In times, there is an effort on behalf of the Ecumenists “Orthodoxs” to undermine our Orthodox Testimony and our opposition to their innovative course. To accomplish their goal they often use various excuses and characterizations. They say that their participation in the Ecumenism is targeting the unity of the faith which the Gospel indicates and that the Papal calendar which they have accepted, constitutes an astronomical correction. Thus, they characterize us as malevolent, backward, stubborn, uneducated zealots of the Orthodox faith but without awareness, being schismatics or heretics e.t.c.
Thus, for the devout Orthodox Christians whom listen to all these excuses to understand the reason which we do not accept to align with the ecumenists and the defiers of the Orthodox tradition, we display below the most important canons of the Orthodox Church. These canons like all the others were not made from us but were defined by the Holy Apostles and the blessed Fathers of the Church.
The very worst is that these canons of the Orthodox Church are also being accepted by the innovative “Orthodoxs”, but they only hold those canons which do not oppose their pursuits.
1) 45th Apostolic Canon:
“Let a bishop, presbyter, or deacon, that merely joins in prayer with heretics, be excommunicated: but if he has permitted them to perform any service as clergymen, let him be defrocked”.
This canon with clarity declares that the Orthodox clerics whom are praying with heretics to be excommunicated. If in any case allow to heretics to perform any holy ceremony those Orthodoxs to be unfrocked.
The Ecumenists “Orthodoxs” pray with heretics? Of course they are. Today they even have established common ceremonies to pray.
2) 10th Apostolic Canon:
“If anyone prays, even in a private house, with an excommunicated person, let him also be excommunicated.”
Uncompaniable here means the person who is outside of the Church that is him who is excommunicated. This canon thus declares that even if a faithful prays in a house with an uncompaniable this faithful to be excommunicated.
The Ecumenists “Orthodoxs” very often pray together with the uncompaniable and excommunicated from the Church, heretics.
3) 65th Apostolic Canon:
“If any clergymen, or layman, enter a synagogue of Jews, or of heretics to pray, let the first to be defrocked and the other to be excommunicated.”
This canon declares, that for no reason a faithful can pray in a Hebrew synagogue or in a heretic temple. If anyone does this, this canon dictates, that if he is a cleric to be unfrocked, if he is a secular to be excommunicated.
This canon nevertheless does not prevent the Ecumenists “Orthodoxs” to pray in heretic temples.
4) 46th Apostolic canon commands:
“We order any Bishop, or Presbyter, or deacon that has accepted any heretic’s Baptism or sacrifice, to be defrocked; for what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath the believer with an infidel?”
The heretic priests do not have any priesthood, according with the 68th Apostolic canon and the similar ones. This Canon commands that if any Bishop or Presbyter or Deacon accepts the baptism or any other ceremony of heretics, to be unfrocked.
The ecumenists however accept the mysteries of the heretics since they perform mixed marriages which are forbidden by the 72nd canon of the 6th Ecumenical Synod.
5) 1st canon of the Antioch Synod:
“Let anyone that dares to paralyze the term of the holy and great Synod which it was constituted in Nikea during the presence of his devoutness Godliked King Constantine, concerning the feast of the salvating Pascha, to be excommunicated and outcasted from the Church…”
This canon concerns the change of the calendar. At the 24th of February of 1852, the Pope Gregory XIII arbitrarily replaced the calendar (Julian) which the Fathers of the 1st Ecumenical Synod had instituted with a new one which was created by his astrologers. In his honor this new calendar was named Gregorian. Thus, besides the up to that time anathemas (12 of them) that the Orthodox Church had enforced in the Catholic Church, they were also condemned from this 1st canon of the Antioch Synod and all the other mutual canons.
6) Synodical condemns of the papal calendar:
a) At 1583 in the Constantinople, when the Patriarch of Constantinople was Ieremias II the Tranos, a year after the insertion of the Papal calendar in the West, Pope’s act was condemned from the Synod that took place, being there not only the Synodic Metropolitans but also the Patriarch Silvestros of Alexandria and the Patriarch Sofronios of Jerusalem.
The decision precisely defines:
“Siggilio of Patriarchical narration of encyclical of the Orthodox Christians everywhere, about not to accept the new Paschalion or Calendar of the innovative menologion, but to remain in the principial and well phrased by the holy (318) three hundred and eighteen Godbearing Fathers of the Holy Ecumenical and First Synod with penance and Anathema.
Year since Jesus Christ αφπγ’ (1583)
12th of Indiktionos 20th of November
Patriarch Ieremias II of Constantinople
Patriarch Silvestros of Alexandria
Patriarch Sofronios of Jerusalem
and the rest of the Archpriests being present in the Synod.
b) At 1593 in the Constantinople when the Patriarch of Constantinople was Ieremias II. The Synod’s attendees and deciders were the Patriarch Meletios of Alexandria representing also the Patriarch Ioakim VII of Antioch, the Patriarch Sofronios IV of Jerusalem and forty other Archpriests. The Synod issued 20 canons or chapters. The 8th canon condemned for second time the papal innovation of the calendar.
It is as it follows:
Toward disposing the New Calendar
that is about the Latin’s innovation of the Pascha.
“We decided to keep unmoved the appointed by the Fathers Holy and Salvating Pascha…Whoever dares to paralyze the terms of this Holy feast of the Salvating Pascha, is to be Excommunicated and Outcasted from the Church of Christ.”
Patriarch Ieremias II of Constantinople
Patriarch Meletios of Alexandria
Patriarch Ioakim of Antioch
Patriarch Sofronios of Jerusalem
and the rest of the Archpriests being present in the Synod.
c) Also at 1848 Patriarch Anthimos of Constantinople summoned a Patriarchical Synod in which were gathered, the other three Patriarchs, Ierotheos of Alexandria, Methodios of Antioch and Kirilos of Jerusalem along with twelve more Bishops.
The encyclical which was issued by the Synod states among others the following:
…”We hold the confession which we received pure (sincere) by elder men, disregarding every innovation which is narrated by the Devil. He who accepts innovation considers insufficient the already preached Orthodox faith. But this (the faith) being complete is already sealed, not accepting neither additions or subtractions or alterations thus if someone does these and even if one dares either to act or advice or even think these, he already had denied the faith of the Christ, he already willingly was casted in the eternal anathema…..Thus every innovative or heretic or in schism willingly have wore what the psalmist said ‘curse as a clothe…’ ”.
The Ecumenical Patriarch Anthimos
Patriarch Ierotheos of Alexandria
Patriarch Methodios of Antioch
Patriarch Kirilos of Jerusalem
and the rest of the Archpriests of the Synod
d) At 1904 when Patriarch of Constantinople was Ioakim III with an encyclical which was expressing the opinion of all the Orthodox Churches, the Gregorian calendar was condemned and any idea of reforming the Julian calendar was denied.
“…reverent and solid is that which through the centuries is preserved by the Church’s approval: the eternally acting Paschalion. The leaping by thirteen days of the Julian calendar and of our hagiology, which we vouchsafe intact, is unacceptable for any reason, either ecclesiological or scientific…”
After these condemning acts against the Roman Catholics concerning the calendar change, at 1924 some autonomous “Orthodox” Churches accepted the innovation of the Pope and imported the condemned (anathematized) calendar reformation in the worshiping life of the Church. Perhaps some will say that those Churches changed the calendar and not the Paschalion. This is a trap for the naive. Because, the calendar and the Paschalion are bonded together in the Church. Nevertheless what is the meaning of accepting the Gregorian calendar and to continue keeping the Julian Pascha? First that they altered the traditions of the Holy Fathers concerning the Julian calendar and the Paschalion since they admit that they added another calendar, which means that the 1st canon of the Antioch Synod is in effect for them. Second, the Paschalion circle of the Church is being disturbed. For example after the feast of the Universal Exaltation of the Holy Cross (14th of September) the second Sunday we start reading the Gospel of the Evangelist Luke. Since the newcalendarists celebrate the Universal Exaltation of the Holy Cross with the Gregorian calendar that makes the reading of Luke to start earlier and finish earlier (evangelical readings are being removed). Also from the Paschalion circle is depending the fasting of the Holy Apostles which many times is being nullified because of the Gregorian calendar.
Finally someone may ask. There are Churches which didn’t changed the Julian calendar but they kept it. Indeed there are, but they have fallen from the Orthodox faith because they participate in the Ecumenism. Bearer of the Orthodoxy is only the Church which is not participating in the Ecumenism nor has changed the Julian calendar.
Tags: Canons, Ecumenism, Julian calendar, New Calendar issue, tradition
