I think that the title patriarch has wrought too much trouble. perhaps it should be done away with. Autocephaly however is non-negotiable for the local Church of America. But that’s my opinion and I’m a fallen man myself.

I tend to agree with Bishop Basil that none of the other three (or four) Patriarchates of the pentarchy every relinquished their canonical territory. Constantinople of course did this but Autocephely and becoming a Patriachate seem to be like nationalistic power grabs. Except for the case of Coptic Alexandria granting Autocephely to Ethiopia and Eritrea. And then they became Patriarchates because they were very ancient and venerable Churches. I pray for their dogmatic and fully Orthodox acceptance of Chalcedon as well as the 7th council with which they seem to have the most trouble.

Anyway, Bulgaria, Serbia, and Romania are also ancient and venerable see, so it makes sense that their primatial bishop might receive the honorary title. But these are what I call P2 Patriarchates in distinction to the P1 Patriarchates of Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, and Moscow. Where the Armenian Apostolic Church would fit into the dyptics, if they became Orthodox, is beyond me seeing that they have three or four Patriarchs two of which are Ctholicos.

So you see what I am getting at. The Church in America is not ancient. So why the need to make it a Patriarchate?

I would like to add to your comments about SCOBA.

AS I listened to the conference, I must confess that it never dawned on me to think that SCOBA should have specifically requested to have been present at those Chambessy meetings. At least one of the speakers asked that question, the answer to which was (to me) another meely mouthed no-answer answer from Fr. Mark Arey. I suppose I just placed myself on Bp Savas’ internet list…LOL

The more I thought about it, all other criticisms of SCOBA aside, it is absolutely an indictment of that group, and an admission of it’s complete ineffectiveness and irrelevance that it was not represented at the Conference. To be honest, it should not only have been represented – if it had any dynamism at all – they would have been presenting ideas and concepts on how to solve this mess.

In my eyes, SCOBA buried itself with that one.

Just a thought.

Best Regards,
Dean

We must move forward, and the only way to do that I have come to believe is through Orthodox unity. Unity is no panacea, but jurisdictional division is clearly hampering our missionary imperative including the engagement of American culture in ways that can enrich it.

It has been my private conviction for years that it is no accident that American Orthodoxy is coming into its own as the traditional Christian confessions are sinking into the confusion that grips so much of the larger culture. I see the emerging movement towards unity in America as critical and necessary, and am pleased to see awareness growing.

I also see the movement toward unity draws from aspects of the American character, particularly our impatience with regal pretense, a characteristic probably necessary in medieval societies to maintain social cohesion but totally foreign to the American consciousness. Some remark the American impatience with imperial trappings is a bad thing. I think, rather, that the notions of freedom and respect of the individual that informs the impatience conform closely to notions of individual freedom and responsibility found first in our Orthodox moral tradition. For this reason I was glad to see Met. Jonah’s assertion that it is time to de-imperialize Orthodox ecclesiology.

Something is changing in American Orthodoxy, and it is good. It is time to take responsibility for our own destiny and develop our own voice, our own apologetic, our own engagement with culture, and respectfully decline the interference in the American Church from leadership abroad that quite clearly has no real understanding of American culture, and no real insight or discernment about what it takes to be Orthodox within it.

I think you are correct in your assessment. We do have “our work cut out for us” and we really cannot afford in terms of money, human resources or time “playing games.” At the risk of offending, we have settled for ethnic parishes and converts who flatter us but never challenge us. I’m a member of a professional society of Christian psychologists. Most of the members are Evangelical Christians. I have found them very interested in the Orthodox Church but often without anyone to speak them about their interests and concerns. And yes, they recognize a “con-game” when they see it–it isn’t just jurisdictionalism but also our too typical reliance on our being the “ancient Church” as if that absolves us from speaking with people on their own terms.

What I appreciate in Metropolitan Jonah’s address was his willingness not only to share the Church’s tradition with America, but his willingness to share the best of America with the Orthodox Church. I have so many professional colleagues who want to share with us the fruit of their research and professional experience. But they want to work with us a co-workers, as equals and not potential converts.

+Jonah defended the territorial integrity of North America and in doing so, its cultural integrity as well. (And its culture is immigrant as well as native.) Eventually, all ethnic jurisdictions will have to decide for themselves whether they are fish or fowl.

Another thing I take away from this is that SCOBA is now moribund, somebody just needs to pull the plug on it. It was useful while it lasted, but in the last five years (and especially at those two meetings in which all bishops were invited) it was clear that its purpose had devolved into a type of super-annuated student council, whose purpose was to derail efforts at unity all the while lulling its participants into believing that this was not the case. It was clear that despite Fr Mark Arey’s well-spoken words, the battle for SCOBA was not tenable.

If I may add my 2 cents, SCOBA has become a complete waste of time and money and in this time of economic crisis, can no longer be defended. Although I’m a nobody, my advice to all in SCOBA is just forget about it. Just start meeting in this new episcopal body. Have +Jonah call the first meeting, see who shows up, agree to meet quarterly, see more bishops join, and then the following year, elect a new president. Put a term limit on him: elect a new president every year. Do this until a critical mass of about 75% of all North American bishops join, then declare that the OCA has now become the Orthodox Church of America. Elect a new patriarch.

I hate to put a blunt, businessman’s gloss on it, and please forgive me for my brusque manner, but we have our work cut out for us here in this country, and we can’t always be looking over our shoulder playing games and intriguing. It’s not Christian and those honest inquirers who are thirsting for the Truth know a con-game when they see one. Our jurisdictionalism and finger-pointing have now degenerated into nothing but a grudge match. A blind man can see it.

I think this is a very productive way forward that would require humility on the part of all jurisdictions, but which could rectify the current jurisdictional-ism that hampers the OC in N. America.

When +Jonah was elected, the word I kept hearing from people was “clarity.” That is so refreshing as usually what we get from all jurisdictions is diplospeak at best and cobwebs at worst. Because of such clarity we can hope to see a united American church in the near future.