The Orthodox Church of the Macedonian People

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  • aleksandrov
    Member
    • Feb 2010
    • 558

    The Orthodox Church of the Macedonian People

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    Some contemporary Macedonian Orthodox clerics (most notably bishop Petar Karevski) and their followers would have you accept the misconception that the Macedonian Orthodox Church is historically hierarchical, in its management and control of property and establishment of all policy - that everything begins and ends with the Diocesan bishop, who can arbitrarily determine who is and who is not a Macedonian Orthodox parishioner or cleric, how Macedonian parishes are to be operated, who is to be their legal owner, whether their Macedonian national identity can be replaced with some provincial identity, whether they can be placed under the jurisdiction of some other denomination, and how the benefits of donations collected from parishioners are to be distributed. The purpose of this historical background of the modern Macedonian Orthodox Church is to dispel that deceptive misconception, which is designed to undermine the fundamental tenets that distinguish the Macedonian Orthodox Church from other Orthodox churches.

    The Macedonian Orthodox churches in Australia, America and Canada, as well as the modern Macedonian Orthodox Church in the Republic of Macedonia, were established as self-governing, legally decentralised institutions, by a grass-roots movement of the Macedonian Orthodox people. Their establishment was led by the Macedonian national independence movement, with the objective of liberating the Macedonian people from oppressive state and church regimes that have ruled or co-ruled various parts of Macedonia throughout the centuries. The clerics who originally provided spiritual leadership in the establishment of self-governing Macedonian Orthodox churches did so in defiance of the clerical hierarchies by which they were ordained, and under which they served until they broke away.

    THE MACEDONIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH IN MACEDONIA

    Prior to1913, the Macedonian homeland was under the oppressive rule of the Ottoman Empire for five centuries. In the course of the 19th century, the Ottoman Empire, under international pressure, allowed the national Orthodox churches of neighbouring Bulgaria, Greece and Serbia to operate in various parts of Macedonia. The desire of indigenous Macedonians to have their own Macedonian Orthodox Church was not respected. Macedonians, most of whom were historically Orthodox Christians, could only choose between the Serbian, Greek or Bulgarian Orthodox church. The clerical hierarchies of these churches used their resources and influence to indoctrinate and assimilate the Macedonian people into the new Serbian, Greek or Bulgarian and national identities, as defined by their nation-states.

    In the Balkan Wars of 1912/13, Macedonia was occupied and divided by Serbia, Greece and Bulgaria. All of these states denied the Macedonian people the right to self-determination and promulgation of the autochthonous Macedonian identity, culture, language and historical heritage. Serbia insisted that the Macedonian people are Serbs. Greece insisted that the Macedonians are Greeks. Bulgaria insisted that the Macedonians are Bulgarians. The national Orthodox Church of each of these states used its religious influence to promote politically, culturally and ethnically oppressive policies of assimilation.

    THE MACEDONIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH - Ohrid Archdiocese

    The “Macedonian Orthodox Church – Ohrid Archdiocese” (MOC-OA) operates only in the part of Macedonia that was under Serbian rule between the Balkan Wars and WWII, before it achieved the status of a federal Republic in the Yugoslav Federation of nations, at the end of WWII, and subsequently declared complete independence in 1991. Macedonians living within the borders of neighbouring Greece, Bulgaria, Serbia and Albania are not offered the opportunity to establish their own Macedonian Orthodox churches. They continue to be subjected to systematic national assimilation by the Serbian, Greek and Bulgarian Orthodox churches.

    The process of the establishment of the modern Macedonian Orthodox Church has been traced back to a resolution by the Supreme Headquarters of the Macedonian People’s Liberation Army and Partisan Divisions to appoint father Veljo Manchevski (a rebel priest originally ordained by the Serbian Orthodox Church) as its Religious Head, dated 15 October 1943.[1]

    The earliest recorded meetings of a Holy Synod and Church-people’s Assembly of the Macedonian Orthodox Church occurred on 17-19 July 1943, without the presence or blessing of any bishop.[2]

    The first Macedonian Church-People’s Assembly, held on 4 March 1945, which is acknowledged in the preamble to the current Constitution of the MOC-OA, was also held without the participation or blessing of any bishop. Among the resolutions of that Assembly were the following:

    “1. That the (medieval) Ohrid Archdiocese be renewed as a Macedonian independent church that will not be subservient to any other Church;
    2. That it shall have its own national bishops and its own national clergy as a guarantee of the preservation of its distinct national characteristics.” [3]

    1.8 A subsequent Assembly of Macedonian Priests, held in May 1946, resolved:

    “1. That the Church in the People’s Republic of Macedonia have national bishops, national clergy and self-government in the resolution of all internal church-people’s matters.
    2. That bishops be elected by the people and the priests.”

    The Macedonian Orthodox Church in the Republic of Macedonia operated without any bishops and without effective jurisdiction of any other Orthodox Church hierarchy from at least 1943 to 1958. During that time, its legitimacy as an Orthodox Church was disputed by the hierarchy of the Serbian Orthodox Church within Yugoslavia, as well as by other Orthodox Church hierarchies.

    On 4-6 October 1958, a Macedonian Church-people’s Assembly held in Ohrid Macedonia adopted a Constitution for the establishment of an autonomous Macedonian Orthodox Church, which would be in canonical unity with the Serbian Orthodox Church, and receive Macedonian bishops approved by the Serbian Orthodox Patriarch.

    On 17 July 1967, an Archiepiscopal Church-People’s Assembly of the Macedonian Orthodox Church declared autocephaly, that is, independence from the Serbian Orthodox Church.

    Article 4 of the foundational constitution of the Macedonian Orthodox Church makes it clear that it was conceived as a decentralised affiliation of various legal entities, each of which was to be independent in the ownership and control of its property:

    “The Macedonian Orthodox Church consists of the following legal persons:

    1. Macedonian Orthodox Church;
    2. The Metropolitan residency;
    3. The Dioceses;
    4. The bishops’ regencies;
    5. The church communities;
    6. The monasteries;
    7. Charitable foundations;
    8. The independent institutions and funds, legacies and individual parishes, according to their properties;
    These legal persons are entitled, in accordance with the existing state laws, to accumulate and hold real property and any other property, to use and manage it, and to exercise all rights and obligations arising from its ownership.”

    The definition of local church communities as separate legal persons, with separate property ownership and management rights, remains a part of the Constitution of the MOC-OA to this day. However, Article 172 of the current version of the Constitution, which was passed in 1994, brought some unfortunate ambiguity to the right of individual church communities to independently determine how they will use their properties, by providing that they accumulate their properties “for the Church” and manage them “in accordance with this Constitution and church regulations, which are passed on the basis of this Constitution.” This provision was introduced in Macedonia without free and democratic consent of the members of individual Macedonian Orthodox church communities in Australia, America, Canada and Western Europe. Most of those communities continue to rely on the democratic constitutions and legislation and regulations by which they are incorporated in their new homelands.

    THE MACEDONIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH IN AUSTRALIA

    The establishment of a self-governing Macedonian Orthodox Church in Australia dates back to 1956, when the Macedonian Orthodox Community of Melbourne and Victoria democratically elected its first church committee and bought the property on which it built the church of St. George.[4] A majority of the members and leaders of that Community were and still are Macedonians originating from the part of Macedonia under Greek state rule. There was no Macedonian Episcopal hierarchy operating in any part of the Macedonian homeland in 1956. The only Episcopal hierarchies operating in Macedonia were the Greek Orthodox Church (in the parts of Macedonia under Greek and Albanian state rule), and the Bulgarian Orthodox Church (in the part of Macedonia under Bulgarian state rule). Both of those Church hierarchies, along with the Serbian and other non-Macedonian Orthodox Church hierarchies, had branches in Australia. A key object of the Macedonian Orthodox Community of Melbourne and Victoria was not to be under their assimilatory jurisdiction and to remain legally independent.

    Article 75 of the Community’s foundational constitution provided that “The Community shall from time to time employ a priest who shall perform all such religious rites, ceremonies and duties as are ordinarily performed by priests of the Eastern Orthodox Church.” There was no reference at all in the constitution to any Orthodox Church hierarchy.[5]

    When an administratively autonomous Macedonian Orthodox Church was subsequently established in the Republic of Macedonia, under the canonical jurisdiction of the Serbian Orthodox Patriarch, in 1958, its bishops accepted the St. George church as the first Macedonian Orthodox parish outside of Macedonia.[6] However, the Macedonian Orthodox Community of Melbourne and Victoria, with its parish, retained its self-governing status. It did not make any amendments to its constitution that would legally bind it to the autonomous Macedonian Orthodox Church in Macedonia.

    The foundation stone for the St. George church was laid in 2nd August 1959, blessed by a priest of the Syrian Orthodox Church, father George Haydar. The church was consecrated on 1st August 1960, by a bishop and priest from Macedonia. Its first parish priest was also from Macedonia. However, the St George church never accepted the jurisdiction of the Serbian Patriarch, even though the Church in Macedonia was officially under his canonical jurisdiction until 1967.[7]

    All other Macedonian Orthodox communities and churches established in Australia prior to bishop Petar Karevski’s arrival in 1996 followed the independent self-governing model of the Macedonian Orthodox Community of Melbourne of Victoria. However, some of them, like the Macedonian Orthodox Church Community “St.Petka” Inc and Macedonian Orthodox Church Community “St. Nikola” in Preston, Victoria, adopted constitutions that put them under the canonical jurisdiction of the hierarchy of the Macedonian Orthodox Church in Macedonia, for what the founders intended to be only spiritual, rather than material purposes. Those communities that accepted such provisions, without an understanding of the potential implications under Australian Trust Law, ultimately became the targets of extremely costly and complex legal proceedings by bishop Karevski, in an attempt to put their properties under the absolute and unaccountable control of himself or his appointees, with power to declare that they hold those properties on trust for some denomination or organisation other than the Macedonian Orthodox Church.

    In December 2012, by way of negotiations with the Association of Macedonian Communities in Australia Inc and individual delegates of 14 incorporated Macedonian Orthodox communities in Australia, the Holy Synod of the Macedonian Orthodox Church admitted under its direct spiritual jurisdiction, with bishop Timotej as responsible administrator, 14 Macedonian Orthodox parishes in Australia. This was done under the mutual understanding that those parishes remain under the legal ownership and self-government of the incorporated Macedonian Orthodox communities that established them. The admitted parishes are:

    Victoria (Vic)
    1. The church of “Saint George & St. Mary” in Melbourne Vic., established since 1956 by the Macedonian Orthodox Community of Melbourne and Victoria Ltd
    2. The monastic church of ‘Saint Kliment of Ohrid” in King Lake Vic., established since 1970 by the Macedonian Orthodox Community of Melbourne and Vic. Ltd
    3. The church of “St John the Baptist” in Geelong Vic., established since 1978 by the Macedonian Orthodox Community of Geelong Inc.
    4. The church of “Saint Mary” Inc in St Albans Vic, established since 1994 by the Australian Macedonian Community Ltd.

    New South Wales (NSW)
    5. The church of “Saints Kiril & Metodi” in Rosebery NSW, established since 1969 by the Macedonian Orthodox Community of Australia Ltd (which was an unincorporated association until 1971)
    6. The church of “Saint Nikola” in Cabramatta NSW, established since 1977 by the Macedonian Orthodox Community of Australia Ltd
    7. The church of “Saint Dimitrija Solunski” in Wollongong, NSW, established since 1967 by the Macedonian Orthodox Community of the City of Greater Wollongong ‘Saint Dimitrija Solunski’ Ltd
    8. The church of “Saint Mary – Mother of God” in Newcastle NSW, established since 1961 by the Macedonian Orthodox Community of Newcastle and District Ltd (which was an unincorporated association until 1965)
    9. The church of "St. Prophet Iliya" in Queanbeyan NSW, established since 1961 by the Macedonian Orthodox Community of Queanbeyan Inc. (which was an unincorporated association since 1966)

    Australian Capital Territory (ACT)
    10. The church of "St. Kliment Ohridski" in Canberra ACT, established since 1987 by the Macedonian Orthodox Church Community of Canberra ACT Inc.

    Queensland(Qld.)
    11. The church of “St. Mary Mother of God” in Brisbane Qld., established since 1980 by the Macedonian Community of Brisbane Inc.
    12. The church of “Saint Nedela” at the Gold Coast Qld., established since 1992 by the Macedonian Orthodox Church & Cultural Community “Sveta Nedela” Gold Coast Inc.

    WesternAustralia (WA)
    13. The church of ‘St. Nikola’, at Macedonia Place, North Perth WA, established since 1967 by the Macedonian Community of Western Australia Inc.

    SouthAustralia (SA)
    14. The church of “Saint Naum of Ohrid” in Adelaide SA, established since 1964 by the Macedonian Community of Adelaide and South Australia Inc

    Unfortunately, the scandalously costly and litigation in the Supreme Court of New South Wales, initiated since 1996 by bishop Petar Karevski and his priest Mitko Mitrev, for the purpose of taking over the property of the Macedonian Orthodox Community Church "St. Petka" Inc in Rockdale NSW, is still ongoing. Appeals by both sides in the proceedings were recently heard by the Supreme Court and the judgment is pending. In the December 2012 negotiations, the St. Petka Association was among the community churches that requested admission under direct jurisdiction of the Synod. Unfortunately, the Synod left St. Petka's request unresolved, following unseemly pressure from bishop Petar Karevski and power-brokers of the ruling political party in Macedonia, who apparently think that the current situation represents a reasonable compromise between the disputing parties. However, once final judgment is made and all further avenues of appeal are exhausted, it is expected that fresh negotiations with the Holy Synod will commence, in relation to parishes which are currently owned or otherwise controlled by Petar Karevski, contrary to the provisions of the Constitution ofthe Macedonian Orthodox Church.


    [1] Prof.Dr. Cane Mojanoski, The Autocephaly of the Macedonian Orthodox Church (Documents), Makedonska Iskra, Skopje 2004, p. 10.
    [2] As above, p. 11.
    [3] As above.
    [4] Peter Hill, “The Macedonians in Australia”, Hesperian Press, 1989, p. 89.
    [5] As above.
    [6] As above.
    [7] As above.
    Last edited by aleksandrov; 06-02-2013, 11:48 PM.
    All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident. Arthur Schopenhauer

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  • Давидски
    Junior Member
    • Feb 2012
    • 4

    #2
    Man Is Not To Change What God Says

    Man does not have the authority to change the will of God on any subject. We have been given severe warnings in several places in the Bible concerning any changes that we try to make to God's word. As we have already seen in Galatians 1:6-9, if we pervert the gospel by changing it, we will be accursed.

    Another such warning comes in the closing verses of the Bible. Revelation 22:18-19 says, "For I testify unto everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book, if anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; And if anyone takes away from the words of this book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, and from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book." These are very stern warnings that should get our undivided attention.

    How much stronger warnings could God give to those who try to make changes to His will when they change immersion into sprinkling, or to change the necessity of baptism for one to receive forgiveness of sins and be saved to their saying that baptism is not necessary for salvation. God has said plainly that it is necessary.

    They also say that one's sins are forgiven and that one is saved when he accepts Christ as his personal savior. He can be baptized later if he wants to in order to join that particular denomination; but as we have already seen this contradicts what God has said and will cause many people to be lost eternally. If you were baptized for some reason other than for forgiveness of sins in order to be saved then you do not have salvation and you are still lost. Who are you going to follow: God or man? As our Lord warns us in Matthew 15:14, "And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a ditch." Don't allow someone, who has added to and taken away from God's word, to lead you. Open your eyes and read God's word for yourself. Those who have added to and taken away from God's word will be lost. If you continue to follow them, then you too will be lost.

    What You Need to Do

    In Acts 19:1-5 we have an example of twelve men, that the Apostle Paul met at Ephesus. They had something wrong with their baptism. In verses 3-5 we read, "And he said to them, into what then were you baptized? So they said, into John's baptism. Then Paul said, John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, saying to the people, that they should believe on Him who would come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus." When these twelve men found out that there was something wrong with their baptism, they made it right. They were then baptized for the right purpose.

    Please refer back to how you answered the questions in Lesson 8 concerning your prior conversion. If you thought you were saved and your sins forgiven when you accepted Christ as your personal savior and you were later baptized, then the purpose of your baptism was not for the forgiveness of your sins so that you could be saved. But now you have learned the truth about the purpose of baptism from the scriptures that have been pointed out. Please don't rationalize away what you actually did to be saved and now say that you were actually baptized for the forgiveness of sins in order to be saved. Many people end up doing this. Your soul's salvation depends on your being right with God.

    Is there something wrong with your baptism? You may say no, but if there is, we cannot fool God. He knows for sure and you will suffer the eternal consequences. It will be a sad day if you stand before the Lord on the day of judgment and find out that there is something wrong with your baptism. Baptism, that is done according to scripture, for the right reason and purpose, is such an easy thing to do. It is not difficult, at all, to make sure that it is done right.

    Comment

    • Risto the Great
      Senior Member
      • Sep 2008
      • 15658

      #3
      What an irrelevant post Давидски.
      If you want to discuss baptisms, do it on another thread. I have some things I want to discuss about them.
      Risto the Great
      MACEDONIA:ANHEDONIA
      "Holding my breath for the revolution."

      Hey, I wrote a bestseller. Check it out: www.ren-shen.com

      Comment

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