Response to the pamphlet of the UGCC

 

 

By way of introduction it must be said to the team of authors as well as to those who engaged them that they take credit to a certain extent for the revival of the Church and of the spiritual life. How? Because on a dark background which they created the divine truth may be even more visible and the heresy may be revealed.

 

In the pamphlet we, bishops of the Ukrainian orthodox Greek-Catholic Church (UOGCC), have been given again a new title by our adversaries – i.e. by the UGCC hierarchy. At first they called us ‘Pidhirtsi fathers’, later on ‘sectarians’, ‘schismatics’, ‘rebels’, ‘dissenters’, and now they have titled us ‘Dohnal’s group’.

 

What would you imagine e.g. under the term ‘Ratzinger’s group’, or under the term ‘Husar’s group’? Under the term ‘Husar’s group’ we certainly cannot imagine zealous Christians who in the first place seek their personal relationship with Christ and salvation of the immortal souls, and who emphasize conversion, repentance and the following of Christ.

 

The title of their pamphlet is: “For those who tear the Body of the Church into pieces, or how Dohnal’s group tries to deceive the faithful of the UGCC by forming a sect.”

 

Quotation: “For those who tear the Body of the Church into pieces...”

Response: Who are they? Which of these three groups? What is it that tears the Body of Christ into pieces? Heresies or proclamation of the truth? And we ask too who in reality tries to deceive the faithful of the UGCC? Is it Husar’s group which proclaims heresies or is it us who defend the truths of the faith?

 

Quotation: “...by forming a sect.”

Response: Who has formed a sect? It is he who has separated from Christ and from His true teaching, he who proclaims heresies. Husar’s group has formed a sect, tries to deceive the faithful of the UGCC and tears the Body of the Church into pieces.

 

Question: Who belongs to Husar’s group? Who is a member of this sect?

Answer: Members of the heretical sect separated from Christ’s teaching are all bishops of the UGCC and all priests, religious and laymen who are in unity with Husar’s heresies. They have fallen under God’s curse – anathema – and incur an excommunication from the Mystical Body of Christ – the Church.

 

Book: “Discussions with His Beatitude L. Husar: On Postconfessional Christianity”

 

Interestingly enough, immediately after we pointed out the heresies of ex-Card. Husar contained in his book “Discussions...”, some priests of the UGCC declared in their homilies: “There is no such book.” The book was not available in print for a certain time. Obviously it was withdrawn from sale. Later on, seeing that they will not manage to keep the book secret, they started to say: “Yes, there is such book but there are no heresies therein.” (O. Vilchynskyi) Today they even dare to quote the whole text of ex-Card. Husar but without any review that would clarify the heresies contained therein. They simply know that a common reader cannot recognize it. We pointed out the heresies contained in the book in our booklets Letters from Ukraine 8/2008 and 9/2008 (see www.community.org.ua). Now we just briefly express the same.

 

In the book “Discussions...” ex-Card. Husar applies theological dialectics. It is a very light humanistic style, accessible to people. However, using it without adhering to the rules of orthodox theology automatically leads to heresies. Example: Ex-Card. Husar lays stress on the human nature of Jesus Christ but deliberately omits to emphasize the fundamental truth of the faith, i.e. that Jesus Christ is at the same time and in the first place true God and the only Saviour. Husar’s style of thought automatically leads the reader to concentrate merely on the human nature of Jesus Christ. Psychologically, this evokes a one-sided view. In a web of humanistic phrases the divine nature of Jesus Christ then seems to the reader like a myth. Husar says: “In a sense we ‘kill’ the reality by our highly intellectual thoughts.” The fundamental truths of the faith are, in Husar’s view, a mere unreal fabrication of our highly intellectual thoughts. The Apostles, however, were fishermen and no high intellectuals. They bore witness to Christ and to what they had seen and experienced, and did not invent spiritless or heretical theories like Husar.

 

Quotation: “Jesus helped Joseph; maybe He even occupied Himself with carpentry on His own. He attended the synagogue, prayed with others like any other man...”

Response: Husar does not say anywhere that Jesus is true God and the only Saviour. This truth is the foundation of our faith and salvation. It is repeatedly emphasized in the Gospel and in other parts of the Holy Scripture. But Husar questions this essence of our salvation with phrases like:

 

Quotation: “I think that we have to be very careful when starting to deal with theological reflections.”

Response: Husar casts doubt on the clear expression of truth uttered by the Saviour Himself as well as by the Holy Scripture and terms it mere theological reflection. Whatever clear expression of a truth of faith Husar always labels as “theological reflection”, “highly intellectual thoughts”...

He likewise casts doubt on the knowledge of truth by speaking about an influence of different cultures:

 

Quotation: “Conditioned by our cultural environment...” “It is merely a question of a different cultural environment they come from...”

Response: If Saint Paul had preached such heretical wish-wash instead of Christ crucified and risen, he would not have converted a single man. Unfortunately, by this heretical wish-wash Husar turns the whole UGCC not to Christ but away from Christ. To him and to those who are in spiritual unity with him are directed the words of the Book of Revelation: “They say they are apostles and are not, but are liars” and next, “They say they are Jews (holders of divine authority) and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.” (see Rev 2:2.9)

Concerning the Mother of God, Husar states: “We look at the Virgin Mary as at Most Holy, even though we do not really know what ‘most holy’ means, nor even what ‘holy’ means...” And this distortion and questioning of the principal truths of faith he closes with the words: “Simply, she was a good wife, a good neighbour... She was one of them and that is all.”

 

Response: That is not all. The teaching of the Church is that Mary is truly “Mother of God” (Theotokos). By virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ she was preserved from original sin and therefore she is Immaculate. She was a Virgin before, during as well as after the birth of Jesus, and this is the teaching of the Church, both Western and Eastern. This follows from the whole Scripture and from the whole Tradition. Husar’s humanistic and theological theories are downright heresies or lead into heresies. Therefore by reason of his heresies, which he obstinately persists in, L. Husar is excommunicated from the Church according to the law of God: “If anyone preaches any other gospel, let him be accursed – excommunicated!” (cf. Gal 1:8-9) He is accursed and excommunicated. And God’s curse and excommunication from the Church – Mystical Body of Christ – falls on everyone who manifestly remains in spiritual unity with him. So this curse is on all bishops of the UGCC! This is the major problem of the present UGCC, and everything else is just muddying of the waters and escaping from reality.

 

Ex-Cardinal Husar applies humanistic and theological dialectics which without laying emphasis on the Divinity of Christ and on the perpetual Virginity and Immaculacy of the Mother of God automatically leads to heresies. Owing to such theological dialectics based on the historical-critical method the Western world has seen a mass apostasy from Christ. This dialectics has led to the conviction that Christianity is only one of many religions, but no longer the only way to salvation. And this is ‘haeresis maxima’!

 

1) Concerning the pamphlet, one of the authors, professedly a specialist in the sphere of mass media, quotes the whole passages of ex-Card. Husar; however, he makes absolutely no commentary on them. A common reader, without the knowledge of different styles of theological dialectics (distortion), is unable to discern the true Catholic teaching from covert heresies. The author wanted to give the impression that the text in which ex-Cardinal Husar speaks about Jesus and about the Virgin Mary does not contain any explicit heresies. But the truth is that the text contains theological dialectics which embodies heretical thinking and a heretical view of the Lord Jesus Christ and of the Holy Virgin.

 

2) As regards Husar’s statement about hell, here he already uses open heresies when he casts doubt on its eternity. The same holds true for the use of pendulum, which is an open form of divination. Concerning the attitude towards homosexuality, even these statements of his are in conformity neither with God’s Word nor with the Church’s Tradition or morals. The fruit of his attitude is that all editors of the religious journals of the UGCC sense how they are to understand and interpret Husar’s attitude towards homosexuality. Simply, they hypocritically keep silent on the spreading spiritual epidemic. Signature campaigns against planned gay-prides as well as manifestations in front of the Regional Councils in Lvov and Ivano-Frankivsk were organized by us, bishops of the UOGCC, and not by the UGCC leadership. In this time these campaigns and manifestations can still be an effective means of stopping the amoral epidemic in Ukraine. Boycotting of these petitions brings great harm to the believers of the UGCC as well as to the Ukrainian nation.

 

Another testimony to unity with the spirit propagating homosexuality within the UGCC is that the RISU has publicly criticized the prevention of planned adoption of a little boy by a homosexual. The Orthodox believers responded to the RISU’s article as follows: “Uniates who are tolerant towards homosexuals – they are no longer Uniates, but partakers of liberal sodomy.” At the present time, when the mass media in Ukraine have started propagation of homosexuality, the UGCC headed by Husar has not once expressed a true and biblical attitude towards homosexuality as such. In support of Husar’s view of homosexuality, which is contrary to the teaching of the Scripture and Tradition, the authors of the pamphlet refer to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC). Unfortunately, it uses inaccurate formulations when speaking about unjust discrimination and about homosexuals being called to Christian perfection. These inaccurate formulations in the CCC are ambiguous. Naturally, even murderers, thieves, drug addicts, Church pharisees and sadducees, and the whole apostatical hierarchy are called to Christian perfection, but it means that first they all must be converted, give up the life of sin, be delivered from bondage and take the path of evangelical self-denial and repentance.

 

3) Cum Petro and sub Petro. The attitude of ex-Card. Husar towards the Pope’s primacy and infallibility ex cathedra is not Catholic but schismatic. L. Husar utters it in the words: “My own opinion is the following: Cum Petro – yes, sub Petro – no.” However, we have to point out that the doctrine of the Church is: Sub Petro – yes!

 

Question: Sub Husar or cum Husar?

Response: By reason of his heresies our UOGCC is neither sub Husar nor cum Husar but anti Husar. And this must be the standpoint of every true Catholic of the UGCC.

 

Question: And what is the commentary by another author of the pamphlet? “Card. Husar acknowledges the authority of the Roman Pontiff in the light of Catholic doctrine and faith in the Pope’s primacy, which, however, is not acknowledged by the Pidhirtsi pseudobishops. (Husar) clearly acknowledges the Church’s view of the Pope’s infallibility.”

Response: We do not know whether the author is joking. 1) Husar’s so-called acknowledgment of the primacy of the Roman Pontiff is not in the light of Catholic doctrine. 2) We are no pseudobishops but orthodox Catholic bishops, in contrast to the heretical pseudobishops who are in unity with Husar. 3) Husar does not acknowledge clearly the Pope’s infallibility but introduces heretical conciliar theories which were denounced by the Church.

 

Question by Arzhakovskyi: “And whether ‘Head of the UGCC’ also has this authority in relation to Peter...” (i.e. authority to depose or punish the Pope) – Husar confirmed it with the words: “He does, but that is a different matter.”

Question by Arzhakovskyi: “How can Peter maintain unity of the Church if he is just a brother?” Ex-Card. Husar responds: “No, he is more than a brother. He is an elder brother.” On pages 58-59 he explains what form, according to him, the infallibility of the Pope (Peter) has. He falsely states here that the Pope is infallible because the Church is infallible.

 

Question: How does the spirit of schism work through ex-Card. L. Husar?

Response: He does use the term “infallibility of the Pope” but he denies its essence by attaching a new meaning to it.

 

Quotation of Husar: “I accept that when the need arises, the Pope has a gift from God to speak in the name of the Church but not in his own name – ex cathedra.”

Response: 1) Concerning speaking in the name of the Church, there are others (bishops, priests) who can do so too, but it is not ex cathedra. Husar and heretical bishops speak in the name of the Church and they tell lies. And they present their heresies as doctrine of the Church.

2) The statement of ex-Card. Husar that the Pope is no Vicar of Christ but merely a part of the Church is false. From these Husar’s words it follows that the Pope has no infallibility ex cathedra in the true sense of the word.

3) Ex-Card. Husar denies the fact that through the Pope Christ speaks to the Church. This is the heresy of conciliarism, i.e. that the Council is equal to or higher than the Pope. By contrast Catholic doctrine says: the Church is infallible only in unity with the Pope – sub Petro, and the Pope is infallible ex cathedra (in matters of faith and morals) even without the Council, i.e. without the college of bishops. The Pope can choose two ways of infallible definition of the truths of faith and morals: a) the Pope together with the Council, b) the Pope alone. The teaching of the Catholic Church is this: “To the teaching of Sacred Scriptures are opposed openly the vicious opinions of those who affirm that the primacy was not immediately and directly bestowed upon the blessed Peter himself, but upon the Church, and through this Church upon him.” (Ds 3054)

 

A heretical view: just a primacy of honour (so-called Husar’s elder brother)

“If anyone then says that the blessed Apostle Peter received great honour (note: elder brother) but did not receive from our Lord Jesus Christ directly and immediately the primacy in true and proper jurisdiction: let him be anathema (i.e. excommunicated from the Catholic Church).” (Ds 3055)

 

Conclusion: If we compare the confused and vague statements of ex-Card. Husar with the clear teaching of the Catholic Church on the primacy of the Pope, we have to state that ex-Card. Husar does not confess this Catholic teaching, and therefore he is not a Catholic.

 

Husar casts doubt upon the existence of the UGCC

Husar says: “If we perceive the Union in a classical manner as a means to a new establishment of unity, then we no longer support it. This conception deceived us.”

Response: What is Husar’s idea of unity? For what reasons is he a member of the Catholic Church? Why has he not gone over to Orthodoxy for the sake of unity? Or he had better go over to his postconfessional Christianity which is in unity with the spirit of the world and denies all fundamental truths of the Christian faith. In fact, he has already started to implement it in the UGCC through recruited renegades.

 

Quotation: “Τhis conception deceived us.”

Response: The establishment of the UGCC was, in Husar’s view, a big historical and theological mistake. So according to him the UGCC has no right to existence. If he says that this conception deceived us, it means that he has never been in unity with Catholic doctrine and persists in heresy which he now officially introduces in Ukraine. Husar condemns even the attitude of the Council of Trent and adds: “But that’s a thing of the past”, and he offers a new programme: “We would not want the Union to become a way of renewal of unity.” We ask: What is the way of unity in Husar’s conception; and unity with whom? Is it true biblical seeking of unity based on repentance, conversion and true following of Christ? No. Judging from other speeches and articles by ex-Card. Husar, it is clear that he seeks no unity but rather globalization on the basis of apostatical and rotten Christianity, on the basis of denial of the fundamental truths of faith, on the basis of heresies. Such unity, however, cannot be accepted by any Christian – nor even by an Orthodox or a Protestant. What Husar offers is mass apostasy from Christianity.

 

Quotation of Husar: “We want to be Orthodox, to be in this tradition, though we were not always wholly faithful to it. I think that we have lost something from this tradition, something which we should find again.”

Response: The history of the martyrish UGCC witnesses to a fight for faithfulness to the Pope’s primacy. Now Husar declares openly: “We want to be Orthodox...,” i.e. to renounce the Pope’s primacy as well as the Catholic Church. However, this statement too is a deceit. In fact, Husar and his adherents do not even want to be Orthodox, for owing to Husar’s heresies they are not even Christians. These phrases just put genuine Catholic and Orthodox believers to confusion. Nowadays it is really necessary to seek unity, yet without true conversion and repentance there is no true unity.

 

Quotation: “We have lost something from this tradition, something which we should find again.”

Response: In the first place, the UGCC has her own tradition which lasts 400 years and is connected with the original tradition of Church unity in the first millennium, i.e. of unity with the Pope. The UGCC has really, through the fault of Husar, lost that which is essential – she has lost the living relation to the Lord Jesus, the spirit of repentance as well as all principal truths of the Christian faith because of Husar’s heresies.

 

Question: What is it that we should find again?

Response: Living relation to Christ, true faith, and that through conversion and repentance. There is no other way. And that was also why the UOGCC was established which puts this way into practice.

 

Quotation of Husar: “But we also want to remain in mutual relationship (intercommunion) with the Pope of Rome, Peter’s successor and symbol of unity.”

Response: One can see here what attitude the heretic and schismatic Husar assumes towards the Pope’s primacy. He considers it a mere symbol which is not binding and with which he wants to remain in “intercommunion”.

 

Question: Why does he want to remain in “intercommunion” with a mere symbol which is not binding?

Response: Because he wants to cling like a parasite to the Body of Christ and to suck the lifeblood out of the remains of true Christians. And then to make the deceived Christians accept New Age, so-called postconfessional Christianity.

 

Quotation of Husar: “To be a Catholic means: to be in ‘intercommunion’ with Peter’s successor and to not lose by any means the religious tradition and national unity.”

Response: Husar uses terms like “religious tradition”, “national unity”, “intercommunion”; however, he never says exactly what actually he understands by these terms. The reality is that he is neither a Catholic nor an Orthodox nor even a Christian but a model of a postconfessional Christian – i.e. an apostate from Christ and from the Church. He drags along not only the UGCC into this apostasy but by deceit the Orthodox as well, together with whom he wants to form a so-called single local Church so that through heresies he may undermine even the sound Christian principles of the Orthodox Church. The most effective means of realising this aim is the UCU (so-called Catholic university), which trains up new postconfessional renegades who – through heresies and the spirit of death – are to destroy the Christian faith in all Ukraine and to spread their antimission even to Russia!

 

Summary: The attitude of the Ukrainian orthodox Greek-Catholic Church towards the Pope’s primacy and infallibility ex cathedra (in matters of faith and morals) is Catholic. By contrast Husar’s attitude is schismatic and heretical. We are aware of the seamy side of the papacy: Great Schism (two Popes, three Popes), posthumous excommunication of Pope Honorius I, nepotism, immoral life of Alexander VI, great offence given by John Paul II in Assisi as well as Masonic spirit at present dicasteries which act in the name of the Pope. We fight not for liquidation of the papacy but for its purification. Today, in the time of the spirit of antichrist, all Christians, not only the Catholics, need the protection of the foundations of faith and morals. And here the need arises for a rock standing firm against the waves of unbelief, heresies and moral corruption.

Christ’s word is equally true even for the present time: “You are Peter (a rock), and on this rock I will build My Church (again), and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” (Mt 16:18)

 

4) The apostate Dr Myron Bendyk, the author of another article contained in the pamphlet, writes: “And therefore their Church has the charisma of their perpetual ‘gnashing of teeth’ against Christ’s Church, as in the East so in the West. As we know, the gnashing of teeth is heard in darkness which the fathers are now in. What a shame that their ‘fire’ is not quenched and their worm does not die.”

 

Response: Though it is appreciable that the author perhaps still believes in hell, in unquenchable fire and gnashing of teeth as well as in the worm that does not die, the fact is that everyone must awaken to the reality of hell first in relation to oneself. It is not enough just to threaten others with hell. A certain preacher, when speaking about hell, quoted God’s Word and then added just a short sentence: “I fear only one thing – lest I should end up in hell for ever”, whereafter he remained silent for 5 minutes, absorbed in this grave reality. His short sermon was an impulse for many to turn from mere religious phrases and lukewarm life truly to Christ. In hell there will be above all those who did not repent and did not live according to God’s Word, but just theologised and philosophised or even distorted the Gospel! Which group it is that we belong to and which one that the overt adherents of heresies do is quite clear. We fear hell and therefore we repent, therefore we preach Christ’s Gospel in season and out of season. By contrast Husar and his adherents cast doubt on the most fundamental truths of the faith, even on hell. So they no longer belong to Christ’s Church. If the author as well as other authors of the pamphlet have remained in unity with the heresies of ex-Card. Husar, they likewise do not belong to Christ’s Church any more, even though they continue at high posts in the external so-called official Church. It is self-evident that the authors of the pamphlet by no means defend Christ’s Church but the spirit of betrayal and apostasy which is behind Husar and his heresies. What is in store for them in reward for this ‘service’ of confusing the believers? Is it perhaps not the gnashing of teeth and unquenchable fire?

 

The author of another article in the pamphlet states: “...they propagate the spirit of New Age and reject the apostles’ teaching as well as the sacraments.”

Response: We do not propagate the spirit of New Age; on the contrary, we uncover it and warn against it. The spirit of New Age is propagated by ex-Card. Husar and by the heretical hierarchy united with him. We reject neither the apostles’ teaching nor the sacraments; on the contrary, we emphasize that all. In the first place, however, we lay emphasis on the saving faith without which the sacraments bring no spiritual benefit but rather lead people to formalism and divert from the personal relationship with Jesus. As regards the apostles’ teaching, we emphasize it more than anyone else and therefore we also fight the contemporary heresies which are directed both against the apostles’ teaching and against the essence of the whole Gospel.

 

The pamphlet also contains an article entitled “My prayers and suffering for you”. It is allegedly an address given by Bishop Sophron Dmyterko for the faithful of the UGCC.

 

Response: The true authors of the article put such statements into the mouth of Bishop Dmyterko which, creating an emotional impression, make people believe how bad we are and how much harm we do to the Church. The fact is that at the time when Bishop Dmyterko was still able to communicate he supported orthodoxy and not “Husar’s group”. His alleged address of 10th October 2008 is physically unreal. It was written at the time when the Bishop was no longer able to speak, or even to move, and within 3 weeks he died. He was unable to communicate far earlier. We know it from the visit there by Bishop Eliáš and two sisters. When they talked to him a year before his death, he could hardly utter a few words in a whisper. When they visited him for the second time, he could not speak at all. “We left without being able to communicate with him.” It is absurd to claim that a paralyzed orthodox bishop would three weeks before his death make such impassioned and premeditated cunning verbal attacks on those who defend orthodoxy and true identity of the UGCC, for the sake of which he himself suffered all his life. The question remains: Who is the real author of this forged letter?

Another author of the pamphlet wrote an article in which he compares us to the African heretics of the 4th century.

 

Response: As for this article, we just have to state that we have nothing in common with these heretics, and therefore even the citations of St. Cyprian and St. Augustine do not apply to us but to the apostatical and heretical hierarchy of the UGCC.

 

It is admirable how excellent psychological and theological acrobatics the authors of the pamphlet perform in order to shift the explicit Husar’s heresies into the category of virtues and true faith. That’s really an achievement.

 

The response to the articles of other authors of the pamphlet, as e.g. the apostate B. Gudzyak, will be given in the following letters.

 

In Christ,

+ Markian OSBM, + Eliáš OSBM, + Metod?j OSBM, + Samuel OSBM               

 

                                                                                                                             Lvov, 18th November 2009

 

Copies to:

-          The Holy Father Benedict XVI

-          Bishops of the Catholic Church

-          Patriarchs and Bishops of the Orthodox Churches