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Dec 29th, 2019
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The Moscow Patriarchate did not exist at the time of the arrival of Eastern Orthodoxy in North America; the Patriarchate had been replaced by the "Holy Governing Synod" imposed by Emperor Peter I. Various people claim to be the heirs of the Holy Governing Synod, although given the dubious merits of that lamentable structure, one wonders why anyone would claim its mantle. But then, various people also claim to be the heirs of the Russian Empire.
Rather than trying to decide who, or what jurisdiction, "must" become the leader of a movement which is conspicuous by its absence anyway, it might be more productive to try to promote a movement of prayer, aimed at imploring God to give His grace to bring Orthodoxy in the USA into full internal unity without attempting to tell Almighty God what means He ought to use to accomplish this end.
Incognitus
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When we are busy feeding the hungry, caring for the indigent, providing housing for the homeless and the immigrants amongst us, maintaining the spectacular temples and monasteries that we will have built here, when we have television and other programming to enlighten the unenlightened, when we have begun to seriously live out the Gospel; then....then someone will ask us, "Who is your leader?"
[/QB] Dear in Christ, Andrew, I wonder if unity of juristiction would make it easier for the Eastern Churches to accomplish this wonderful vision? Is it more difficult, while there is dis-unity?
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Dear Fr. Elias,
Your point is fully valid, but I feel that it is used by some as an excuse not to live out the Gospel to the fullest.
Christ calls us to live it out whether autocephalous or not, whether the service is in our language or not, whether we are at war or at peace, in prison or free.
As you well know, He asks us to first bring the "two fishes and five loaves" to feed the multitude in the wilderness. He then takes our offering and blesses and multiplies it so that all can be filled.
I'm wondering if Orthodoxy in North America has brought more than half a fish and one stale loaf to the altar.
In my own view, having worked for and been a donor to IOCC and OCMC, SCOBA-endorsed bodies, we have in place everything necessary to do more.
And SCOBA itself would serve as the model for an administratively unified Church in the Americas
In Christ,
Andrew
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