Fr. Alexander Lebedeff Responds to Recent Attempts

by HOCNA to Justify their Schism

To: orthodox_synod@indiana.edu

From: "Fr. Alexander Lebedeff" <lebedeff@westworld.com>

Recently, there has been a flood of postings regarding the origins of the HOCNA schism. Many of these postings have contained serious misstatements and distortions of fact.

In the interest of historical accuracy, I would like to share with the members of the list some of the contemporaneous documentation on this issue that will allow them to make their own judgments. All of the documents mentioned are authentic, and I have copies of the originals, on their respective letterheads, with signatures.

1) What were the true reasons for leaving the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia and going under the omophorion of Bishops Gabriel and Akakios of Greece?

An answer to this can be found in the correspondence of two of the most senior priests of the Boston group at that time, Fr. Neketas Palassis of Seattle, WA, and Fr. Anthony Gavalas, of Astoria, both of whom had been in the ROCOR for many years. These priests played key roles in the departure of the clergy and faithful, and their statements of that time

must be considered very significant.

In his letter to Fr. Neketas Palassis dated June 20/ July 3 1987, Fr.Anthony Gavalas writes:

"My position when we left the Synod was that we should commemorate no one until we saw our way clearly in the confusion. I was told that while this would be possible for the monastery, it would be destructive to the Parishes. Then, within a few hours, we were told that we must all go under Abp. Akakios immediately so that the monastery would be covered in the face of suspensions and depositions of Frs. Panteleimon and Isaac, and I, of course, cooperated."

Setting aside the incredible statement of an educated clergyman suggesting that parishes should commmemorate no bishop at all(?!), the other part of this statement is perfectly clear: the parishes scurried in haste under the omophorion of Abp. Akakios **to cover the monastery in the face of suspensions and depositions of Frs. Panteleimon and Isaac**. Not a word here of the purported ecumenism of the Synod--just flight in the face of suspensions.

2) What were the true reasons for leaving Archbishop Akakios and joining the Synod of Archbishop Auxentios?

We find the answer in the letter of Fr. Neketas Palassis to Fr. Anthony Gavalas dated June 15/28, 1987:

"Frankly, we were stunned and sorrowed by Metropolitan Gabriel's departure. Actually, it appeared we had been detoured and led into a dead-end street. Without a second bishop to give us support and credibility, we face the prospect of being one of the hundreds of vaganti groups which flood our nation. Without at least a second bishop we can have no hope that the clergymen who are watching us so carefully will ever join with us.

Conversations with several of them have confirmed that fact. They are not attracted to us with a single bishop. "

Here Fr. Neketas reveals that the true reason that they were leaving Akakios was that the Boston group needed to be aligned with someone who could give them Bishops--even if it meant to go to the Synod of Auxentios, who had been consistently attacked by Fr. Panteleimon and the rest of the Boston group for many years. In fact, the Boston group had,

several years previously, published a lengthy document, called "A Clarification" in which it accused Auxentios and his synod of simony, deceit, uncanonical and secret consecrations, and doing anything for monetary gain. This document was signed by Fr. Panteleimon, Fr. Isaac, Fr. Neketas Palassis, Fr. Anthony Gavalas, and many other "Bostonites." It

concluded with the words: "we state again that we have no intention of leaving the Russian Synod Abroad and seeking communion with any of the groups in Greece." So much for being true to one's word. . .

With Bishop Gabriel pulling out of the coalition (Fr. Neketas's letter reveals that that occurred in February of 1987--a scant two months after the Boston Group had been accepted by Bishops Gabriel and Akakios), they were left with only one bishop--Akakios. Not good enough for them, if they wished to go "independent" at some time in the future.

So, while still under the ecclesiastical authority of Archbishop Akakios, to whom they had pledged fealty and full obedience, the Boston group opened secret negotiations with Archbishop Auxentios.

When Archbishop Akakios heard of this, he sent the following letter:

"THE SACRED METROPOLITAN DIOCESE OF ATTICA AND DIAVLEIA

See: Sacred Monastery of Saint Nicholas

Paiania, Attica, Greece

Tel. 66-42-3671

Protocol No. 287

In Paiania, Attica on July 1, 1987

Fathers and Brethren:

Bless!

While we were preserving vividly and indelibly the wonderful image of all that we saw and heard during our recent visit to your Orthodox parishes, suddenly, the information came, like a lightning bolt out of a clear sky, that a few of your spiritual leaders are thinking of going under the irrevocably fallen former archbishop Auxentios.

We hope that it is only some malicious rumor designed to defame your Orthodox ecclesiastical communities before all Orthodox everywhere and to render futile the struggle you have waged in behalf of exactness of Orthodoxy. That is what we believe, for only the utmost madness and morbid recklessness would otherwise explain the subjugation of a Movement in behalf of piety and the preservation of the traditional genuineness of our Holy Orthodoxy under a leader who so tragically failed and brought the Church of the true Orthodox in Greece into contempt and disrepute.

A multitude of uncanonical actions and illegal ordinations done with summital disdain for the authority of our Holy Church, the ungodfearing trampling down of the Sacred Canons, and the devious manner of the "ordination to the episcopacy" of the piteous and miserable Dorotheos Tsakos render k. Auxentios guilty before divine and human justice, as well as before the impartial and unbribable judgment of history itself.

Can it be that you seek refuge in such a wreckage of a house?

Shudder, O Sun and groan, O Earth! If that be the case, with your own hands, you will destroy your own work and raze your spiritual edifices to the ground. Moreover, you will offer to your enemies unexpected arguments against yourselves. These are much more shaking than the arguments with which they presently seek to sully the reputation of pious and virtuous clergymen who, at the present moment, head up your struggle!

And, above all, such a thoughtless and frivolous action will sever the unity of your ecclesiastical communities because those among you whose souls hove a more acute sense of smell will not be able to tolerate the stench of that devious failure k. Auxentios's condemned and illegal actions.

It is out of a pained heart that we write the above so that the beacon of Orthodoxy will not be so ignominiously extinguished, the beacon which is kept lit by the exactness of your Orthodoxy and your blameless

ecclesiastical ethos.

And beyond all that we've said previously, as long as you came freely and unconstrained by anyone and committed the episcopal supervision of your parishes to me, I condemn any discussions with Auxentios as divisive acts and I advise you to cut them off completely.

Do not forget that "he who acts in secret from his bishop serves the devil, " according to Saint Ignatius the Godbearer.

Moved by love and respect, we propose that a Congress of all the parishes be called for the purpose of discussing a number of matters, among which is also the ecclesiastical-episcopal organization of your Godloving parishes. At a Congress of this type, which is the only appropriate one that can make r. decision regarding the above matter, we would have no objection to responsibly presenting our views.

With fatherly caution against suicidal solutions and with prayers and blessings, we remain,

+Akakios of Attica and Diavleia"

The Bostonites paid absolutely no attention to this letter, and proceeded to summarily break relations with Archbishop Akakios, and go under the omophorion of the much-maligned (by them as well) Archbishop Auxentios.

This was ironic, because, as Fr. Anthony Gavalas's letter reveals, Archbishop Akakios was working on an exoneration of Fr. Panteleimon at the time he was abandoned:

Fr. Anthony wrote:

"At this point, Abp. Akakios has initiated a sober and useful defense of the monastery and its Fathers to remove once an [sic] for all the rediculous [sic] charges against them, and to neutralize the sanctions uncanonically imposed by the Russian Synod. This will involve an opinion of a Canon Law professor and will be an iron-clad defense against our detractors. He told me that he plans to have this whole thing wrapped up by Transfiguration, when he will bring it himself to America, and serve with all the fathers for the Feast, that is, if what he has already heard from others that we are going elsewhere hasn't sabotaged this sensible and noble attempt. Although we who know the monastery give no credence to the charges of immorality, the fact is that they are widely believed in Greece. Was not Abp. Akakios's initial acceptance of us and his coming over to see us and serve with us a heroic gesture of support? Is this how we repay him? Given Abp. Auxentios's toleration, at least, of homosexuals in his own jurisdiction, of what use will be a [sic] exoneration signed by him?

Will it not allow our enemies to say that the monastery is guilty and so placed itself in a jurisdiction tolerant of such violations?"

Well, Fr. Anthony voice was ignored. And there seems to have been another reason than just needing bishops--when Archbishop Akakios came to visit his flock in the States, he did the unpardonable: he refused to serve together with Fr. Panteleimon!

Here is how Fr. Neketas Palassis writes about this in his letter to Fr. Anthony:

"Archbishop Akakios' refusal to celebrate the Divine Liturgy with the Elder certainly sent out a very misleading message to our adversaries. In fact, the dignity of Fr. Panteleimon himself was compromised by the unfortunate action of the Archbishop. Only the Lord knows what is being said about his not serving with the Elder."

Of course, no one is paying any attention to the fact that only a few months before, the Boston group, in justifying their uncanonical departure from the Synod, stated "urbi et orbi" that the only reason one can leave one's bishop is if he is "openly and bare-headedly preaching heresy in Church." Yet no one could accuse Archbishop Akakios of having a "soft"

stand on ecumenism or "concelebrating with new calendarists." So, the Boston group made yet another uncanonical departure from the bishop they had pledged obedience to, and ended up with the Synod of Archbishop Auxentios.

Now, of course, the Boston group is once more splitting away--from the Synod of Archbishop Auxentios and his lawful successor, Archbishop Maximos, who was described in such glorious terms in the "Orthodox Christian Witness" upon his enthronization. Of course, now the Boston group has plenty of bishops, so it will be no problem for them. They will have

finally achieved their goal of full independence.

To get there, most of them have made *four* changes in allegiance:

Once, when they left the Greek Archdiocese; twice, when they left the Synod Abroad; thrice, when they left Metropolitans Gabriel and Akakios; and for the fourth time by leaving Archbishop Maximos.

Not a very good track record for their spiritual leadership, is it? When one sees a man who has had one failed marriage, one is able to be compassionate--he made a bad choice, he should have another chance. A man with two failed marriages is looked upon with with reasonable caution--is there something wrong here? A man with three failed marriages

is undoubtedly a serious problem. What do you say to a man who is now going for a fifth?

When I wrote my two open letters to Fr. Neketas Palassis regarding the Boston schism, I had some strong remarks about ecclesiastical merry-go-rounds and "bishop-of-the-month-clubs." Time has proven me correct, unfortunately. At the time I was writing my letters, I was even unaware that Metr. Gabriel had already pulled out of this sordid affair,

and that Archbishop Akakios was soon to go.

One final point. In his letter to Fr. Neketas Palassis, Fr. Anthony Gavalas comments on the direction being given by the Boston monastery regarding admitting to the mysteries members of Synod (ROCOR) parishes. After expressing concern about a document that was disseminated by the Boston monastery, he writes:

"The same reservations could be voiced about another letter sent from our monastery to a lay woman in which it was said that while we do not give Communion to people who come to us from ecumenist jurisdictions, we do communicate people who come to us from the Synod. And the question arises: If the Synod is not ecumenist, why did we leave it?"

Good question, Fr. Anthony! Every member of HOCNA should ask it of themselves.

With love in Christ,

Archpriest Alexander Lebedeff