As for the prophecies, well, we’ll see. I really can’t pass any judgment on them either way. Time will tell.

As for America, as I mentioned upstream, the liberty that is granted by God depends on whether virtue is practiced. Freedom is not built into any social or political structure in the sense that these structures can preserve it apart from virtue. That should be clear from what I wrote. Not sure if you grasped that it is not about “American Exceptionalism,” it’s about touching (and being touched) by the Touchstone.

As for the prediction “what began in Russia will end in America” might be true. Solzhenitsyn warned as much in his Harvard Address. His first level target was Communism, but his deep level target was (philosophical) materialism.

Priest Andrew Philips of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia-Diocese of Great Britain and Ireland wrote this in one of his pieces for his journal ‘Orthodox England’:

“Russian Elder Porphyrius of Glinsk (+ 1868) wrote prophetically: ‘With time faith will decline in Russia. The glitter of earthly glory will blind the reason: the word of truth will be in disgrace. But in defence of faith there will arise from among the people those who are unknown to the world and they will restore what has been trampled on’. That prophecy is now coming true. However, it was also prophesied ninety years after this that: ‘What began in Russia will end in America’ (Elder Ignatius of Harbin, + 1958). In other words, the full persecution of the Church in Russia will move westwards. We are fighting against time.”

The prophecy Elder Ignatius of Harbin tells us that trajectory of America is in the direction of demonic, antichristic persecution of of the Orthodox Church.

Father, do you have faith in some sort of providential American Exceptionalism that makes (or will make) this country immune to the spirit of Antichrist? Do you believe that the prophecy of Elder Ignatius of Harbin to be a false prophecy?

America is the great hope for Orthodoxy because in America Orthodoxy is free and distinct from the state.

One can say alot of things about churches abroad but we forget that these “mature” churches are often subject to the machinations of governments. How free are state run Churches? Are these Churches really flourishing in the true sense of the word?

I love American Orthodoxy not because it is perfect -it is not. I love American Orthodoxy because it is free to be something beautiful for God.

The freedom to live the Gospel and struggle with all our faults and failings is a blessing in America. It is a blessing we should never take from granted.

Father, do you also believe that God has his hand in the formation of Greece? Russia? Ukraine? Serbia? Romania? All the lands in which the Orthodox Christian faith is flourishing?