Archbishop Leonty (+1971) and the Greek Old Calendarists [part 15 - last]

(Continue from here)

From left: Archbishop Leonty (in white), St. Philaret and Bishop Peter of Astoria (photo published in the official organ of the True Orthodox Church "The Voice of Orthodoxy", no. 543/June 1, 1968).

The Legacy of Archbishop Leonty

Despite the sorrow he felt due to the ingratitude of certain bishops, Archbishop Leonty never forgot his Greek comrades-in-arms, as noted in a letter to the P.T.E.O.K. by Petros of Astoria:
"The love of Archbishop Leonty for Greece and our Holy Struggle is great; yet it did not find a response… He wishes to visit you again." [1]

In January 1967, in a letter to the P.T.E.O.K., he once again emphasized the need for the unity of all true Orthodox Christians worldwide and highlighted the importance of a Panhellenic Clergy-Laity Congress, which he himself wished to attend (and indeed together with Archbishop Averky of Syracuse). The members of P.T.E.O.K. responded with emotion: "We never forget your Apostolic self-sacrifice during your visit for the ordination of our Bishops. We always consider your arrival as a gift from God to our much-afflicted Church. Unfortunately, being unworthy, we did not make use of this gift, whose purpose was the mercy of the Lord upon us." [2]

In March 1967, the Synod of the G.O.C. and the P.T.E.O.K. organized an unprecedented event for the Sunday of Orthodoxy at the Acropol Theater. Thousands of Orthodox Christians, both of the old and new calendar, attended, and after the event (in which the renowned orator, then Archimandrite, Fr. Augoustinos Kantiotes also spoke [3]), they proceeded in a grand procession to Mitropoleos Square.

Above: Two snapshots from the grand event of the True Orthodox at the "AKROPOL" theater for the Sunday of Orthodoxy with the central slogan: "Athenagora, far from Rome!" ("The Voice of Orthodoxy", no. 514-515/1-4-1967). 

Βelow: Photo from the huge gathering of protesting Orthodox.

The results of the cooperation of Orthodox Christians in Greece were evident, as seen in a congratulatory letter from the P.T.E.O.K. to Archbishop Leonty at Christmas of 1967: "The resistance against the friends of the Pope here in Greece is strong. Not only we, but also all the conservative New Calendarists [4] are determined not to accept union with the Papists. Augoustinos [Kantiotes], who has become a hierarch, Professors Trembelas, Karmiris, and others, are collaborating with us and resisting with words and deeds against the actions of those seeking union. For this reason, Athenagoras did not dare to pass through Greece." [5]

In the meantime, at some point in 1967, Archbishop Leonty had also attended a session of the Synod of ROCOR, which turned out to be his last participation in it. At that time, Petros of Astoria must have invited him to his radio broadcast "Voice of Orthodoxy" (May 28, 1967), in which Archbishop Leonty chanted in Russian verses from Psalm 136 (By the waters of Babylon), a recording of which has been preserved. [6]

Perhaps that year he also traveled to Montreal to visit the Greek parish there (which had as its priest Hieromonk Akakios Ntouskos, ordained by him, and later Bishop of Montreal). This is inferred from an article ("A Greek Mission in Montreal"), published in the well-known magazine The Orthodox Word (No. 18/Jan.-Feb. 1968) by Fathers Seraphim Rose and Herman Podmoshensky, although no exact date is mentioned:

At Pascha in 1968, Archbishop Leonty sent his last preserved official letter to the P.T.E.O.K., in which he once again expressed his longing to meet them again and urged the continuation of the struggle against the enemies of Orthodoxy and the modernists:

On April 2, 1971, he received the last preserved letter from Greece, sent by Archbishop Auxentios. Two months later, on June 19 (O.S.), the soul of Archbishop Leonty departed to meet his friend, Saint John Maximovitch, who had also reposed on the same date five years earlier (in 1966).

The news of the repose of Archbishop Leonty quickly spread to the ends of the earth. We read in the Minutes of the Synod of the G.O.C.: "The holy President [Archbishop Auxentios] announces the death of Archbishop Leonty of Chile. It is decided to send condolence telegrams to America, to place his photograph in the Offices of the Holy Struggle, and to commemorate his name in all our churches for the self-sacrifice he demonstrated, having risked both his life and his rank for the ordination of our Bishops in Greece." [7]

One of the persons particularly connected with Archbishop Leonty was Fr. Adrian, later Archbishop Andrew Rymarenko. [8] Shortly after the repose of Archbishop Leonty, the newly arrived Hierarchs of the G.O.C. from Greece, Archbishop Auxentios and Gerontios of Salamis, together with Petros of Astoria, visited Archbishop Andrew. They traveled to New-Diveyevo on Friday, July 24 (O.S.). Here is how the magazine The Voice of Orthodoxy briefly describes this visit: "One of their stops was the Russian women’s monastery called Nova-Diveyevo. There is also the Russian cemetery for Russians of the Diaspora. There, they met Bishop Andrew. His figure, that of a saint of old Russia. He was weak and received them in his plain and humble cell. He spoke to them of many things, among them the late Archbishop Leonty, whom he had known since childhood. He knew in detail the events of his martyric life and, with tearful eyes, spoke of his death. Emotionally moved, they departed after having venerated the holy Bishop." [9]

The memory of Archbishop Leonty remained alive among his friends. Ten years later (1981), we read in a letter from Petros of Astoria to Fr. Seraphim Rose, which he sent as an accompaniment to financial support for his publishing work: "I am sending this contribution in memory of my two dearest friends and brothers in Christ, Archbishops Leonty and Averky. Their passing is, of course, a great loss to all of us, especially now in these very difficult days of apostasy." [10]

Later, in the magazine Russian Pilgrim (Русский паломник), published by the late Fr. Herman, additional testimonies related to the blessed Archbishop Leonty were featured. In one of them, from a person signing with the initials N.S.K., we read: "Archbishop Leonty would sometimes visit Argentina, and during the Vigil, he would go to the chapel behind the left choir. At that time, I did not know him, but I was aware of his ‘presence’ from the feeling of joy that spread from his being—many in America had already told me about this. The Lord granted me the opportunity to serve two Hierarchs: Vladyka Leonty and Vladyka Petros of Astoria—who was Greek. Vladyka Petros knew Greek and English, while Vladyka Leonty knew Russian. They would write to each other through me. What an honor for me! At that time, our Synod (in reality, [Archpriest George] Grabbe) slandered both Hierarchs and sought to depose them, accusing them of simony, but they did not succeed. Metropolitan Philaret, being under the influence of Grabbe and Archbishop Vitaly, could not help anyone... Following Vladyka Averky’s recommendation, I became a parishioner of the Greek Church (Old Calendar) and of Vladyka Petros." [11]

Although many Greek strugglers also regard the venerable figure of Archbishop Leonty with similar admiration, [12] it was deemed appropriate for this publication to conclude with the written testimony of the blessed Epaminondas Primalis  (+2023), who lovingly preserved the memory of the blessed Archbishop [13]: "His extensive correspondence with the Fathers of our Martyric Church, his confessional struggles, his ecclesiastical presence and work—both in his homeland, Russia, and abroad, within the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia in America—as well as his great sacrificial contribution to the persecuted and Martyric Church of the Genuine Orthodox Christians of Greece, all prove and affirm with a loud voice that the ever-memorable Archbishop of Chile and Peru, Kyrios Leonty Filippovitch, is a contemporary Confessor and Martyr of the Orthodox Church." [14]

Archbishop Leonty, as a bearer of the catacomb/struggling spirit, would in no way have tolerated the Church of the Genuine Orthodox Christians becoming a mere imitation of the "state Church," and this stands as an important legacy of his.

He sent hundreds of letters, while his letters to the Greeks exceed fifty, without all the Archives having yet been thoroughly examined. In these letters, which constitute an important source of information, highly valuable positions are contained regarding the Holy Struggle of the true Orthodox, concerning, among other things:

a) The fall of the official Churches, which “slid towards the side of those professing heresy due to the influence of the dark forces, most likely the Freemasons from the right and the Communists from the left, and it is difficult for them to free themselves from the strong bonds of Satan.” [15]

b) The denunciation of ethnophyletism, since “the Church of Christ is not Greek, is not Russian, is not Arabic, but Catholic.” [16]

c) The importance of transmitting Apostolic Succession to the Greek Old Calendarists, since, on the one hand, “through the ordination of Old Calendarist bishops, the weapon that they [the Innovating New Calendarists] intended to use against Orthodoxy is taken away from them, and now they can no longer, without pretext and without excuse, abandon Holy Orthodoxy to become a plaything of various conspiracies and anti-ecclesiastical councils.” [17] On the other hand, “everywhere, the Orthodox rejoice over the great event of the restoration of the Church of Christ—the old and not the innovating one, which had sunk into the mire [= swamp] of the dark forces of all non-Orthodox directions, for whom the common fate is now clear: perdition before God and disgrace before men.” [18]

d) The necessity of resistance against the Masonic invasion (“I did not come here with the sole purpose of ordaining three or four bishops. My purpose is broader. Orthodoxy is in danger. Therefore, I desire to establish a center of resistance here in Greece, which will soon extend also to the Patriarchates of the East, which are being ravaged by the Masons.” [19]) and the betrayal of Orthodoxy: “The struggle is not merely about the issue of the 13 days, but because the Patriarchs are becoming apostates and the Metropolitans are selling Holy Orthodoxy.” [20]

e) The necessity of unity among all true Orthodox, the cooperation of clergy and laity (without despotic or mob-like deviations and without resorting to civil courts), [21] while at the same time avoiding relations with those who usurp and tarnish the name of the Genuine Orthodox: “The Matthewites are nothing other than heretics, and that is how you should regard them.” [22]

Without this Ecumenical Father and Teacher, there would be no true Orthodox Church today, neither in Greece nor in many regions of the world. For, despite the unworthiness of certain individuals, the foundations were laid, and there exists a true Priesthood and undefiled Altars—especially in an era when apostasy is reaching its peak and the faithful are desperately seeking an "Ark."

Especially for the Church of the Genuine Orthodox Christians of Greece, the legacy of Archbishop Leonty is of equal value and significance to that of Saint Chrysostomos, formerly of Florina. Both strengthened our Church through ordinations, both laid the proper ecclesiological foundations by combating deviations from both the right and the left, and both, while alive, protected the Holy Struggle with their prayers. Paradoxically, with the repose of Archbishop Leonty in 1971, the blessing of God seemed to withdraw temporarily, and a dark chapter in the history of our Church began—one that, with few radiant exceptions, was destined to last for more than forty years: strife, schisms, divisions, extremism, delusions, and unsuitable ordinations. This had already been foreseen by Konstantinos Komnios, who, writing on behalf of the P.T.E.O.K. in a letter to Archbishop Leonty and Petros of Astoria, stated: “If the three Bishops, following the decision of the Clerical Conference, proceed with the ordination of bishops of the same temperament, our Church will be fragmented into pieces.” [23]

In recent years, as self-examination, mutual understanding, and humility begin to return, along with a revival of the Orthodox ecclesiology of the recently canonized Saint Chrysostomos, formerly of Florina, it seems that Archbishop Leonty has chosen this time to "appear" and strengthen us in this good path. Perhaps also to prepare us for what is to come...

May we listen to him! And may we be found worthy to walk the path that he himself walked!

Nikolaos Mannis

APPENDIX OF TEXTS

FROM THE LETTER OF ARCHBISHOP LEONTY TO THE P.T.E.O.K. (JANUARY 1967)

For the new year 1967, I return your well wishes in response to your prayers.

Honorable and beloved children of Orthodoxy in Christ, and all like-minded faithful, both known and unknown to me but known to the All-Knowing God, from the depths of my soul, I wish upon you all the blessing of God, health, happiness, and success in all your God-pleasing works, for the glory of God and the benefit of Holy Orthodoxy. Orthodoxy does not conform to the innovations of this present age, which seek its destruction, but rather follows the path handed down by the Holy Apostles, the God-bearing Fathers, the Martyrs, and all those who have pleased God.

In your letter, you have most excellently expressed your thoughts to His Eminence [Metropolitan] Philaret. As an individual, I agree with them, as they outline the manner in which Orthodoxy should live—without distinctions of nationality, among so many peoples, etc. If the enemies of Orthodoxy are united in their struggle against us, how much more so should we be?

With our division, we become enemies of Christ and His Holy Church. Unfortunately, those persons who received from me the rank to oversee the Church of God are indifferent and foreign to these thoughts. They have forgotten all their oral and written promises to me and have become the cause of the Church’s destruction, seeking only their own personal interests. When my involvement in your affairs is not advantageous to your bishops, they slander me before our Holy Synod, and thus they have altered the disposition of His Eminence Philaret. Whereas at first, he was enthusiastic about you, now he no longer believes in your struggle and has withdrawn, showing no further interest.

This is precisely what the self-seekers aimed for—to serve their own interests. They should have been confined to their monasteries as a penance for the harm they have done to the Church. What your bishops have done against the unity of the Church has not even been done by its greatest enemies. Who could have foreseen that they would become such as they are...

In the governance of the Church, the laity must also participate, but under the condition that the bishops must take the lead. For if the laity assume the leadership, it will result in the same destruction. The bishops do not have the right, according to the law of God, to govern the inheritance of God in a dictatorial manner, holding power through force. Such a method of administration ultimately harms them, rather than those whom they seek to dominate. You ask how you can escape this deadlock. My sole opinion is that a Panhellenic Congress must be convened, including the bishops, His Eminence Petros, the clergy, and the laity. I see no other solution. If your bishops had not harmed our Holy Synod [ROCOR] through their telegrams and letters, I would have been able to intervene and rectify the situation. I have the right to do so, as your Holy Bishops gave it to me in writing after their ordinations and appointed me as President in their first session. However, having tasted the sweetness of power, they disregarded everything and now act as they please, sending slanderous letters to our Holy Synod. In this way, those bishops in our Synod who are hostile toward me have succeeded in having my involvement in the affairs of the Greek Church prohibited. In other words, they have tied my hands from acting for the good of Orthodoxy. For this reason, it is not possible for further episcopal ordinations to take place, as instead of bringing good, they would only create turmoil and hostilities (both here and there).

My opinion is that the faithful should intensify their fasting and prayers. You must also instruct and inform the faithful about what your bishops have done and continue to do in order to prepare for the Panhellenic Congress, which will bring a favorable resolution to your matter.

Always your intercessor,

Archbishop Leonty

P.S. Why, then, were these bishops so good when they called me? Now they fear my coming to Greece, especially Bishop Akakios, who dreams of becoming Primate. But I believe this will never happen. I now deeply regret his ordination. Yet God knows that I sought the good for all of you, and I hope that He will nullify the evil and unite you by His Almighty power.

 

FROM THE ARTICLE "IN MEMORY" BY IGOR ANDRUSKEVICH

(Secretary of Archbishop Leonty in Argentina) [24]

 

On July 2 (N.S.), the first anniversary of the repose of Archbishop Leonty was observed.

During the last year and a half of Vladyka Leonty's earthly life, I often had to travel with him to various churches and, at times, for his personal affairs, in most cases without the presence of others. In such instances, the Bishop liked to initiate discussions on general topics, yet always in connection with both our Orthodox Church and our homeland, Russia.

…In memory of the blessed Vladyka, I partially recount a series of thoughts that he himself expressed in these conversations and which I have brought to remembrance.

ON CHRISTIANITY IN THE MODERN WORLD

Christianity in the modern world, as represented by the majority of Christian churches, is subjected to great temptations from various directions: Ecumenism, modernism, reform, the influence of various heresies, the infiltration of anti-Christian elements, and so forth. However, the greatest danger to Christianity is the deviation from intransigence on moral and fundamental issues. Compromise is impossible not only in matters of faith and doctrine but also in the stance towards various manifestations of evil throughout history. In this regard, Vladyka Leonty took a negative view not only of certain tendencies within the Roman Catholic Church and the policies of the “Sergianists” in the Moscow Patriarchate, but also of many actions and positions of the Eastern Orthodox Patriarchates. For example, Vladyka Leonty pointed to the stance taken by the Eastern Patriarchs after World War II concerning the Russian Church and, more recently, regarding Ecumenism. Vladyka was particularly distressed that some hierarchs of the Eastern Orthodox Patriarchates had so easily fallen into the net of the so-called "Gnostic heresies," which are being revived today and once again becoming a trend of the age…

Ecumenism itself is essentially a "collective heresy of all heresies," but Vladyka preferred to refer to "Ecumenism" simply as "modernism," since "Ecumenism" is a verbal synonym for "universality," under the guise of which this "collective heresy" seeks to conceal itself.

…Vladyka Leonty had a deep love for Greek and Arab Orthodoxy and often spoke about his visits to the Holy Land and Greece. Everyone knows of Vladyka Leonty's historical role in the restoration of the Old Calendarist Hierarchy in Greece. Until the last days of his earthly life, Vladyka continued to receive letters and photographs from Old Calendarists in Greece, which he showed me with visible satisfaction. Vladyka also greatly admired Greek ecclesiastical chanting, and I was able to record on cassette the resurrectional hymns that he chanted in Greek. He would say that most religious people in Greece are Old Calendarists, but the official Hierarchy has recognized the New Calendar. Some of the Old Calendarists have their own Hierarchy, which enjoys great love and respect among all the people. For example, on the day of Theophany, the blessing of the waters is a great official Greek celebration, with the presence of units from the Greek navy, performed by the Old Calendarists.

THE LAST LETTER OF ARCHBISHOP AUXENTIOS TO ARCHBISHOP LEONTY 

(APRIL 2, 1971)

(It was found written on the back of the following Icon of the Resurrection [it comes from the iconography workshop of the monastery of Archbishop Afxentios], which is currently located in the Holy Church of the Holy Trinity in Santiago. Thank you Fr. Roberto León-Ramírez for the discovery)

NOTES 

1. August 4, 1964 (O.S.).

2. August 2/15, 1964.

3. The audio document can be found here: youtu.be/cVRejxfbK9o (from the Archive of Stavros Karamitsos).

4. By common agreement, the reestablishment of the Old Calendarist Hierarchy under Archbishop Leonty had the beneficial effect of leading to the conservatization of the New Calendarists, who, out of fear that their faithful might join the G.O.C., maintained an anti-ecumenist stance.

5. December 15, 1967 (O.S.).

6. https://youtu.be/5aXWpCbG60c?si=4XAUd5zCmFflSaTO&t=1413 (from the Archive of Metropolitan Petros of Astoria).

7. Archive of the Synod of the G.O.C., Act 20 (June 21, 1971, O.S.).

8. He was born in Poltava in 1893 and was a spiritual child of the Venerable Elders of Optina, Anatolius the Younger (+1922) and Nektary (+1928). In 1921, he was ordained Deacon and Presbyter, and in 1926, he was exiled to Kiev, where he became acquainted with Leonty. In 1930, he was arrested, and after his release, he continued to serve in the catacombs, submitting to Archbishop Antony Abashidze. After World War II, he also traveled through Germany to New York (USA), where in 1949, he founded the Monastery of "New-Diveyevo." In 1968, after the repose of his wife, he was tonsured a monk and consecrated Bishop of Rockland, while in 1973, he was elevated to Archbishop. He reposed on June 29 (O.S.), 1978.

9. "The Voice of Orthodoxy" (no. 629-630 / October 15, 1971).

10. March 6/19, 1981.

11. Magazine Russian Pilgrim (Русский паломник), no. 35, 2005.

12. The late Archbishop Chrysostomos Kiousis wrote about Archbishop Leonty that "was called from above to serve as a savior of our martyric Church in an exceptionally difficult situation" (To Bishop Petros of Astoria, June 24, 1964).

13. With the same love, Mrs. Eleni Stamoulaki, whose mother had hosted him, also speaks about the blessed one.

14. Written testimony to Nikolaos Mannis (October 2020).

15. To the Synod of the G.O.C. (June 20, 1962, O.S).

16. To Konstantinos and Maria Komnios (July 10, 1962, O.S.).

17. To the P.T.E.O.K. (August 11, 1962, O.S.).

18. To the Synod of the G.O.C. (August 30, 1962, O.S.).

19. From a letter of the P.T.E.O.K. (April 1, 1964, O.S.). This is also confirmed by the then Archimandrite Chrysostomos Kiousis in a letter to Petros of Astoria on June 24, 1964: "We became firsthand witnesses of his words, that he did not come to Greece [just] to consecrate individuals, but to create a front against Masonry."

20. To the P.T.E.O.K. (April 20, 1964, O.S.).

21. To the P.T.E.O.K. (August 13, 1964, O.S.).

22. To Konstantinos and Maria Komnios (September 1, 1962, O.S.).

23. May 16/29, 1964.

24. Published in the Russian newspaper of Argentina "Наша страна", no. 1167 (July 4, 1972).