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Sp,

I think you could have put the case for Byzantine Catholics in a positive way without making these very negative and too general criticisms of the Orthodox Faith and Orthodox Christians. It is just too broad a brush!

"As a model of union," yes--Uniatism is a hindrance.

As Churches, though, the "Uniat" Churches are not. Balamand did not condemn the "Uniat" Churches.

What is a greater hindrance IMO is the reluctance of some Orthodox to accept Eastern Catholic Churches instead of demanding we either become Orthodox or Roman.

David Ignatius DTBrown@aol.com

As mentioned previously I agree that martyrdom has to be one of the great fruits of Byzantine Catholicism, willing to give the ultimate sacrifice to maintain the Union. And not all martyrs die immediately and violently.

We do have some great clergy, although the word doesn't always get out to the larger world.

Bishop Tikhon's words quoted previously are very wise when trying to use monasticism as a yardstick.

We do indeed need monasticism - Orientale Lumen teaches that quite firmly. Historically, our monastic tradition suffered severe damage from several sides, which we needn't go into at the moment. We do indeed have monasticism, albeit weakened - I am thinking specifically of the Studites, who survived the persecution and are doing much better than anyone expected. Now the imperative is to get the Studites to "fertilize" monasticism in the rest of the Byzantine Catholic world (why does that phrase have a familiar ring?). On another note, would Anastasios care to offer us a definition of Uniatism? Incognitus

There are saints in our midst and there have ALWAYS BEEN saints in our midst. We often don't recognize them.

For example, I saw an elderly woman who claimed to be Byzantine Catholic and was known for always promoting the rosary (which is a beautiful prayer), but when her local pastor would not do as she wanted him to do, she spit at him. He took a deep breath and said nothing. Who was the holy person there?

Yes,the Pope has asked the Eastern Catholic Churches to restore traditional monastic life and I know there are a number of seedlings in the newly planted monastic garden. Let us pray that they grow to be strong plants and bear much fruit for Our Lord Jesus Christ. And that their fruit will give forth more seeds and seedlings and fruit and more seeds,etc.

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P.S. I've been off the forum for a while because I've been sick and because I'm one of those who sometimes cannot connect to Byzcath. But I'm grateful the Administration is working on this.
:p

This is certainly true. And the witness of martyrs such as Leonid Feodorov and Klementy Sheptytsky who died preserving the Studite monastic life faithful to the Byzantine monastic tradition are certainly vivid reminders and inspiration. Monasticism is a vital element not only in the Byzantine tradition as a whole, but of the entire Church, Eastern and Western.

But it is not itself the sole diagnostic of the growth or size of a church, but is certainly an indicator of its spiritual health. The Studite monastic foundations are doing well in Eastern Europe, however in our secular society where the "value" of any ascetic life is questioned or that life ridiculed, it is a difficult task indeed to establish one. Through the prayers of the Studite fathers and mothers may we have those who leave the world for the angelic life.

Posted by amonasticbeginner:

"P.S. I've been off the forum for a while because I've been sick and because I'm one of those who sometimes cannot connect to Byzcath. But I'm grateful the Administration is working on this."

Welcome back. I hope that you're better and that you'll be able to post freely!

Steve

Glory to Jesus Christ!

On the need for monasteries, allow me to quote a very active missionary bishop of the Latin Church, which is supposedly less appreciative of the monastic life:

"The Church cannot do without the testimony to her holiness. The Church would be no longer be holy if she had not those souls who consecrate themselves irrecovably to God. If there were no more Carmels, no Benedictines... then the Church would no longer show her holiness. Now this is an essential mark of the Church. And it is the one that is the most convincing. For simple souls, it is the holiness of the Church which is more important than all of her other marks, more apparent and more attractive."

"The Church cannot recover from this [modern] crisis without the contemplatives."

These are the words of Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, who, without going into the more famous latter part of his life, was before the controversy the most leading figure in constructing the Catholic Church in all of French-speaking Africa. (He was the first Archbishop of Dakar, Senegal.)

The Church absolutely, positively needs monasticism, without a shadow of a doubt nor nuances. It is my opinion that the only thing holdng up the world right now are the prayers of holy nuns, monks, and old women in churches, in that order. Otherwise, who knows what might be unleashed on the world! Only prayer is holding the world up right now, and the pillars are becoming fewer and fewer. True, at many times, monasteries have been decadent places, no better than being out in the world, or perhaps worse. Some only had monks who wanted a free meal ticket. But having been encloistered myself for a couple of years, and now being out in the big bad world, I can tell you that it is far more beneficial to the Church and to oneself being behind four walls and being told what to do all for the love of God, than being a layman troddling in the world doing one's own will. Not all are called to do this, but there are far more called to be monks and nuns than we think. In a monastery, convent, or even seminary, the primary thing that is done is prayer, prayer for the Church, the world, our families, etc. In my seminary, the first two hours of the day were devoted to prayer, not to mention the numerous times we prayed during the day. How much time do YOU have for prayer? I will confess that I pray less than I should, far less than I did in seminary, either for legitimate or illegitmate reasons. If you are not old and retired, it is very very hard to lead a life of prayer in the world. And if we do not pray, how will God give us what we really need? The Father does not give if the children don't ask first.
The main Latinization, in my opinion, that afflicts the Eastern Catholic Churches is the Latinization of the monastic life, and from it probably stem all the others. True, we have had martyrs, but so have all the other parts of the Catholic and Orthodox Churches. God be praised!!! But red martyrdom is an extraordinary thing, available to few. White martyrdom is open to all, young and old, male and female, sick and healthy. Do we have as many "white martyrs" in black habits as the Orthodox? Maybe we have some hidden ones, but visibly no. We have no St. Seraphim of Sarov's, no St. Nicodemus of the Holy Mountain, no Elder Paisios of Mt. Athos. So what is the option? RESTORE IT. PERIOD. THERE IS NO OTHER OPTION FOR THE FUTURE OF THE CHURCH. Even if a monastery is full of bad lukewarm monks, you cannot even have a few good monks if you don't have lots of monasteries, full of both the good and the bad fruit.

"The monks are like the lighthouses placed on high mountains, which draw all navigators to the tranquil part which they enlighten - those who contemplate them no longer fear darkness or shipwreck."

-St. John Chrysostom
Homily 59 to the people of Antioch

Sincerely in Christ,
Arturo

Undoubtedly monasticism is vital for both East and West. That is without question and it is spiritually foundational.

But I think this statement a bit of an exageration and downplays the fervor, tears and prayers of all who strive in the ascetic life who do not live within the ark of the monastery. Family prayer doesn't count? Parish (non-monastic) prayer and liturgies? One could even read a very un-Byzantine clericalist slant to this statement. The prayers of parish priests and families were not included in your statement. The family home as a domestic church or monastery is well founded in the sermons of some famous monastic saints.

Somewhere in there the prayer of all the faithful whether monastic or not as well as the daily celebrations of Divine Praises or Divine Liturgies has value before the Most Holy Trinity and I think have to be factored in as well.

In the Byzantine spiritual tradition, all Christians have to climb the ladder of divine ascent and fight the noetic battle, whether in the monastery or outside it. Prayer is the greatest comfort and strongest weapon, regardless of married or monastic state. God hears all and from the story of the widow's mite we know He values all efforts.