Key gaffes and absurdities of President’s Address to Patriarch Bartholomew

In the current rush race on creating a Single Local Orthodox Church (SLOC) in Ukraine there has emerged an official document: Appeal of Petro Poroshenko to Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew. The document, according to the idea of its author, should become a cornerstone on which the SLOC can possibly be built. Due to this, as well as the "outstanding" semantic content of this document, it deserves a separate comment.

Ready. Steady. Go!

APPEAL

President of Ukraine to the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew on granting the Tomos of Autocephaly to the Orthodox Church in Ukraine.

Your Holiness!

Christ is Risen!

I appeal to Your Holiness, the Ecumenical Patriarch and the leader of the Orthodox world.

Yes, indeed, the Primate of the Church of Constantinople bears the title of Ecumenical Patriarch and is called the Most Holy. There is nothing wrong with that. However, one must realize that all these titles are nothing more than a tribute to the Byzantine tradition. Byzantium itself, to the attention of the staff of the President's Administration composing the document, fell in 1453. For several centuries prior to that, the entire "universe" (oecumene), which had given the Bishop of Constantinople such a resounding title, was narrowed to Constantinople and its closest suburbs.

In 330 when the Roman emperor, holy Constantine the Great Equal-to-the-Apostles, moved the capital of the Roman Empire to Byzantium, it was really the capital of the whole universe, the oecumene. This was the name of the entire civilized world. But since 1453, Constantinople has not been something that dominates the universe, but it itself is under the rule of the Turks. And besides, it should be remembered that the Ecumenical Patriarch is a purely imperial title, and in the rhetoric of the Ukrainian president, "imperialism" is a uniquely negative phenomenon. But this is just by the by. In general, the appeal "to your Holiness, the Ecumenical Patriarch" is correct. But further on ... "and the leader of the Orthodox world" immediately gets any Orthodox man bewildered.

The fact is that there is no leader in the Orthodox world. There is not even such a notion. There is the Head of the Church, Christ. "Christ is the head of the Church, and He is the Savior of the body" (Eph. 5:23). As for leadership, the Lord told his apostles quite clearly: "And He sat down, called the Twelve, and said to them: whoever wants to be first, be the last of all and all the servants" (Mk. 9:35). On this, of course, you can argue that, in a sense, the head of the Church is Christ, but there is also a broad interpretation of this concept. But in a broad sense, the Patriarch of Constantinople is not the leader of the Orthodox world. Nor is any other primate of the Local Orthodox Church. The maximum that can be attributed to the Patriarch of Constantinople is "leadership" in the Church of Constantinople itself, far from being the largest in the world.

The Orthodox Church (the "Orthodox world" in the terminology of the President's Appeal), unlike the Catholic Church, does not have a visible head on earth, nor does it have a single administrative structure. The Church is one in Christ as His Body. But in its earthly organization it, to date, consists of fifteen Autocephalous Churches, each of which cannot interfere in the affairs of another. The Patriarch of Constantinople is only the first in the list (Diptych) of the Orthodox Local Churches. He is the first among other patriarchs equal to him, and by and large among all the other bishops. Orthodoxy does not know greater spiritual power (leadership) than the authority of the bishop.

Maybe, P. Poroshenko had in mind a kind of moral leadership, which, for example, the Patriarch of Constantinople St Photius had in the IX century? But it does not work here either. Patriarch Bartholomew, despite his title of "Holy", is very sharply criticized in the Orthodox world in general and on the Holy Mountain Athos in particular. His most radical opponents even accuse him of heresy and give enough valid arguments. But even moderate critics reproach Patriarch Bartholomew for his excessive ecumenism and completely non-canonical attempts to interfere in the internal affairs of other Local Churches.

Thus, the appeal "to the leader of the Orthodox world" is just a pure grovel.

As the head of the state of Ukraine, who represents its citizens, including those belonging to the Ukrainian Orthodox community, which thanks to the Baptism, received from the Mother Church of Constantinople 1030 years ago, profess the Orthodox Christian faith – I ask you to grant the Tomos of autocephaly to the Orthodox Church in Ukraine.

The President of Ukraine is a political leader of the country, whose exhaustive powers are legally enshrined in the Constitution of Ukraine. Likewise, the Constitution foresees the separation of the Church from the state (Article 35). The president can not represent absolutely anyone in a religious sense; he is not the entity to whom the "Ukrainian Orthodox community" delegated the appropriate authority. Primate of the UOC, Metropolitan Onuphry, is the only person in Ukraine who has an exclusive right to represent citizens of Ukraine – members of the "Ukrainian Orthodox community".

It is very good that in the Address of the President of Ukraine it was mentioned that some of its citizens who were invited to represent Poroshenko before Patriarch Bartholomew "profess the Orthodox Christian faith". But before writing these words, the authors of the Appeal should at least have read the Symbol of Faith to find out what this "Orthodox Christian faith" is. In fact, it consists, among other things, in that "I believe in the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church." This belief is also shared by Patriarch Bartholomew, who has repeatedly expressed the opinion that the Ukrainian schismatic confessions such as the UOC-KP, the UAOC, and the UGCC do not belong to this One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church.

Well, the words "I ask you to grant the Tomos of autocephaly to the Orthodox Church in Ukraine" is simply legal illiteracy, for which an official of the Presidential Administration who wrote this passage must be punished with an official sanction. There is no such religious organization in Ukraine! Who will be granted Tomos? What confession? Again, from the point of view of Patriarch Bartholomew, the Orthodox Church in Ukraine is the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. But UOC is not named in the President's Appeal.

Well, the very motion “I ask You to grant the Tomos of autocephaly” is a grave violation of the Constitution of Ukraine, which the UOJ wrote about.

This long-awaited document will not only be the triumph of Orthodoxy, but also an act of deep historical justice, because it is from Constantinople that the light of the Christian faith was poured on our blessed land.

Ignorance again, but already religious, the “triumph of Orthodoxy" is a very specific ecclesiastical feast, performed on the First Week of Great Lent, which was first celebrated in 843 as a celebration of victory over the iconoclastic heresy. In a broad sense, the phrase “triumph of Orthodoxy" is used to refer to a situation where the Orthodox faith triumphs after it was trampled upon by any heresy or persecution. What would really look like the "triumph of Orthodoxy" is if the UOC-KP, the UAOC and the UGCC, which severed themselves from Orthodoxy, would return through repentance to the bosom of the Church of Christ.

This long-awaited document will strengthen religious freedom in Ukraine and interfaith peace, enhance the rights and freedoms of citizens.

It would be funny if it were not sad! What kind of religious freedom can the President speak of, by his own Appeal grossly violating this very freedom? The Constitution and laws of Ukraine guarantee non-interference of the state in the internal affairs of religious communities. And here we have such an overt illegal trampling of all legal and ethical norms! We repeat – no one authorized P.Poroshenko to commit actions on creating the SLC. This is the business of the Orthodox faiths themselves. In this case, we are dealing with a flagrant violation, rather than strengthening "religious freedom".

As for the statement that Tomos "will strengthen ... inter-confessional peace" is generally the top of cynicism and falsehood. After all, it is very clear to all that the forcible planting in Ukraine of the Single Local Church, in conditions when the most numerous confession – the Ukrainian Orthodox Church – does not participate in this political project, means a multiple increase in violent actions against it. This has been repeatedly stated by such nationalist groups as the "Right Sector", "S14" and the like. If you imagine that Patriarch Bartholomew will agree on such an irresponsible act as satisfying the motion of P. Poroshenko, this will entail an inter-confessional war, not peace in Ukraine. The Internet is simply full of political experts' statements that a wave of violence and lawlessness awaits Ukraine in the event of the implementation of the SLOC project. 

This document will bring the respect and authority of the Ecumenical Patriarch to the new heights among the Ukrainians.

A mere flattery and falsehood!

Believers of the UOC are also Ukrainians, no worse than others. And they are against Patriarch Bartholomew’s committing non-canonical and hostile actions against the UOC. What kind of respect and authority can we talk about?

Besides, in this case, Patriarch Bartholomew will lose "respect and authority" among other Local Orthodox Churches. It has already been said that the principles of "Papism" are alien to the Orthodox world community alongside attempts of one Local Church to interfere with another. Instead of "new heights of respect and authority", Patriarch Bartholomew should expect obstruction from other Local Churches and termination of canonical communication.

Your Holiness, You are the only person in the world who has the canonical right and legitimate power to resolve such issues.

Grovel and ignorance again!

There are no such canons that would give the Constantinople Patriarch such a right. And everyone knows this very well. When preparing for the Crete Council, which Phanar calls Pan-Orthodox, and which was not so in fact, the Patriarchate of Constantinople tried to propose a document that would determine the procedure for granting autocephaly, and that would include some (!) exclusive rights of the Patriarch of Constantinople in this procedure. Moreover, it was by no means about "the canonical right and legitimate power to resolve such issues" solely by the Patriarch of Constantinople. It was about some advantages before the rest Primates of the Church. But even in this form the proposal was disapproved by other Local Churches and was not submitted to the Crete Council.

To date, the canons that would clearly regulate the procedure for granting autocephaly do not exist. In practice, autocephaly is granted by the Local Church, which the Church receiving autocephaly is a part of (currently). So the Russian Orthodox Church gave at a time autocephaly to the Polish Orthodox Church, the Orthodox Church of the Czech Lands and Slovakia, and the Orthodox Church in America. An autocephalous status of the American Church is recognized by the Russian, Bulgarian, Georgian, Polish and Czechoslovak Churches, but considered by the Patriarchate of Constantinople as part of the Russian Church.

Our entire nation looks at You with reverence and hope, because it is in your power to give us unity, peace and harmony which we need so much and which we have been deprived of for so long.

See the comment of the previous paragraph.

Yes, indeed, "the unity, peace and harmony which we need so much" is what the long-suffering Ukraine needs. However, satisfying the request of P. Poroshenko will bring to our land exactly the opposite things: religious confrontation, violence and enmity. We repeat, in Ukrainian society there is no agreement on the SLOC issue in the form proposed by the President. Believers of the UOC are against it! Or have they already become people of the "second class"?

Your blessing, as well as the charter granted to our Ukrainian Church, will finalize the establishment of independent and autonomous Ukraine in the spiritual dimension.

Again it is an illiterate opus. There is no religious organization called "Ukrainian Church"! And as for the "spiritual dimension”, in this dimension there is not only Ukraine, like any other country, but "there is neither Gentile nor Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free, but Christ is all and in all" (Col 3: 11).

And if we discard the passage about the "spiritual dimension", then we can state that P. Poroshenko has blurted out and said frankly why and in what capacity he needs the Local Church. It is called not to save people, not to connect them with Christ, not to preach the Gospel – it is called to "finalize the establishment of independent and autonomous Ukraine."

Again, as before, we will owe this to the Mother Church and personally to You, Your Holiness.

Not at all so far.

I hope and believe that you, as a wise and just pastor, will not refuse us the blessing and long-awaited act of benevolence to your spiritual children, Ukrainians, being loyal to our Mother Church.

Flattery and servility! These words are relevant in the mouth of some leader from the deep Middle Ages, but not in the mouth of the President of the country of the 21st century!

Continual lies! Faithful to the Church of Christ are those who have remained united with Her. Is it possible to call so Greek Catholics who betrayed Orthodoxy in 1596? (We mention here the Greek Catholics, because the head of the UGCC leader Sviatoslav Shevchuk expressed the hope in the future to unite with the SLOC). Is it possible to call schismatics from the UAOC and UOC-KP loyal to the "our Church-Mother" if they severed themselves from the Church in 1920 and 1992, respectively. And this is not a personal opinion of the author of these lines. Patriarch Bartholomew believes this too, as he has repeatedly stated. The official position of Phanar (at least for today) is to recognize the UOC as the only religious organization that joins the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church.

Please accept the assurances of my deep respect for You, loyalty to Orthodoxy and devotion to the Mother Church.

I wonder if the Ukrainian President will be able to retain "deep respect" for Patriarch Bartholomew if the latter does not satisfy his request.

We’d better keep silent about the loyalty of P. Poroshenko to Orthodoxy.

Petro Poroshenko

President of Ukraine

The last two lines are an absolute truth!