Reflection by Archpriest Michael Fortounatto

To the members of the Archdiocese,

Fathers, brothers and sister in Christ !

Further ro my ‘Reflection’ on the life of the Archdiocese, which I had circulated on the eve of the meeting of the diocesan Assembly of the 30th march in Paris, and having experienced its broadly unifying character, I would like to invite everyone to join in a common action in the light of our quest for stability in our Archdiocese, namely the question of the consecration of a new Archbishop. An Archbishop is to be designated by God, to be chosen by ourselves, accepted and ordained by the Patriarch.

In our historical past, in moments of great crises or cataclysms, the Church undertook a period of fasting and prayer for the salvation of the faithful. Do we not live through such a time now, when we, too, should have recourse to such a traditional action? We are experiencing a deep administrative crisis, one like a strong earthquake, which cut us to the quick since the illness and departure of Archbishop Gabriel. In the intermediate time which is granted us until November, during which we pray for him in his illness, as well as for Metropolitan Emmanuel who has provisionally taken his place, surely we need to realize that together, priests, deacons, lay people, each of us have an individual personal, moral responsibility for the state of the Archdiocese. We need to act. A welcome ray of light was the recent conference of the deanery of Great Britain, which put the accent on the topic of mission as one of the marks of the Church, thus generating hope. Read the latest ‘Newsletter of the Exarchate’ for June.

On a more general scale, there is another, welcome aspect to our present situation. During his pontificate, Archbishop Gabriel led a worthy action, in the difficult circumstances we share, of ordaining a number of new priests for the Church, who joined the ranks of existing priests who have served communities for a long time in different countries. Our priests, the new and the old ones, are our spiritual treasure. They are our example of true piety, of purity and faithful service. Let us continue to support them, to protect them, as they pray for us and take care of us, let us show them our deep gratitude. They are the firm support on which the ruling archbishop relies, as they constitute the traditional ‘Presbyterate’ of the Church, and are called to be, together and individually, her enduring conscience and wisdom. Together with the Archbishop, whose coming we ardently await, the priests guide the ecclesial Body on its way to the Kingdom of God. God has put his trust in them, we must not doubt it, in the same way as He entrusted his precious Body and Blood to the apostles at the Last Supper. Of this we are witnesses at every divine Eucharist.

In the same manner in which we prepare ourselves for the Liturgy through fasting and prayer, may each member of the Church turn to God in this particular service, and endeavour to overcome the spirit of inertia which all too often overwhelms us, and pray for God’s help to solve the question of finding people eligible for the high office of Archbishop. Let us ask God to act firmly in these grievous and pressing circumstances. Let us ask Him to provide a decisive and extra-ordinary measure, which the Holy Spirit alone is able to create in all serenity.  

Concretely, I suggest that that a particular day in the week that follows the Sunday of All Saints be chosen, individually or in community, starting on 1^st July when the festive period has ended. Apart from the children and vulnerable adults, let us resolve not to eat nothing for a total of 24 hours (drink - yes), and pray according to the rhythm suitable to each one. I can see three areas concerning our present worry:

1)     Let us pray that the Statutes of the Archdiocese which govern our Church life be followed in all earnestness, in spirit and according to the letter. Their immediate guarantors are the present Exarch, Metropolitan Emmanuel, together with the diocesan Council. Let us pray that the Metropolitan, in his wisdom, may be at one with, and remain faithful towards the Council and the diocese, and that the Counsel may always remain united and faithful to the Patriarch in the person of the Metropolitan. It is their task, it seems to me, to take the initiative in concrete questions arising. Let there be light!

2)     Let us pray for the priesthood, for our own priest, for all the priests that we happen to know, and finally for all our priests together, the corporation of presbyters on whom rests the body of the Archdiocese. May the grace of their activities be multiplied in the archdiocese and in the various communities.

3)     Finally, let us pray for ourselves and our resolve and serenity, for our family, for our friends, our brothers and sisters in the Church, in a word – for the peace and the unity of everyone and of all. Incidentally, this prayer should include, if he is one of us, the future candidate to the Archbishopric.

We are two days before the feast of the Ascension of our Lord, we are still in time to proclaim: “Christ is risen !”; “He is risen indeed !”

Priest Michael Fortounatto

11^th June 2013