I was informed of a previously unnoticed but highly perilous figure in a recent blog post. Kyriakos Velopoulos, an obscure, ideologically ultranationalist Greek politician with a questionable reputation, has emerged as a significant threat to Orthodoxy. Although this insignificant leader is touted as Greece’s ‘solution,’ his political party garnered 3.7% of the vote in the Greek Parliament. Velopoulos is bolstered by the tabloid melodramatic media and opportunists who propagate a distorted Orthodoxy, prioritizing sentimentalism over ecclesial law. These pseudo-Orthyodox protestant coteries support squatting criminals masquerading as monks who have infiltrated the Holy Mountain, Athos. Velopoulos warned the Mitsotakis Government against interfering with the monks and the thousand-year-old rules that supposedly grant Mount Athos autonomy in a bold but misguided proclamation. This claim, however, is a gross misinterpretation of the truth and a clear sign of Velopoulos's mendacity and lack of political acumen. This dynamic duo, the Hellenic legislator Velopoulos and amateur blogger Nicole Skatamatakis, demonstrate a shocking lack of understanding about the rich history of the Holy Mountain, Orthodox ecclesiastical tradition, and Greek law. This particular pundit’s blog is a publisher of anti-Orthodox rhetoric that mirrors the views of the schismatic Russophile monks of Mount Athos, who label Patriarch Bartholomew as 'corrupt and a heretic.' To call them ignorant would be a kindness, as it distracts from their true aim of sowing discord and disunity. This should be a cause for concern and a call to vigilance for all who value the truth and the integrity of Orthodoxy. It's up to us to preserve the truth. Here is a brief history of Esphigmenou. Velopoulos, the schismatic Methodite charlatans, and illiterate individuals like Skatamatakis should pay attention, though they likely won't, as it doesn't benefit them to promote the whole truth. According to tradition, Mount Athos was established by the Theotokos, the Abbess of the Peninsula, as the Garden of Panaghia. Early ascetics and cave dwellers settled there as early as the fourth century. In the seventh century, the chronicler Theophanes the Confessor wrote of a volcanic eruption witnessed by monastic inhabitants. Mount Athos became a protectorate of the Byzantine Empire and an ecclesiastic territory of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, with the ecumenical patriarchate's spiritual authority remaining ever since and in perpetuity. This profound history underscores the gravity of the situation at hand. The Hagiorite tradition attributes the foundation of the Esphigmenou Monastery and Xiropotamos to Emperor Theodosios II the Younger and his sister Pulcheria in the fifth century. Tradition also mentions Eudokia, the wife of Theodosios, as a monastery builder alongside the previous two. Velopoulos, the schismatic Methodite charlatans, and illiterate individuals like Skatamatakis should pay attention to this rich history.
Mount Athos, the Ecumenical Patriarch’s ecclesiastic territory, holds immense historical significance. Various Roman (Byzantine) Chrysovoula guaranteed its protection, which was secured by Constantinople until the 13th century. The peace of Mount Athos was disrupted by the arrival of invading Crusaders and later by Catalan pirate invasions. Yet, its significance and sanctity remained intact. It was not until the Ottoman Empire took control of the peninsula in the late 14th century that security and protection returned to Athos despite difficult constrictions. Surprisingly, the Holy Mountain thrived during the Ottoman years, a testament to its resilience and enduring spirit. Sultan Selim I, a significant benefactor of the Xeropotamou Monastery, played a crucial role in protecting the Holy Mountain. In 1517, he issued a fatwa and a Hatt-i Sharif, declaring that the place where the Holy Gospel is preached shall be restored whenever it is burned or damaged. This support from the Ottoman ruler reassured the Athonite community of their historical protection, for which they remain grateful. A chronological history of Mount Athos from the end of Ottoman rule to modern times: ATHOS: Post-Ottoman Rule (1912-Present)1912: Liberation and Integration into Greece
The illegal occupants responded in writing, denouncing the Epistasia, the Athonite Charter, the Ecumenical Patriarch, the Church of Greece, and Greece’s Constitution. Since then, those illegal occupants inside the Monastery have consistently maintained, at every opportunity, that they have not deviated from canonicity, but the Holy Mountain, Ecumenical Patriarchate, and every other autocephalous church has deviated from Orthodoxy.
During these fifty years of occupation, this illegitimate rabble of masquerading monks has denounced the Orthodox Church with tribal ad hominem attacks and familiar tropes. They claim that the Ecumenical Patriarch is a heretic, the Athonite community has betrayed Orthodoxy, and all autocephalous Orthodox Churches are schismatic. Only they are “Genuine,” “Traditional,” and the only “True Orthodox.” You know the type. In 1999, Matthias Papalambrakopoulos, who lacks canonical ordination and now calls himself Monk Methodios, was put in charge of a group that illegally squats at the Esphigmenou Monastery. This openly schismatic group, led by their scandalous leader, seized the monastery's main building and all its property, including many metochia, buildings, bank accounts, and funds, involving themselves in money laundering. The squatter group "G.O.X. of Greece" has close ties to Moscow and promotes a similar anti-Orthodox agenda. These so-called Methodite squatters are neither monks of Mount Athos nor priests of the Eastern Orthodox Church. The felonious "Methodios" Papalambrakopoulos claims that there is no Grace and there are no saints in the Universal Eastern Orthodox Church, which he considers to be in "schism and heresy." He denounces revered saints such as Saint Paisios, Iakovos Tsalikis, and Porphyrios, calling them "in denial of faith," "ecumenicalist," "heretical," and asserts they "did not have the grace of God," among other blasphemous statements. Modern Developments and Controversies
In 2003, The Holy Community of Mount Athos, with its accompanying extensive text, which is addressed to anyone interested, was forced to break its silence, having established the systematic disinformation campaign publishing “The truth about the Case of the owners of I. M. Esfigmenou:”
In 2005, the Patriarchal Synod officially and finally announced for full transparency that the self-proclaimed “monks” were, in fact, defrocked and not part of the Body of Christ’s Great Church. The few remaining individuals masquerade as monks against the unanimous rulings of the Holy Mountain’s Epistasia, the Ecumenical Patriarchate, and the Greek government and national courts. In 2010, a Conference on the issue of the Esfigmenou Monastery was held in Thessaloniki where eminent theologians Professors P. Vasiliadis, F. Hatjiantoniou, and D. Karagiannakidis made powerful presentations (all available on YouTube) concluding proposal by the then Archimandrite Elpidophoros Lambryniadou, Chief Secretary of the Holy and Sacred Synod:
Now, back to the political thug Velopoulos and supermarket tabloid blogger Nikos Skatamatakis, who both need a reminder of Greece’s responsibilities and actions. An essential primer on the |
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Ηλίας Δαμιανάκης Άρχων Μαΐστωρ της Μεγάλης του Χριστού Εκκλησίας AuthorBy the Grace of God Archon Elias Damianakis has ministered in the study of Holy Iconography since 1980. In his biography you can read about Elias' life and on his portfolio page you can see where he has rendered some of his hand painted iconography or visit the photo galleries to see some of his work. There is a complete list of featured articles, awards and testimonials which you can visit, as well as a list of notable achievements here below. Please contact Elias for more information or suggestions for this website, thank you and God Bless. |