Abba Seraphim to speak at Eritrean Conference in USA

peterfarrington

Abba Seraphim has accepted an invitation to attend and speak at the 12th Annual Conference of the North American Diocese of the Eritrean Orthodox Church in Stamford, Connecticut. This year’s theme verse is: “The God of heaven will give us success. We his servants will start rebuilding”(Nehemiah II: 20). Under this theme the Diocese of North America will meet for four days of prayer, worship and panel discussions & workshops. On Saturday 24 July, 2010, a special Prayer Vigil for H.H Abune Antonios, Patriarch of the Eritrean Church, will be held.

Among the attendees are His Grace Bishop Makarios,  Bishop of the Eritrean Orthodox Church in North America and His Grace Bishop David, General Bishop of the Coptic Church in the United States, with many clergy and the faithful. Abba Seraphim will also deliver an address on “How do fathers serve people who are displaced from their country and live in foreign lands.”

aiernovi

Just so there's no confusion, the Coptic Church (as well as all of our sister churches) recognize Abune Antonious as the legitimate patriarch of Eritrea. He is mentioned in our liturgy every Sunday. I can hunt for some sources if need be.

Aiernovi

ilovesaintmark

Fr. Peter,

I am confused.  There seems to be a contradiction in the posting from Thanks be to God Always.  Please clarify for us.

peterfarrington

The Coptic Church recognises only Abune Antonios as the canonical Patriarch of Eritrea. The accusations made against him are a smokescreen by the government to justify their attack on the church as are the accusations that the Patriarch has encouraged and promoted Protestantism rather than Orthodoxy. 

The website (http://www.abuneantonios.com/) for Abune Antonios offers his response to the attempts to remove him from the exercise of his office. His "excommunication" lacks canonical authority and in fact it could be argued that the bishops of the current Eritrean Synod are themselves excommunicate by virtue of their support for a usurper. Bishop Dioscoros is a false Patriarch and depends entirely on the government. The Eritrean community in the diaspora is divided between those who have remained loyal to Abune Antonios and those supporting the government.

Bishop Sinouda was sent to Europe and America by the government to secure churches abreoad for them but himself defected, so constitutes a third group. The situation is certainly confusing. The diocese now under Bishop Makarios is the canonical one and that is the one that Abba Seraphim will be attending, along with Bishop David of the Coptic Church. 

Father Peter

Theophilus 1

All the faithful in North America are awaiting the blessing of Bishop Seraphim along with Bishop David and Bishop Makarios. It truly uplift our spirit to see an ecumenical Orthodox solidarity at a time our Eritrean Orthodox Church is going under much persecution and tribulation. But persecution is the pruning our Lord talked about in John 15 that a branch the Father loves should receive. It is the blood of our martyrs that waters our Orthodox faith.

Some are laid astray by fabricated allegation that Aboune Antonios is deposed for his protestant inclinations. There is one question those who perpetuate this allegation should answer with all honesty for the sake of their eternal life. Under which council, under which synod, in which court was this proven. Let alone a canonical hearing our patriarch wasn’t even granted a kangaroo court. He was grabbed as a criminal and to these day no one knows his where about for sure.

We pray for our Patriarch and for our church believing in our Lords words “the gates of hades shall not prevail her”. We pray to the Lord to hear our cries and give us his grace to carry our cross with thanksgiving until he deliver us.

Even more we pray for those who persecute us and “bless those who curse us”. As Fr. Shenouda Mahar in an interview he gave a while ago concerning this issue said: we should worry for the salivation of the persecutors more than for the persecuted.

Oh, Mother of God intercede for us that the Lord may have mercy on us.

In Christ
Theopilus     

ilovesaintmark

Fr. Peter,

That is what I thought, relative to your comments, then why is "Thanks be to God Always"  allowed to publish an invitation to a non-canonical Conference underwritten by an Anti-Patriarch?  And for that matter to make the notation that Abune Antonios is ex-communicated and not Tewahedo.

peterfarrington

Well anyone can post anything here on Tasbeha, no-ones messages are checked before they appear.

It is possible to deal with posts after they have been posted and I have removed the two controversial messages from this thread.

Father Peter

mabsoota

also the eritrean church is still subject to the coptic church in matters of ordaining bishops and the patriarch, so no-one can legally depose the eritrean patriarch without the permission of pope shenouda 3rd. any new patriarch would also have to be ordained with the permission of pope shenouda. it would certainly not happen quietly without many bishops being present. may God grant our pope many peaceful days and may He ease the suffering of abouna antonius, patriarch of the eritrean orthodox church and grant him peace and wisdom as he intercedes for his suffering church.