Vatican City, 15 June 2015 (VIS) – Today, the Holy Father received in audience:
Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Department of External Church Relations of the Patriarchate of Moscow.
Wonder if the Metropolitan had the gaul to again lambaste the Ukrainian Greco Catholic Church as he did several months ago. Instead of reaching out in friendship and respect, he insulted those in attendance and lost credibility as an ecumenist. If he is a good representative of the "Holy Russian Orthodox Church" then God help us all.
Pavloosh Wonder(s) if the Metropolitan had the gaul to again lambaste the Ukrainian Greco Catholic Church as he did several months ago. Instead of reaching out in friendship and respect, he insulted those in attendance and lost credibility as an ecumenist. If he is a good representative of the "Holy Russian Orthodox Church" then God help us all.
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Alex echoes "God help us all then . . ."
Brothers:
Christ is in our midst!!
Or I wonder if He, too, like many of our Orthodox brethren have either departed or taken extended periods of absence.
In another thread, comments were made about the ROC and her pronouncements that were unchristian. Not taking a brother in Christ's situation into account when making comments about public statements is not what this forum is about. When we take aim at another we need to remember the Lord's admonition to "take the log out of our own eye."
His Eminence is the representative of the ROC to the outside world, both secular and religious. He reflects the stances and thinking of the Church he represents. Sometimes what he will say will rub some of us the wrong way. But his statements are no different than the Ukrainian Roman Catholic bishop who termed President Putin as "demonic." How do you think this latter statement sounded in Russia?
This is an Eastern Christian forum. And when one part of that membership continually takes aim at another, we come quickly to the point we find ourselves in each Sunday morning--divided. Rather than learning about each other and trying to bridge the divides we seem to be moving toward a hardening of the things that divide us.
I am asking that we take a re-read of the "Who We Are" thread in this section and then take a serious examination of conscience before posting any further comments about person's or Church's comments or positions. We all come with a prism through which we view the world and the way we have been taught we should not only believe but practice that belief. Unfortunately, we seem to be losing the ability that this forum has tried to foster--that is, to see the world and the Faith through the the eyes of those we are separated from. It seems to me we all need to watch carefully that external, worldly politics do not creep in and color our attitudes as members of the Body of Christ. We are Christians first--we belong to Christ first--or we are really like the Islamic terrorists: people who use religion to justify the evil that comes from the heart that is not guarded.
My comment was not a criticism of Metropolitan Hilarion, but to simply confirm the issue raised by Pavloosh (without judging it in one way or another) that the Metropolitan is indeed a representative of the Russian Orthodox Church.
Metropolitan Hilarion is indeed a great ecclesial musician and a very deeply cultured and intelligent man.
That he has been placed in the position of being a spokesperson/representative of the Moscow Patriarchate is, and should be seen, as a separate issue. He follows orders. And the issues the Moscow Patriarchate raises in the political sphere, including its constant attacks on the Eastern Catholic Churches in Eastern Europe, are indeed fodder for the critique mill, especially here in the Town Hall.
That is not being "unfriendly towards Orthodoxy." The Moscow Patriarchate has a long history of being a compliant agent in the hands of the state. It was so in 1946 when it complied with the Soviet authorities to destroy the Ukrainian Catholic Church. It said nothing when the various New Martyrs of that Church and others were imprisoned, tortured and sent into exile for their Faith. And it has never even so much as acknowledged its complicity in that episode which we all know so well.
Have we here become so deaf to these issues? We have always spent a lot of time criticizing the treatment of the EC Churches by the Roman Catholic Church, Latinization et alia. Is the Moscow Patriarchate exempt from critical historical assessment? Has this forum become an "Amen Corner" for it?
We must oppose evil and critique it wherever it is to be found and in whatever Church it is to be found.
Dearest Moderators, please don't ask any of us to call what is wrong, right. You were very adamant about praising the ROC on its stand with respect to Protestant churches that have allowed same-sex marriage and in criticizing the West.
And what the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Kharkiv said, he said about a political figure, not a religious figure. That there are those who find their religious sensibilities offended when that political figure is attacked speaks to some sort of inversion of values itself.
I'm sorry if there are Orthodox and "very Eastern Catholics" here who find what I and some others raise as being "Orthodox unfriendly."
I find the charge repulsive since I have strong and cordial relations with Orthodox of a number of jurisdictions, including ROCOR. I have not said anything that they themselves would not say about certain jurisdictions, including the Roman Catholic Church when such is warranted given the discussion.
But if I and others are keeping our Orthodox brothers and sisters (including those EC's who are so "Eastern" that they identify themselves as Orthodox), then that is a serious problem for the Forum.
The only thing that is to be done is for myself and those who agree with me to leave the Forum and let those who find us offensive have the field.
If the report was written by a person associated with the Russian Orthodox Church, any reference made by either by Pope Francis or Met. Hilarion would not be mentioned. Hopefully, the Pope was not fooled by this obnoxious unChristian man.
Alex: You have expressed your position quite well and I applaud you. The global moderator appears to be a very naive person. If he thinks forum members will sit back and not defend our Church from people like Met. Hilarion, he is indeed badly mistaken. Hilarion was brutal at the Vatican several months ago with his erroneous and demeaning statements aimed at our Ukrainian Greco Catholic Church. The leaders of the Russian Orthodox imperial Church are as evil as is the Russian government. I suppose the moderator will now ban me from this Forum, so I will not be surprised.. Some of those in charge of the Forum seem to live in bygone medieval days. Ban some of us from the Forum, but WE WILL NOT BE SILENCED.
It has been an Orthodox friendly site, but Met. Hilarion continues to do unspeakable damage. Rusyn, Bulgarian, Serbian, Ukrainian, etc. Orthodox Christians are our brothers and sisters, however the Russians are a totally different obnoxious breed of Orthodox.
Alex: You have expressed your position quite well and I applaud you. The global moderator appears to be a very naive person. If he thinks forum members will sit back and not defend our Church from people like Met. Hilarion, he is indeed badly mistaken. Hilarion was brutal at the Vatican several months ago with his erroneous and demeaning statements aimed at our Ukrainian Greco Catholic Church. The leaders of the Russian Orthodox imperial Church are as evil as is the Russian government. I suppose the moderator will now ban me from this Forum, so I will not be surprised.. Some of those in charge of the Forum seem to live in bygone medieval days. Ban some of us from the Forum, but WE WILL NOT BE SILENCED.
Pavloosh,
So your response is not to turn the other cheek as Christ commands but to engage in name calling?
Do you know the hearts of Met. Hilarion and the others you call "evil"? You see no possible way that they can simply be mistaken?
It seems to me that when you call others "evil" you only succeed in making yourself look foolish. It would be much better not to engage in personal judgment of others and simply state that you believe them to be mistaken, and then to offer incontestable evidence to support your response.
Remember Galatians 5:22-23a - "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control...."
Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk meets with Pope Francis
16 June 2015 https://mospat.ru/en/2015/06/16/news120122/
On 14-15 June 2015, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations (DECR), paid a working visit to Rome with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia.
In the evening of June 14, Metropolitan Hilarion met with Cardinal Kurt Koch, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. They discussed various aspects of cooperation between the Moscow Patriarchate and the Holy See. Taking part in the meeting was Fr. Hyacinthe Destivelle, a staff member of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity.
On June 15, Metropolitan Hilarion was received by Pope Frances at the Apostolic Palace in Vatican. Metropolitan Hilarion conveyed greetings of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia to the head of the Roman Catholic Church. Discussed at the meeting were many issues including the dire situation facing Christian population in the Middle East and North Africa, the necessity of common actions in defence of traditional understanding of the family in modern society, and cooperation between the Roman Catholic Church and the Russian Orthodox Church in the sphere of culture.
After the audience Metropolitan Hilarion introduced his suite to the Pope that includes archimandrite Antony (Servryuk), secretary of the administration of the Moscow Patriarchate parishes in Italy, and Mr. Miguel Palacio, a staff member of the DECR secretariat for far abroad countries.
Pope Francis gave Metropolitan Hilarion and members of the Russian Church delegation a medal of his pontificate. The DECR chairman presented the head of the Roman Catholic Church a copy of the old Russian icon of the Saviour painted by protodeacon Alexy Trunin, a cleric of the Moscow church dedicated to the ‘Joy of All the Afflicted’ icon of the Mother of God.
Before the audience Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk visited the Prefecture of the Papal Household, being accompanied by the prefects, and saw its exhibits, including pictures of Raphael and El Greco. Brought to Metropolitan Hilarion’s attention was the Crucifixion made of malachite and precious stones. It was presented to Pope Gregory XVI by the Emperor Nicholas I during his visit to Vatican that was the one and only visit of the Russian monarch there.
That same day Metropolitan Hilarion returned to Moscow.
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