To all Orthodox brethren and clergy in Canada (and beyond),
Concerning today’s encyclical
My conscience is driving me to respond to focus on the following single excerpt coming from the Archdiocese’s announcement:
We must all realize – archbishop, the priests, the community councils and the people (the faithful)-, that we are living in difficult times. The instructions of the government authorities clearly state that it is forbidden to share objects of worship. Therefore it is imperative for Holy Communion to be given with a separate spoon for each believer. This is a temporary measure depending on how long the Covid-19 will last.
Πρέπει να αντιληφθούμε όλοι -αρχιεπίσκοπος, ιερείς, διοικητικά συμβούλια κοινοτήτων και λαός-, ότι είμαστε σε μία περίοδο δύσκολη. Οι οδηγίες των κυβερνήσεων λένε ξεκάθαρα, ότι απαγορεύεται να υπάρχει κοινή χρήση των αντικειμένων λατρείας. Επιβάλλεται να δίδεται η Θεία Κοινωνία με μία ξεχωριστή λαβίδα για τον κάθε πιστό. Είναι μέτρο προσωρινό. Θα δούμε στην πορεία πόσο θα κρατήσει ο κορωνοϊός
I will preface the reason for my response as follows:
– I come from a long lineage of military ancestry, which includes one great grandfather who is presumed martyred at the hands of the Turks in 1922, and whose remains were never recovered.
– As a result, the propensity to “give up without a fight” is not in my DNA. I cannot face my ancestors on Judgement Day if I don’t honor our tradition of “Υπερ Πιστεως”. This is why I’m speaking up today (I can’t do much else at this point)…Whether or not these “difficult times” that today’s encyclical refers to can be construed by people like myself as an assault / attack on our core beliefs is up for a debate that we can have separately, but this is where I personally stand…I see Religion being attacked by Government in this situation.
– In most civilized societies, freedom of Religion is a basic right, and even under “emergency conditions” it must be respected. Even if a regime decides to erode or take away these Religious freedoms, there is usually a “due process” in the courts…this “due process” is what I will call “the Fight”, or “the Battle”…In fact, Canada has signed multiple international treaties that safeguard “UNIFORMITY” when applying the standards of “Freedom of Religion”. This means, local governments within Canada should be bound by these international treaties as well. They can’t “literally” do whatever they like…Otherwise, Canada would quickly be added to Amnesty International’s lists of governments that oppress human rights, etc.
– If it is true that the Canadian Government is threatening a shutdown of our Churches because of our core practice of Faith (distribution method for Holy Communion), that should be formally challenged in court…the Archdiocese should not accept “surrender” just like that…St. Mark of Ephesos reminds us that in matters of Faith, there is NO compromise…
– Are there no Orthodox Lawyers, Judges left in Canada, willing to challenge a government that is overstepping its authority and is likely blatantly violating the international human rights agreements it has signed? I find this hard to believe.
– Why are we surrendering without a fight? Coming from a long lineage of military, I cannot accept this mindset. What would St. Demetrios, St. George, St. Theodore Stratelates, St. John the Russian (Evoia) and other soldier-saints do in this situation? Would they surrender?
We will certainly not be able to chant the words “Δυσσεβους προσταγματος καταφρονησαντες…πυρος απειλην ουκ επτοηθησαν…” with a clear conscience during the Katabasies of Christmas this year if we don’t actually make an effort to challenge the “Δυσσεβες Προσταγμα” from the Government that attacks the core of our liturgical Faith. By the way, this applies to all Orthodox jurisdictions in Canada, not just the Greek Orthodox jurisdiction…if the other jurisdictions gave up without an honorable LEGAL fight, too, shame on all of us…now is the time to Confess our Faith.
For those who are “filing complaints” with the government against the Church…are they even Orthodox? Being Orthodox is not just in name, but in deed as well…Holy Communion is voluntary at the end of the day…if someone really doesn’t feel comfortable, they can stay home until they are comfortable … but applying pressure on the Church to “roll over” like a puppy at the command (“Δυσσεβες Προσταγμα”) of the “government master” to change our traditions concerning Holy Communion is not a good idea, especially without a LEGAL fight…(hmm…is that a rooster crowing outside our window right now?)
Finally, returning to the above excerpt from today’s announcement, there is an old saying in Greece…Ουδεν μονιμοτερον του προσωρινου…(there is nothing more permanent than The Temporary)…pharmacists in the USA are already being advised to prepare for a nasty H1N1 strain from Asia this fall/winter, that is “not included in this year’s vaccine yet”…do you really believe it when you say this is going to be temporary? I don’t. This is a major Κερκοπορτα…
There is not much more to say at this point…my conscience as an Orthodox Christian is clear having spoken up publicly on this matter…I sincerely hope the same clarity of conscience for the rest of you, and I pray that the correct decisions are made going forward…
Το Πνευμα σου το Αγαθον οδηγησει με εν γη ευθεια….
with continuing concern,
Ιωαννης Μ. (Αναγνωστης)
