What is Forgiveness?

.from Joanna's notepad

What is Forgiveness?
Orthodox people ask this question.  

St. Philaret of NY says that only God's forgiveness is so complete that He does not remember.*  We can strive towards that ideal, but I'm not sure how hard we should try in every case -- God endowed us with reason and memory for a purpose.    To understand what forgiveness is, we can consider what it is not.   And forgetting is not necessarily a component.

I did a Google search:  | Bible "forgive and forget" | 
 here is what AI says:

"Forgive and forget" is not a direct biblical phrase, though the Bible commands complete forgiveness, often modeled on God's, who chooses to "remember sins no more" (Hebrews 8:12). While God "blots out" transgressions (Isaiah 43:25), for humans, this means releasing bitterness and not holding wrongs against someone, rather than experiencing literal amnesia.

I like that — "not literal amnesia."  It makes sense.  How can it be good for us to pretend something never happened?  Isn't pretending something akin to lying?  You certainly want to remember that the hot stove will burn you, and you certainly don't want to pretend it won't burn you again.

Looking at the idea of forgetting from another angle, — the example Christ gives of the lender forgiving a debt.  Here the debt is forgotten, as if the money were never borrowed.  Nothing is owed.   The "record" of the loan is erased.

But I can imagine a case where, a borrower might come a second time and ask to borrow money again.  I imagine the lender using his reason and his memory saying,

      "I remember you at one time had trouble re-paying a loan.  I don't want to lend to you because it is reasonable to consider you are a high risk.  Not only could I lose my money, it could hurt our friendship if you fail to repay me in a timely manner.  But, I should be able to give you some alms, at least for part of the sum you are asking.  Let me go home and look over my budget and I willl get back to you."  

A word that seems to be tied up with forgiveness is "offenses."  Today on Forgiveness Sunday we ask each other to forgive us our offenses, in case in any way we might have offended one another.

A true story:  the day that Fr. Seraphim died (Sept. 2, 1982) he appeared to Helen Kontsevich in a dream, to say good-bye.  He left her with his stern warning never to take offense at anyone.  This is worthy to ponder.  It was not clear if he meant intended or unintended offenses, or both.  This seems like a good podvig for all of us to consider and follow.  

The remedy for being offended or for offending is forgiveness.   But how much greater it is to instead forestall any ill-feelings simply by not taking or accepting the offense in the first place.  There is no need for forgiveness if an offense has not occurred.  But after the offense has occurred,  then our recourse is forgiveness. 

How to do this effectively...  each case will be different, but right away we can see the more successful the forgiveness, the lesser will be the damage, the quicker will be the recovery, and the less likely it is that additional related offenses will follow.  I think it is most important, to do forgiveness right, there has to be no lies involved, no pretending.

An example would be the husband who cheats on his wife.  It would be wrong to pretend that it never happened.  The consequences need to be faced with courage by both husband and wife.  Something has been lost, destroyed, that can never be reclaimed.  For the sake of the children, they might decide to continue keeping the household together even though the marriage is ruined.   Or they may decide to dismantle the household.  Either way, they must honestly face the consequences, not try to pretend it did not happen, or that it can eventually be undone.   Whatever solution is decided, forgiveness is necessary -- whether there is a divorce or not.  It would be wrong for the husband to demand the wife prove her forgiveness by pretending to still have a marriage.  (Or, worse, by pretending they could have a marriage again if she would forget, — effectively shifting the fault to her...)   It is very important for a successful forgiveness that there be no lies, no pretending included with the forgiveness.  

Even before this element of no lies and no pretending, there is something even more important to determine before trying to use forgiveness to remedy an offense.  Ask, what is it that is being forgiven?  I think people get confused about this.  Is it something that can actually be forgiven?  Does it qualify as an "offense" that can be wiped off the slate?  Go back a few paragraphs where I wrote: 

     A word that seems to be tied up with forgiveness is "offenses."  Today on Forgiveness Sunday we ask each other to forgive us our offenses, in case in any way we might have offended one another.

 

Specifically see the part, "...forgive us our offenses..."   This is not simply "forgive us."  We are not asking to be forgiven for being who we are, or for what we are.  We can forgive the cat for scratching up the furniture, but it is not reasonable to think you can forgive the cat for being a cat.  I'm reminded of the story of the monk who carried a snake down a mountain.  He was bitten, and when he complained the snake said, "But you knew I was a snake when you picked me me."   If you don't pick up a snake, how could that reasonably mean you are being "unforgiving," or worse — "judging"?

An example of calling it an offense when it is not an offense:  

Remember back in 2007 when we in ROCOR were told to forgive the MP?  Yes, MP committed many crimes against the ROCOR before the fall of Communism.  And MP continued to commit crimes against ROCOR after the fall of Communism, as well.   But, we were told to "let bygones be bygones."   Look again here.  We can surely forgive the crimes MP committed against us, but that forgiveness does not change what MP is.  MP is a fake Church.  Forgiveness is not going to turn MP into a real Church.   It is unfair to ask us to prove our forgiveness by joining the MP.  We can forgive the MP of its offenses against us without joining it. 

We've heard of such a thing as "false humility."  I suggest there is also such a thing as "false forgiveness."  In all cases of false forgiveness there is that red flag of some kind of lie or pretense being added in.  In the example of the MP, to join the MP we would be pretending MP is something that it is not.   Believing a lie, that there is hope MP will change AFTER we join it, (or even because we join it!)  This is a blatant lie, a blatant ignoring the facts before your eyes as things are now right in front of us.   Wherever you find a lie — know that God is not there.  Run the other way.  Don't participate in a lie.  Even if everyone thinks you are wrong.  Better to be alone now than separated from Truth in eternity.

May we all have successful at forgivings during this Great Lent.  

Dear Readers, 
   Please forgive me.  Even if I have not offended you personally, I have offended and harmed the Body of Christ with my laziness and wasteful habits. 
Joanna 

*see St. Philaret's sermon on "Blaspheme Against the Holy Spirit" in the book: St. Philaret of New York – His Collected Works, © 2024 Sbn. Nektarios Harrison, M.A.  ISBN: 979-833-571-5430, p. 343
 

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Ecumenism — A Path to Perdition

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Dear blog Readers,
     I am posting the CONCLUSION and the INTRODUCTION (in that order) to a book you should want to read, or re-read if that's the case.  It's been 25 years now  since it was published in English.  And 30 years since it was first published in Russian. 

Ecumenism — A Path to Perdition
by Ludmilla Perepiolkina
https://ecumenizm.tripod.com

unreliable link

quote from the conclusion:

There will remain one or two churches in which the True Body of Christ and the True Blood of Christ will be imparted to the faithful.

 Notice it says "one or two" and not 100 separated old-calendar fragments.  The "one or two" are the Sister Churches  indicated here:  http://rocaborrego.org/about.html  This list shows four Churches but Etna and GOC share the same Metropolitan now.  So it's really three Churches. even though I agree totally we should keep the distinction between Etna and GOC.

If I'm allowed to play orthographer for a minute...,I think we should not use a period after a sentence ending in a url.  Just follow the url with the traditional 2 spaces, as I did above.  Especially if the link is going to be activated.

CONCLUDING REMARKS
(footnotes not included here)

The words of prophet Daniel regarding "abomination of desolation in the holy place" have acquired a special meaning in our days.  Our Lord Jesus Christ Himself speaks of this prophecy.

The Savior foretold the signs of the end times when "the stars shall fall from heaven."   As the Lord Himself explained "the stars" are the Angels of the Churches, i. e. bishops.  The fall of bishops is of a religious and moral nature and is... one of the most characteristic signs of the end-times.  Particularly terrible is the fall of bishops when they fall away from the dogmas of faith, or, as the holy Apostle says, when they "pervert the gospel of Christ."  The Apostle Paul instructs that such should be "anathematized"; and he further advises not to delay the rejection of such.  Or else one may be judged by God for indifference to falling away from the truth.

"Abomination of desolation in the holy place" also refers to the profanation of sacred Orthodox objects, and to episcopal sees occupied by unworthy hierarchs. 

Another prophecy regarding the Antichrist who "shall... think to change times and laws" is literally taking place before our very eyes.  When this book was already finished we have received an extremely important communication: namely, that in actual fact the World Council of Churches has already predetermined the common day for celebrating the holy Pascha (Easter).  The documents of the ecumenical Consultation of 5-10 March 1997 which took place in Aleppo (Syria) testify to this.  These documents were signed by the Adventists, Pentacostalists, Anglicans, Lutherans, Monophysites, Old-Catholics, the Vatican, the Patriarchates of Moscow, Antioch and Constantinople, and the other participants. 

By citing words of the Savior frequently and in vain, by quoting passages from the Holy Scriptures, and by giving an outrageously false interpretation of the decision of the First Ecumenical Council, the ecumenical falsifiers try to prove their case and to mislead people about the most serious crime against Orthodoxy which is once again committed in secret from the faithful. 

Speaking of the ecclesiastic "old calendar," which is so hateful to all reformers but which is sanctioned by Holy Fathers and is adhered to by the Orthodox Churches in Eastern Europe and the Near East, the participants of the Aleppo Consultation have falsely and in a secular fashion declared this calendar to be only "a symbol of the desire of the Churches that use it to maintain their integrity and their freedom."  The recommendations accepted by this ecumenical Consultation regarding the changes in Orthodox Paschalia sound like a harsh bellow of men of power who are demanding obedience, rather than true recommendations. 

That the recommendations of the WCC are actually decisions is demonstrated, for example, by the fact that the heretics-Monophysites have been de facto ranked along with the Orthodox.  Undoubtedly in order to emphasize the Union with the anti-Chalcedonians concluded within the World Council of Churches, "The Consultation of the Representatives of the Orthodox Churches — members of the WCC" of 13-15 December 1996 in Antelias (Lebanon) took place under the Chairmanship of "His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of Cifcia," i.e., a representative of the anathematized Monophysitism! 

That same Consultation (essentially a "pan-Orthodox" one) "opposed a possible future unilateral decision by any one Local Church to leave the WCC without reaching an agreement with the other Churches."  The concluding document of this Consultation points out that "such a step would violate the Inter-Orthodox solidarity, cause bewilderment and divisions within the world Orthodoxy." (emphasis – L.P.)  In other words, in accordance with the blasphemous ecumenical ecclesiology, the unity and wholeness of the Church which is the body of Christ depends on the membership in the WCC, rather than on our Lord Jesus Christ!  This is indeed an "ecclesiological monstrosity", a harbinger of the apocalyptic beast! 

As far back as 55 years ago, in 1942, the Archbishop of Canterbury, C.V. Temple, one of the founders of the World Council of Churches, commented that "ecumenism was the most important event of our century." One cannot but agree with this utterance.  The general secularization of life and apostasy which today have enveloped almost the whole of mankind, are directly bound with the contemporary lawlessness caused by ecumenists and modernists within the Church itself and outside its walls.  And it is necessary for the one who will come in his own name — the Antichrist — that people should make a free choice in his favor: "by my own will I come to you."  This is the purpose of the planet-wide and truly satanic attempt to deprive human souls of their divine image, to make them receptacles of all vices and abominations, and subsequently to cause their death.  And in this ecumenism plays a very important role. 

Ecumenism is, probably, the greatest counterfeit, the most comprehensive religious falsification of all that have ever existed on earth.  Allowing its Orthodox members to externally preserve the appearance of Christian stateliness, the WCC does everything possible to deprive them of their inner, spiritual essence without which they are but a "sounding brass." 

All the facts referred to in this book testify that we are dealing with a werewolf, a pseudo-church, the Babylonian harlot of the chapters 17 and 18 of the Revelation: she sits "upon many waters," which "are peoples, and multitudes, and nations and tongues."  The universal ecumenism is the main sign of this pseudo-church of Antichrist: She sits "upon a scarlet colored beast," i.e., she acts in accord with the supreme power of the world government and crowns this power.  She commits fornication with "the kings of the earth" (worldwide Sergianism?).  She is "arrayed in purple and scarlet color, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication" — i .e. she has the appearance of holiness, but is filled with abominations.  She has "corrupted the earth with her fornication" — i.e., has distorted the faith and corrupted nations.  Her name is "mystery, Babylon the Great, the mother of harlots and abominations of the earth" — i.e., heresies, demonic false teachings and the occultism.  She is "drunken with the blood of the saints" — i.e., she persecutes the true Church.  Her focus is — Patriarchates of Constantinople and Moscow, and the other "Orthodox" ecumenical pseudo-churches. 

Metropolitan Vitaly, the First Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad speaks of this as follows:

     Before our eyes, suddenly, quite unexpectedly, we are seeing the mystical revelation of the Holy Apostle and Evangelist John the Theologian, the Apocalypse.  For a long time we thought of it as a prophecy from afar off time which would assuredly be fulfilled one day in the future.  But now, suddenly, not only has it appeared at the doors of our contemporary life, but the sharp, icy blast of the Antichrist has begun to howl across the whole of our planet earth. 
     What exactly is the APOCALYPSE?  According to the Holy Fathers who have interpreted this sacred book, the Apocalypse is the book of the last years of the earthly history of the Church of Christ.  It shows the inseparably close links between the fate of the Church and the fate of the whole world, the whole human race, and the entire cosmos.  This means that the only reason why the world and all that is in it still exist is the fact that the True Church of Christ continues to dwell on it. 
     What is the Church's lot in our days?  It is being crowded out.  The Church displeases most people; It is barely tolerated, people laugh at It and revile It.  So now all the forces of darkness are trying to squeeze themselves into It and eat It away from inside like termites, leaving behind only an empty wrapping.  But they have not managed to destroy It, and will not be able to do so. 
     Evil is laughing in our faces!  And we thoughtlessly chase after the shadow of earthly good things and our imaginary good repute, as long as no one inconveniences us or disturbs the tempo of our life and comfort.  But a great temptation will come upon us, and come without fail.  We will be placed on the knifes edge of life.  Nobody will be able to hide anywhere, even in a fissure in the rock.  Everyone will be found and faced with the fatally tragic question: either you are with "us" or with CHRIST?  Perhaps the question will not be posed quite like that, from fear of scaring the luckless Christian, but he will simply be asked, "are you with us?"
     What shall our answer be and what we are to do?  Firstly we must understand in what a terribly dangerous time we are living.  Then we must force ourselves to follow a disciplined life of prayer: to pray morning and evening and to pray with the Jesus prayer wherever and whenever we can.  To receive Holy Communion more often in the True Church, and not in the church of the hollow egg shell, eaten away from within.  Nobody will then be saved by theological degrees, or knowledge, or the order of church services, or the orders of bishop or priest, or any other rank.  Only a personal love from the heart for our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ will save a human soul, together with faithfulness to Him, even unto death.

Disasters and crises which are inevitably threatening the contemporary mankind are of a spiritual and moral nature rather than economic, political and ecological, as the princes of this world would have us believe.  It is extremely important for the true Orthodox Christians to raise their voice of truth, to become aware of the acute necessity to call "evil by its proper name, to expose lies and to decisively condemn any anti-Christian and anti-Orthodox undertaking wherever it should originate."

One should remember that the fullness of the Church is comprised of all Orthodox people, bishops, clergy, monks and lay people who are safeguarding the holy Dogmas and Canons, which we are all called to protect.  The short time which is still left to us is hardly favorable for the attempts of rapprochement with heretics and an attainment of union with the apostates.  As the Athonite monks wrote: "We know of only one means of achieving communion between the heretics and the Orthodox Church, and that is an official canonical written renouncement and condemnation of their errors and an act on their part of joining the Orthodox Church exclusively through Baptism."

In the not too distant future the Orthodox Christians must expect that the world which has rejected Christ and has been mocking them and their spiritual vigilance, integrity and loyalty to Christ, which are often abused and dismissed as "fanaticism," that this world will turn to cruel persecution of the last Christians.  But even knowing this, can we agree to exchange the Church of Christ — the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church, the only Church which offers salvation — for any other "church," such as, for example, the infernal "cybernetic church" which is now thriving in the electronic space, with all its pernicious inventions, like "technosophy," "ecospirituality" (i.e., Neo-paganism), and "hypertheology" with its "virtual and postdenominational spirituality," "televangelisation" and "thousands interpretations of the word of God" !?

The global heyday of the New Age with its spiritual supermarket, spreading of pantheism, occultism, and magic; children in test-tubes, manipulation of genetic engineering; crisis of moral values throughout the world, propaganda of homosexualism and depravity — all these disgraceful practices bring us closer to the end of the world history. 

People who are wallowing in apostasy, sins and heresies, whose "names are not written in the book of life" are already now prepared to worship Antichrist and acknowledge him to be the only spiritual head of all religions."  ...By the time of the Second Coming, the Church of Christ will be reduced in size to the utmost degree.  There will remain one or two churches in which the True Body of Christ and the True Blood of Christ will be imparted to the faithful.  In the remaining churches there will remain only an empty shell, with great outward adornment, but empty.  "See then that ye walk circumspectly... because the days are evil."

Those "who have eyes" everyday and everywhere see the warning signs of formidable imminent dangers closing in on us, especially on our immortal souls.  Everyone of us will have to give an answer to the Impartial Judge about what we have done for our salvation.  Our destiny in eternity depends on His supreme Judgment.  Let rulers of this world spread the new world order without Christ, with its one government, its common economics and market, its common pseudo-culture and its "postdenominational" superchurch.  We can withstand them with our freedom, the freedom which imparts "God's image" to us, and which no one can ever take away from us.  We can and must courageously oppose spiritual totalitarianism and collectivization of life with freedom in Christ, which Orthodoxy bestows upon us. 

There are many indications that the "ship of the world is already surrounded by the ocean with raging apocalyptic storms and events, and Orthodoxy, the only sound force in the spiritual arsenal of mankind, must act with the responsibility that it has.  The people of God struggle and pray, pray and struggle.  Be firm in your stronghold, be steadfast and faithful! God is strong, not the world."

This modest work has been addressed to all who love Christ and His Orthodox Church, and who wish to work for the glory of God by opposing and fighting, in every way possible, the bane of ecumenism, ecclesiastical modernism, and the apostasy surrounding us.  We wish to conclude with the words of Metropolitan Vitaly, the Head of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad:

"We are now approaching the beginning of the end, the great end; undoubtedly, we are now entering this period. Hence, we are being attacked by all kinds of adversities; underwater rocks, troubles and storms lie in wait for us... But our vessel will pass them by unharmed, because the Lord Jesus Christ Himself is the Helmsman of this vessel."

"Even so, come, Lord Jesus!"

________________________________________________

INTRODUCTION

https://web.archive.org/web/20250630124304/https://ecumenizm.tripod.com/ECUMENIZM/
capture dated June 30, 2025

As the worldwide apostasy is increasingly gaining momentum in the modern world and dragging along more and more souls with itself, we, as True Orthodox Christians, are called to "stand fast in Truth" and to remain unswayed by its onslaught.  Remembering the words of St. Ignatius (Brianchaninov), we are not trying to stop it with our weak hand, but rather intend to provide to those, who sincerely seek the Truth, some help on this sorrowful and narrow way, which leads to Heaven.  In our last times, the Truth is very hard to come by. Almost everywhere, where it is not rejected outright, it is being diluted by servants of devil with lies and fallen human (often, even demonic) wisdom. 

Ecumenism — is one of the mechanisms by which this mixing is achieved in practice. It is a relatively recent satanic invention, which already proved to be a huge success.  Under the guise of "super-Christian love" it attempts to blur and, eventually, destroy the boundaries of the Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, depriving the faithful of the Holy Mysteries and corrupting their souls. 

Another, even more widespread temptation of our last times is so-called "Sergianism" which, essentially, is an erroneous notion that the Divine Truth can be defended, if absolutely necessary, by compromise with evil and upheld with hypocrisy and lies. 

We are publishing this work by Ludmila Perepiolkina, who compiled and analyzed these, and many other phenomena of our apostatic times, and hope that our humble contribution will serve to the benefit of souls of those, who, already disillusioned by counterfeit "world Orthodoxy," are trying to realize, what it is all about.  And, having rejected lies, are just trying to live Orthodox Christian lives. 

May our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ help them in their struggle and save their souls.


 Ecumenism – A Path to Perdition pdf download link:
https://app.box.com/s/fidluwvb48ffrhzly22uq2zvvzb56byl/file/403332567441

The Foreward (maybe more) can be viewed (maybe also downloaded) here:
https://www.scribd.com/document/399267844/ECUMENISM-A-PATH-TO-PERDITION

A hardcopy is difficult to find.
https://www.amazon.com/Ecumenism-Path-Perdition-Ludmilla-Perepiolkina/dp/B001FXX5WQ/

LINKS 

Is There Grace Present in Soviet Church?  Ivan Andreyev
   https://st-sergius.org/News/IA-MP.pdf
Stand Fast In Truth  Abp. Averky
   https://web.archive.org/web/20250429081717/https://averki.tripod.com/
Mystery and Meaning of Battle of Kosovo
   https://web.archive.org/web/20250427111422/https://tzarlazar.tripod.com/
 If you make this into a pdf, please send me a copy
I will upload it to my Shared Library 
joannahigginbotham@runbox.com

Newly-Departed Servant of God Sergei

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Eternal memory: Servant of God Sergei Sorokin
Author: Metropolitan Agafangel. Date of publication: February 07, 2026. Category: ROCOR.
http://internetsobor.org/index.php/novosti/rptsz/vechnaya-pamyat-rab-bozhij-sergij-sorokin

Today, February 7, 2026, at 2:05 AM, in Kyiv, our parishioner Sergei Sorokin froze to death in his apartment at the age of 44.  There is practically no heating or electricity in the city, and the entire Left Bank, especially the Troyeshchyna district, is in the most dire situation. Sergei was a professional industrial climber, but after a stroke he became disabled. He lived alone, except for his cat, in his apartment on the 7th floor. After the shelling of the heating systems in early January, everything started to cool down, and as a result, the walls froze through. Sergei could not go downstairs on his own if the elevator wasn't working. Tonight, the cold-induced death orchestrated by the Soviet regime ended Sergei's life... May he rest in peace!


Сегодня, 7 февраля 2026 года, в 2:05 ночи, в Киеве, в возрасте 44-х лет, замёрз в своей квартире наш прихожанин Сергей Сорокин. В городе практически нет тепла и электричества, а весь Левый берег и, особенно, район Троещина - в самом тяжёлом положении. Сергей был профессиональным промышленным альпинистом, но после инсульта стал нетрудоспособным. Сам себя обслуживал, в квартире на 7 этаже кроме него жил только кот. После обстрела теплосетей в начале января, всё стало остывать, в результате стены промёрзли насквозь. Сергий не мог самостоятельно спускаться, если лифт не работал. Сегодня ночью устроенный советской властью холодомор для Сергея окончился… Царство ему Небесное!

Day #40 

Wednesday March 18th

Confusion About the Different Jurisdictions

This post relies on my reading of the new book:
Saint Philaret of New York
 His Collected Works
    Letter to Abbess
    Homily Schism I
    Homily Schism II

Many of us in ROCOR and GOC are not 100% clear about the "true" jurisdictions.  How to evaluate them, how to recognize them.

Evaluation is simple:  Any Church (jurisdiction) or church (parish) not in communion with ROCOR & GOC, is schismatic, heretic, or both.

Recognition is not too hard.  Find out: Who is their bishop today?

   World Orthodox parish websites don't usually make it easy to find out who is their bishop. They think the bishop does not matter.  You will hear them say things like, "yes, my parish is on the new calendar, but our priest is traditional, and that's all that matters."
   "True" Church websites seem to be clear about who their bishop is.  RTOC, ROAC, ROCANA are clear even just by their name, calling themselves something other than ROCOR. 
   The ROCOR-MP is a confusing one, because it uses the name ROCOR, and it is very large.   Almost all the so-called "ROCOR" websites on the internet are actually ROCOR-MP.  They accept the Moscow Patriarch as the head of their Church and they commemorate him as their Patriarch.  Unless a group will clearly specify that they are in communion with ROCOR under Metropolitan Agafangel Pashkovsky & with GOC under Metropolitan Demetrius of New York, you can assume they are ROCOR-MP.
   The most confusing for newcomers is the Milan synod.  Milan synod websites will even list ROCOR and GOC among their "Sister Churches."  The deception is intentional.  They want to raise you with the thinking that all the old calendar Churches are spiritually united on an unofficial, unseen, higher level.   This is the jurisdiction of Joseph Suaiden of NFTU.
   In addition there are at least two "vigante" groups on the internet with no bishop, or else they are their own bishop.  Fr. Peter Heers is popular on the internet.  Bp. Gregory in Colorado is a cult, but he publishes a way superior Synaxaristes set that you definitely want in your home library.

If you want help finding out if a jurisdiction, church or individual is/isn't in communion with ROCOR & GOC,  then you can email the GOC Monastery of St. John in Cobleskill, New York.  Send the url and ask, is the GOC in communion with this church/website? 

You can also ask me: joannahigginbotham@runbox.com
I might not be able to tell you what they are, but I should be able to tell you what they are not.

   Being schismatic or vigante does not mean everything on their website is poison.  I already mentioned that Bp. Gregory of Colorado's Synaxaristes is worth buying.  I have found many of our genuine unaltered historical old ROCOR documents preserved on the schismatic "true" websites.  A newcomer can have a hard time sorting the good from the bad. 

 
   Stick to our few trusted websites.  We have more material on our own websites than you can ever master in a lifetime, and we have everything needful.  Most importantly, we have the ONE THING NEEDFUL, and they don't.  The one thing needed for true spiritual growth which you can expect as you live your Orthodox Life.

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Recently I read, or rather I re-read from years ago, a letter written by St. Metr. Philaret of New York to Abbess Magdalena of Lesna Convent in France, 1979.  Probably it was first published (in English) in 1998 by HOCNA (Boston), a book, "The Struggle Against Ecumenism." 

In this letter
St. Philaret is thinking mainly of the prevailing schism of his day which was then the Metropolia which became the OCA, orchestrated by a ROCOR traitor-bishop Evlogy, and in Europe associated with the Parisian school which Fr. Seraphim Rose warned about.

Today this letter is remembered by us as being written against world orthodoxy.     The "trues" use it also for that, and to defend their stand against ecumenism, insinuating their alignment with St. Philaret of New York.  But look again!   St. Philaret was not necessarily talking TO them.  He was talking  ABOUT them!  He was talking about ALL schismatics... not just about ecumenist schismatics.

I want everyone to read this letter.  Either again or for the first time.  Read it from the perspective of St. Philaret talking today about the very break-away groups who today mistakenly think St. Philaret would be in agreement with them.  

Then if you read the two sermons on Schism, and it becomes even more clear.  In the letter, talking about the schismatics, he writes: 
 

"If," says Chrysostom, "they don't teach the way we do, that's the one reason we can't have communion with them.  And if they teach the same as we do, then that's the more reason why you shouldn't have any communion with them, because their schism is a matter of lust for power."

And in the homily he writes the same:

...but if they teach the same as we do — then the reason for staying away from them is greater still, for here is the sin of lust of authority.

What does that sound like to you?  Who fits that description today?  Isn't ROCANA, the most recent R-fragment, the most recent schism from us, isn't it JUST LIKE US in every way?  They still have an original bishop who used to be with us (Andronik).  And why did Bp. Andronik leave us?  Because Vladyka Agafangel would not let him have control (power/authority) over the American parishes.

Bishop Andronik schism looks so much like us, that he went to the Sister Churches trying to get them to accept him and leave Vladyka Agafangel.  He asked the GOC and our Romanian Sister synod, but both said no.  He went away anyway...  without them.  But he took many of our sheep.  The sheep who were not strong enough to stay with a bishop who does not speak English.  So sad, they left a bishop who is truly grace-bearing...  

So now the remnant of  ROCOR in America is down to one parish.  We can find fellowship only with our Sister Greeks.  Many of them are our former fellow-ROCOR members who left for the Greeks because of a previous schism: the ROCOR-MP union in 2007. 

Surely this has been said many ways, many times throughout the centuries: 
Better to be abandoned and alone on earth, than to be separated from our heavenly family of saints.

Reading further into St. Philaret's letter and his homilies.  What happens to a Church (jurisdiction) or a church (parish) after it goes into schism?  In time, maybe a long time, maybe a short time, it becomes heretical.  Even if it does not adopt heresies, just remaining in a stubborn schism becomes a heresy in itself.  

The Metropolia (OCA) at first when it separated from us, looked just like us for a long time.  The priests had been trained by the ROCOR, by Jordanville.  Many of the parishes stayed on the old calendar.  But little-by-little they fell into worse and worse modernism.  The Metropolia/OCA parishes in Alaska, the most remote and isolated from outside influence, were at the tail end of the fall.  They still today look more traditional compared to the rest of the OCA parishes.

NECESSARY BOOKS 
for your Home Library

BOOK #1
St. Philaret of New York – His Collected Works
   The letter to the Abbess is found online for now. 
https://www.monasterypress.com/bishopopinions.html
Scroll down to:
A Letter from Metropolitan Philaret (Voznesensky) to Abbess Magdalena (Countess Grabbe), Superior of the Lesna Convent in France
November 26 / December 9, 1979

   The Homilies are not anywhere online.  
To buy the book try here first:
https://sjmshop.org/products/saint-philaret-of-new-york-his-collected-works?
And try Thrift Books or Abe Books before going to Amazon.
(please let Amazon be your last resort)

BOOK #2  
"The Struggle Against Ecumenism."
St. Philaret's letter to the Abbess is included in this book published in 1998 by HOCNA (Boston)  
https://www.bostonmonks.com/product_info.php?products_id=634

BOOK #3   out-of-print
Ecumenizm — Path to Perdition, by Ludmilla Perepiolkina
A companion book to #2 above   
Book is uploaded to Joanna's Shared Library
download:
https://app.box.com/s/fidluwvb48ffrhzly22uq2zvvzb56byl/file/403332567441

See this sign of how hidden Orthodoxy is becoming.  Impossible to find without a miracle. 

 

 I did a google search and

 see here what AI says:

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.Praise God for He is revealing only to Babes.

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Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit

  Understanding Psychopathy 

"Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit"
FROM BOOK: St. Philaret of New York
 pp. 341-344

https://sjmshop.org/products/saint-philaret-of-new-york-his-collected-works?
(also sold on Amazon, but please let that be your last resort)

     These days [1980?] people often talk about the Savior's miracles, distorting and misinterpreting them, trying in one way or another to deny them.  At the time He performed them, this was impossible to do, becasue these miracles were worked in the sight of all.  They would have gladly discredited the miracles and denied the fact that they had actually happened.  But, again I say, this was not at all possible, and therefore they resorted to their favorite way of doing things — to falsehood.  The started saying that the Savior drives out demons by the power of Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.

     We know that in the Holy Gospel, the Evangelist John says that when the Lord sternly reproved them for their falsification, all they could say was, "Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?"  (Jn. 8:48)  This was what they dared say to Him!  And in another place in the Gospel when the Lord reproved them, He said that any sin can be forgiven: every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven "either in this age, or in the age to come" (Mt. 12:32), that is, NEVER!

     We know that the Church hopes that a person who has not cleansed himself of earthly sins can receive absolution and forgiveness.  All our prayers for our dear deceased are based on this hope when we ask of the Lord "that they be forgiven every transgression, both voluntary and involuntary (in the Panikhida).  If the Church prays this, we have every reason to retain this bright hope.  We pray with faith that the Lord in His grace and mercy will cleanse them THERE of what they did not get to cleanse themselves here.

     With regard to this sin, blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, the Lord said that this will not be forgiven either in this age, or in the age to come!  Since it was obvious to all, with what power the Lord Jesus Christ worked His miracles, it is indisputable that this was blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.  Only His enemies who had become completely like unto Satan dared to say wuch a thing when Christ poured out His mercy and blessing on the ailing and infirm.  They were brazen enough to say that He worked these miracles by the power of Beelzebub.  There is also another place in the Gospel, when he opened the eyes of one blind from birth, other people of the same mind started to stop them saying, "Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?" (Jn. 10:21)

     Remember that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is a conscious opposition to the truth that is obvious to a person's conscience, when a person goes against the truth and against the voice of his own conscience.  This is the grave sin the Lord Jesus Christ was speaking of, that it will not be forgiven in this present age, or in the coming age.

     It is significant that in another place in the Gospel regarding the same, He said that every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven if anyone speaks a word against the SON OF MAN, that is, against Him Himself, but blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age, or in the age to come.  The wrong conclusion can be drawn here, as if the Divine Person of the Holy Spirit uis higher than the Lord Jesus Christ, since blasphemy against Christ the Savior may be forgiven, but blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.  This conclusion is completely wrong.  Not that the Lord did not at all say that blasphemy against the SON OF GOD may be forgiven, and blsphemy against the Holy Spirit may not.  Those who were blaspheming Him saw before themselves a man, therefore, the Lord did not say against the SON OF GOD, but against the SON OF MAN.  They saw Him as the Son of Man.  Even the Holy Apostle Paul, the great missionary of Christianity, said blasphemous things in his time.  But this sin of blasphemy was forgiven because he had blasphemed the SON OF MAN, not the SON OF GOD.

     The sin against the Holy Spirit is terrible because when a person's spirit is so hardened that it goes against an obvious truth, he crosses a dreadful, lethal border after which there is no turning back.  With this evil, with this opposition to the Light of the Lord, he becomes like the evil Satan who does nothing but blaspheme the Lord.  That is why this sin is not to be forgiven.  Saint Athanasius says, "there is no sin which can overcome the love of God — there is no such sin."  But the thing is, a sin can be forgiven if a person repents of it, but a person who has allowed himself to get to this terrible condition is already not capable of repentance.  He has become like the evil Satan who could repent, but as he (Satan) said himself, when he was talking to some saints about himself, if he wanted to repent he could, but in his malice DOES NOT WANT TO and fights against God and His truth.  Likewise, a person in this most sorrowful spiritual state is already on the path of falsehood and by this takes his unfortunate soul over the border, past the point of no return, for he has already committed spiritual suicide and is not able to repent.

     Remember, beloved brothers and sisters, Saint John Chrysostom, the great preacher of repentance always said, "Strictly speaking, the terrible mortal sin which is unforgivable is precisely that sin which a person did not and cannot repent."  No matter how much a person has sinned, whatever he may have done, if only he is capable of repentance, there is still hope for him.  Not in vain did the Holy Fathers say that when Satan came to a holy person leading an ascetic life who had fallen into a terrible and grave sin, he still could not rejoice because he knew all too well that repentance would destroy all his machinations and again return the person to God's mercy.

     The enemy of our salvation knows this very well.  Judas, the traitor, perished only when he ran off and hanged himself, that is, when he despaired and was not able to repent.  The Apostle Peter also sinned gravely and disgracefully when he denied the Lord three times, but he did not despair, and even though he knew the gravity of his sin, he did not lost hope that the judgment of His beloved Teacher would be merciful.  With this hope he did not despair, but wept and repented for his sin, and we know how he was forgiven.

     Our Lord does not forgive sins like we who are sinners.  We always say, "I forgive but cannot forget."  But the Lord forgives in such a way that He completely OBLITERATES the sin, as if it never existed.  He crosses it out completely from a person's deeds.  Likewise, Saint Theophan the Recluse said, "If a person has a grave sin on his conscience and goes to his spiritual father and is given absolution in the name of the Lord, then at the moment that the absolution was made, the sin disappears as if it never happened.  Only our Lord is able to forgive like this!  This is how He forgave the Apostle Peter and all sinners who repented.  As the Most-blessed Vladyka Anthony pointed out, the forgiveness granted at confession completely eliminates those sins from the human soul. They fly off into the abyss of non-existence and they ahve absolutely no effect on the eternal fate of man beyond the grave.  This is how great God's mercy is!

     I have to make sure that my soul does not begin to become evil and consciously oppose the truth.  This sometimes happens!  To a small extent we can take this example.   A little child was naughty, but he knew that his kind parents would forgive him if he asked forgiveness.  But he was stubborn and did not want to!  This, of course, is a small example, but it shows what this is about and warns us that a person before God can get to the point, like this child before his parents, when he does not WANT TO REPENT.

     May the Lord protect all of us from this terrible fate, from this terrible condition of the soul, for where there is repentance, the mercy of God cannot NOT be present, for as Saint John Chrysostom said, our Lord is compassionate and merciful, long-suffering and plenteous in mercy.  Amen

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Saint Philaret of New York, "Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit," in Sermons & Teachings of Metropolitan Philaret, Volume II (Flushing: Russian Orthodox Youth Committee, 1989), 183–186

Portrait of St. Philaret of New York

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   This is a portrait of Metropolitan Philaret by his spiritual daughter, Abbess Eupraxia of Our Lady of Kazan Convent, Kentlyn, Australia.

  

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   http://www.russian-inok.org/page.php?page=english1&dir=english&month=0207

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. Abbesss Eupraxia †2006

What Abp. Averky Says About Simon Magus

  Understanding Psychopathy 

. . . ask God if PERHAPS your evil thought may be forgiven . . .

Holy Bible  Acts  Chapter 8

  5  Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ to them.
  6  And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Phiip spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did.
  7  For unlcean spirits, crying with loud voices came out of many that were posessed with them; and many taken with palsies, and that were lame were healed.
  8  And there was great joy in that city,
  9  But there was a certain man, called Simon, which beforetime in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one.
 10 To whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is a great power of God.
 11  And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries.
 12  But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized both men and women.
 13  Then Simon himself believed also: and when he was baptized, he continued with Philip, and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs which were done. 
 14  Now when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and  John:
 15  Who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost:
 16  (For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.)
 17. Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost. 
 18  And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money,
 19  Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost.
 20  But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money.
 21 Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.
 22  Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.
 23  For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity.
 24  Then answered Simon, and said, Pray ye to the Lord for me, that none of these things which ye have spoken come upon me.

Abp. Averky Commentary on Acts Chapter 8

  
5–13 The Planting of the Church in Samaria by Deacon Philip and the Baptism of Simon Magus

The author of Acts [St. Luke] reports the conversion of Samaritans as a result of deacon Philip's preaching.  This Philip was one of the deacons, and not the Apostle Philip of the Twelve, which is made obvious by the fact that the Samaritans needed the Apostles Peter and John to lay hands on them and call down the Spirit.  Deacon Philip apparently had a home and family in Caesaria.  After the beginning of the persecution he decided to travel back to Caesaria.  On the way, he stopped in the city of Samaria which was renamed by Herod the Great as Sebaste.  Seeing the miracles performed by Philip, the people joyfully listened to his preaching.  Among those converted and baptized was a certain Simon Magus who until that time was famous in the city for his works of sorcery,

St. Justin Martyr wrote at length about Simon Magus, calling him a Samaritan from the village of Gitta.  But he was not a magus or a sage in a positive sense, like the Magi from Persia who came to worship the Christ Child.  He was a black magician, a sorcerer.  During this time, according to various Roman and Greek sources, many such magi, having some knowledge of the powers of nature (still not very well understood at the time) presented themselves as superhuman.  By healing certain illnesses , by using charms, by soothsaying or even by simple mountebanks' tricks, they had such an effect on the ignorant masses that the people believed that they communed with "higher powers."  Thus, it was said of Simon Magus that "this man is the great power of God."

 This expression reminds us of Gnosticism, a later heresy that mixed Christian teachings with pagan notions.  Central to Gnosticism was the teaching of the so-called aeons, the emanations of the pleroma (fullness) of divinity.  Apparently, Simon identified himself with such an aeon, and the people, fascinated by this, believed him.  But the power of Philip's preaching was so great, and the miracles he performed were so astounding, that the people believed in Christ.  They abandoned their fascination with Simon and were baptized.  Simon himself was also baptized, but judging by his later history, his conversion was not genuine.  Impressed by the miracles of Philip, he apparently hoped to acquire the power to perform to perform similar miracles, thereby earning even greater glory and influence over the people.

14–25 The Apostles Peter and John in Samaria and Simon Magus

The baptism of the Samaritan was such a momentous event, because these were the first people who became Christians without the mediation of Judaism.  Moreover, they were converted by a Hellenist preacher.  The apostles considered this event to be so significant that they immediately sent Peter and John to lay hands on the converts and call down the grace of the Holy Spirit upon them.  Here it is important to note that the Apostles Peter and John were sent by the other apostles.  In other words, it is clear that they did not consider themselves to be more powerful than the whole assembly of apostles, but rather were themselves responsible to fulfill the commission entrusted to them by the whole apostolic college.  In other words, the assembly of the apostles functioned as a single body in which the individual members had equal status.

The laying on of hands in this case was the second of the mysteries, which later began to be performed by chrismation.  Philip could not perform this sacrament, because he was only a deacon.  "and when Simon saw that through the laying on of the apostles.hands the Holy Spirit was given he offered them money,"  Evidently the calling down of the Spirit was accompanied by some visible signs that Simon noticed.  This makes it obvious that Simon himself, even though already baptized, was not found worthy of receiving the Holy spirit, for if he had, such an action on his part would not have been possible.  Probably, his turn for the laying on of hands had not yet come, and he, not waiting for his time, rushed to ask the apostle directly not only for the gift of the Spirit, but for the authority to call down the Spirit himself.

In this request, the true deceitful character of the mage was revealed.  Evidently, he saw the apostles only as bearers of higher magical power, and he wanted to own this unknown power himself to improve his skill as a magician.  By offering money, he showed himself to be a man governed by avarice and other impure motives.  "How is it that he was baptized?"  asked St. John Chrysostom.  "Just as Christ chose Judas."

"Peter said to him, 'Your money perish with you.'"  This expression is not a curse, but rather an indication that Simon's moral state will lead to his perdition.  It is a call to repentance.  This sin, however, is so great, that St. Peter did not even promise forgiveness, but only said, "Repent therefore of this your wickedness, and pray God if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you."  Why is this?  Because such a sin requires an especially deep and sincere repentance, and Peter did not see Simon capable of such repentance, as he said to him, "For I see that you are poisoned by bitterness and bound by iniquity."

Frightened by Peter's words, Simon asked the apostles to pray for him, but even this was hardly sincere.  Tradition tells us that Simon Magus was one of the most virulent enemies of Christianity, the father of all gnostic heresies.  There is a tradition that later he appeared in Rome as a hardened enemy of the Apostle Peter, and by the prayers of the latter, was cast into the Tiber when he wanted to cross the river by the prayers of he latter, was cast into the Tiber when he wanted to cross the river by levitating over it.  His sin received his own name in the tradition of the Church: that of simony, which is the sale of God's grace or of ecclesiastical office for money.

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.source:

.https://churchsupplies.jordanville.org/products/commentary-on-the-holy-scriptures-of-the-new-testament-vol-2-the-acts-of-the-apostles
Acts of the Apostles Commentary
Archbishop Averky
Jordanville 2017

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