The monks of the Bigor Monastery, part of the schismatic “Macedonian Orthodox Church” (the MOC) in North Macedonia, have visited Athens to participate in an international festival of Orthodox music. The delegation was headed by the abbot of the monastery – “Bishop” Parthenius, a prominent figure in the North Macedonian schism.
On Sunday, according to the OrthoChristian.com, Bigor monks sang and received communion at a liturgy in Athens served by Bishop Philotheos of Oreoi, vicar of Archbishop Ieronymos of Athens. As stated on the site of the schismatics, the participation of the Bigor monks in the festival and worship was “greeted with joy and warmth,” while they were “warmly received by the Orthodox brothers in Athens, including high church and state representatives.” In addition, the Bigor monks allegedly participated in another liturgy, which was attended by the hierarch of the Jerusalem Patriarchate.
According to OrthoChristian.com, the MOC delegation also traveled to Istanbul for talks with Patriarch Bartholomew. According to the source, the head of the Patriarchate of Constantinople reacted positively to the idea of North Macedonian “autocephaly”, however, if the word “Macedonian” in the self-designation of the schismatic “church” is abandoned.
The canonical Ohrid Archdiocese of the Serbian Orthodox Church (the SOC), headed by Archbishop John (Vranishkovsky), operates on the territory of North Macedonia. For many years, the state authorities have been persecuting the Orthodox Christians, while promoting schismatics in every possible way.
The events in Athens show that the Patriarchate of Constantinople, or rather its political curators, convinced of the “non-negotiability” of the SOC led by Patriarch Porfirije, removed from the “pause” the situation with the North Macedonian split and are ready for decisive action. Moreover, Constantinople acts at the hands of its Greek divisors, keeping its face for some time.
There have been no official comments from the Serbian Orthodox Church on the events in Athens.
