THE ARCHBISHOP yesterday slammed religious groups who oppose the Pope’s visit in June, warning that they put themselves outside the Church. A group, calling itself the ‘Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Motherland Traditions’, has been circulating a booklet entitled Pope: The Cause Of Evil. “Unfortunately there are in Cyprus too, the mindless who go against the decisions of the official Church,” Archbishop Chrysostomos II said.Read the rest here.
He warned that these people were placing themselves outside the Church. The Archbishop said the Pontiff had been officially invited to Cyprus by the government with the Church’s agreement and “as the official Church we will welcome him with love and respect.” Chrysostomos II said there will not be any talks between the Church and Pope. “We will exchange views and I believe his visit will be positive and beneficial for our country and our people,” Chrysostomos II said. He urged those who opposed the visit to “come round” and listen to the official church.
Note: The above excerpt was slightly modified in format, though not wording, to make it more readable.
John,
ReplyDeleteI notice a similar theme between this thread and “breaking news: the orthodox church is not catholic”. Could you expound upon the ecumenical differences between the ‘Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Motherland Traditions’ and st. justin popovic? It seems we could almost interchange the two in your older post:
“Now in fairness, I am not a huge fan of polemics. I have never seen anyone converted by insulting them. Still, all of the hubbub now spreading in the blogosphere (I count no less than five blogs that I regularly look at addressing this subject within the last 24hrs) raises an important question. How does [St. Justin's] the Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Motherland Traditions’ position fit in with the opinions of the other Orthodox saints? How does it fit with the historic teachings of the Orthodox Church? The answer, unfortunately for the kumbaya crowd, is quite well.”
Should I as a catholic appreciate the refreshing honesty of this orthodox group? It seems they are continuing in st. justin’s approach, which you yourself agree with. In fact, you neglected to interject your view into this post entirely …
Mike,
ReplyDeleteThis group is not Orthodox. They are schismatics. There is no such thing as the "Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Motherland Traditions." At least not in the context which we Orthodox understand the term "church." St. Justin was not a fan of dialogue for dialogue's sake. But he was not afraid to engage those outside the Church. By contrast these people strike me as a xenophobic group that are trying to hide their rejection of the Great Commission in a bunch of polemic drivel.
In ICXC
John