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After the Tomos of the OCU was proclaimed,
Moscow has not given up trying to undermine Orthodox unity in the world.
This includes a
ban for Russian believers to receive communion in the churches of the
Ecumenical Patriarchate, threats from the bishops of the Greek Church
for accepting the OCU, complaints to the Supreme Administrative Court of
Greece, and an attempt to convene a “Pan-Orthodox Assembly”.
In an interview with Bishop of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, Job (Getcha) for Religiyna Pravda
(Religious Truth), journalist Lana Samokhvalova found out whether such a
situation could affect the position of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
“The Ecumenical Patriarchate of the
Orthodox Church, based on Church history and canonical privileges, is
the first Throne and a coordinating center of the universal Orthodoxy.
No one can deny this, except to their own detriment. The one who forgets
about it, quickly remembers when the challenges and problems of various
kinds arise. Therefore, this situation does not affect the position of
the Ecumenical Patriarchate at all.
It is important to remind and emphasize
that there is no schism in Orthodoxy. For a schism to occur, an
important problem of a dogmatic nature is needed, and the two sides need
to break off relations. In the current situation, this is not the case.
First, the issue of autocephaly of the Church of Ukraine is not a
dogmatic issue, but a purely administrative one. Secondly, the Church of
Russia unilaterally severed the communion with the center of universal
Orthodoxy, the Ecumenical Patriarchate. Still, the Ecumenical
Patriarchate did not sever the canonical unity with the Church in
Russia. In Europe, no violent seizures of temples ever take place. You
are probably referring to the Ecumenical See's decision to unite its
structures in Western Europe: to join the former Exarchate of the
Russian tradition to the local Metropolia of the Ecumenical
Patriarchate?
Some persons disagreed with this
decision for political or national beliefs, personal ambitions, or even
very often because of misunderstandings, ignorance or naivety. For these
reasons, some parishes, I mean the clergy together with the laity,
voluntarily transferred to the Moscow Patriarchate. There are no attacks
or court proceedings. And it is very interesting that it even happens
that priests who have joined the Moscow Patriarchate ask for
concelebration in the churches of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. At the
same time, lay people come and receive communion. There are no problems
in this because the Ecumenical Patriarchate has not severed relations
with the Church of Russia,” concluded Bishop Job.
