“The Holy Synod of the See of Antioch, after long discussion and deep deliberation of the Synodal decision of February 24, 2009, and with the recommendations of His Beatitude, the Patriarch, it affirms that the nature of the Episcopate is one and the same to all those who are consecrated as bishops. The Holy Synod of Antioch affirms and reminds that all bishops of the Antiochian Archdiocese of North America are bishops who assist the Metropolitan, and that, furthermore, any diocese of the one united Archdiocese, under any circumstances, cannot be considered an independent Archdiocese. The Holy Synod of Antioch alone has the prerogative to establish Archdioceses in the See of Antioch.”

It appears that, on quick review, the statement affirms there is only one kind of episcopacy. This is in line with Orthodox polity that bishops vary in jurisdiction but not in standing. In other words there are not some who, for lack of a better term, are “more bishop” than others even though they may have a broader jurisdiction of responsibility.

While the term “auxiliary” is not used the wording “…bishops who assist the Metropolitan…” is not defined as to what that “assistance” is or what its scope is. Does “assist” mean “subordinate” or “auxiliary” or does it mean they are a synod of diocesan Bishops with a Metropolitan as president?

I’m missing the point on the phrase related to the dioceses except to think they are admonishing dioceses to be collegial and unified within the larger context of the Archdiocese. This seems odd, on first reading, because I was not aware that any of our dioceses were in the process of attempting to become an archdiocese.

Such are the difficulties of creating documents in the byzantine tradition and then also making the translation from Arabic to English. It would have been easier, frankly, for them to have simply said “All formerly diocesan Bishops are to remain as auxiliaries to their Metropolitan” or “All formerly diocesan Bishops are restored to their thrones and diocese to serve.”

Oh well. Let the parsing begin…

theantiochian.com is reporting that the Holy Synod of Antioch has reaffirmed the February 24th decision altering the status of all diocesan bishops to auxiliaries. The official site antiochian.org is silent and so is the more reliable site ocanews.org. We”ll have to wait and see.

that Saints were some kind of aberration, a once in a generation event where holiness met physicality and produced theosis. Things have changed.

Saints are, in fact, the only normal people around. All the rest of us spend our time trying as best we can to get to normal, to get to what we are supposed to be and for most of us this normality will elude us. We’ll have moments of it, of course, but never experience the permanency of it and those moments will leave us simultaneously desolate and hopeful.

On a good day we will feel the presence of God within us, the sense that we are connected to something, someone, so much larger than ourselves. It occurs to us in different ways, in different times, and in different stages in our life but it does happen. When it does there is a sense of rest and calm within, a kind of understanding that heaven and earth are aligned even if for a moment. Precisely when this happens is the moment we are also most human, most like what we were supposed to be, most alive in the best sense of the word, most normal.

The great agony of being human is that we are always aware we spend most of our existence at odds with the truth of who we are. We were meant to be so full of the presence of God that those who encounter us would recognize our form, know that we are human, but see only God. The Saints, alive with the presence of God, are a reminder of what we were created to be.

Now most of us may not get there in this life, at least like the luminaries we call Saints. But we will have our moments, those places in our lives where time seems to stop and we understand we are in the presence of the Holy One. Hold on to those moments because they tell us that despite our struggles we are still on the journey and that one day we will, like the Saints, find our way home.

in the porn industry. No judgments, just sadness at the reality of people getting a fatal illness while having make believe sex. The stuff has always killed souls but very few people know it takes bodies too.

for the Holy Synod of Antioch to meet next week and perhaps come to some kind of resolution on the questions and issues raised by thier decision to change our Diocesan Bishops to auxiliaries. Just wait and pray and hope.

The reports back from Bishop Mark and Bishop Basil are, of course, vague because private things were said and that confidence needs to be maintained. Yet the tone seemed positive and I hope that the concerns brought to the attention of our Patriarch will be addressed. If you can imagine a whole Archdiocese holding its breath you’ve probably sensed what we’re doing right now.

One of the larger questions is the one of fallout. Which ever way it goes someone will be unhappy and working on whatever step is next. My feeling is there may be some kind of compromise where all the parties involved are given some piece of the pie but that remains to be seen. I’d prefer, of course, to see the Bishops restored, but everything is out of my hands now. it’s a vulnerable place to be but also a place where everyone needs to simply rest in God. In the end that may be one of the lessons of all of this.

to another place on blogger. Find it here

in May and June and we’re over 5 inches below the average rainfall. Grass is going brown and lakes and ponds are shrinking from their banks. It’s the day before Pentecost and we need rain.

So it is with the world and myself as well. We both need water from heaven and the rain of the Spirit to come and touch our dryness. The winter was cold and long and spring has been stingy with her fruits. We, I, need rain to soften the ground, to give life to that which is in us, and to quench our thirst.

Let the clouds roll in, even if they are only the size of a man’s hand, and let the first drops fall. Whatever falls will be taken. Whatever comes will be absorbed. Each drop will have value.

It’s the day before Pentecost and we, I, need rain.

since February have been some of the hardest in my decade of being Orthodox.

The decision of the Holy Synod of Antioch to change the status of our Diocesan Bishops to auxiliaries has ignited a firestorm in our Archdiocese. Leaders are troubled. People are asking questions. Old wounds have been opened and new ones inflicted. Speculation abounds and people are still struggling to understand. Why was this necessary? What does this mean? What are the grounds for this decision? Many, including myself, hope for the best but answers, at the present, are few and far between.

There is a kind of fear among us as well. Some are afraid to speak because they imagine the consequences. News and rumors float about on competing websites. Angry words are being written and spoken. The future seems uncertain. The rationale behind this change, according to official sources, was the unity of the Archdiocese but the result has been exactly the opposite as people are divided and hurt and trying to make sense of it all. I can’t imagine what the diocesan and national conventions will be like if this is not resolved.

When I was first a Baptist Pastor I was given these words of advice, “God leads, the Devil stampedes” and I feel we’re being stampeded in many directions in the aftermath of this decision. Satan is creating havoc among us and God is allowing us to be challenged. Wheat and chaff are being separated and fire is in the process of burning out impurities. Yet while this happens people will be lost, people who will grow tired and disillusioned and give up and walk out the door and people who, looking at us from the outside and seeing this shameful mess, refuse to step in the door. Hard lessons are being learned.

This is wrong. This is sad. We need to be better.

So many, myself included, were hopeful that our new dioceses and self rule would be the seeds of a united American Orthodox Church, another step towards a correct canonical status and a shared Orthodox voice in this country. We hoped that disunity and chaos would someday end. We thought our leaders wanted this too but one day it was there and the next it was gone. Who can we trust? What set of events would require such a change? I feel confused, sad, and perplexed.

I love the Orthodox Faith so I could never walk away but I despair for all this has brought. Whether the Holy Synod’s decision on the status of our Bishops stands or is changed there will be a great silent undercurrent of fear, hostility, and lack of trust that will cripple us regardless of the proclamations and documents that follow. The things said and done in this time will hobble us and scandalize both the faithful and those who are searching for the Faith. We need trust to work together and that trust has been terribly strained.

I’m just a Priest from a small church on the western edge of Wisconsin, what I have to say doesn’t matter much. But I do pray for our Bishops, our Metropolitan, and our Patriarch and hope they see the sad results of what has happened and think deeply and spiritually about all of this. I especially pray for Bishop Mark who has endured so much before and after this and Lord knows what he may have to face in the future. All of our Bishops, agree or disagree, should be in our prayers. As we see what is happening we need to be prayerfully, respectfully, involved, seeking out the truth and acting on it as best sinful people can.

Yet in all my struggle with these things I have hope as well. I’ve seen men and women rise to the occasion and thoughtful people stand and be counted. That this is all worth fighting over says something about how we value it. If the weeks past are any indicator we may be in for a difficult journey but I have confidence in God. Somewhere in all of the shouting we will hear the still small voice.

And as part of this I’ve already expressed my opinion on this to my Dean and Bishop and they know that I believe that for practical, spiritual, and canonical reasons we need to retain our diocesan Bishops. Beyond the pastoral and canonical issues it just makes sense. I say this with no malice, no disrespect, and no anger towards anyone who may differ from me. Future events may reveal this opinion to be wise or I may have to be accountable for it. Regardless I will stand here and trust that God will care for me and the Church as needed.

That is where my hope is. I would like amicable resolution, the reattachment of sundered bonds, a Christian way to work through disagreements, and a drawing from the deep well of our Tradition for wisdom in troubled times. Our world needs the truth of Orthodoxy. But if those fail I still believe in the power of the Holy Spirit to take even these hard days and make something holy of them. Somewhere on the other side of this all is where we need to be and God will help us find our way home.

For that I wait, and pray, and hope.