this only tells us what he is not but does not tell us his present status. i think the question is where is he now and to which jurisdiction does he belong. in my archive i have no information regarding his affiliation.
It tells us that Metropolitan Hilarion, of blessed memory, did not assigned him as clergy to Holy Trinity Monastery under ROCOR and that the Holy Synod did not request he regularize his release from Greece, as he is not under consideration for entry into ROCOR as of 11/18/2022.
I honestly don’t know how to reach His Eminence Metropolitan Seraphim of Piraeus of the Orthodox Church of Greece so I have written to the Holy Monastery of Pantocrator of Melissochori under Archimandrite Kyrillos, as they would know his status or be able to forward my request to His Eminence Metropolitan Seraphim of Piraeus directly if they choose.
I realize a lot of you out there are fans, but his status is important.
I wonder if Met. Seraphim will be issuing a statement.
If he is still under Met. Seraphim and the Church of Greece then there’s no problem with that, but, AFAIK he has relocated back to AZ and I would imagine he would need to be canonically transferred to one of the jurisdictions in America since the Church of Greece has no canonical bounds here. I have a hard time thinking the GOA will take him, maybe one of the other jurisdictions?
No, it does not put to rest the questions about him. Come on…. If you go to Father Peter’s site his says: “…due to an irregularity with regard to my release and reception, the Holy Synod (ROCOR) suggested that I find a way to re-regularize my position.” So, in other words, he is not in a “regular position” canonically.
Now I’m really confused. This is what Fr. Heers posted on his own website on Nov. 17. He makes no mention of the Church of Greece and only talks about ROCOR and being “blessed (by several Hierarchs) to concelebrate.”
To Whom It May Concern:
Recently I was blessed to visit Nashville, TN and I asked Met. Nicholas of New York for a blessing to serve at the ROCOR parish in Lebanon, which he immediately and graciously extended, for I am a priest in good standing, not under any church discipline. For the same reasons, I was blessed to serve with His Grace Bishop Luke while visiting Holy Trinity Monastery in Jordanville for the feast of the Holy Protection. (And, for the same reasons, I was blessed by Bishop Longin to serve at St. Savas Monastery in Chicago a few weeks earlier, and at the St. Petka parish in Nashville earlier this year.)
In 2021 I was received into ROCOR by Metropolitan Hilarion of New York (of blessed memory) and assigned to the clergy of Holy Trinity Monastery, being a lecturer at Holy Trinity Seminary in the certificate program. Sometime later, due to an irregularity with regard to my release and reception, the Holy Synod suggested that I find a way to re-regularize my position. As is clear from the above (and below), I have been blessed (by several Hierarchs) to concelebrate and serve while this process takes place.
In Christ, Archpriest Peter A. Heers https://www.orthodoxethos.com/post/a-statement-from-archpriest-peter-heers
Rocor should just take him in. We all know Fr. Peter Heeres left Greece after that bishop in Thessaloniki signed the Crete document after telling everyone his clergy he was against it Fr. Peter was in the same boat as Fr. Zisis and saw the writing on the wall. The Russian church and Greeks no longer have a relationship so no release is necessary.
The Covid vaccine angle is strange. And the fact that there is tension between the MP/ROCOR and the Church of Greece over the Ukraine thing is part of the background, though I’m not sure to what extent it has affected anything.
Sounds like Greece released him and, though the MP and then ROCOR had been willing to pick him up, for some mysterious reason they have reneged. The good status of Fr. Peter does not seem to be in doubt with nothing on record indicating misbehavior or disobedience. However, a priest serves under a license of antimens from a bishop for serving the Eucharist and so that may be an issue. But without knowing more, I cannot say for sure.
I’m struck by the fact that what seems to have thrown a wrench in the process was Fr. Peter speaking out against the forced inoculations. The same ones that are causing countless health complications and deaths now! Very telling!
A true confessor, then. So- No Surprise! Saint Paisios warned us all in advance, he also know most of the worldly Bishops and Priests would fall. Elder Gabriel (whom I met) relayed the same message to the faithful, and you can still find the video if you look.
The true confessors will keep us on the straight and narrow through these last times. Never lose hope. It will be hard, but God is With Us!
That statement would out things to rest if that’s what the paper trail shows, but demonstrably that is not the case. Patrick Craig Truglia actually has done some homework:
Poor Father Peter is being thrown around like a hot potato. From Craig Truglia’s article, it looks like Bishop Luke is being the most upfront and transparent of them all and “has all the documents,” as Alex Jones would put it.
His own recent involvement at the UMP conference shows that he’s not afraid to handle that hot potato, which is very encouraging. I have met him and found him to be a very likeable, sober, and diligent bishop.
It sounds like a frustrating situation for Father Peter Heers to be in this trans-jurisdictional limbo. Yet at the same time, does he actually have accountability to a bishop? No, it appears that he doesn’t. No bishop is actually claiming him.
In such a situation, even though he has not been formerly disciplined and suspended by a bishop, he is in fact in a suspended state. An Orthodox priest has to be claimed by a bishop. It’s a deception to suggest otherwise.
Suspended means not being allowed to serve. No bishop has suspended him and, in fact, as he proves, a number have served WITH him.
This is not an issue of discipline, but bureaucracy, as Brendan already pointed out. Fr. Peter has done nothing wrong here and is simply carrying out his God-given mission to preach the Orthodox faith to those thirsting for truth while the bishops rustle paperwork.
Being in a suspended state means “left hanging.” It does not mean he was suspended by the Church. Joseph used the term, “trans-jurisdictional limbo,” which is entirely accurate.
Being in a suspended state means being suspended. Simple. Joseph contrasted the above-quoted statement with the prior “even though he has not been formerly disciplined and suspended by a bishop,” obviously not referring to being ‘left hanging,’ but under the formal discipline of ecclesiastical suspension, in which one is prohibited from serving, preaching, administering any kind of sacraments or services, etc.
If he is “in fact in a suspended state” as Joseph states, then he wouldn’t be doing any of these things, especially not with the knowledge and approval (and even participation) of hierarchs from multiple jurisdictions.
No, Basil, it doesn’t. In this context it was used to mean in limbo, not being suspended from the Church. Why make trouble where there is none? No one is saying he was suspended. You misinterpreted what was said and won’t accept the explanation. Why? How does it help to keep saying something that you’ve been told isn’t true?
Basil, sure, he’s not suspended by any bishop, but he’s also not active under any bishop. That’s still a state of suspension. It’s not “good standing”.
Posting selfies of himself serving with bishops would seem to suggest that he’s an active priest, but he is only active in the moment of the picture, not outside of it. It’s against an Orthodox ethos to suggest otherwise. It’s deceptive.
Eventually, if not already, these same bishops are going to get tired of being asked if Fr. Peter Heers is claimed by them, and they won’t invite him to serve with them. Indeed, this may have already happened, but alas, we won’t see any selfie posted about that.
Perhaps a similar presumption should govern
the release of a priest from one bishop to another?
In other words, if the new acceptance is not made effective
then the release must automatically become null and void.
This would avoid leaving good priests to twist in the wind,
as bureaucrats argue which jots and which tittles are valid.
Because this involves Moscow and Greece, and given the timing of two major events – the schism and Covid (about which his views are controversial in many circles), I can certainly see why the jurisdictional aspect of his move to the United States has not gone smoothly.
One can see why his Greek bishop may now be in no hurry to help him resolve his status, with him having gone over to the Russian Church. And the Russians, whether MP or Rocor, may be reticent to be perceived as endorsing his views on the vaccine.
What it does mean (as the evidence appears to show) is that he is not the renegade jurisdiction hopper that some have accused him of being.
We’ve gotten off topic with this. No one has suggested Father Peter Heers is a renegade jurisdiction hopper, or suspended, or deposed, or anything of the sort. If someone said that, we wouldn’t have been able to print it.
Generally, the discussion is about being a priest and whether or not a priest needs to be under a bishop.
There are four orders in the Church: the Order of the Laity, the Order of the Deaconate, the Order of the Presbyters, and the Order of the Episcopate. In the True Faith, all members of the Body of Christ in their given offices work together with the bishop as the center.
The Bishop is the “overseer” of the congregation and clergy in a given area. Often the terms “bishop” and “elder” are interchangeable in the New Testament (Acts 20:17, 28), with the bishop being the leader of the elders. The qualifications for bishop in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:7-9 underscore this role. Nevertheless, “bishop” is a specific office both in the New Testament and in the early Church.
A bishop is like the Twelve who first held this office (in Acts 1:20 “office” is literally translated “bishopric”) and they in turn consecrated other bishops to follow them. For example Timothy and Titus are clearly of a separate order from that of elder (see 1 Timothy 5:17-22; Titus 1:5). Early records show James was bishop of Jerusalem by A.D. 49 and functioned accordingly at the First Council there (Acts 15:13-22). Peter is on record as the first bishop of Antioch prior to A.D. 53, and later first bishop of Rome, where he was martyred about A.D. 65. The bishop serves as an icon of Jesus Christ, “the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” (1 Peter 2:25).
This is the structure of the Church. To be in the Church, one must occupy a place in one of the four orders with the bishop as the head. No exceptions. So the question becomes can someone be a priest who is not attached to a bishop?
If someone were to ask Father Peter Heers this question, I’m guessing he would say, “No,” which is why he apparently worked so hard to attach himself to one. The only fault I have with him is that his bio is misleading as at least 3 priests (that I know of) and even George thought he was under Bishop Luke. Based on what they said, I have relayed the same information to others who have asked about him and I don’t like passing on information that is incorrect.
Our Church is hierarchical. Having a bishop matters. This man is running an empire where he says he is “upbuilding the body of Christ, which is His Church, for the salvation of souls”, when technically he isn’t even in the Church.
Do you think operating outside the Church is a good example to set for his audience, many of whom are new to the Faith and will also be researching him? I can only imagine what they think when they see the scuttlebutt on various blogs and Reddit. What jumps out at you on the first page of Google is, “What’s His Jurisdiction?” “Priest Out of Nowhere” “Ecclesiastical Standing” “Status of Father Peter Heers”
He says in an introductory video that after 2 months, he had 8,000 followers on Patreon alone, who pay a minimum of $3 dollars a month as subscribers. (That he has many contributors who pay $10 a month and supporters who pay $25 a month is a given.) But if you assume all of them pay the minimum of $3 a month, that’s $36 a year and if you have an audience of 8,000 within two months, that’s jumping into the stratosphere for a priest at $288,000 a year.
Please show me any other priests who make that much. Please show me a bishop who would be comfortable with a priest making that much. It’s a temptation and a distraction. While he’s making a killing on the Internet, does he direct people to the Church? Or does he seemingly meet all Orthodox needs with his classes, podcasts, website and publishing company?
I am asking a question. I don’t know the answer.
Unfortunately, in an effort to help him, what Truglia showed was a complete mess. Released from Greece to serve here, commissioned there, certified to do this, with a blessing to do that, here, there, and everywhere from Greece to Moscow to Australia (for the Serbian Diocese) to ROCOR, as long as he skipped saying he came from the MP, if I’m reading it correctly. He purportedly received the blessing of Metropolitan Hilarion (Kapral), to be accepted into the ranks of clergy for Holy Trinity monastery, which was later withdrawn after the synod learned, presumably from the other Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev), about the vaccine issue. Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev) felt (perhaps still does) that not getting the vaccine was akin to murder which isn’t mentioned but is the backstory.
This is an ecclesiastical nightmare and it doesn’t end well with the ROCOR, who cites that despite the “good faith” of those who sought to receive Father Peter Heers, at present he is not received.
All this from a young layman, a covert, whom I’m guessing hasn’t been in the Church long enough to realize how irregular all this is or he probably wouldn’t have printed it. Kudos to him for making the effort to get to the bottom of this, though. He gets an A++ on that front.
He concludes by saying, “What can be known with certainty is that Father Peter Heers, by everyone’s written testimony, has a bishop,” which unfortunately isn’t at all true if the MP won’t claim him long enough to release him and ROCOR is no longer open to receiving him. He doesn’t automatically get reassigned to Greece.
I don’t know how he’s going to fix this without the bishops help.
What Truglia doesn’t understand is the reason releases and receptions are done in a handshake manner is so priests aren’t left out in limbo. Once released, it’s a done deal. You can’t go back if it doesn’t work out.
I am not trying to be mean spirited toward Father Peter Heers when I question his status, but I will say it’s prevented me from taking any interest in his “ministry.” He needs to get himself back into the Church if he wants to call himself a priest which may require him to go to the MP and beg their forgiveness for talking about the vaccines so they will release him to a jurisdiction who wants him. Unfortunately, the ROCOR ship has sailed, as well, so I don’t know where he could go at this point.
It’s like jumping from moving blocks of ice on the ocean. The ice you jumped from drifts away after you make the leap.
ROCOR has a presence in AZ. With respect to this priest, however, we’re not talking about attaching him to a parish in AZ. He is attached to the Internet and unfortunately there is no bishop over the Internet. Ecclesiastically, Father Peter Heers has catapulted himself outside of the Church, with his reputation seemingly in tact, which is to his credit, if that is indeed the case. Now that he has such a strong on-line presence, perhaps he could call himself a theologian and go back to Church as a layman or maybe approach the Georgian Church.
But he needs to do something and our bishops need to help to the degree that they can to regularize his status. He is the biggest evangelizer in recent history and the Church, as a whole, is responsible to see that he pulls this off.
But he has a role in all this, too. He has to want to be “regularized.”
See that you all follow the bishop, even as Jesus Christ does the Father, and the presbytery as you would the apostles; and reverence the deacons, as being the institution of God. Let no man do anything connected with the Church without the bishop. Let that be deemed a proper Eucharist, which is [administered] either by the bishop, or by one to whom he has entrusted it. Wherever the bishop shall appear, there let the multitude [of the people] also be; even as, wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church. It is not lawful without the bishop either to baptize or to celebrate a love-feast; but whatsoever he shall approve of, that is also pleasing to God, so that everything that is done may be secure and valid.
It seems he has been released by Met. Seraphim from the COG but has yet to be received into another jurisdiction in America (if I’m understanding the Craig Truglia video). BUT, he does need to come under the omophorion of a bishop. I have no doubt he is working behind the scenes to do so, he does not strike me as someone who would “go rogue.”
As a side note, and this does not pertain to Monomakhos, I have seen on Telegram/online that various priests have been detracting Fr. Peter. I find this to be ironic.
Why?
Fr. Peter really “rose to fame” because he was speaking out against the covid insanity from the beginning. When we were locked out of our Churches from these priests/bishops we sought out spiritual nourishment and found it in Fr. Peter.
I would be willing to bet these same priests who are decrying Fr. Peter are ones who shut down their parishes.
Greetings Gail,
Respectfully, your statement that he has 8,000 Patreon subscribers is incorrect. The number is 1161 … a major difference.
For those unaware, Fr. Peter’s life-long work has been translating important Orthodox texts from Greek to English. He along with other gifted laborers pour everything they have into illuminating the written word of Saints and Holy Fathers in English, no small effort.
Thank you, Ella. You’re right. This is a huge disparity in numbers. If you scroll down to the video on the link provided below at about 1:15 he says in 2 months the number jumped up to 8,000 subscribers on Patreon. https://www.patreon.com/frpeterheers
You know, this was never the hill that I wanted to die on. I never criticize his work or the time he has spent or the contributions he’s made. Not once.
I don’t even think his status is completely his fault. Frankly, I’m angry that our hierarchs and bishops are content to say, “Well, he’s not under me,” and think this is enough. Why aren’t they using their economia wand and resolving this? Can’t they see the division this is causing?
The video is a little confusing, just for clarity … the OE Podcast is what jumped to 8,000 subscribers which is free and accessible to all on You Tube. He states the Patreon page was made in response to the positive reception of the YouTube OE Podcast.
I appreciate your sensitivities to the difficulty of this situation and agree …there is a blessed way forward that we should pray will come quickly.
“So the question becomes can someone be
a priest who is not attached to a bishop?”
He received a release in order to transfer to another bishop.
If the transfer fails to occur, the release cannot be effective.
They are two sides of the same coin.
I don’t think anyone is arguing the release from Greece failed to occur as there is a document of his reception into the MP.
People are getting the Metropolitan Hilarions confused, There were two. One in ROCOR, Metropolitan Hilarion (Kapral), who recently passed. He’s the one who gave his blessing to Father Peter.
And Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev) in Moscow who isn’t over the whole vaccine situation. He feels “those who refused to be vaccinated against COVID-19 are committing a sin they will have to repent for the rest of their lives.”
That’s probably why Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev) wants the Russian Holy Synod to weigh in on this before they release him because a priest is not permitted to go their own way on issues.
No one needs to defend righteous. It just is. I am telling the truth which can be verified. That it’s not what people want to hear, I understand.
A priest cannot make a jurisdictional change without first receiving a release from his bishop. So, a priest first makes a request to be released, and after receiving the release is free to move on to another jurisdiction. Priests are ALWAYS under the authority of and in obedience to a bishop. Any priest who makes a move prior to release from a bishop and acceptance from another bishop is not following proper ecclesial protocol and has no authority to be speaking on behalf of the Church, no matter what he is teaching.
RE: “It is of no surprise that these voices are uninformed, for they have not been given the full picture of events with regard to my service to the Church in recent years and the canonical basis for it.”
I think everyone would love to have a full picture and be informed.
No, this is a release, and it only confirms that Fr. Peter Heers is no longer a priest of the Church of Greece. It also stands contrary to the letter from ROCOR that our moderator Gail has shared with us that states, “to the best of our knowledge he remains a cleric of the State Church of Greece…”
Father Peter Heers has not provided us any clarity at all about who his bishop is, and apparently it’s because he doesn’t have one. If he doesn’t have a bishop, then he’s not a priest in “good standing”. To suggest otherwise is a deception.
Joseph, with your permission let’s do it like this: You all who are in contact with Father Peter Heers ask him who his bishop is. Just ask him and report back to us. Until then, we can suspend all this discussion. Are you OK with that, Joseph?
Respectfully, if you read the links others have provided, he apperently has a proper release. The confusion is not with the release. The confusion is with the MP to which he was released and who received him but later said it was not properly approved by Kyrill. This technically leaves him still under his Greek bishop but through no fault of his own. As someone else said, it was a procedural mix up.
As I understand it he’s under ROCOR because the email from Metropolitan Hilarion announcing his reception is binding as it is a decree of the bishop. Now if Rocor wants him gone they need to release him themselves.
The last Bishop to formally receive Fr. Peter is Met. Hilarion with Bishop Luke. After the repose of Met. Hilarion he transferred under Met. Nicholas (which is why Fr. Peter asked his blessing). It seems the priest did nothing wrong but has waited patiently and quietly to respect the process that is being made way too complicated.
Brian, you may get a good idea of Fr. Peter Heers’ views on the vaccine–as well as those of Metropolitan Jonah (Paffhausen), Presbytera Katherine Katherine Baker, Irene Polidoulis (MD, CCFP, FCFP), Deacon Ananias Erik Sorem (PhD), and yours truly–in a recent book that Fr. Peter and I co-edited:
Let No One Fear Death: Orthodox Christian Leaders Respond to the COVID-19 Challenge. Florence, AZ: Uncut Mountain Press, 2022 [212 pp.]
That short but relatively inexpensive book ($15) has been available since June on Amazon.com or directly from the publisher. [For some reason unknown to me, George and Gail have refused to publicize it on this website.]
Fr, bless. I actually did make notice of the book on this website. It was in a comment which I thought was quite laudatory.
Besides the fact that there is a lot on Gail’s and my plates (personally, as well as where the blog is concerned), I must tell you that I am so over COVID. Almost everything Gail and I sounded the alarm about for over a year now has come to fruition.
Personally, I was glad that clergymen such as yourself and Fr Peter were also sounding the same alarm. But now, as far as I’m concerned, it’s over. I for one, don’t think that the Deep State will inflict another such “pandemic” upon us (unless it is more lethal).
Frankly, it’s tedious. That and the fact that the malefactors who inflicted the entire COVID hysteria/vaccine regime upon the entire world will not be punished (in this life) is disheartening.
Brian,
It appears Fr. Peter has removed the video where he addressed the experimental so-called vaccines and made an apology for why he would not be taking them. I listened to it and I agreed with him 100% (based on my knowledge both what the medical whistleblowers were saying and my perception of the demonic m.o. behind worldly authorities pushing these). He clearly understood the issues and was bold in taking the stance he did. I pray he may one day be able to reinstate that apology. It was excellent.
As far as I’m concerned, it is up to Fr Peter at this point to have his status regularized (with either the MP or ROCOR). If there is anyway for for us to expedite this process, we’d be more than happy to help. And of course, to announce the results on this Blog.
I know there have been saints who have fallen victim of the jurisdiction mess — St. Raphael of Brooklyn, for example, was he under Russia or Antioch? It’s not always clear. But in those days communication was very difficult, while today it’s easier than ever before, so it’s hard to allow that as the sole explanation.
It’s interesting to follow paper trails, but when Fr. Peter serves, who does he commemorate, and is that relationship reciprocated? That is all we really need to know, and despite a lot of speculation, we still don’t know for certain and that is a problem.
Hopefully, for his own sake, Fr. Peter Heers is not doing anything liturgically or in the function of a priest. The only exception would be if a bishop invites him to concelebrate. Other than that, he’s in a suspended state and can’t do anything as an ordained priest, that is until he has a bishop who claims him.
Who has seen the movie Man of God about the life of Saint Nectarios? There seems to be a similar issue here in terms of the hierarchical bureaucracy. Didn’t Saint John Chrysostom have some similar problems for speaking truth to power? It appears that Fr. Peter’s determination to speak out on certain issues has ruffled some feathers. Maybe this is something that God can use to shine a light in the darkness of the current age.
Yes, the movie was great. Saint Nectarios believed sacred TRADITION is the very CHURCH; without the Sacred TRADITION the CHURCH does not exist. Those who deny the Sacred TRADITON deny the Church and the preaching of the Apostles. https://pravoslavie.ru/75346.html
St. John Chrysostomos was a also a true exponent of Apostolic Tradition:
From the many instances which testify to the profound reverence and obedience of Chrysostomos towards the Episcopacy, we will cite only three, which pertain to the period of his activity in Antioch.
1. Once, while the Saint was still a Presbyter, at a gathering of the Faithful he did not see Flavian, the Bishop of Antioch, present, as he usually was; this grieved the Saint, and he said tearfully: When I look upon that Throne, deserted and bereft of our teacher, …I weep; I weep, because I do not see our Father with us!10
2. At another time, the holy Bishop Flavian was absent again, since he was ill at home; so, Chrysostomos began his sermon with an expression of fervent love for his Bishop:
Just as a choir misses its leader and a crew of sailors its helmsman, so also this company of Priests is missing its Hierarch and common Father, today…. But even if he is not present in the flesh, he is, nonetheless, here in spirit, and he is with us now as he sits at home, just as we are with him as we stand here; for such is the power of love that it habitually gathers together and unites those who are separated by a great distance.11
3. In another instance, the most holy Flavian was present, and Chrysostomos shortened his sermon, offering the following justification:
So I must bring my discourse to an end, since I want to hear the voice of my Father (and Bishop). For we—like shepherd boys under the shade of some oak tree or poplar—play reed pipes as we sit under the shade of these sacred foundations; whereas he (our Father and Bishop), in the way that an accomplished musician who plays a golden lyre and with the harmony of its notes elevates the entire audience to a higher realm—so he, not with a harmony of notes, but with the harmony of his words and actions, greatly benefits us.12
It is clear, then, in what way the Holy Chrysostomos guided the People of God and helped them to acquire a true ecclesiastical ethos: The absence of his Hierarch would be a matter of indifference to a Presbyter who did not recognize the importance of the Bishop in the Church; whereas Chrysostomos suffers and weeps. The presence of the Bishop, on the other hand, would not act as a brake for a garrulous preacher, whereas Chrysostomos cuts his sermon short, so as to allow his Bishop to speak, while he praises him appropriately, humbling himself and exalting the nobility of the Hierarch.
Thank you Gail for bringing the work of Fr. Peter Heers to light. As a long time listener to Father Peter’s lectures and classes on the Orthodox Ethos channel, it is good to see more people learning about the work he is doing. His Uncut Mountain Press conference recently highlighted several new books shining the light on such issues as ecumenism, covidism, and papism.
Interesting to note that radical gender ideologists Sarah Riccardi-Swartz and Orthodoxy in Dialogue along with vax promoter Benjamin Cabe are the loudest voices attacking Fr. Peter Heers. Could that have anything to do with his outspoken stance against cultural marxism, modernism, and medical tyranny?
Gentlemen and ladies,
I want to share this quote with you concerning this latest attack [as was done to Fr. Josiah Trenham as well by the “leftist” charlatan-pseudo-Orthodox: OID, PO, TW] on a Patristic Father of our own times who, like Saint Mark, is unwilling to compromise the Truth and accept a lie as that Truth. Those unwilling to compromise the truth for the lie will always be attacked by those who do.
Doxa to Theo, John D
“Of all the statements of Saint Mark of Ephesus, his most famous words are those which summarize his position at the false Council of Ferrara-Florence: “Never, O man, is that which relates to the Church corrected through compromise; there is no middle ground between truth and the lie…, and although one can say that there is a mean between light and darkness which is called the morning and the evening twilight, nevertheless between the Truth and the lie, however hard you try, you will never find a mean.” -Letter to George Scholarios
“There is no middle ground between truth and the lie”. This dictum has served the Church since Her inception, for two thousand years ago the Holy Apostle Paul wrote similarly, “[W]hat fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion light with darkness” (Cor. 6:14)
In our own time, a time in which nothing any longer is firmly upheld by most people, a time in which theological slackness and apathy are the norm, a time in which cherished things both eternal and temporal are blithely sacrificed for some supposed minor advantage, a time in which leftist “political correctness” rules how men think and at a time in which the casting aside of the most sacred principles, traditions, and moral precepts is lauded as an act of “courage,” it behooves us to remember well the words of Saint Mark of Evgenikos: “There is no middle ground between truth and the lie.” For the sake of the salvation of our souls, may we Orthodox Christians engrave these words indelibly in our minds for our protection in this perilous age in which we live.”
Sermon 38 Saint Mark Evgenikos; Made Perfect in Faith by Fr. James Thorton
A vocal minority of (mostly uninformed) voices is being heard in some corners of the internet concerning my ecclesiastical status. It is of no surprise that these voices are uninformed, for they have not been given the full picture of events with regard to my service to the Church in recent years and the canonical basis for it.
Yesterday, I was grateful to God to see that, in an effort to bring clarity to the matter, a pious layman, Craig Truglia, did due diligence and visited His Grace Bishop LUKE of Syracuse. Having seen all of the relevant documentation, he then produced a timeline of events, which those interested can view HERE. Being privy to the documents myself that he examined, I can confirm the accuracy of his description of their contents.
His Eminence Met. Seraphim of Piraeus (Church of Greece).
In the midst of this, and in the interest of further clarity, and at the behest of His Eminence Metropolitan Seraphim of Piraeus, with whom I recently had a very congenial and encouraging conversation, I am posting the following official ecclesiastical documents.
We both hope that by posting the official release which he issued to Bishop John of the Patriarchate of Moscow in the Fall of 2018 greater clarity will be achieved.
For further facts see the article by Craig Truglia (Orthodox Christian Theology) as well as his YouTube channel where he announces documents he reviewed with the blessing of Bishop Luke of Jordanville
I have heard of the book, though I found little reason to read it since I already share your conviction. I also knew of Fr. Peter’s convictions as they relate to Covid restrictions, having listened to a few of his podcasts. What I did not know with any certainty (until now) is Fr. Peter’s views on the so-called vaccine. I assumed, but I did not know.
The above ‘correction’ was offered lest the proverb about assumptions…well, you know.
Thank you. I am pleased, though not at all surprised.
As an aside, the title of the work to which you have pointed us couldn’t be more perfect, as it is the fear of death (in the Church, of all places!) that has been the irrational driving force behind all the COVID madness.
No one I know, least of all myself, was advocating recklessness in the face of a real (though completely overblown) plague. But the way prudent caution quickly turned into practical denial of what we claim to believe, as those who are the gaurdians of the Faith openly put their trust in what was falsely called science while simultaneously disregarding the moral and conscience issues surrounding said ‘science,’ the manner in which love for God and neighbor was so quickly and easily ‘reimagined’ in this-worldly terms left me deeply saddened. Not shaken, but heartbroken nonetheless.
I don’t think I will ever again be able to sing the second antiphon of the Divine Liturgy without my soul being deeply moved and fully engaged with the immense impact of the the truth it expresses.
I’m amused by the “concern”. What should be obvious is that whatever Fr. Peter’s status is, it is through no remote fault of his own. No one has excommunicated or anathematized him and any number of bishops have served with him so it is a malicious lie to suggest that he is outside the Church.
That being said, I assume that the MP/ROCOR and the COG will resolve his status in good time. Evidently none of them have an issue with what he is doing now. It is precious that laymen have elevated themselves to the authority of passing judge on him. I’m sure he is amused if he has any interest in these malevolent musings at all.
What was that matter regarding which you disagreed with Fr. Peter’s reaction to something you told someone in the Church? I think that may be the source of your agita.
Well, you would be wrong. You and I have disagreed on subjects of a lot more importance than this and that hasn’t kept me from being fair to you, now has it? This is not about my feelings. Good grief. I can’t even believe you said that.
This is the end of all further discussion on the subject because now it’s getting personal.
Let’s not forget how this all started: there was a question about Fr Peter’s jurisdictional allegiance. That’s all. Personally, his status seems rather murky still and I think we all owe Craig Truglia thanks for taking the time to go to St Vladimir’s Seminary and speaking with Bishop Luke about it.
That said, I think it would behoove any and all concerned for the hierarchs here in America to resolve the issue of Fr Peter’s jurisdiction once and for all. His Orthodox Ethos podcasts are edifying.
Until ROCOR (or the MP or the Church of Greece) resolves this issue, I think it would be best for all of us to drop it. There are other concerns coming down the pike.
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This should put to rest the questions regarding the status of Father Peter Heers.
Your comment is awaiting moderation.
Father Peter Heers sermons on the web are edifying. We are blessed to have him in our midst.
The OID is trash.
this only tells us what he is not but does not tell us his present status. i think the question is where is he now and to which jurisdiction does he belong. in my archive i have no information regarding his affiliation.
It tells us that Metropolitan Hilarion, of blessed memory, did not assigned him as clergy to Holy Trinity Monastery under ROCOR and that the Holy Synod did not request he regularize his release from Greece, as he is not under consideration for entry into ROCOR as of 11/18/2022.
I honestly don’t know how to reach His Eminence Metropolitan Seraphim of Piraeus of the Orthodox Church of Greece so I have written to the Holy Monastery of Pantocrator of Melissochori under Archimandrite Kyrillos, as they would know his status or be able to forward my request to His Eminence Metropolitan Seraphim of Piraeus directly if they choose.
I realize a lot of you out there are fans, but his status is important.
I wonder if Met. Seraphim will be issuing a statement.
If he is still under Met. Seraphim and the Church of Greece then there’s no problem with that, but, AFAIK he has relocated back to AZ and I would imagine he would need to be canonically transferred to one of the jurisdictions in America since the Church of Greece has no canonical bounds here. I have a hard time thinking the GOA will take him, maybe one of the other jurisdictions?
No, it does not put to rest the questions about him. Come on…. If you go to Father Peter’s site his says: “…due to an irregularity with regard to my release and reception, the Holy Synod (ROCOR) suggested that I find a way to re-regularize my position.” So, in other words, he is not in a “regular position” canonically.
Now I’m really confused. This is what Fr. Heers posted on his own website on Nov. 17. He makes no mention of the Church of Greece and only talks about ROCOR and being “blessed (by several Hierarchs) to concelebrate.”
Not so fast. Here is the real story behind Fr. Peter’s jurisdictional transfers: https://orthodoxchristiantheology.com/2022/11/25/the-ecclesiastical-standing-of-father-peter-heers/
It appears the problem is one of bureaucracy
and not of the Orthodoxy of Father Peter.
I trust it will not take 1,000 years to sort it.
Rocor should just take him in. We all know Fr. Peter Heeres left Greece after that bishop in Thessaloniki signed the Crete document after telling everyone his clergy he was against it Fr. Peter was in the same boat as Fr. Zisis and saw the writing on the wall. The Russian church and Greeks no longer have a relationship so no release is necessary.
Very odd.
The Covid vaccine angle is strange. And the fact that there is tension between the MP/ROCOR and the Church of Greece over the Ukraine thing is part of the background, though I’m not sure to what extent it has affected anything.
Sounds like Greece released him and, though the MP and then ROCOR had been willing to pick him up, for some mysterious reason they have reneged. The good status of Fr. Peter does not seem to be in doubt with nothing on record indicating misbehavior or disobedience. However, a priest serves under a license of antimens from a bishop for serving the Eucharist and so that may be an issue. But without knowing more, I cannot say for sure.
Greetings in the Fast – praying we can have some generosity of heart as we read this:
https://orthodoxchristiantheology.com/2022/11/25/the-ecclesiastical-standing-of-father-peter-heers/
A good beginning that will help explain things and perhaps insight as to why Fr. Peter has been quiet as the Hierarchy works out what they created.
Here’s a good look into the current situation: https://orthodoxchristiantheology.com/2022/11/25/the-ecclesiastical-standing-of-father-peter-heers/
I’m struck by the fact that what seems to have thrown a wrench in the process was Fr. Peter speaking out against the forced inoculations. The same ones that are causing countless health complications and deaths now! Very telling!
A true confessor, then. So- No Surprise! Saint Paisios warned us all in advance, he also know most of the worldly Bishops and Priests would fall. Elder Gabriel (whom I met) relayed the same message to the faithful, and you can still find the video if you look.
The true confessors will keep us on the straight and narrow through these last times. Never lose hope. It will be hard, but God is With Us!
https://www.orthodoxethos.com/post/clarity-the-canonical-release-from-metropolitan-seraphim-of-piraeus?utm_source=so&cid=883ac275-f1ea-4fdb-b4ca-294ce7d39d17&utm_content=b62faaf6-6c4c-4d30-8007-46f63545bd73&postId=05f4ca6e-4139-427f-bebd-0565b0b7ce11&utm_campaign=05467a41-95bb-4ee5-9ad5-352f2342be9a&utm_medium=mail
Update on Father Peter from his website
Superb. Now let the Keepers of the Rubber Stamps
stamp their rubbers and bring an end to this matter,
for has gone on long enough.
That statement would out things to rest if that’s what the paper trail shows, but demonstrably that is not the case. Patrick Craig Truglia actually has done some homework:
https://orthodoxchristiantheology.com/2022/11/25/the-ecclesiastical-standing-of-father-peter-heers/
Watch Craig’s podcast on the topic here:
https://youtu.be/L5ietoevT_U
Poor Father Peter is being thrown around like a hot potato. From Craig Truglia’s article, it looks like Bishop Luke is being the most upfront and transparent of them all and “has all the documents,” as Alex Jones would put it.
His own recent involvement at the UMP conference shows that he’s not afraid to handle that hot potato, which is very encouraging. I have met him and found him to be a very likeable, sober, and diligent bishop.
Hopefully this will get resolved soon.
It sounds like a frustrating situation for Father Peter Heers to be in this trans-jurisdictional limbo. Yet at the same time, does he actually have accountability to a bishop? No, it appears that he doesn’t. No bishop is actually claiming him.
In such a situation, even though he has not been formerly disciplined and suspended by a bishop, he is in fact in a suspended state. An Orthodox priest has to be claimed by a bishop. It’s a deception to suggest otherwise.
Suspended means not being allowed to serve. No bishop has suspended him and, in fact, as he proves, a number have served WITH him.
This is not an issue of discipline, but bureaucracy, as Brendan already pointed out. Fr. Peter has done nothing wrong here and is simply carrying out his God-given mission to preach the Orthodox faith to those thirsting for truth while the bishops rustle paperwork.
Joseph acknowledge that he wasn’t suspended.
says Joseph.
Not true.
Being in a suspended state means “left hanging.” It does not mean he was suspended by the Church. Joseph used the term, “trans-jurisdictional limbo,” which is entirely accurate.
Being in a suspended state means being suspended. Simple. Joseph contrasted the above-quoted statement with the prior “even though he has not been formerly disciplined and suspended by a bishop,” obviously not referring to being ‘left hanging,’ but under the formal discipline of ecclesiastical suspension, in which one is prohibited from serving, preaching, administering any kind of sacraments or services, etc.
If he is “in fact in a suspended state” as Joseph states, then he wouldn’t be doing any of these things, especially not with the knowledge and approval (and even participation) of hierarchs from multiple jurisdictions.
No, Basil, it doesn’t. In this context it was used to mean in limbo, not being suspended from the Church. Why make trouble where there is none? No one is saying he was suspended. You misinterpreted what was said and won’t accept the explanation. Why? How does it help to keep saying something that you’ve been told isn’t true?
Depending on the context,
it can mean either or both.
Yes. And the entire blog has been told what was meant. NO ONE IS SAYING HE WAS SUSPENDED. How much more clear do I have to make this?
Basil, sure, he’s not suspended by any bishop, but he’s also not active under any bishop. That’s still a state of suspension. It’s not “good standing”.
Posting selfies of himself serving with bishops would seem to suggest that he’s an active priest, but he is only active in the moment of the picture, not outside of it. It’s against an Orthodox ethos to suggest otherwise. It’s deceptive.
Eventually, if not already, these same bishops are going to get tired of being asked if Fr. Peter Heers is claimed by them, and they won’t invite him to serve with them. Indeed, this may have already happened, but alas, we won’t see any selfie posted about that.
“Many states do not allow citizens to renounce
their nationality unless they acquire another.”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Statelessness
Perhaps a similar presumption should govern
the release of a priest from one bishop to another?
In other words, if the new acceptance is not made effective
then the release must automatically become null and void.
This would avoid leaving good priests to twist in the wind,
as bureaucrats argue which jots and which tittles are valid.
Because this involves Moscow and Greece, and given the timing of two major events – the schism and Covid (about which his views are controversial in many circles), I can certainly see why the jurisdictional aspect of his move to the United States has not gone smoothly.
One can see why his Greek bishop may now be in no hurry to help him resolve his status, with him having gone over to the Russian Church. And the Russians, whether MP or Rocor, may be reticent to be perceived as endorsing his views on the vaccine.
What it does mean (as the evidence appears to show) is that he is not the renegade jurisdiction hopper that some have accused him of being.
We’ve gotten off topic with this. No one has suggested Father Peter Heers is a renegade jurisdiction hopper, or suspended, or deposed, or anything of the sort. If someone said that, we wouldn’t have been able to print it.
Generally, the discussion is about being a priest and whether or not a priest needs to be under a bishop.
There are four orders in the Church: the Order of the Laity, the Order of the Deaconate, the Order of the Presbyters, and the Order of the Episcopate. In the True Faith, all members of the Body of Christ in their given offices work together with the bishop as the center.
The Bishop is the “overseer” of the congregation and clergy in a given area. Often the terms “bishop” and “elder” are interchangeable in the New Testament (Acts 20:17, 28), with the bishop being the leader of the elders. The qualifications for bishop in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:7-9 underscore this role. Nevertheless, “bishop” is a specific office both in the New Testament and in the early Church.
A bishop is like the Twelve who first held this office (in Acts 1:20 “office” is literally translated “bishopric”) and they in turn consecrated other bishops to follow them. For example Timothy and Titus are clearly of a separate order from that of elder (see 1 Timothy 5:17-22; Titus 1:5). Early records show James was bishop of Jerusalem by A.D. 49 and functioned accordingly at the First Council there (Acts 15:13-22). Peter is on record as the first bishop of Antioch prior to A.D. 53, and later first bishop of Rome, where he was martyred about A.D. 65. The bishop serves as an icon of Jesus Christ, “the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” (1 Peter 2:25).
This is the structure of the Church. To be in the Church, one must occupy a place in one of the four orders with the bishop as the head. No exceptions. So the question becomes can someone be a priest who is not attached to a bishop?
If someone were to ask Father Peter Heers this question, I’m guessing he would say, “No,” which is why he apparently worked so hard to attach himself to one. The only fault I have with him is that his bio is misleading as at least 3 priests (that I know of) and even George thought he was under Bishop Luke. Based on what they said, I have relayed the same information to others who have asked about him and I don’t like passing on information that is incorrect.
Our Church is hierarchical. Having a bishop matters. This man is running an empire where he says he is “upbuilding the body of Christ, which is His Church, for the salvation of souls”, when technically he isn’t even in the Church.
Do you think operating outside the Church is a good example to set for his audience, many of whom are new to the Faith and will also be researching him? I can only imagine what they think when they see the scuttlebutt on various blogs and Reddit. What jumps out at you on the first page of Google is, “What’s His Jurisdiction?” “Priest Out of Nowhere” “Ecclesiastical Standing” “Status of Father Peter Heers”
He says in an introductory video that after 2 months, he had 8,000 followers on Patreon alone, who pay a minimum of $3 dollars a month as subscribers. (That he has many contributors who pay $10 a month and supporters who pay $25 a month is a given.) But if you assume all of them pay the minimum of $3 a month, that’s $36 a year and if you have an audience of 8,000 within two months, that’s jumping into the stratosphere for a priest at $288,000 a year.
Please show me any other priests who make that much. Please show me a bishop who would be comfortable with a priest making that much. It’s a temptation and a distraction. While he’s making a killing on the Internet, does he direct people to the Church? Or does he seemingly meet all Orthodox needs with his classes, podcasts, website and publishing company?
I am asking a question. I don’t know the answer.
Unfortunately, in an effort to help him, what Truglia showed was a complete mess. Released from Greece to serve here, commissioned there, certified to do this, with a blessing to do that, here, there, and everywhere from Greece to Moscow to Australia (for the Serbian Diocese) to ROCOR, as long as he skipped saying he came from the MP, if I’m reading it correctly. He purportedly received the blessing of Metropolitan Hilarion (Kapral), to be accepted into the ranks of clergy for Holy Trinity monastery, which was later withdrawn after the synod learned, presumably from the other Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev), about the vaccine issue. Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev) felt (perhaps still does) that not getting the vaccine was akin to murder which isn’t mentioned but is the backstory.
This is an ecclesiastical nightmare and it doesn’t end well with the ROCOR, who cites that despite the “good faith” of those who sought to receive Father Peter Heers, at present he is not received.
All this from a young layman, a covert, whom I’m guessing hasn’t been in the Church long enough to realize how irregular all this is or he probably wouldn’t have printed it. Kudos to him for making the effort to get to the bottom of this, though. He gets an A++ on that front.
He concludes by saying, “What can be known with certainty is that Father Peter Heers, by everyone’s written testimony, has a bishop,” which unfortunately isn’t at all true if the MP won’t claim him long enough to release him and ROCOR is no longer open to receiving him. He doesn’t automatically get reassigned to Greece.
I don’t know how he’s going to fix this without the bishops help.
What Truglia doesn’t understand is the reason releases and receptions are done in a handshake manner is so priests aren’t left out in limbo. Once released, it’s a done deal. You can’t go back if it doesn’t work out.
I am not trying to be mean spirited toward Father Peter Heers when I question his status, but I will say it’s prevented me from taking any interest in his “ministry.” He needs to get himself back into the Church if he wants to call himself a priest which may require him to go to the MP and beg their forgiveness for talking about the vaccines so they will release him to a jurisdiction who wants him. Unfortunately, the ROCOR ship has sailed, as well, so I don’t know where he could go at this point.
It’s like jumping from moving blocks of ice on the ocean. The ice you jumped from drifts away after you make the leap.
ROCOR has a presence in AZ. With respect to this priest, however, we’re not talking about attaching him to a parish in AZ. He is attached to the Internet and unfortunately there is no bishop over the Internet. Ecclesiastically, Father Peter Heers has catapulted himself outside of the Church, with his reputation seemingly in tact, which is to his credit, if that is indeed the case. Now that he has such a strong on-line presence, perhaps he could call himself a theologian and go back to Church as a layman or maybe approach the Georgian Church.
But he needs to do something and our bishops need to help to the degree that they can to regularize his status. He is the biggest evangelizer in recent history and the Church, as a whole, is responsible to see that he pulls this off.
But he has a role in all this, too. He has to want to be “regularized.”
What absolute, utter drivel. He’s a priest, serving with the blessing of various hierarchs, and alongside various other hierarchs. He’s in the Church.
Find his bishop.
The Epistle of Saint Ignatius to the Smyrnaeans
See that you all follow the bishop, even as Jesus Christ does the Father, and the presbytery as you would the apostles; and reverence the deacons, as being the institution of God. Let no man do anything connected with the Church without the bishop. Let that be deemed a proper Eucharist, which is [administered] either by the bishop, or by one to whom he has entrusted it. Wherever the bishop shall appear, there let the multitude [of the people] also be; even as, wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church. It is not lawful without the bishop either to baptize or to celebrate a love-feast; but whatsoever he shall approve of, that is also pleasing to God, so that everything that is done may be secure and valid.
You know, the things priests do.
It seems he has been released by Met. Seraphim from the COG but has yet to be received into another jurisdiction in America (if I’m understanding the Craig Truglia video). BUT, he does need to come under the omophorion of a bishop. I have no doubt he is working behind the scenes to do so, he does not strike me as someone who would “go rogue.”
As a side note, and this does not pertain to Monomakhos, I have seen on Telegram/online that various priests have been detracting Fr. Peter. I find this to be ironic.
Why?
Fr. Peter really “rose to fame” because he was speaking out against the covid insanity from the beginning. When we were locked out of our Churches from these priests/bishops we sought out spiritual nourishment and found it in Fr. Peter.
I would be willing to bet these same priests who are decrying Fr. Peter are ones who shut down their parishes.
Greetings Gail,
Respectfully, your statement that he has 8,000 Patreon subscribers is incorrect. The number is 1161 … a major difference.
For those unaware, Fr. Peter’s life-long work has been translating important Orthodox texts from Greek to English. He along with other gifted laborers pour everything they have into illuminating the written word of Saints and Holy Fathers in English, no small effort.
Thank you, Ella. You’re right. This is a huge disparity in numbers. If you scroll down to the video on the link provided below at about 1:15 he says in 2 months the number jumped up to 8,000 subscribers on Patreon. https://www.patreon.com/frpeterheers
You know, this was never the hill that I wanted to die on. I never criticize his work or the time he has spent or the contributions he’s made. Not once.
I don’t even think his status is completely his fault. Frankly, I’m angry that our hierarchs and bishops are content to say, “Well, he’s not under me,” and think this is enough. Why aren’t they using their economia wand and resolving this? Can’t they see the division this is causing?
The video is a little confusing, just for clarity … the OE Podcast is what jumped to 8,000 subscribers which is free and accessible to all on You Tube. He states the Patreon page was made in response to the positive reception of the YouTube OE Podcast.
I appreciate your sensitivities to the difficulty of this situation and agree …there is a blessed way forward that we should pray will come quickly.
“So the question becomes can someone be
a priest who is not attached to a bishop?”
He received a release in order to transfer to another bishop.
If the transfer fails to occur, the release cannot be effective.
They are two sides of the same coin.
I don’t think anyone is arguing the release from Greece failed to occur as there is a document of his reception into the MP.
People are getting the Metropolitan Hilarions confused, There were two. One in ROCOR, Metropolitan Hilarion (Kapral), who recently passed. He’s the one who gave his blessing to Father Peter.
And Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev) in Moscow who isn’t over the whole vaccine situation. He feels “those who refused to be vaccinated against COVID-19 are committing a sin they will have to repent for the rest of their lives.”
That’s probably why Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev) wants the Russian Holy Synod to weigh in on this before they release him because a priest is not permitted to go their own way on issues.
No one needs to defend righteous. It just is. I am telling the truth which can be verified. That it’s not what people want to hear, I understand.
A priest cannot make a jurisdictional change without first receiving a release from his bishop. So, a priest first makes a request to be released, and after receiving the release is free to move on to another jurisdiction. Priests are ALWAYS under the authority of and in obedience to a bishop. Any priest who makes a move prior to release from a bishop and acceptance from another bishop is not following proper ecclesial protocol and has no authority to be speaking on behalf of the Church, no matter what he is teaching.
This appears to address the issue:
https://www.orthodoxethos.com/post/clarity-the-canonical-release-from-metropolitan-seraphim-of-piraeus?utm_source=so&cid=3e9706c0-5d87-4b5f-9c52-63e8a3094798&utm_content=01771b66-6ea1-4b69-9258-6755bd8c8439&postId=05f4ca6e-4139-427f-bebd-0565b0b7ce11&utm_campaign=05467a41-95bb-4ee5-9ad5-352f2342be9a&utm_medium=mail
RE: “It is of no surprise that these voices are uninformed, for they have not been given the full picture of events with regard to my service to the Church in recent years and the canonical basis for it.”
I think everyone would love to have a full picture and be informed.
I think not.
Oprah Winfrey TV is not for me.
No, this is a release, and it only confirms that Fr. Peter Heers is no longer a priest of the Church of Greece. It also stands contrary to the letter from ROCOR that our moderator Gail has shared with us that states, “to the best of our knowledge he remains a cleric of the State Church of Greece…”
Father Peter Heers has not provided us any clarity at all about who his bishop is, and apparently it’s because he doesn’t have one. If he doesn’t have a bishop, then he’s not a priest in “good standing”. To suggest otherwise is a deception.
Joseph, with your permission let’s do it like this: You all who are in contact with Father Peter Heers ask him who his bishop is. Just ask him and report back to us. Until then, we can suspend all this discussion. Are you OK with that, Joseph?
Gail, thank you, I’m done.
Respectfully, if you read the links others have provided, he apperently has a proper release. The confusion is not with the release. The confusion is with the MP to which he was released and who received him but later said it was not properly approved by Kyrill. This technically leaves him still under his Greek bishop but through no fault of his own. As someone else said, it was a procedural mix up.
As I understand it he’s under ROCOR because the email from Metropolitan Hilarion announcing his reception is binding as it is a decree of the bishop. Now if Rocor wants him gone they need to release him themselves.
Bryan – exactly.
The last Bishop to formally receive Fr. Peter is Met. Hilarion with Bishop Luke. After the repose of Met. Hilarion he transferred under Met. Nicholas (which is why Fr. Peter asked his blessing). It seems the priest did nothing wrong but has waited patiently and quietly to respect the process that is being made way too complicated.
Correction:
I should have written “…reticent to endorse his views on Covid restrictions/practices in the Church.”
Others here may know his views on the vaccine, but I do not.
Brian, you may get a good idea of Fr. Peter Heers’ views on the vaccine–as well as those of Metropolitan Jonah (Paffhausen), Presbytera Katherine Katherine Baker, Irene Polidoulis (MD, CCFP, FCFP), Deacon Ananias Erik Sorem (PhD), and yours truly–in a recent book that Fr. Peter and I co-edited:
Let No One Fear Death: Orthodox Christian Leaders Respond to the COVID-19 Challenge. Florence, AZ: Uncut Mountain Press, 2022 [212 pp.]
That short but relatively inexpensive book ($15) has been available since June on Amazon.com or directly from the publisher. [For some reason unknown to me, George and Gail have refused to publicize it on this website.]
Fr, bless. I actually did make notice of the book on this website. It was in a comment which I thought was quite laudatory.
Besides the fact that there is a lot on Gail’s and my plates (personally, as well as where the blog is concerned), I must tell you that I am so over COVID. Almost everything Gail and I sounded the alarm about for over a year now has come to fruition.
Personally, I was glad that clergymen such as yourself and Fr Peter were also sounding the same alarm. But now, as far as I’m concerned, it’s over. I for one, don’t think that the Deep State will inflict another such “pandemic” upon us (unless it is more lethal).
Frankly, it’s tedious. That and the fact that the malefactors who inflicted the entire COVID hysteria/vaccine regime upon the entire world will not be punished (in this life) is disheartening.
I mean no disrespect.
Brian,
It appears Fr. Peter has removed the video where he addressed the experimental so-called vaccines and made an apology for why he would not be taking them. I listened to it and I agreed with him 100% (based on my knowledge both what the medical whistleblowers were saying and my perception of the demonic m.o. behind worldly authorities pushing these). He clearly understood the issues and was bold in taking the stance he did. I pray he may one day be able to reinstate that apology. It was excellent.
We are going to change the subject. This will be the last comment. Thank you all for contributing! Moving on . . .
I second that.
Any further comments –pro or con–will be deleted.
As far as I’m concerned, it is up to Fr Peter at this point to have his status regularized (with either the MP or ROCOR). If there is anyway for for us to expedite this process, we’d be more than happy to help. And of course, to announce the results on this Blog.
I know there have been saints who have fallen victim of the jurisdiction mess — St. Raphael of Brooklyn, for example, was he under Russia or Antioch? It’s not always clear. But in those days communication was very difficult, while today it’s easier than ever before, so it’s hard to allow that as the sole explanation.
It’s interesting to follow paper trails, but when Fr. Peter serves, who does he commemorate, and is that relationship reciprocated? That is all we really need to know, and despite a lot of speculation, we still don’t know for certain and that is a problem.
Hopefully, for his own sake, Fr. Peter Heers is not doing anything liturgically or in the function of a priest. The only exception would be if a bishop invites him to concelebrate. Other than that, he’s in a suspended state and can’t do anything as an ordained priest, that is until he has a bishop who claims him.
Who has seen the movie Man of God about the life of Saint Nectarios? There seems to be a similar issue here in terms of the hierarchical bureaucracy. Didn’t Saint John Chrysostom have some similar problems for speaking truth to power? It appears that Fr. Peter’s determination to speak out on certain issues has ruffled some feathers. Maybe this is something that God can use to shine a light in the darkness of the current age.
Yes, the movie was great. Saint Nectarios believed sacred TRADITION is the very CHURCH; without the Sacred TRADITION the CHURCH does not exist. Those who deny the Sacred TRADITON deny the Church and the preaching of the Apostles. https://pravoslavie.ru/75346.html
St. John Chrysostomos was a also a true exponent of Apostolic Tradition:
From the many instances which testify to the profound reverence and obedience of Chrysostomos towards the Episcopacy, we will cite only three, which pertain to the period of his activity in Antioch.
1. Once, while the Saint was still a Presbyter, at a gathering of the Faithful he did not see Flavian, the Bishop of Antioch, present, as he usually was; this grieved the Saint, and he said tearfully: When I look upon that Throne, deserted and bereft of our teacher, …I weep; I weep, because I do not see our Father with us!10
2. At another time, the holy Bishop Flavian was absent again, since he was ill at home; so, Chrysostomos began his sermon with an expression of fervent love for his Bishop:
Just as a choir misses its leader and a crew of sailors its helmsman, so also this company of Priests is missing its Hierarch and common Father, today…. But even if he is not present in the flesh, he is, nonetheless, here in spirit, and he is with us now as he sits at home, just as we are with him as we stand here; for such is the power of love that it habitually gathers together and unites those who are separated by a great distance.11
3. In another instance, the most holy Flavian was present, and Chrysostomos shortened his sermon, offering the following justification:
So I must bring my discourse to an end, since I want to hear the voice of my Father (and Bishop). For we—like shepherd boys under the shade of some oak tree or poplar—play reed pipes as we sit under the shade of these sacred foundations; whereas he (our Father and Bishop), in the way that an accomplished musician who plays a golden lyre and with the harmony of its notes elevates the entire audience to a higher realm—so he, not with a harmony of notes, but with the harmony of his words and actions, greatly benefits us.12
It is clear, then, in what way the Holy Chrysostomos guided the People of God and helped them to acquire a true ecclesiastical ethos: The absence of his Hierarch would be a matter of indifference to a Presbyter who did not recognize the importance of the Bishop in the Church; whereas Chrysostomos suffers and weeps. The presence of the Bishop, on the other hand, would not act as a brake for a garrulous preacher, whereas Chrysostomos cuts his sermon short, so as to allow his Bishop to speak, while he praises him appropriately, humbling himself and exalting the nobility of the Hierarch.
http://orthodoxinfo.com/praxis/bishop_place.aspx
Thank you Gail for bringing the work of Fr. Peter Heers to light. As a long time listener to Father Peter’s lectures and classes on the Orthodox Ethos channel, it is good to see more people learning about the work he is doing. His Uncut Mountain Press conference recently highlighted several new books shining the light on such issues as ecumenism, covidism, and papism.
Interesting to note that radical gender ideologists Sarah Riccardi-Swartz and Orthodoxy in Dialogue along with vax promoter Benjamin Cabe are the loudest voices attacking Fr. Peter Heers. Could that have anything to do with his outspoken stance against cultural marxism, modernism, and medical tyranny?
Gentlemen and ladies,
I want to share this quote with you concerning this latest attack [as was done to Fr. Josiah Trenham as well by the “leftist” charlatan-pseudo-Orthodox: OID, PO, TW] on a Patristic Father of our own times who, like Saint Mark, is unwilling to compromise the Truth and accept a lie as that Truth. Those unwilling to compromise the truth for the lie will always be attacked by those who do.
Doxa to Theo, John D
“Of all the statements of Saint Mark of Ephesus, his most famous words are those which summarize his position at the false Council of Ferrara-Florence: “Never, O man, is that which relates to the Church corrected through compromise; there is no middle ground between truth and the lie…, and although one can say that there is a mean between light and darkness which is called the morning and the evening twilight, nevertheless between the Truth and the lie, however hard you try, you will never find a mean.” -Letter to George Scholarios
“There is no middle ground between truth and the lie”. This dictum has served the Church since Her inception, for two thousand years ago the Holy Apostle Paul wrote similarly, “[W]hat fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion light with darkness” (Cor. 6:14)
In our own time, a time in which nothing any longer is firmly upheld by most people, a time in which theological slackness and apathy are the norm, a time in which cherished things both eternal and temporal are blithely sacrificed for some supposed minor advantage, a time in which leftist “political correctness” rules how men think and at a time in which the casting aside of the most sacred principles, traditions, and moral precepts is lauded as an act of “courage,” it behooves us to remember well the words of Saint Mark of Evgenikos: “There is no middle ground between truth and the lie.” For the sake of the salvation of our souls, may we Orthodox Christians engrave these words indelibly in our minds for our protection in this perilous age in which we live.”
Sermon 38 Saint Mark Evgenikos; Made Perfect in Faith by Fr. James Thorton
From Fr. Peter Heer’s Orthodox Ethos blog:
Link: https://www.orthodoxethos.com/post/clarity-the-canonical-release-from-metropolitan-seraphim-of-piraeus
To Whom it May Concern,
A vocal minority of (mostly uninformed) voices is being heard in some corners of the internet concerning my ecclesiastical status. It is of no surprise that these voices are uninformed, for they have not been given the full picture of events with regard to my service to the Church in recent years and the canonical basis for it.
Yesterday, I was grateful to God to see that, in an effort to bring clarity to the matter, a pious layman, Craig Truglia, did due diligence and visited His Grace Bishop LUKE of Syracuse. Having seen all of the relevant documentation, he then produced a timeline of events, which those interested can view HERE. Being privy to the documents myself that he examined, I can confirm the accuracy of his description of their contents.
His Eminence Met. Seraphim of Piraeus (Church of Greece).
In the midst of this, and in the interest of further clarity, and at the behest of His Eminence Metropolitan Seraphim of Piraeus, with whom I recently had a very congenial and encouraging conversation, I am posting the following official ecclesiastical documents.
We both hope that by posting the official release which he issued to Bishop John of the Patriarchate of Moscow in the Fall of 2018 greater clarity will be achieved.
In Christ,
Archpriest Peter Heers, D.Th.
For further facts see the article by Craig Truglia (Orthodox Christian Theology) as well as his YouTube channel where he announces documents he reviewed with the blessing of Bishop Luke of Jordanville
Fr. Peter did receive a canonical release. At this point, as an article already posted has stated, it’s just red tape and bureaucracy.
Father Alexander,
I have heard of the book, though I found little reason to read it since I already share your conviction. I also knew of Fr. Peter’s convictions as they relate to Covid restrictions, having listened to a few of his podcasts. What I did not know with any certainty (until now) is Fr. Peter’s views on the so-called vaccine. I assumed, but I did not know.
The above ‘correction’ was offered lest the proverb about assumptions…well, you know.
Thank you. I am pleased, though not at all surprised.
As an aside, the title of the work to which you have pointed us couldn’t be more perfect, as it is the fear of death (in the Church, of all places!) that has been the irrational driving force behind all the COVID madness.
No one I know, least of all myself, was advocating recklessness in the face of a real (though completely overblown) plague. But the way prudent caution quickly turned into practical denial of what we claim to believe, as those who are the gaurdians of the Faith openly put their trust in what was falsely called science while simultaneously disregarding the moral and conscience issues surrounding said ‘science,’ the manner in which love for God and neighbor was so quickly and easily ‘reimagined’ in this-worldly terms left me deeply saddened. Not shaken, but heartbroken nonetheless.
I don’t think I will ever again be able to sing the second antiphon of the Divine Liturgy without my soul being deeply moved and fully engaged with the immense impact of the the truth it expresses.
“Put not your trust in princes, in sons of men in whom there is no salvation. For when his breath departs, he returns to his earth.”
Brian, I could not agree more, especially today as our political edifice in America is crumbling before our eyes.
I’m amused by the “concern”. What should be obvious is that whatever Fr. Peter’s status is, it is through no remote fault of his own. No one has excommunicated or anathematized him and any number of bishops have served with him so it is a malicious lie to suggest that he is outside the Church.
That being said, I assume that the MP/ROCOR and the COG will resolve his status in good time. Evidently none of them have an issue with what he is doing now. It is precious that laymen have elevated themselves to the authority of passing judge on him. I’m sure he is amused if he has any interest in these malevolent musings at all.
Galya,
What was that matter regarding which you disagreed with Fr. Peter’s reaction to something you told someone in the Church? I think that may be the source of your agita.
Well, you would be wrong. You and I have disagreed on subjects of a lot more importance than this and that hasn’t kept me from being fair to you, now has it? This is not about my feelings. Good grief. I can’t even believe you said that.
This is the end of all further discussion on the subject because now it’s getting personal.
To all: we should not let things get personal.
Let’s not forget how this all started: there was a question about Fr Peter’s jurisdictional allegiance. That’s all. Personally, his status seems rather murky still and I think we all owe Craig Truglia thanks for taking the time to go to St Vladimir’s Seminary and speaking with Bishop Luke about it.
That said, I think it would behoove any and all concerned for the hierarchs here in America to resolve the issue of Fr Peter’s jurisdiction once and for all. His Orthodox Ethos podcasts are edifying.
Until ROCOR (or the MP or the Church of Greece) resolves this issue, I think it would be best for all of us to drop it. There are other concerns coming down the pike.