Categories
faith

Greece And The Archbishop Of America

The Greek government reportedly is concerned about Archbishop Elpidophoros of America and divisions in the Greek American community. There are several factors to consider. The major interest of Greece was the participation of Archbishop Elpidophoros at the Turkish cultural center two years ago when the guests included the leader of the Turkish occupation of Cyprus.

Archbishop Elpidophoros should be removed for a variety of offenses. These include his participation in the aforementioned Turkish event but mostly for ecclesiastical and theological offenses. The Archbishop gained notoriety ten years ago when he suggested the Ecumenical Patriarch was “first without equals” in Orthodoxy with universal jurisdiction. This became more problematic after Patriarch Bartholomew claimed Ukraine as his own territory with the right to create an autocephalous Church.

In addition, the Archbishop held a liturgy at an Episcopal Cathedral which would be problematic even without that denominations embrace of Neo pagan LGBT ideology. The removal of the Archbishop would be a good start but Greece and Greeks cannot ignore the problem of Patriarch Bartholomew.

It was Patriarch Bartholomew who selected the present Archbishop. Patriarch Bartholomew divided Orthodoxy through his actions in Ukraine and specifically created divisions on Mount Athos and within the Greek speaking Churches of Greece and Cyprus.

Athens should be concerned about American involvement in the affairs of the Churches of Constantinople and Greece. Athens should intercede to drive out State Department involvement in Greek Church and diplomatic affairs. In any case, changing the Archbishop of the Greek Archdiocese of America is a good place to begin cleaning up Greek Church affairs.

Categories
cinema

The New Exorcist

Exorcist Believer

Directed by

David Gordon Green

Warning Spoilers

On the bright side, “Exorcist Believer” is nowhere near as bad “Exorcist 2 the Heretic” which was the first sequel to “The Exorcist” released in 1977. On the negative side, this is a terrible movie. The original film based on the novel by William Peter Blatty and directed by William Friedkin remains a masterpiece.

The creators of this most recent sequel missed the whole point of the original film and the novel it was adapted from. The original film was the most sophisticated horror film ever made that understood the power of faith and the conflict of good and evil. The original film’s greatness emanates from the fact that the film dealing with the supernatural was dealt with as a real drama.

Friedkin himself said he did not consider “The Exorcist” a horror film. A horror film it most definitely was considering the subject matter based on a demonically possessed child. It was also a serious drama that dealt with themes that theologians must inevitably address. The question of human suffering both spiritually and physically, and the struggle to maintain one’s faith in an increasingly secular and dark world. The question of guilt and grief humanized the characters of the original film.

This film has none of that. The first half of the film is watchable and compelling. I was interested enough to wonder where the story would lead. In short, two girls get lost in the woods and disappear for three days.

One of these lost her mother at the time of her birth and wanted to communicate with her. The mother before her death was blessed by some sort of occult priestess. The references to the occult were a good touch but this never played out.

There is an implication in the first film that twelve year old Regan McNeill might have raised a demon after playing with Ouija board. This is never affirmed but viewers of the film can speculate. The implication in the new film suggests (or I misinterpreted) something similar was at work.

The first sign of trouble is the decision to have two girls possessed. As if the makers of the film thought they could make it twice as scary. The original film avoided such tactics.

The most interesting idea was to bring back Ellen Burstyn to resume her role as Chris McNeill. Unfortunately, they trashed the character. In the original, Burstyn was great as the distressed mother, a secular woman frustrated by doctors and psychiatrists to the point where she seeks out a priest to conduct an exorcism on her daughter.

In this film, Chris McNeill says she was not permitted to be present at Regan’s exorcism because of “the patriarchy”. This line more than any other mistakes indicate that Director Green and others had no business making a sequel to the original classic. This line demonstrated a failure to understand the theological and spiritual basis of the novel and original film.

Further on, attempts are made to turn the film into a slasher film which makes it even stupider. Fathers Karras and Merrin in the original gave their lives to save Regan spiritually and physically. Chris McNeill would never dismiss them as she does with that line about the “patriarchy”.

There is an exorcism of both girls at the same time and this is the worst exorcism ever to be shown in an exorcism movie. It is also a ridiculous interfaith exorcism as Chris McNeill suggests a form of people power and not faith in God can drive the demon out. What transpired with the parents of one girl is vile and totally pointless. The parents express willingness to let the other girl die!

Chris McNeill is mutilated in a totally stupid scene and the pathetic priest that shows up gets murdered. In the original film, a murder takes place that heightens the tension and the drama. It takes place offscreen as it is not necessary to show it as the progression of Regan’s possession is enough to show us the true horror and evil of the devil/demon.

The exorcism scene could have had everyone sing “we are the world” and it would not have been any more stupid. There is even a pagan priestess participating in the exorcism. This is a terrible film. The second worst film in the series.

Any director who has made a film with Seth Rogan should not be hired to make movies in “The Exorcist” series. This film fares badly not only in comparison to Friedkin’s masterpiece. There are other films such as “The Last Exorcism”, “The Exorcism of Emily Rose”, “Requiem”, and this years “The Pope’s Exorcist” which were much better than this mess.



Categories
political

Zelensky’s Nazi Connections

Republican Presidential Candidate Vivek Ramaswamy has been criticized for calling Ukrainian President Zelensky a Nazi. The evidence shows that Zelensky has remarkably high tolerance for supporters of Nazi ideology First, Zelensky has honored the memory of Nazi collaborator and war criminal Stephan Banderas.

This enraged the government of Poland whose territory was occupied by the pro Nazi Banderites who murdered 100,000 Poles. When Zelensky addressed the Greek Parliament through Zoom or FaceTime he declared he was going to permit an ethnic Greek from Ukraine to address the Greek Parliament. Instead, a Neo Nazi addressed the Greeks which enraged former Prime Ministers Samaras and Tsipras.

Long before the Russian invasion of Ukraine, there were reports of Neo Nazis in the Ukrainian Army. Last September, the Canadian Parliament honored a Ukrainian Nazi collaborator and war criminal. When the scandal broke, the Speaker of Parliament was compelled to resign. Zelensky was not only present when the Nazi was honored, he was applauding the war criminal.

Politicians and the media refused to suggest Zelensky was partially responsible for the debacle. In Greece, Samaras and Tsipras also failed to blame Zelensky for bringing a Neo Nazi to address the Greek Parliament.

Zelensky’s Nazi associations are indisputable and so Ramaswamy should not only not be criticized for calling Zelensky a Nazi, he should be praised.



Categories
political

Gaza

Israel has the right to defend itself. Israel has every right to strike at Hamas. Hamas indiscriminately murdered 1,400 Israeli citizens and took two hundred hostages. There is no question Israel is right on Hamas.

The problem however is that Israel is striking civilians in Gaza. The bombing of the Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Porphyrius and a cultural center were not Hamas havens. There is a humanitarian crisis involving Palestinian civilians in Gaza.

Most of those expressing concerns about civilians in Gaza are not supporters of Hamas. On the other hand, there are extreme leftists who do support Hamas. Black Lives Matter leaders have stated that they support the eradication of Israel.

But not everyone expressing concern for Gaza supports the deranged views of Black Lives Matter. Many Palestinians are Christians and are suffering in Gaza as are Muslims. Civilians are not responsible for the actions of Hamas.

Greek Orthodox Archbishop Alexios of Gaza has stated he will not leave Gaza and will stay and provide relief for residents of all faiths. There is a larger picture here than that which the neocons are depicting at National Review and elsewhere.

Categories
political

The Middle East

The slaughter of 1,400 Israelis by Hamas is sickening and deserves to be condemned. The taking of hostages is also evil. Meanwhile, Palestinian civilians (Christians and Muslims) are enduring a horrific existence with humanitarian supplies running low in Gaza.

There is a good deal to admire about Israel and the Palestinians. Having visited the holy land and having travelled within Israel and the Palestinian Territories, I can state there is much to admire about both peoples. From a Christian perspective, we should pray for peace and an end to the suffering of people on all sides of this war.

This post is admittedly vague because there is a lot of information emerging that may or may not be true. Some facts however. Israel has a right to exist and to self defense.

The Palestinians have a right to their own state. This seems paradoxical as peace seems to be very far right now. In Gaza, the Greek Orthodox bishop has made clear the humanitarian crisis under way.

The war should be viewed in the context of the Gospel. Terrorism and murder should be condemned. Compassion should be extended to all people’s on all sides who are civilians.

May there be peace!

Categories
Letters

Letter To Foreign Affairs


The following letter is in response to “Putin’s Useful Priests” (September 14) by Andrei Soldatov and Irina Borogan. I am a Greek Orthodox Christian under the Ecumenical 
Patriarchate of Constantinople and not a member of the Russian Orthodox Church. However, an attack against one local Orthodox Church is an attack against all. The politicization and secularization of the Orthodox Church is deplorable. Perhaps some criticism can be directed at former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and former American Ambassador to Greece Geoffrey Pyatt for blatantly interfering in the spiritual life of the Greek speaking Orthodox Churches of Constantinople and Greece. 

American officials asked these two Churches to recognize a schismatic sect of pseudo bishops and priests in the so called “Orthodox Church of Ukraine” for the sole purpose of turning the Greek Churches against their sister Church in Russia. American officials had no business asking these Churches to recognize this fake 
Church and bishops in Constantinople and Athens had no business granting the Americans this request. From the standpoint of Orthodox canon law and ecclesiology,the Ukrainian Orthodox Church under the synod of Metropolitan Onuphry is the legitimate Church of Ukraine as it possesses canonicity, catholicity, and apostolic succession. 

American officials have made a mockery of the Orthodox Church and its canonical precepts by blatantly deciding what constitutes an Orthodox Church. Such secular intervention in Church affairs deserves condemnation. It is hypocritical therefore to accuse the Russian government of using the Russian Orthodox Church when it is 
clear it is the State Department which is attempting to use Orthodox Churches in their foreign policy against Russia. Even more deplorable, for many years before the
invasion of Ukraine, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church has been fiercely persecuted and many bishops, priests, and faithful Ukrainians have been harassed, arrested, or beaten for attending the Church that the Kiev government and its backers in Washington disapprove of. 

This is not to suggest that the war is justified. Indeed, the war cannot be justified and some of the rhetoric from the Moscow Patriarchate stands in conflict with Orthodoxy as the Orthodox Church does not endorse Crusades or religious wars of any kind. It is however deplorable and condemnable to suggest that the Russian Church is somehow an instrument of Moscow. Church-State relations in Russia are similar to Church-State relations in Greece and other Orthodox countries. 

Church-State relations are defined by the Justinian principle of “symphonia” or harmony in which Church and State are partners but function separately. This is how the Church functioned in Byzantine Constantinople and at the present in Orthodox countries. Church and State function independently of one another but serve as allies. It is absurd to suggest that the Russian Church either in Russia or abroad function at the service of the government. Westerners are simply upset that the 
Russian Church does not behave in accordance with their own wishes. 

The position of the universal Orthodox Church today has become very complicated as a result of the schism that has begun over Constantinople’s intervention in the affairs of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (under the omophorion of Moscow since 1686). This division has been gradually widening and has made the possibility 
of Orthodox Churches gathering to oppose the war entirely impossible. The Orthodox Church is “not of this world” and does not serve secular political interests. 

Let us keep in mind exactly which governments have been blatantly looking to use the Orthodox Church for political and secular purposes. 

Theodore Karakostas
Boston, MA

Categories
Analysis

Biden’s Dangerous Openings To Occupied Cyprus

The American embassy in Turkey has granted a visa to Ersin Tatar to visit the United Nations General Assembly. Tatar will be flying on a Turkish passport. The creeping recognition of occupied Cyprus is steadily under way.

This follows the genocidal assault on the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh by Azerbaijan. The Biden administration can be considered the most pro Turkish administration in American history and that says a good deal. While in the Senate, Biden took pro Greek positions.

What many failed to realize is the Presidency is different from the Senate and the President is subject to the influence of the foreign policy establishment. Greeks should not be surprised by how things are turning out. The anti Russian hysteria has inevitably made Turkey a strategically important player that Washington and Moscow are both looking to influence.

This is not the first time the senile President has extended diplomatic courtesies to the occupied territories. Undersecretary of State Victoria Nuland previously visited occupied Cyprus and called Tatar “Mr. President”. The Biden administration is hostile to Greece and Cyprus and this was made clear early on when Washington sold fighter planes to Turkey.

Prime Minister Mitsotakis has put Greek foreign policy in American hands by publicly bashing Russia and embracing the phony cause that is Ukraine. The Russians have been disappointing to say the least as the Armenians can attest, but there was no reason for Mitsotakis to embrace the fascist cause of Ukraine and to destroy Greek Russian relations. Mitsotakis was once an admiral leader who stood up to the Turks, he is now an American stooge like many of his predecessors.

Disaster on the diplomatic front for Cyprus is coming in phases. First, Nuland’s visit to occupied Cyprus, and now this this visa granted to Tatar. Greeks should be worried.

Categories
Commentary

Jerusalem Patriarch Offers Mediation

The stature of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem has always been great as that Patriarchate is the protector of the sacred shrines within the holy land. Now comes the news that Patriarch Theophilos of Jerusalem has offered to mediate the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. This is good news as finally an Orthodox Patriarch is rising to the occasion to bring peace.

Unlike the Patriarchs of Constantinople and Alexandria, the Patriarch of Jerusalem has not been tainted by association with the pseudo church of Ukraine. Jerusalem recognizes only the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The Patriarch Theophilos and bishops of the Jerusalem Patriarchate have in fact condemned the persecution of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

The Jerusalem Patriarchate has a Greek Patriarch and mostly Greek bishops, but its flock is Palestinian. Also, the Russians, Georgians, and Romanians have a presence in the holy land. The Jerusalem Patriarchate is therefore multi ethnic and pan Orthodox.

It is true that problems remain over the discriminatory treatment of the Arabs. But the potential for the problems of the Patriarchate to be resolved is great as Jerusalem should be an international Church where Arabs, Russians, Georgians, and Rumanians should be included in the hierarchy. In any case, as Constantinople’s position has diminished because of its actions in Ukraine, Jerusalem appears to be rising as the center of Orthodoxy.

In 2020, Patriarch Theophilos took the initiative to convene a gathering in Amman to discuss the schism in Orthodoxy. As less than half of the Churches gathered, there were no binding decisions. But, this remains the only real effort made to address the schism.

Patriarch Theophilos has the respect of the Russian Church and government. He has the respect of Orthodox Churches. He has the independence that could permit him to play the role of mediator between Russia and Ukraine.

The Patriarch of Jerusalem is the successor to Saint James, the brother of the Lord. How appropriate that a peace initiative for Orthodox nations should come from this sacred Church. Patriarch Theophilos is a true Orthodox Statesman!

AXIOS!

Categories
faith

Russophobia Unhindered And Religious Freedom Under Further Attack

Previously, the FBI announced that it would monitor Roman Catholic Churches that observed the Latin rite. The insane justification for this is that traditionalist Roman Catholics were involved with white supremacy! Never mind that historically white supremacists such as the Ku Klux Klan (the real ones) were notoriously anti Catholic.

The latest target for the FBI is the Russian Orthodox Church. The false assertion has been made that the Russian government is trying to infiltrate Russian Churches in America. This is both an attack on religious freedom and a disturbing assault on Russians living in America.

The degree of malice and stupidity that follows in the trail of the Russo-Ukrainian war gets worse in time. At this rate, anyone not going along with the anti Russian hysteria or anyone demonstrating concern about the eruption of a third world war is going to be labeled a Putin stooge. This anti intellectual madness is being further spread by CNN and other American propaganda outlets.

Greeks and other Orthodox Christians in America should not be complacent. An attack on one Orthodox Church is an attack on all. The FBI’s targeting of any religious institution should be condemned. The Biden administration is becoming dangerously authoritarian.

Categories
political

GENOCIDE

The Armenians have lost Nagorno-Karabakh. Ethnic cleansing is under way. Azerbaijan’s victory is a devastating defeat for Armenia and represents a victory for Turkey.

Russia regrettably has done nothing to support the Armenians. This is an abandonment of Russia’s role as protector of Christians. Russia’s primary focus has been on resisting an expansionistic NATO.

We now see what happens when the west makes Russia an enemy. Turkey and its allies are now emerging as the major power at the expense of both Russia and the west. The Russians have made a huge mistake in permitting Azerbaijan to defeat Armenia.

Throughout history, Turkey and Russia have been enemies. The Erdogan regime itself shot down a Russian plane over Syria in 2015. Russia has no guarantees that Turkey and Azerbaijan will not turn against a Russia at some point in the future.