Beware of Euphrosynos Cafe

Caveat from Joanna

Use caution with Euphrosynos Cafe.  It might be interesting, out of curiosity, to scroll through the posts and different forums, if you must.  But I recommend not getting involved, not participating in the discussions.  And any information you note needs to be verified and/or at least put into proper perspective before you accept it.  I will try here to give you an informed perspective.

Euphrosynos Cafe (I call it ECafe for short) was created sometime in the years before the ROCOR-MP union by Fr. Anastasios Hudson, GOC.  At that time, or around that time,  ROCOR Fr. Mark Gilstrap's listserv forum had zeroed in on the threat of the ROCOR-MP union which formally materialized on May 17, 2007.  In order to get a canonical release from the ROCOR to the GOC, Fr. Mark Gilstrap had to agree to close down his forum.  ROCOR-MP wanted to erase the evidence that their union was fraudulent.  Many of Fr. Mark's forum users moved over to ECafe forum at that time.  ECafe blossomed.  There were many knowledgeable ROCOR members leaving valuable comments, many of them using their real names.

An aside:  It is interesting to note here that ROCOR gave a canonical release for Fr. Mark to take his Oklahoma parish to the GOC at a time when ROCOR and GOC were not in communion with each other, (they officially became Sister Churches in 2014).  ROCOR had not been in communion with GOC, but ROCOR never denied the GOC was canonical.  Of course, ROCOR-MP denies it now, saying the GOC is schismatic.  If ROCOR had thought the GOC was schismatic or heretical, they would not have given Fr. Mark a canonical release to go there.

Back to the history (from my perspective) of the ECafe:

Fr. Anastasios Hudson http://www.anastasioshudson.com/about/ was the creator-owner and chief administrator of ECafe at that time.  He eventually gave it away to "Maria" (not her real name).  I don't know the exact year — somewhere around 2012.  When Maria took over, she didn't just go forward from that point, she also combed through and censored all the old posts.  It seemed she felt that she would attract more readers/members if ECafe were politically correct and not insulting to anybody.  The problem with this idea is that the truth often offends, especially people who don't believe it.  Because of her censoring, membership dropped steadily, and much valuable discussion was lost forever.  

A clique was formed, and solidified, which remains today a handful of core people, 2 or maybe 3 from the original clique.  Maria, still the owner, and "Barbara," Maria's main assistant, remain.  I see today (2025) Joseph Suaiden has been welcomed back, but I don't see him as having both his feet in the clique.  It is interesting to me to note that since Maria took over, "Barbara" has not had to change her identity.  In the past she had been, at least we know, "Catherine5" and "Cheetah88."  On NFTU she used the name "Bess" and she was also kicked off that forum.  On the RRb she used the name "Mara" and she was kicked off that blog, too..

Joseph Suaiden of NFTU has always wanted for his Milan synod to be accepted in the "true club" — back before 2014 it was his most earnest striving to unite his Milan synod with the "trues."  Along those lines he needed Agafangel to join his true club.  It was to his frustration he could not get Agafangel or SIR to go along with his agenda.  His tactics were unChristian: he used bullying and manipulation.  (This is not slander on my part, there is evidence still online of his threats made to people who dared to oppose him.)  When the GOC and the SIR reunited, formalizing the Sister Churches, that was a big blow to his agenda.   Here is his copycat blog against me — he admitted that his friends criticized him for this and told him to stop.   http://remnant-rocor.blogspot.com  He stopped posting to his copycat blog, but notice he never deleted it.  However, he did change the template.  I have screen shots of his original template showing it was designed to look exactly like my RRb.  Same colors, fonts. layout, etc.

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.This was the best Suaiden could do for his copy-catting since my original RRb template had been discontinued.  Suaiden did the best he could combining features from other templates of my related blogs.  Notice the color, the font and the horizontal bar.  It looks like my blog.  Obviously.  Too obviously.  Suaiden was criticized by his own peers for being too aggressive. 

 

I have other evidences of Suaiden's true character that do not involve me.

DO NOT LET THESE PEOPLE GUIDE YOU!  

The core of the ECafe is infected with what Fr. Seraphim Rose calls the "super-correct disease."  Fr. Seraphim taught us that the super-correctness disease is the flip side of the renovation disease, (renovation a.k.a. world-orthodoxy).  Today it is easier to see this than it was in Fr. Seraphim's time.  ECafe's guidance will not lead you to the Sister Churches, because the ECafe does not discern the Sister Churches.   Fr. Seraphim described it as a "lack of a clear concept of the Church."  Instead of helping each other, ECafe members support each other in their wrong idea that all the super-correct, all the old calendarists, are all equally valid.  This is a form of ecumenism.  These are "true orthodox ecumenists" (oxymoron)!  They give each other mutual support by accepting each other as valid, thus helping cement each other in their error.

Newcomers risk being thwarted in their spiritual growth if they keep company with the ECafe crowd, the "true club," before they are firmly and fully able to discern the Sister Churches, — before they have had a chance to develop a "clear concept of the Church" which is taught well by Fr. Michael Pomazansky.  Please read his book, On the Church https://www.ctosonline.org/theological/OCC.html     

 

The Sister Church parishes that speak English are the GOC under Demetrius and the ROCOR under Agafangel.  The Old Calendar Romanians and the Old Calendar Bulgarians are Sister Churches, but they do not have a presence in America nor do they anywhere have any English-speaking parishes. 

 

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By the way,
I recommend owning a copy of Anastasios Hudson's book about Metropolitan Petros of Astoria.  In doing his research Fr. Anastasios was given access to partially re-written Jordanville archives which surely have since been thoroughly re-written.

I also highly recommend Sbn. Nektarios' book:

THE RUSSIAN ORTHODOX
CHURCH ABROAD & THE
GENUINE ORTHODOX CHRISTIANS
OF GREECE: A HISTORY

This is thoroughly researched and a logical examination that has no holes in it.  Nothing is assumed.  The facts draw the conclusion all by themselves.  Actually I more than highly recommend this book, and not just for newcomers.  However, especially I recommend it for newcomers, because, if you are trying to find the Church among all the choices, then

"you do yourself a great disservice if you to do not read this book."

I so much want newcomers to have this book, that I offer to send you a copy if tight finances cause you to put off buying it for yourself.  Just give me a mailing address.  joannahigginbotham@runbox.com

related posts from 2014

https://startingontheroyalpath.blogspot.com/2014/10/knowing-better.html

    https://startingontheroyalpath.blogspot.com/2016/01/this-is-not-my-remnant-rocor-blog.html

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