UOC Сhancellor: Church opposes principle of catholicity to Phanar doctrine

Metropolitan Anthony. Photo: facebook.com/MitropolitAntoniy

On November 11, 2021, the UOC Chancellor, Metropolitan Anthony (Pakanich) of Boryspil and Brovary, said that the Church should oppose the principle of catholicity to the doctrine of the Patriarchate of Constantinople about primacy, reports 112ua.tv.

During the International Conference at the KDAiS on the topic “Catholicity of the Church: Theological, Canonical and Historical Dimensions”, Metropolitan Anthony said that the crisis in world Orthodoxy can be overcome by convening a Pan-Orthodox Council, which the Patriarchate of Constantinople opposes.

“The doctrine of primacy in the Ecumenical Church, which is formulated by the theologians of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, is unacceptable to us. This doctrine has become a serious threat to the unity of world Orthodoxy. Realization of this understanding of primacy in practice leads to the undermining of the conciliar principle of church government,” the bishop said.

According to Metropolitan Anthony, the current crisis in world Orthodoxy is a crisis of catholicity, and "the very principle of the conciliar structure of the Church clearly indicated to us in the New Testament, is under threat".

“Today we need to return to the apostolic understanding of church councils as special means of cognizing Divine Truth. We must remember that it is at councils that the grace of the Holy Spirit acts in a special way, guiding the Church in truth. And today, when the Orthodox Church finds itself in a grave crisis, we need to fearlessly and with full responsibility resort to this salutary means in order to find a way out of a difficult situation,” said the UOC Сhancellor.

As reported earlier, according to the head of the Polish Church, a pan-Orthodox dialogue is needed to heal the division in world Orthodoxy. 

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