-faith Dialogue”, one of the most significant international centres for the promotion of dialogue. On Wednesday it will be the turn of the Church of Emmanuel, a US-based Protestant Church; followed the next day by the Armenian Apostolic Church, then the Syriac Orthodox Church, and finally the Armenian Catholic Church.

“Each year this week is an interesting time in Istanbul,” said Fr Ruben Tierrablanca Gonzales, who is in charge of the Brotherhood of Friars Minor. “An ecumenical commission divides up the eight days between the various Churches. Each day is like a pilgrimage in the different Christian communities who act as host to their fellow brothers and sisters.”

When you take park in liturgies according to the Latin, Syriac, Armenians Greek or Chaldean rite, in Turkish, Aramaic, Greek, Arabic, English, French or German, you strongly feel the “communion of Saints;” the one Church “holy, universal and apostolic,” constituted by a small but varied group of Christians who meet as a sign of unity and hope in the world.

Things are very different in Ankara, home to only 250 Christian, mostly Armenian families, who live amongst six million people, with a lonely building serving as a church.

In the heart of the oldest part of a modern capital built by Ataturk in 1923, at the foot of the Citadel, across from the Museum of Anatolian Civilisations, hidden away amid run-down warehouses and wholesale stores, a salmon-coloured building stands out, a Coat of arms of the French Republic at its front, the French red-white-blue tricolour, waving at the top. This is the Church of Saint Theresa, Ankara’s only parish church.

In reality in 1905 this used to be Saint Clement College, an institution founded and run by the Christian Schools Brothers. In 1916 it was destroyed by fire as was the surrounding Armenian neighbourhood. Only a supporting wall and an old street name plaque saying “Kardesler sokak” or “Brothers Street” remain as evidence of what it once was.

In 1928 the French constructed a new building on the old ruins, after claiming title to the land, used it as the Embassy Chancery and French consul residence, before turning it into a French-language school in 1962.

Through such twists and turns the property was saved and the second floor, first used as the embassy ballroom, was quickly turned into the “French Embassy chapel,” served by a French chaplain.

Restored in 2002, it is now a Jesuit-run church, a place of worship recognised by the Turkish government, open to all of Ankara’s Christians. Here they meet every Sunday for the Eucharist celebrated by Fr Patrice Julienne de Pommarol, even if they have to do it according to six different rites. Here, ecumenism is the stuff of everyday life.

As a good French Jesuit and not to do anyone any injustice Father Patrice has set up a 12-member pastoral council representing each confessional community, six men and six women, one per group (Armenian Orthodox, Armenian Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Syriac Orthodox, Syriac Catholic, Latin Catholic).

For them the Week of Prayer in favour of Christian Unity is not going to represent anything exceptional; it will not entail taking any special initiatives; but it will mean calling upon the Holy Spirit to transform what they experience every day into an ever present reality around the world so that what Jesus wished so much might happen, “that they may all be one” so “that the world may believe that you sent me.” Indeed it is this that the heirs to the Galatians are trying to achieve, recalling the words the fiery Paul of the Nations addressed to them: “For you were called for freedom, brothers,” so “serve one another through love.”

You'll thank me later...

H/T: The Crescat

Grammar, girl!

Maybe I've been wrong about the merits of West Coast, pre-millennial rap all these years.

Words said on golden jubilee of Met. Nicholas (ACROD)

Archbishop Demetrios gives congratulatory speech on the the golden jubilee of the ordination to the priesthood of Metropolitan Nicholas (ACROD). I also linked the words of Protopresbyter Stephen Dutko.

Words from Protopresbyter Stephen Dutko:


Words from Archbishop Demetrios:

Ukrainian Church autocephaly disputes continue

KYIV (RISU) - In anticipation of the church-wide sobor (assembly) of the Russian Orthodox Church, the pro-Russian Orthodox community of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) supports strengthening unity with the Russian church and opposes translating liturgical texts into Ukrainian. Interfax was told by Yurii Yehorov, head of the pro-Russian Ukrainian civic organization Orthodox Choice, on 14 January 2009 that Orthodox from all over Ukraine will gather in Kyiv on 21 January to prepare an address to the church-wide sobor of the Russian Church to be held on 27-29 January. It is expected that the address will be written taking into account the position expressed by the pro-Russian Orthodox community of Kyiv at a meeting held a few days ago.

Yehorov stated that the selection of the lay delegates of the UOC-MP to the sobor “is effected without the participation of the lay people themselves” and that, therefore, for the representatives of the Orthodox community “it has been actually impossible to be delegated” to the sobor and express their vision of the situation of the UOC-MP.

Yehorov expressed concern over “the strengthening of sick pro-autocephaly tendencies in the Ukrainian Orthodox Church [UOC-MP].” According to him, “the group of hierarchs and clergy who support the autocephaly of the UOC[-MP] is growing stronger.”

“Recently, it has not only been joined by new hierarchs, but also its status is elevated. For instance, an old supporter of the autocephaly of the UOC[-MP], Bishop Sofronii, became a metropolitan. And this is happening in the context of the dismissal of hierarchs who are staunch supporters of the unity of the Russian Orthodox Church and who were dismissed at a capable age,” stated Yehorov.

According to Yehorov, the faithful want to hear the position of the sobor on the future of the Ukrainian church and on questions of globalization and the integration of eastern Slavic countries into the EU and NATO.

Yehorov noted that the Orthodox community of Kyiv has noticed the tendency of translating service texts into Ukrainian and using the Ukrainian language in services, which, according to him, can lead “not only to the abandonment of Church Slavonic in services but also to a threat for the UOC[-MP] of being involved in the policy of imposing ‘Ukrainianization’ on the population , which is especially actively pursued by the present Ukrainian authorities in the eastern and central regions of Ukraine.”

Russian Church removes Joker card from deck

(Reuters) - One of the most intriguing questions about the voting for a new Russian Orthodox patriarch on Jan. 27-29 has been answered. Speculation about the succession began as soon as the late Patriarch Alexiy died in December, but it had an unusual extra layer of uncertainty. Orthodox church leaders sometimes elect the top three candidates and then pick the winner by drawing lots. This, they say, lets the Holy Spirit have the final say. So even a strong front-runner could be passed over.

During the Roman Catholic Church’s papal transition in 2005, we speculated about the papabili (papal contenders) for days and explained in detail the complex rules for the election of a new pope. The “apostolic method,” as the election by lots is called, would inject additional uncertainty into the Orthodox vote — if they used it.

But Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, the acting patriarch who is also a front-runner, has indicated that this wild card has been taken out of the patriarchal election procedure. In an interview with the Russian news agency Interfax, he said earlier heads of the Church had usually been chosen by the tsar or elected in open ballots. “His Holiness Patriarch Alexiy II was elected by secret ballot out of three candidates suggested by the Archbishop Council,” Kirill said. “Years of his ministry proved it was the right choice made by God’s will.”

Kirill made clear the Holy Spirit was not completely sidelined even with a secret ballot. He said the Church leaders believed that prayers by the council participants “backed up by prayer of the whole Church will open hearts and minds of the council members for perceiving the message of the Holy Spirit.”

Kirill, 64, has headed the Church’s department for external relations for two decades and has been active in the ecumenical movement abroad. While he is considered a front-runner, he reportedly does not have strong support among the bishops, who are considered more nationalist and less outward-looking than he is. Metropolitan Kliment of Kaluga and Borovsk is said to be more to their liking. Metropolitan Juvenali of Krutitsy and Kolomna and Metropolitan Filaret of Minsk are also mentioned as possible contenders.

Syriac Catholic Patriarch election synod called

Jan 15, 2009 / 11:48 am (CNA) - The Holy Father has called a Synod of bishops from the Syriac Catholic Church to take place in Rome January 17 – 23 in order to elect a new Patriarch of Antioch of the Syrians and of All the East.

The position of the supreme head of the Syriac Catholic Church has been vacant since the resignation of Patriarch Ignace Pierre VIII Abdel-Ahad was accepted in February 2008. The Patriarch had held the position since 2001.

In a statement from the Holy See, Pope Benedict explained that the Synod “will begin with two days of prayer and reflection and will be presided over by Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches."

And from CNEWA:

The Syrian Catholic Patriarch always takes the name Ignatius in addition to another name. Although Syrian Catholic priests were bound to celibacy at the Synod of Sharfeh in 1888, there are now a number of married priests. A patriarchal seminary and printing house are located at Sharfeh Monastery in Lebanon.

The largest concentrations of Syrian Catholics are found in Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq. The common language is Arabic, although Syriac is still spoken in a few villages in eastern Syria and northern Iraq.

A community of nuns, known as the Ephremite Sisters or Daughters of the Mother of Mercy, was founded by the Syrian Catholic Patriarch in 1901. The community was dispersed during World War I, and reestablished in 1958. In 2003 the order had 11 sisters in Lebanon and six in Syria, along with ten novices. Since 1970 it has directed St. Joseph’s Orphanage in Batha, Lebanon, which over the years has given shelter to some 900 girls.

A diocese for Syrian Catholics in the United States and Canada, Our Lady of Deliverance of Newark, was founded in 1995. The first bishop is Joseph Younan (502 Palisade Avenue, Union City, New Jersey 07087). The diocese includes five parishes and four missions in the United States, and two parishes and one mission in Canada. In Australia contact Msgr. Michael Berbari, 60 Kingsland Road, Beralla 2141.

In a letter to him dated January 25, 2008, Pope Benedict XVI accepted the resignation of Syrian Patriarch Ignatius Peter VIII, who had been in office since 2001. The Pope acknowledged that the Patriarch had resigned because of his “concern for the spiritual progress of the faithful and for harmony among bishops.” The Pope entrusted the leadership of the Syrian Catholic Church to a committee composed of three bishops pending the election of a new Patriarch.

Ordination of Jason Charron

From just a few weeks ago. Axios!

Theophany in Tokyo

Being a student of Japanese, watching the blessing of the water in Tokyo (Japanese Orthodox Church) was quite a treat. 本当 素晴しい ね!

Khanya on Orthodoxy and ethnicity

Khanya has a thought provoking post on the part ethnicity plays in Orthodoxy. Given from the thoughts of a South African Orthodox believer, it is a unique and rather complete treatment of the subject.

A few years ago I went to a Greek Orthodox parish near me for a Paraklesis service and afterward to coffee fellowship. The group was entirely made up of older Greeks. Being a "xeno," I was welcomed in the first sentence of introductions and asked why I was there in the second. Then at a largely Ukrainian parish (again at fellowship) an older gentleman looked at my family and then at me and said, "Hmm.... I think you could be a Uky. Where are you from?" And at an OCA parish peopled by a lot of Russians my reason for coming to a vigil service was questioned not on why I chose to come, but what church I came from and whether my beliefs were sufficiently orthodox to escape summary judgement.

There is an odd relationship between the parishioner of an "ethnic" parish believing on the one hand that his Church is the best and on the other "protecting" it from outside influence. It is very much like believing you are being cared for in the very best of hospitals, but not wanting the riff-raff to ruin your medical stay.

“The Orthodox Church is not missionary, because its purpose is to preserve Greek culture.”

So said a parishioner of an Orthodox Church at tea after the Divine Liturgy in an Orthodox parish in Johannesburg a few years ago, and that seems to me to encapsulate the problems of “faith and ethnicity”, which is the theme of this month’s synchroblog.

I’ve headed my contribution “Christianity and ethnicity” because though many religions have ethnic links and ethnic problems, there are enough problems of ethnicity within Christianity to write several books about, without extending it to “faith” generally.

The idea that the purpose of the Orthodox Church is to preserve Greek culture is a fairly widespread one among members of the Greek diaspora, and is similar to the idea that its purpose is to preserve Serbian, Russian or Romanian culture among those of the diaspora from those countries as well. This is in part a historical thing. For many years, centuries, even, Orthodox Christianity was squeezed between Western and Islamic imperialisms into Eastern Europe and Russia. When the pressure eased somewhat, Orthodoxy spread outwards initially by people from that part of the world settling elsewhere. Most of the Orthodox churches in other parts of the world were established not by missionaries, but by ethnic communities, who saw the church as part of their ethnic identity, part of their link with “home”. So to this day, you cannot find the Orthodox Church in the Pretoria phone book. You can look under Orthodox or Church in vain. To find it, you would have to look under Hellenic Community, where the church is simply the religious aspect of the life of that community, along with the Boy Scouts, the Greek School and the soccer club. See the film My big fat Greek wedding to get the picture...

Complete article here.

"Valley of the Wolves" TV series influenced priest stabbing

Constantinople, January 12 (Compass Direct News) – A judge in Turkey sentenced a 19-year-old Muslim to four-and-a-half years in prison on Jan. 5 for stabbing a Catholic priest in the coastal city of Izmir in December 2007.

Ramazan Bay, then 17, had met with Father Adriano Franchini, a 65-year-old Italian and long-term resident of Turkey, after expressing an interest in Christianity following mass at St. Anthony church. During their conversation, Bay became irritated and pulled out a knife, stabbing the priest in the stomach.

Fr. Franchini was hospitalized but released the next day as his wounds were not critical.

Bay, originally from Balikesir 90 miles north of Izmir, reportedly said he was influenced by an episode of the TV serial drama “Kurtlar Vadisi” (“Valley of the Wolves”). The series caricatures Christian missionaries as political “infiltrators” who pay poor families to convert to Christianity. I'm sure EU membership will clear this sort of bigotry right up.

“Valley of the Wolves” also played a role in a foiled attack on another Christian leader in December 2007. Murat Tabuk reportedly admitted under police interrogation that the popular ultra-nationalist show had inspired him to plan the murder of Antalya pastor Ramazan Arkan. The plan was thwarted, with the pastor receiving armed police protection and Antalya’s anti-terrorism police bureau ordering plainclothes guards to accompany him.

Together with 20 other Protestant church leaders, Arkan on Dec. 3, 2007 filed a formal complaint with the Istanbul State Prosecutor’s office protesting “Valley of the Wolves” for “presenting them as a terrorist group and broadcasting scenes making them an open target.”

The series has portrayed Christians as selling body parts, being involved in mafia activities and prostitution and working as enemies of society in order to spread the Christian faith.

“The result has been innumerable, direct threats, attacks against places of worship and eventually, the live slaughter of three innocent Christians in Malatya,” the complaint stated.

The Protestant leaders demanded that Show TV and the producers of “Valley of the Wolves” be prosecuted under sections 115, 214, 215, 216 and 288 of the Turkish penal code for spreading false information and inciting violence against Christians.

The past three years saw six separate attacks on priests working across the country, the most serious of which resulted in the death of Father Andreas Santoro in Trabzon. As with Fr. Franchini, many of the attacks were coupled with accusations of subversion and “proselytizing.”

Although a secular republic, Turkey has a strong nationalistic identity of which Islam is an integral part.

Television shows such as “Valley of the Wolves” may not be the norm, but the recent publication of a state high school textbook in which “missionary activity” is also characterized as destructive and dangerous has raised questions about Turkey’s commitment to addressing prejudice and discrimination.

“While there is a general attitude [of antipathy], I think that the state feeds into it and propagates it,” said a spokesperson for the Alliance of Protestant Churches of Turkey (TEK). “If the State took a more accepting and more tolerant attitude I think the general attitude would change too.”

At the end of 2007 TEK issued a summary of the human rights violations that their members had suffered that year. As part of a concluding appeal they urged the state to stop an “indoctrination campaign” aimed at vilifying the Christian community.

TEK will soon release its rights violations summery for 2008, and it is likely that a similar plea will be made.

“There is police protection, and they have caught some people,” the TEK spokesperson said. “There is an active part of the state trying to prevent things, but the way it is done very much depends on the situation and how at that moment the government is feeling as far as putting across a diplomatic and political statement. There is hypocrisy in it.”

A survey carried out in 2005 by the Pew Global Attitudes Project also suggested a distinctly negative attitude towards Christians among Turks, with 63 percent describing their view of Christians as “unfavorable,” the highest rate among countries surveyed.

Niyazi Oktem, professor of law at Bilgi University and president of a prominent inter-faith organization in Turkey called the Intercultural Dialogue Platform, said that while the government could do more to secure religious freedom, he would not characterize Turkish sentiment towards Christians as negative.

“I can say that general Turkish feeling towards the Christian religion is not hostile,” said Oktem. “There could be, of course, some exceptions, but this is also the case in Christian countries towards Islam.”