Some Thoughts From Daniel

...trying to better understand/better explain the Cyprianites, etc.

One major conclusion that I have already come to, regarding the "Cyprianite" controversies, is the distinct possibility that there is NO full explanation of their positions, (just as none of the other Greek Old Calendarists seem to approve of each other EITHER!) which will satisfy....everyone. Just as there doesn't seem to be any ONE (accepted by all) concensus as to which bishop or jurisdiction is THE rightful-heir to the old ROCOR, or to the "Catacomb Church", or......WHO? is...part of "THE UNIVERSAL ORTHODOX CHURCH"....and WHO? is not, etc.....Also. "where is Grace?...and where is no Grace?"

The entire history of the Christian Religion, is filled with many many ambiguities and contradictions and differances of views and lots of FIGHTS between believers, etc.  (And here, I am speaking of course, of canonical Orthodox Christian Church History).One can read of this in the pages of the New Testament, at the very start of our religion.

But, yes, you are correct in desiring to more fully research the Synod In Resistance....in the context of the entire "Greek Old Calendar Movement"/versus the Ecumenist's Innovations, etc.....which  Greek Church history has many different aspects to it, than in post Bolshevik-Russian Church history-either inside of Soviet-Russia or Russian Orthodoxy Outside Russia, etc.....but these related subjects are VERY deep and VERY hard to fully grasp!...and it means obtaining a lot of documents...many of which were never translated into English, for one problem, etc. One needs to become an EXPERT on canon-law, the Holy Fathers, Russian and Greek Church History, familiar with epistles/church documents/various OPINIONS on various church-events of the recent past...up to today, etc. WHERE IS SUCH AN EXPERT??? I am not.

On the specific statement of our Vl. Agafangel, that: "The ecclesiology of the Cyprianites and that of our church...is exactly the same". However, Vl. Agafangel further explains, that: just because we are in communion with each other, we are never-the-less, two separate churches, with different approaches to our different internal pastoral problems....hence we will not automatically agree on every detail of every issue.

This is but his...restatement of what ROCOR stated years ago, when they approved the SIR and full intercommunion with the SIR...and thus, ipso facto, REJECTED!!! the Matthewite/exclusivisitic/condemning of ALL others, but themselves -ecclesiology...of most of the OTHER Greek Old Calendarist churches/synods. Our Vl. Agafangel... still, also rejects that Greek-extremist ecclesiology, and he says so. Here, I will be so bold as to try to paraphrase MY ROUGH estimation of what that comparison-similarity of the two ecclesiologies means:

...We (Vl. Agafangel's church) know what it means to be fully Orthodox in doctrine and church life, in being fully canonical, etc.  AND WE KNOW THAT OUR CHURCH IS SUCH!...but (a big "but")....we have NO RIGHT!...in condemning other-Orthodox (in general), as ...not in the CHURCH whatsoever/totally "graceless"/"heretics"/etc. But, we do have the right and indeed duty, to be ...in communion with/in fraternal relations with...only those other local-Orthodox churches which we consider as...fellow...like minded true Orthodox Christians.......and that category does NOT include the. Sergianist..Moscow Patriarchy...or  so-called World-Orthodoxy.

And....apparently, the SIR ecclesiology is QUITE similar....as it regards their own SELF-identiy and in their perspective towards ALL other Orthodox :(other Greek Old Calendarists)....or...The State Church of Greece! In the case of the SIR, they refrain from condemning all Orthodox outside their own synod....but!.....they are NOT in communion with them, either, & not with the State Church either!

To critics of the Cyprianites,  it is BECAUSE-they refuse to say that the State Church is...entirely without Grace and is entirely .."Non-Orthodox"..... ...THAT! is the number one reason that their critics label them as...in heresy, etc....i.e. because they believe that, merely because of calendar/and SOME other innovations....that the Official State Greek National Church (which after all, includes the vast majority of the total population of Greece!)...is...hopeless of reformation/repentance/....bound for Hell, etc....i.e. it is "SICK" but not yet...DEAD, and can yet be...HEALED and SAVED. Also, much that the State Church does do right, is perfectly Orthodox....those things we encourage in them. The SIR see themselves as those who are trying to SAVE the Greek Church (&entire Greek NATION!)  Pretty much, all of the other Greek Old Calendarists, in essence, say....let them go to Hell! (Anathema!), etc....i.e. they are beyond saving!...as is evryone not in OUR particular and unique synod!!!

Our Vl. Agafangel believes....about the Moscow Patriarchy....very much the same  GENERAL concept(with it's peculiar Russian-differences)....that it is not entirely "without Grace", and can be, (or...MAY BE?)..yet...cleansed/transformed and....SAVED (God willing!)...and that also, the entire Russian NATION is also not beyond saving, etc. That stance, like it or not, was the (mainstream) ROCOR stance...and hope...for a Future Russia & Future Restored Russian Church. Of course, that the so-called (Stalin engineered) "Moscow Patriarchy" might have to be 100% dismantled FIRST, and then RECONSTRUCTED....was also always seen as....a distinct likelihood too. Now! we have instead, the total surrender of ROCOR to this monstrosity, this unreformed still KGB-government controlled Moscow Patriarchy....all under the lie and excuse, that: "It is time now!", "Russia and it's church are 'free' now", etc.

Of course, such a somewhat complicated view of things, as our Vl. Agafangel has annunciated and as the Synod In Resistance has stated, (as life itself is complicated!) does not easily fit into any NEAT/QUICKIE abbreviated-reading of SOME canons, but it is rather an over-view of ALL the canons, and is getting to the main point of all the canons: TO, IF BY ANY MEANS, TO SAVE SOME!...."Economia"....why Christ became a Man. The Church exists to SAVE Mankind, not to condemn it.....that is the point! So, at this point, you (as many others today also) are probably...confused somewhat, but....that's them apples, I'm afraid. These church matters, are NOT today, nor where they in the past ages-cut-and-dried and are thus open to MANY varied applications of...sundry canons/doctrines/& EPISCOPAL interpretations., not even to mention the personal AMBITIONS of individual "bishops", who really only care about their own power/glory....which in my opinion is what Tikhon of Omsk and  Valentine of Suzdal are about. Few if any, of currently living Orthodox bishops (in any local  Orthodox churches whatsosever!)....are experts in canon-law.

In fact, the best such "canon-law experts" are in the KGB! And that is because those folks, HAVE to know our Orthodox Church laws, so as to better control us....from our episcopate downwards....and...to USE our own laws to weaken and eventually destroy our religion, etc. This they have done in Russia, since Lennin and Stalin.

Yes, and regarding Bp.Ambrose's responses to "my" questions, (really what questions the critics of the SIR pose, often)....of course, his short responses don't answer everything, by no means. But then, I did ask him for some concise answers, which he gave. If you re-read his answers to me, he refered to those long original  SIR Greek/Russian documents, which his synod gave to the ROCOR bishops to study, and which documents convinced those bishops to heartily accept the SIR as equals/sister churches/etc. But, those documents have never been translated into English...so...you and I cannot read them...and thus, we are bereft of what great value, they might have provided us...now