(1) Editorial decisions at the AOI Observer are made by the editors.<\/strong><\/p>\n I spent many years working as a newspaper reporter. In that business, people were always complaining about “negative” news stories. Frequently, these were stories that put their subjects in an unfavorably light. Sometimes, these very same people were complaining about negative news coverage even as they were led, in leg shackles and handcuffs, into various courtroom hearings. I’m sure that they were still complaining about negative news coverage in their jail cells, but by then they were out of earshot.<\/p>\n Some people even complain about positive news stories. Usually, it’s those sorts of stories that put their enemies in a positive light.<\/p>\n News decisions are judgment calls. Sometimes we might make a bad call at the AOI Observer. I like to think that we’re making a lot of good calls by the kind of traffic we’re generating here. In any event, we will continue to post news and commentary about the social witness of the Orthodox Church — as we see it. Sometimes, we may post something here simply because we find it interesting.<\/p>\n (2) Patently false, unwarranted assertions and claims are not convincing as arguments.<\/strong><\/p>\n I can claim that I was abducted by aliens, or that I still have a shot at playing Major League Baseball, but that doesn’t make it so. Claiming that the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America and the Ecumenical Patriarchate are not the chief impediments to the unity of American Orthodox Christians within an autocephalous, American Orthodox Church, is not only laughable, it’s absurdly false. We’ve been, I’m afraid, a bit over-tolerant of people on this site, like Tom Kanelos, who repeatedly make this false claim. We’ve allowed him and others to post these untruthful comments here because we have been trying to foster an open exchange of ideas and insights about the deep crisis that American Orthodoxy is currently experiencing. I fear we have been too tolerant, and allowed for too long to let this howling-out-loud lie — that Greek Orthodox prelates are interested in unity — to circulate here.<\/p>\n So, the AOI Observer issues a challenge. We’re calling the bluff. This blog would be delighted to receive essays in support of an autocephalous, American Orthodox Church written by Greek Orthodox seminary professors, deacons, priests and bishops. In particular, the Observer would be most interested in articles that were published in print or online in the 1994-2008 period. Let’s call it The Post Ligonier 1994 Era<\/a>. Videotapes or DVDs of Greek clerics speaking out publicly in support of an independent, unified American Orthodox Church, free of foreign control, be it Greek, Russian, Arab, Serbian, Finnish, Romanian, Carpatho-Russian — you name it — would be received with gratitude. Homilies, church bulletins, meeting flyers and the like that were printed for the purpose of organizing talks and meetings at Greek churches in support of Orthodox unity would be helpful. We would review these materials for possible reprint or posting on this blog, based on our own independent editorial judgment.<\/p>\n If it turns out that the historical record in this regard is … a bit thin … then we would consider publishing new material that advocates for an independent American Orthodox Church written by Greek Orthodox clerics. Let’s call this editorial project, “The Orthodox Church of Tomorrow.” No pen names may be used, please. Indicate, along with your author ID, the name of the parish where you serve and the name of your Greek Metropolitan, who will receive a complimentary copy of your article. These commentaries should be written in a charitable and moderate spirit, and should be informed not merely by personal opinions but also the factual record. <\/p>\n (3) The Orthodox Church has a corruption problem.<\/strong><\/p>\n This blog has been chiefly interested in financial corruption, wherever in the world it occurs, because it seems that Orthodox churchmen have a particular flair for this. Entire Web sites are now dedicated to rooting out the rot, like Orthodox Christians for Accountability<\/a>. Increasingly, however, concerned Orthodox laity are focusing on sexual abuse in the the Church, like Pokrov.org<\/a>, “a resource for survivors of abuse in the Orthodox Churches.” These Web watchdogs are performing a much needed ministry for the Orthodox Church. The word ministry is chosen intentionally.<\/p>\n Because AOI is chiefly concerned with the social witness of the Orthodox Church, such as it is, the corrupt practices of Orthodox clergy — be they parish priests in the United States or wheeler dealer monks on the Holy Mountain — will continue to be reported here. Without apology.<\/p>\n I find it odd that there was such a violent reaction here to a brief post reporting yet another investigation of shady real estate deals on Mt. Athos. Granted, this violent reaction was limited to two or three people. But I guess previous posts here about rampant corruption among Greek Orthodox clergy are somehow also out of line? And we learn this week that Greece is the most corrupt country in the Eurozone<\/a>, and that the land registry (think County Clerk’s Office) and the courts are hot spots of corruption, and we’re supposed to be surprised when Greek clerics get hauled into court? From Kathimerini:<\/p>\n Rakintzis also listed a \u201clong list of offenses\u201d at town-planning offices, an area where \u201cdestruction [of the environment] cannot be reversed.\u201d He highlighted the fact that many of the 176 offices around the country are understaffed and that illegal buildings are rarely demolished. He said that there are 2 million illegal buildings in Greece, 300,000 of which are in Attica.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n And we learn this week that, according to the Socialist party<\/a> (and who knows? maybe the communist and anarchist parties, too) that the Vatopedi scandal is still an “open” issue. What do they mean by “open”? Maybe its open because the government in Greece is also famously corrupt<\/a>? Things are pretty easy to get fixed<\/a> there [wink, wink]. I don’t know. Just a thought. Have you read about<\/a> the Siemens thing?<\/p>\n But isn’t it true that the Omogeneia<\/em> has been importing clergy from the home team for decades? Granted, many of these clergymen are solid Orthodox pastors who offer a true witness to the Gospel. Others, haven’t worked out so well. Does anyone remember Archbishop Spyridon? Here’s an excerpt from an article<\/a> in the New York Times:<\/p>\n Critics of the Archbishop said that he had diminished the quality of education at Holy Cross by dismissing some of its most respected professors<\/strong> and administrators, that there were irregularities in the handling of church financial matters<\/strong>, that he ruled in an autocratic manner<\/strong> permitting no dissension<\/strong> and that he failed to recognize that the church was no longer an immigrant institution<\/strong> but one rooted in American practices and philosophy<\/strong>. Some local churches began to withhold their money from the central organization.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n If we get another archbishop like that from the home team, would it be an issue here at the farm club? As a lifelong member of the Greek Orthodox Church, a parish council member, and a Sunday School teacher, I think I’d have a problem with that.<\/p>\n (4) Despite the many problems, good things are happening in the American Orthodox Church.<\/strong><\/p>\n This blog has been quick to recognize and applaud Orthodox bishops who have provided public witness on social issues. This includes Greek Orthodox bishops who have supported measures in support of traditional marriage and the sanctity of life. We applaud the arrival on the scene of Metropolitan Jonah of the Orthodox Church in America, who has given us a glimpse of what a real engagement with the American culture might look like. We hope he succeeds.<\/p>\n We have also been supportive of new initiatives, like FOCUS North America<\/a>, that reach out in a truly Christian way to help “the least of these” right here in our homeland. We hope and pray that the Lord blesses the ministry of FOCUS and that it be provided with the resources it needs to flourish.<\/p>\n This blog will continue to highlight these encouraging developments. We wish there were a lot more to discuss.<\/p>\n (5) Highly Selective Sniping<\/strong><\/p>\n It is striking to see what critics of this blog seize on to buttress their baseless complaints about bias. Posters, like Tom Kanelos, are quick to complain about reports of another “unholy” real estate deal on Mt. Athos, but are completely silent on other, much more significant items. No comment, for example, about the possibility that the Halki seminary might be opened. Or those positive posts about Greek Orthodox bishops showing some spine on important social issues. No comments on the remarkable insights of Fr. Leonidas Contos<\/a> who wrote about the deep crisis in American Orthodoxy — in 1981. Fr. Contos:<\/p>\n For so long as we are conditioned, in our polity and in our cultural life, by the diaspora complex, however subconsciously, we will be inhibited in the fullest realization of our \u2018church-hood.\u2019 More importantly, so long as we are perceived from without as a diaspora\u2014a branch, an offshoot, a transplant, an emigration\u2014by the Mother Church (and, if the truth be told, by the Mother Country), our maturity will never be acknowledged; our uniquely formed destiny in the West, never adequately comprehended; our freedom to shape our future as the Orthodox Church in this hemisphere, never fully realized.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n