What did the Patriarchs agree on?
The meeting of Patriarchs Bartholomew and Kirill took place, and everyone is interested in the question: what will happen next?
Following the results of the meeting in Istanbul, the parties gave small comments, from which one can draw conclusions for every taste. And all are interested in the question: what will happen next? And if to narrow this question: will the Tomos be granted or not? Let's try to understand.
Ukrainian "patriotic" mass media immediately echoed the thesis that on Phanar Patriarch Kirill was confronted with a fait accompli: the Tomos will be granted no matter what!
Here is an example:
The thesis went to the masses in many respects with the presentation of the spokesman of the Kiev Patriarchate Yevstratiy Zoria, who wrote on his Facebook page: "Metropolitan Emmanuel, who was a representative of the Patriarch at the feast in Kiev in July, went to reporters. He made a short statement, the essence of which was in the phrase: we INFORMED the patriarch about the decision to overcome the division in Ukraine and the provision of autocephaly, which is IMPLEMENTED. Later, an official text is expected, so the wording may not be literal."
Indeed, Mr Zoria presented the words of Metropolitan Emmanuel very selectively. The man responsible for the information policy of the UOC KP heard only what caressed his ears. He wrote these words with capital letters. Meanwhile, if to hear these words not separately, but in the context of the whole phrase of Metropolitan Emmanuel, it becomes clear that it was quite another matter. Here is the text of what the Metropolitan of France said:
"One of the main questions discussed at the meeting was the situation in Ukraine. As you know, the schism in this country has existed for more than 25 years, and the Ecumenical Patriarchate has decided to explore all options for granting autocephaly to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. This decision was made in April, and we are already discussing it, and this was also reported to Patriarch Kirill during his visit today."
That is, the very "decision" that Tomos sympathizers took for the decision to grant the Tomos is, in fact, a decision "to explore all options for granting autocephaly to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church". Yes, it was actually taken in April and shortly was indeed reported to the President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko. True, the Guarantor of the Ukrainian Constitution also took it for the decision to bestow the Tomos to his own election. He did not take into account the subtlety of Byzantine diplomacy ...
What Metropolitan Emmanuel said literally coincides with the assumptions of the UOJ made on the eve of the meeting in Istanbul: "The theme of Ukraine is most likely to be dominant, but not in the context of the Tomos, but in the context of overcoming the Ukrainian schism" (quotation from the article "Why are Patriarchs meeting?").
Apparently, Constantinople decided to take the initiative to find a way to return the schismatics to the fold of the Church. If you analyze all the statements of both Patriarch Bartholomew and all the representatives of the Patriarchate of Constantinople in recent times, you can see that the sequence of resolving the Ukraine case is the following: first healing the schism, then granting autocephaly.
Pro-Tomos adherents confuse the righteous with the sinful and think that those Local Orthodox Churches which expressed their negative attitude towards the Ukrainian Tomos (at the instigation of Moscow, certainly) are afraid of Ukrainian autocephaly as it is. But here they are badly mistaken. Local Churches, including even the Russian Orthodox Church, are not afraid of this autocephaly, although, of course, the ROC isn’t happy about it. The Churches are afraid of the "legalization" of schism.
First, it contradicts the Truth of God, as is the "legalization" of any other sin: fornication, murder, etc.
Secondly, the recognition of the Ukrainian schism will become a catalyst for schismatic actions in other Local Churches, including the Constantinople Patriarchate itself. That's what World Orthodoxy is afraid of and what Tomos supporters in Ukraine just cannot figure out!
If Patriarch Bartholomew, even going against the will of the Russian Orthodox Church, will grant the Tomos on Ukrainian autocephaly, he will not be strongly opposed. But if he legitimizes the Ukrainian schism, everyone will go up against him!
Therefore, let us repeat, the formula for the solution of the Ukrainian issue is the following: first, the solution of the question of schism in a canonical way, and then – the solution of the question of autocephaly. In their victorious reports on the topic: "Tomos will be granted!!!", all the sympathizers of this idea make another fundamental error. In politics, even the church one, it is necessary to react not to intentions, but to possibilities. Constantinople can say as much as it likes about granting the Tomos, but if it does not have such possibilities, these desires will remain so. And there are no such possibilities for him today!
The main necessary, but not sufficient, condition for issuing the Tomos on autocephaly is the presence of a subject to whom this autocephaly can be granted. Today, such a subject is missing in Ukraine. The UOC cannot be granted the Tomos, because it does not request for it. Schismatics cannot receive the Tomos, because they are schismatics. Then who? No one for the moment!
Therefore, the first step of Constantinople is the creation in Ukraine of a single canonical church structure, which the Tomos could later be granted. Leaving the meeting room, Metropolitan Emmanuel said directly that this structure should be single: "We want not to create another schism, but to unite the Churches." The task is not an easy one, but apparently, at the talks, there were voiced options for its solution, the options which the Moscow Patriarchate can also accept. This is evidenced by the statements of the negotiators from the ROC: Patriarch Kirill and Metropolitan Hilarion.
Patriarch Kirill:
- The atmosphere was very good.
- I hope that we will continue to work together to make the world better.
- We are simply programmed for interaction and cooperation.
- At the meeting, there was nothing that would have produced some kind of explosion in the mind.
- The talk was very correct, the talk between the two heads of the Churches, who are aware of the responsibility for the state of the Universal Orthodoxy.
Metropolitan Hilarion:
- A very fruitful exchange of views.
- From the beginning to the end the talk was both very sincere and fraternal, we left Constantinople with a very bright feeling.
Tomos adherents say that such statements are nothing more than an attempt to make a good face in a bad game. However, it is not so. If the Moscow delegation had heard from the lips of the Phanariots what Mr Zoria and his associates thought, namely, that Constantinople bestows on them, schismatics, autocephaly (which they requested for in Petro Poroshenko's letter to Phanar), the reaction would have been quite different.
The Russian Orthodox Church has repeatedly stated that legitimizing the Ukrainian schism on the part of Constantinople will entail a schism in the whole Ecumenical Orthodoxy. Metropolitan Hilarion, in an interview with the Greek agency "Romfea", said literally: "It's frightening to even imagine what might happen if the scenario of granting autocephaly to Ukrainian schismatics will be implemented in practice. <…> The schism in the world Orthodoxy, which will be the inevitable consequence of this wrong step, can be compared only with the division between East and West in 1054. If this happens, Orthodox unity will be buried." That is if this prospect was voiced at the negotiations in Istanbul, and such a development of events would be inevitable, then both Patriarch Kirill and Metropolitan Hilarion should have already begun to prepare for this the church and public opinion. But we see the exact opposite: statements of mutual understanding, of responsibility, of the unity of Orthodoxy.
Therefore, soon, we should expect some coordinated action by the Constantinople and Moscow Patriarchates to resolve the problem of the Ukrainian schism and, in the future, the granting of autocephaly if the problem of schism is resolved successfully. This was hinted by Metropolitan Hilarion: "The talk that took place today may lead to some decisions of the Synods of the Constantinople and Russian Orthodox Church." Most likely, these decisions will be uniform, which Patriarchs might have agreed on.
