Eastern Orthodox Christianity 2.0

Si Cristo ay nabuhay!  Siya nga ay nabuhay!

The position of this blog with regard to conflict among overlapping jurisdictions and “claims” of jurisdiction - in The Philippines, in North America, anywhere - is to discuss it as factually as I know, as necessary for the information of inquirers, to take it into account as much as my meager knowledge permits, to hope and pray for Orthodox brotherhood / sisterhood and Unity and for our evangelization of non-Orthodox, and to not participate in such conflict itself if at all possible.

I’m glad to help with “rumor control” and to help smooth ruffled feathers.  But this really cannot become a forum for such conflict itself, since this is not a general Orthodoxy blog or forum, but specifically for evangelization.  There is no shortage of fora for conflict, elsewhere.  This is why I have exercised Moderation, and will continue to do so.

As conflict-averse as I am as a human being - one of my “issues,” perhaps! - I concede that conflict over jurisdictional claims implicitly recognizes that Orthodox Unity is in accordance with Holy Tradition, “one bishop in each place.”  Whatever has been worked-out between Antioch and Constantinople regarding The Philippines has not reached me here in America yet.  In any case, there are overlapping claims of jurisdiction not only in The Philippines, but in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore IIUC, Indonesia, China, Korea, Japan, the Americas, Western and Central Europe, Estonia, Moldova, Russia, the Arabian Peninsula, perhaps even Constantinople (Istanbul) itself.

ISTM true Orthodox rejoice in souls coming to The Orthodox Church, in souls uprooted from ancestral homelands managing to retain The Orthodox Faith, and pray for ever more of the All-Holy Spirit of God to guide the Church and her leaders “from glory to glory,” that He “calm the dissensions of the churches and the raging of the nations,” that we might increasingly radiate God’s Glory / Energies / Activities / Attributes as individuals and as Christ’s Body.

May God have Mercy on me.