www.byzcath.org Forums Faith & Christian Life The Christian East & West Old Calendarist Catholics?

My dear Chaldobyzantine, I have no doubt that Sielos probably was probably taking aim at such groups as you mention. But the fact of the matter is that the majority of Orthodox in the world are "Old Calendarist," i.e. they adhere by sincere conviction completely to the Old Calendar for both the Paschalion and the Menologion. I am an Old Calendarist by conviction. I respectfully submit that Catholics allow Orthodox to handle their own calendrical issues and canonical problems. In return, we promise to keep out of your own insular problems with groups such as the Society of Pius X and Catholics for Reproductive Rights.

Fr David Straut

But Father, we had nearly finished drafting the document to hand those groups over to your jurisdiction!

Chad
The question of Old/ New Calender from the Rocor perspective is that the new calender underminds the Unity of the Holy Catholic Orthodox Church. The new calander was not promulgated by an ecumenical Council. The whole Church, guided by the Holy Spirit, did not speak. The use of the old/ new calender is one of discipline, not doctrine. It is not heretical to use the new calander. Some misdirected groups proclaim that it is heretical.

Fr. David makes a very good point in that the Latin Church and the Orthodox Church should respect one another and not start finger pointing.

If East and West used the same calender it would be helpful in a step towards the unity of all Christians. Here in Melbourne the Rocor parishes are on the Old calender, but the Patriarchal parish is on the new calender, but we still manage to get along and celebrate the various feasts.

God Bless

Heiromonk Luke

The new calander was not promulgated by an ecumenical Council.

Neither was the old one. It was promulgated by one Gaius Julius Caesar, four decades before the birth of Christ. The real reason, the obvious one that nobody wants to state, is the new calendar was promulgated by the Pope of Rome, and, in the Orthodox mind (to paraphrase the Gospel), "Can anything good come out of Rome?" When the Gregorian calendar was first issued, everybody recognized that it was far more accurate than the Julian calendar, and much more logical to boot (the new year now started on 1 January rather than 25 March), but Protestant Europe (the Orthodox were not even aware of it) unanimously rejected it because they were not willing to allow that Rome could be right about anything (just to show that this reflexive rejectionism was universal, though the Fathers of the Council of Trent recognized the value of vernacular liturgy and the Eucharist under both species, they did not adopt them because they did not want to give the reformers a victory on any point).

At this point, I think the Orthodox ought to start recognizing temporal reality (in a literal sense), but until that time, the Greek Catholic Churches ought to adopt the calendar used by their Orthodox mother Churches. This is pretty much the case everywhere but in the United States, which, as far as I know, is the only place where most Greek Catholic jurisdictions are on the new calendar.

Neither was the old one. It was promulgated by one Gaius Julius Caesar, four decades before the birth of Christ. The real reason, the obvious one that nobody wants to state, is the new calendar was promulgated by the Pope of Rome, and, in the Orthodox mind (to paraphrase the Gospel), "Can anything good come out of Rome?" When the Gregorian calendar was first issued, everybody recognized that it was far more accurate than the Julian calendar, and much more logical to boot (the new year now started on 1 January rather than 25 March), but Protestant Europe (the Orthodox were not even aware of it) unanimously rejected it because they were not willing to allow that Rome could be right about anything (just to show that this reflexive rejectionism was universal, though the Fathers of the Council of Trent recognized the value of vernacular liturgy and the Eucharist under both species, they did not adopt them because they did not want to give the reformers a victory on any point).

At this point, I think the Orthodox ought to start recognizing temporal reality (in a literal sense), but until that time, the Greek Catholic Churches ought to adopt the calendar used by their Orthodox mother Churches. This is pretty much the case everywhere but in the United States, which, as far as I know, is the only place where most Greek Catholic jurisdictions are on the new calendar. [/quote]

Could someone please explain to me why the old calender is better for use in the Byzantine Church rather than the Gregorian? Is it more than just a 13 day difference?
Thank You!

RussianCath

My Russian Byzantine Catholic Church follows an orthodox/Orthodox calendar (we distribute the St. Tikhon's Lectionary Wall Calendar, Revised Julian) identical, save the name of the parish printed at the bottom of the calendar, as the OCA parish I sometimes attend. Why they use a Revised Julian calendar I don't know but since so many of us go there or the OCA cathedral for festal vigils etc. I'm glad our ECC parish is on the same calendar as they are. I think the local Greek Orthodox proto Cathedral is on the same one as well since every time I look at their calendar to see about going to a service there related to a Feast Day it seems to match ours.

Because trying to combine the Orthodox Paschalion with the Gregorian kalendar reputedly produces absurdities like the Peter and Paul Fast ending before it has begun. Am I mistaken? I've never been on the new Kalendar.
(When I was growing up in Canada I remember hearing of anomalous Ukrainian GC parishes on the new Kalendar but nobody seemed to know where they were. The situation may be different now. And in fact might have been different then for all I know.)