Are Orthodox "dissident" "schismatics" who are outside "the true Church"? Is the Balamand Accord "blatantly heretical" from a Catholic standpoint?

Dave Ignatius DTBrown@aol.com

Balamand's provisions have been adopted as official policy by the Catholic Church, but Latin and Eastern. It has been accepted by most Eastern Catholics who are even aware of it, though it was rejected by the initialy rejected by the Synod of the Romanian Greek Catholic Church--who were involved in a bitter property dispute with the Romanian Orthodox Church at the time. The Romanian Synbd has since accepted Balamand, and made considerable progress in their dialogue with the Romanian Orthodox Church.

>>>Are Orthodox "dissident" "schismatics" who are outside "the true

Church"? Is the Balamand Accord "blatantly heretical" from a Catholic

standpoint? <<<

No doubt there are some die-hard Uniates who feel that way, but most Eastern Catholics view the Orthodox as Sister Churches from whom we are tragically separated. The term "Diddisent Orientals" is heard only in ultramontanist circles, like the Transalpine Redemptorists, and hardly reflect the perspective of either the Eastern Catholic laity or their hierarchy. Balamond can hardly be considered heretical from a Catholic perspective, since it has been accepted as official policy regarding relations with the Orthodox Church, albeit implementation of its practical suggestions has been uneven (old habits die hard among Latins and Eastern Cathollics alike, to say nothing of the Orthodox). Balamand explicitly states that the Orthodox and Catholic Churches are Sister Churches, and that there can be no talk regarding conversin from one to the other as a prerequisite for salvation. The Catholic Church condemned uniatism as a method of reunion, and foreswears any attempt to proselytize the Orthodox faithful (though individual Latin and Eastern Catholics continue to do this in contravention of policy).

The emerging consensus among Eastern Catholics concerned with ecumenical dialogue, is that Eastern Catholic Churches have "a vocation to disappear" (Bp. John Michael Botean's felicitous phrase) That means our ultimate destiny is to return to our Orthodox Mother Churches, but only upon conditions that allow us to maintain our communion with the Church of Rome. In practical terms, that gives us a unique apostolate for reconcilliation, for it is only through reconcilliation and the establishment of a true communioni in the Holy Spirit that we can "go home".

Well said, Stuart! And God bless you Dave for your presence here! You witness Orthodoxy at her irenic best!

Where and when was the Balamand Declaration accepted as 'official policy' and its accompanying ecclesiology adopted as Doctrine by the Church?

Did the Holy Father issue a Papal Edict? Did he make an ex Cathedra pronouncement?

I'm not being facetious here (okay, maybe a little :-) ) but I'd really like to know when this was adopted as 'official'.

Thanks,

Balamand became official policy of the Catholic Church when the Church began issuing instructions that referred to the Declaration or substantively moved to implement its provisions. Hence, the Catholic Church has prepudiated any attempts at proselytization of Orthodox Christians, hence the Pope issued his Pastoral Letter Orientale Lumen (which draws heavily upon the Balamand Statement's approach to Uniatism and the future of the Eastern Cathooic Churches), hence the pope's Encyclical Ut Unam Sint, which reiterates the points made by Balamand in regard to Catholic and Orthodox relations. Above all, we have the Liturgical Instruction issued by the Sacred Congregation for the Orienatl Churches, which brings concrete expression within the Eastern Catholic Churches to the idea that the Eastern Catholic Churches have a particular mission to bear witness to the possibility of being truly Orthodox and truly Catholic at the same time.

I guess I still suffer from a lot more Latinization than I'd like to admit. I am a prime example of technically being Byzantine without really 'getting it'.

God be merciful to me, a sinner!

Humbly,