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- An interesting link with information on Athos can be found here. Also make sure to check out this link.
- Perhaps the best link on Orthodox dogmatic enquiries is the Orthodox Outlet for Dogmatic Enquiries. Please make sure you visit them because it has a plethora of articles in English and more and more articles get translated in English all the time. In particular, this link leads to an anticipated book by Philippides on issues of Romanity and Medieval Barbarism, where vital issues on the falsification of History are mentioned. This is crucial information for one's true understanding behind the reasons that led not only to the Schism of 1054 but also to present-day godless "Western Europe" and "America". Other such useful articles can also be found in this website. More importantly, it includes many Orthodox-minded articles. An important sub-domain that discusses Romanity issues is found here (for now only in Greek), based upon the works of fr. Romanides, found here.
- Information on Macedonia. The Historical background is important for when we discuss the issues of the Schismatic and anti-Christian "Macedonian Orthodox Church" which was cut off from the Serbian Patriarchate and "reformed" with the aim of propaganda to their evil cause.
Please note: we are not members of the aforementioned "American Hellenic" organisation. We simply provide some information that can be of use; their personal beliefs or views outside discussions on the Macedonia issue, policies etc. have nothing to do with us. We are not members of any association, fraternity or organisation. We are simply Orthodox Christians.
- Parakatatheke Magazine is perhaps the best Orthodox bi-monthly publication in Greece. It can be found online here.
Any links that try to sell you a politician as the choice of the Orthodox Church
- Some people will present their own personal pro-<substitute political party name here> philosophy as that of a supposed group of "conservative" Orthodox Christians and that Orthodox Christians should vote for the <political party name>! We have discussed in an article the fact that "conservative" Capitalism is essentially opposed to the Ecclesia of Christ and we have seen examples of various right-wing parties that have openly opposed the Orthodox Church and her way of life. Of course, the Orthodox Church cannot become entangled with political issues in the way some would want her to, turning into a worldly Vaticanising organisation. On the other hand, the Church is interested in socio-political issues that affect man. To see this better one should read fr. George Metallinos' important article here and also read elder Paisios' important counsel given here who reminds us that "whether it is a left or a right hand" it is of no use if it "does not do the Sign of the Cross" and also that "if the Communists were not atheists and persecuting God" he would agree with many of their positions (translation in progress). Therefore let us keep away from priests and laity who try to impose their political beliefs on us. Especially as regards our days, one could seriously argue that the Orthodox Church will be under attack no matter who is in charge. Today we need honest people who are at least favourable towards Orthodoxy. Not "Skull & Bones" or Freemasons who have sworn allegiance to the other side ...
- Some American Orthodox publishing companies will promote dangerous books together with their proper Orthodox material and thus promote nationalism under the pretense of Orthodoxy (probably because some editor is a "Christian" Fundamentalist, like some of those who write in Orthodoxy Today -- an Evangelical-minded online magazine that apes the Evangelical magazine Christianity Today, but with an "Orthodox garb" and should be avoided at all costs by pious Orthodox). One example of this sad (but not unexpected) situation is Regina Orthodox Press which, despite having given us some very nice books, promoted the pseudo-Ecumenist anti-Orthodox book "The Virtue of War" (written by an Orthodox and Papist on the common ethos that we share!!!). As elder Chrysostomos of St. Anne's Skete (who often writes in well-known pious Orthodox magazines such as Parakatatheke and in Athonite publications) commented to us on such tendencies: "They need to find an excuse to justify their wars." We have asked many other pious ascetics of the Holy Mountain and they all agree with this position, a position that the Orthodox reader who is first Orthodox and then a patriot (and therefore a true patriot) will recognise as valid. We will examine the Orthodox position on War in future. There are a variety of other such material in circulation in the USA that bear no connection with Orthodoxy. Therefore Orthodox Christians are asked to be extremely careful when ordering books from USA bookstores.
Any links that try to present themselves as "traditionalist" Orthodox may have great information at times but oftentimes not as far as their views on Old Calendarism is concerned which may be full of Old Calendarist fallacies and conceit
- In general be very cautious when reading links that claim to be "traditionalist" or "genuine" Orthodox. These rather proud epithets are usually a sign that "Dogmatic" Old Calendarism has its foot at least in part of the website (either OCs or some unofficial ROCA groups that are either in communion with or sympathetic to some schismatic OC group.)
There are no "isms" in Orthodox Christianity. We discuss all this in our Chapter on Old Calendarism.
As long as you take the statements on articles that deal with the Calendar issue with a pinch of salt (Dogmatic Old Calendarists out of their own choice remain cut off from the rest of Orthodoxy having started this situation through a deliberate alteration in a Historical Code that was recently unmasked), you can usually find some great information in such sites, especially if you concentrate on the Patristic section of the sites and avoid reading on "current affairs". Their views on Ecumenism are also quite extreme and the implication that those who participate in WCC are heretics is in fact a fallacy. The issue is fully addressed by Athonite elders here. Future articles are being prepared in order to give more information on this topic.
More information can be found on our Patristic Section that will show examples from contemporary Fathers of our Church who condemn Zealotism, usually pushed under the carpet in such websites (because they promote it).
There are exceptions to this rule, of course. Some websites use the term traditionalist to imply someone who is an Orthodox but neither a pseudo-Ecumenist nor a moderniser. We do not like this definition because of the negative connotations this term has today, although this is largely a matter of taste.
However, one should realise that the terms "moderate" Old Calendarist or "Old Calendarist zealot" who is "moderate" in their views, should also be viewed with grave suspicion. The reason is simply that, even though a "moderate" Old Calendarist (who does not necessarily consider us as heretics or schismatics) may be much closer to the Orthodox Church, and a large number of their views are indeed well thought out and non-fanatical, in most cases he will also belong to a schismatic jurisdiction and therefore be schismatic. The point is not only in one's views but also in their position inside the Ecclesia.
That God has abandoned Old Calendarists can be seen from the fact that in Greece the older OCist group has seven "branches" while Russia alone has over fifty (yes fifty!) groups of ... Genuine Orthodox Christians (GOC)! Consequently, we urge the reader to avoid websites that, no matter how beautiful they may be, use these terms because ultimately something is not going right. Also do note that there are many historical fallacies that have been perpetrated by OCists and (usually out of ignorance) these get passed on to such websites. Since it is very difficult for one who is not knowledgeable in these matters to fully unmask these, one should be very careful. We ourselves have fallen victims of OCist propaganda in the past, and the same holds for some priests we know.
Finally, a word of warning: there are many half-truths out there about the Old Calendar. For example, read our latest warning on our Updates section about a Kelliotes letter in circulation among some "traditionalist" sites. We will come back to that later on.
Controversy-seeking sites
- There are some disgusting sites that use piety as an excuse and bring to the light controversies in Orthodoxy, usually created by some "lay groups" in the USA whose aim is to sue anything that moves, or individuals who may or may not have the right end of the stick, thus giving ample of material to Jehovah Witnesses to attack Orthodoxy and present temporary situations (almost always unsubstantiated accusations) as real issues within Orthodoxy. Any Tom, Dick or Harry who decides to attack the Orthodox Church can write and claim that "I met this elder and he told me to do this, or that or that". How many Orthodox blessed hierarchs have been accused this way over the centuries!
Even when there are real issues involved, instead of reporting these in private so that ecclesiastical courts can either clear the name of the accused or defrock them, they slander the names of individuals, making people who respond to such web pages fall under the sins of katalalia and condemnation. The reader is urged to examine the counsels of Blessed Elder Paisios on this topic at the end of this page.
If you, dear reader, participate in such discussions and propagate controversies do not expect the blessing of God in your life. As we noticed that some of these also slander monastic communities in the USA, the wrath of God will come upon them. Christ does not treat lightly those who condemn His monastics. Even if some monastic said a wrong word or did something not right, it is for his spiritual father and the Church to examine these issues and not for the internet, where exploitation can happen so easily.
If Christ allowed the Revolution in Russia to happen the very day the take-over of the Holy Mountain was being prepared, what do you think He will do to those who slander the good standing of the Holy Garden of Panagia?
There are countless of stories of the wrath of God against those who slandered Athos and the other blessed monastic communities. And, if one problem does present itself, fervent prayer will always bring the blessed fruits we seek so long as we have love and faith.
Suspect web pages
- Like with all Orthodox web pages, their nature on the
internet is rather unofficial, even if these are "official pages".
Their aim is to give some information and that is about it.
Even
this very web page that you read, dear reader, presents some material
we believe to be in line with Orthodox Consciousness but you are not required
to come back here to "learn the truth". On the contrary, we urge the
reader to leave the internet and media in general, and visit
monasteries and Orthodox temples around the globe to learn the Life
from within. Half a day spent with a holy monk or careful and
willingful participation in one Divine Liturgy is worth a lot more than
a month's reading!
Apart from this we do not ask that the reader
believes unquestioningly. "Seek and you shall find", the Lord said. We
have written in the Introduction that the reader is advised to
cross-reference this material with Orthodox books and especially the
works of Holy Fathers. Not in a dry scholastic way. The reader is urged to read patristic works (especially John Chrysostom) in order to be able to feel the Orthodox Consciousness and not just "intellectualize".
The cross-referencing is also important because there is a very real danger that the material of a web page will be non-Orthodox in its essence even though it may claim
otherwise. The danger is increased further by the fact that some web pages may become
"hijacked" by schismatic groups who "hold rein" to the old web page. Most pious Orthodox lay and clergy avoid
spending a lot of time on the internet and of course the opinions and
the material presented online are not necessarily representative of the
wishes of the Holy Spirit; the maintenace of a web page may fall under
the hands of people who are technically adept but spiritually
incoherent and treacherous.
While the most common problem in this respect is that one can find many personal web pages that represent only the personal opinions of some loosely Orthodox who believe they can write anything that comes to their head (i.e. following upon Protestant trends and formats) and who usually have little or no idea on issues of the faith (e.g.
those who politick, those who present the "truth as scattered" and so
forth), it is a reality that one has to face due to the very nature of
the internet.
Such web pages can usually be found to be "rogue" by
their motives which soon come out. For instance, we mentioned above
that some web pages play politics and use Orthodoxy to promote their
politics. Other web pages will support some sort of personal interest in
aspects of Orthodoxy (e.g. chanting) and decide to spend the rest of the web page to present their own views in life ("for
me Orthodoxy actually is ...").
To reduce the chance of falling prey to a "rogue" site it is best if the reader avoids the internet altogether! Otherwise, if the reader follows upon the
"safeguards" of the Orthodox "paradigm" Professor Arakaki mentioned in his article Paradosis (found in our Comparative page), they can check
against the beliefs and ideas presented in such sites to figure out if
they are Orthodox in nature or not.
Ultimately, the best way for someone to be enlightened is by humility through prayer to Christ, living an Orthodox life to the best of their abilities within the Church.
For this reason "lukewarm" Orthodox are advised to go to Confession often, to follow the canon given to them by their spiritual father, to prepare for and receive Holy Communion, to listen to the word of contemporary Holy Elders and Fathers of our Church. Also, the pledge of the Holy Spirit written in our hearts on the day when we were chrismated warns us if we read something that is contrary to the Orthodox position.
The non-Orthodox are advised to read this article here. (The word "traditionalist" is used here to indicate a non-modernist and non-pseudo-ecumenist Orthodox Christian and is not used to infer a "dogmatic" Old Calendarist.)
Of course, if a web page proves
quite seriously distorted on a large number of material, then it
becomes very dangerous to read the rest even if it is proper; not only for a novice, but also for
those who are more experienced in these matters.
This problem is not usually faced with official web pages. However read also the warning in the next paragraph.
- An official site of an Orthodox jurisdiction does not necessarily reflect the official opinion of the whole Orthodox Church in every issue of current affairs and on-going issues, as personal opinions appear on matters that are currently taking place.
Thus, the aforementioned caution we need to exercise when reading "traditionalist" sites must be counter-balanced by the care we need also take when reading "modernist" or "ecumenist" views present in some official sites (usually because the web administrators must be careful how they address issues due to the nature of electronic and press media today). However these do not constitute "heresy" of course, God forbid! People are allowed to present their own opinions.
In dogmatic issues of course these sites will usually present the Orthodox position that we all know about although various theological articles may not.
All this may seem mind-boggling. But to understand these issues is truly secondary because our intellect can only do so much. We must first work on ourselves by a spiritual struggle: prayer, asceticism, asking God to enlighten us. It does not happen only through our intellect or "by magic". The beginner should spend more time examining themselves instead of reading many books, so do the Elders on the Holy Mountain caution the reader. And many of us will stay as beginners for a long time, so let us spend less time reading material on the internet and more time preparing ourselves to be catechised and come into the faith.
Therefore the reader should not spend too much time reading the various opinions found in Newsletters or examining current affairs through the prism of some official website and then believe they have done something spiritual! More importantly, the reader should not believe all this represents the official position of the Orthodox Church in every way, but rather as the views of the author(s). Bear also in mind that sometimes people simply err. Our personal views on why this or that in current affairs have changed over the years, through experience. This does not mean that when we held some different views on a Church issue that we or others are to be stigmatised as heretics for this; such absurdities have no place inside the Church.
However, in issues of faith we seek the decisions of the Oecumenical Synods, of the Holy Fathers and their Patristic counsel that agrees with Orthodox Consciousness. When the Apostles had been asked to give their opinion on the problem of the circumcision of the Gentiles, five of them gave you ten opinions. Only through the Apostolic Synod did they decide in humility and of course "in the Spirit".
Let us therefore learn to obey Mother Church, to stay vigilant, to increase our asceticism, to be loving, being neither extremists nor agapologists, and to try to move up.
The rest will come to us, dear reader. The rest will come later.
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