Bishop Artemije: Responses to the concerns regarding the interview

У наставку доносимо превод на енглески језик разговора инфо службе ЕРП и КМ у егзилу са Владиком Артемијем, а у вези недоумица из претходног интервјуа (превод – Инфо служба „Срби На Окуп“)

Following the recent interview of Bishop Artemije, in addition to several comments, the info service got two specific readers’ questions, and we asked Bishop Artemije to give some more answers and to clarify doubts, which he accepted politely.

Info Service

The First QUESTION: … Bearing in mind your view that „the grace of God is independent of the condition and behavior of the clergy in the Church, and that their secrets are valid till the Council’s decision,“ it is unclear: Are Catholics (Pope) Parliamentary convicted and when … and if not, whether there are the grace of God with them?

ANSWER: Roman Catholicism (Papism), as heresy, is under multiple convictions and anathema. First, anathematized by the holy apostle Paul, who expressly says: „But even if we, or even an angel from heaven preaches the Gospel unto you differently than we have preached, cursed to be“ (ie: anathema) (Gal. 1, 8). They are also under the anathema of the Second Ecumenical Council, where the Fathers in the First Canon determined, that there should not be revoked (added or subtracted) anything in the Creed, and it must remain in full force, like it was pronounced by the three hundred and eighteen Fathers gathered at Nicaea, and each heresy (wich changed the Creed) must be submitted to an anathema. Further they were condemned by the Photius Council in 879th.(which is allso considered the Eighth Ecumenical Council), for the papal primacy and for the addition of the Creed: „filioque“, ie. for introducing the doctrine that the Holy Spirit comes not only from the Father, as it was explained by the Lord Himself (Jn. 15, 26), but also „from the Son“, with which they put themselves under the anathema of the Apostle Paul and the Second Ecumenical Council.

The struggle with the Roman Catholic heresy (Papism) has lasted a long time, and it still lasts. The Pope Sergius at his enthronement 1009th was the first who recited the Creed with the addition of „filioque“, after which the Patriarch of Constantinople, also Sergius, erased him from the diptychs of the Church, which led to the Roman Patriarchate’s final disposal from One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, 1054th.

The history has continued. There were several attempts of unification, union assembly, but without success. The First, the Union of Lyon was concluded the 1274, but the latinofron patriarch of Constantinople,John Beccus (1275), was sentenced and ousted by the Orthodox Council 1284th. In the 14th century, a fierce battle between the St. Gregory Palamas against heretic latinofrons Barlaam and Akindin took place, and against the Patriarch of Constantinople John Caleca, who condemned Palamas, and even anathematized him. St. Gregory (although just a mere monk at Athos at the time) didn’t respect that decision, and he kept serving the liturgy. John Caleca was soon convicted and defrocked by so-called Hesychastic Parliament in Constantinople 1347th year, which not only justified, but also elected St. Gregory the Archbishop of Thessaloniki.

The next stage was the Florentine Union 1439th, and everything that was happening about it and around it. The main opponent of the Latin (papal) heresy was then generally known St Mark Eugenikos – of Ephesus. The first thing St. Mark did, immediately after returning from a Florentine Council, was braking communion with the Patriarch and with all those who signed the Union, and with those who followed them, and he kept that attitude till his death 1444th (Or 1445th). St. Mark was exiled to the island of Limnos, which has induced many people to separate (dissociate themselves) from the latinofrons. „Neither were they concelebrating with them nor mentioning them as Christians.“ It is known that the Florentine Union was rejected by the Orthodox people, and soon ceased to exist.

When it comes to Latin heresy, St. Mark of Ephesus has listed five counts for which they were accused and anathematized, as follows:

1. Appendix (filioque) of the Creed;

2. Learning about material energies of God;

3. Cleansing fire (purgatory)

4. The use of unleavened bread in the Eucharist,and

5. The primacy of the Pope in power over the whole Church.

And the new heresies after St. Mark’s are:

1. The doctrine of the Immaculate Conception of the Holy Mother of God, and

2. A papal infallibility (in matters of faith).

And a few more clarifications. „When heresy reigns (as today Ecumenism), those who accept it actually create another „church „and leave, through heresy, the centuries existing (enduring) Apostolic Church.“ „Bad (sinful) life leads to the creation of false dogma, and bad (fake) dogmas bring forth sinful life.“ „When it comes to religion, we are not obliged to obey neither even Bishops, nor Council, but Christ and the Apostles.“ St. Mark has taught that „the Church is not episcopocentric but Christocentric,“ and advised the faithfuls: „Gather around our one head – Christ.“ He continues: „Separating from them (latinofrons), I try to stay in unity with my Fathers and Teachers“, which means it isn’t possible to be with the saints and also have ecclesial communion with heretics and „orthodox“ latinofons at the same time“(today this refers the ecumenists).

The Second QUESTION: When it comes to the CALENDAR, what has the Bishop Artemije meant when he says that „putting a question of the calendar on the highest pedestal is a heresy?“ The question is then expanded with a tendency to „prove“ that the calendar is very important thing „for us, the Orthodox Christians“.

ANSWER: The specific sub-questions:

a) What does it mean when the Bishop says: „Putting the calendar on the highest pedestal?“ It means – to consider it the most important dogma, on which depends all the rest, as well as our salvation. Therefore the Old Calendarists (Greek) deny the grace of the Holy Secrets to the New Calendarists, and even among themselves. There are numerous fractions of the Old Calendarists, and each one considers itself the right one, while denies the others.

b) Further on, the reader mentions the Old Calendarists in Romania, Bulgaria … and asks whether „by the Bishop’s interpretation all those who rejected the new calendar and remained with the old one (the Orthodox one) are in heresy?“ No, but they might be, like in Greece. It depends on their attitude to the calendar, and there is not much heard about it.

c) The question: „Are the Old Calendar churches in Greece, Romania and Bulgaria in heresy, because, to them, it (the calendar) is one of the most important issues?“ That is exactly where the heresy is, because the calendar is not a question of faith, as they opine.

There are various calendars, but it is the matter of states, civilizations, astronomy, and not a question of faith. The old, Julian calendar, was introduced by the pagan Roman emperor Julius Caesar. This calendar was in effect throughout the whole Roman empire, which included Palestine at the time of foundation of the Christianity. Thus it is natural and understandable, that all the events in the Church history were counted and recorded by that calendar. Thereby the calendar has been „consecrated“ with Christianity, but it hasn’t become sacred by itself, nor the dogma of the Church and the matter of faith.

Respecting (celebrating) events in the life of Christ and of the Church of God, the Old Calendarists (Greek) have began to worship the calendar itself, supplying it with a special blessings, and to consider cursed the new calendar, because „who adheres it, cannot be saved.“ We know that the Lord said: „Whoever believes and is baptized shall be saved: but whoever does not believe shall be condemned“ (Mk. 16, 16), or elsewhere: „unless one is born of water and the Spirit (ie if not baptized), he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.“(John 3, 5), without mentioning any calendar anywhere. On the contrary, the Old Calendarists’ Creed is: „Whoever does not keep the old calendar, can not be saved“!? Hence the denial of the Church, the grace, and the validity of the sacraments to the New Calendarists. That is the fundamental error, the misapprehension (heresy) of the Old calendarists. A calendar, any of them, is used as a mean of communication and orientation in time in the entire world, and the Old Calendarists have set it in the place of dogmas and attributed the soteriological character to it. Another fact which characterizes the Old Calendarists (at least the Greek ones), are fractionations among themselves, tearing, grinding, mutual condemnations and denials, non-recognitions, anathematizations …

In our interview, regarding the calendar, it was said that „the calendar is not heresy, but it is a mistake.“ It is known that the change of the calendar (Greece 1924) ocurred in order to get closer to the heretics of the West on the issue of celebration the Christian holidays and events, for which the actors of the change were accused of neglect (indifference) in the issues of faith, which was the first step of the deviation from the Patristic Tradition, and that led to the Ecumenism and relativism of the Orthodoxy (the World Council of Churches), to the contraptions etc. But we should be careful not to go from one extreme into another (the opposite one), because each extremity is disastrous for the Orthodox believers who get infected by it. Therefore, one is the issue of the abuse of the calendar by the Ecumenists for liturgical convergence to heretics, and another is providing a calendar the dogmatic significance by the old calendarists.

Even Christians have used different calendars at the beginning (Egyptian), till the First Ecumenical Council and even after it (St. Cyril of Alexandria), but they haven’t mutually accused and anathematized each others for that. Thus St. John Chrysostom in his speeches has said many times that God is not interested in time (calendar) when someone would celebrate a holiday, but whether he will celebrate it with a clear conscience. Because God will not judge us for the inquest of the time and dates, but for the transgressions of His commandments.

Bishop + Artemije

Taken from the website of the ERP and KM in exile