Archbishop MARK

Declaration of Archbishop Mark towards the Session of the Synod of Bishops, 11/24 October 2003

I consider it important to make a declaration on the possible perspectives and aims of our ecclesiastical path, as I see it

In our understanding, there was never any doubt that we are part of the one Russian Orthodox Church. We also always recognized the Moscow Patriarchate as a different part of the same Russian Church. For this reason in practice we always recognized her Mysteries.

In our "Regulations," our authority bears a temporary character. When the regime changes in Russia and the Church acquires more freedom of action, we are called upon to participate in the process of renascence of the faith and are duty-bound, correspondingly, to seek the unity of the Russian Church.

Without a doubt, we had full authority to view the Moscow Patriarchate with great criticism even 10-15 years ago. But over this time, fundamental changes have occurred(including the change in quality and quantity of their episcopacy). Clearly, the process of recuperation has begun and is continuing. There is no basis upon which to exclude ourselves from this process, or, worse, to place ourselves in opposition to it. We are not a political organization, but the Body of Christ--and we must correspondingly treat each other as members of one Body, in the words of the Apostle:"That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another. And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honored, all the members rejoice with it" (I Cor. 12: 25-26).

Admitting ourselves but a part of the Russian Orthodox Church, we should on the basis of canonical law of the Russian Church itself (Ukase No. 362 and others) recognize the Moscow Patriarchate as one of the self-governing parts of the same Russian Church, leaving for a future All-Russian Council to judge the possible existence of yet other parts of our one Church Body.

In the search for unity, we must not speak of "subjugation," "unification," "reunification," "swallowing up," etc., but only of the humble recognition one for another of the status of being part of the one Russian Orthodox Church. The path of seeking unity itself is conceived solely as a conciliar task, in which all parts of the one Church recognize their lineage from one wellspring, taking into account both our own path traveled over the course of the horrifying events of the 20th century, and the paths of other parts of the Russian Church, traveled in unique circumstances, circumstances yet unheard-of in their scope in the history of the Church.

At the same time we accept everything positive gained on this path, and we reject all that is negative and un-churchlike that developed in our church life, all that is alien, imposed from without. We are called upon in the present circumstances to strive for one goal: towards unity in the Mysteries, in accordance with the spirit, teaching and tradition of our Russian Orthodox Church, while preserving the unique characteristics of the ecclesiastical experiences of our paths, and on the basis of the present organically-developed structures. Our goal cannot be to erase the experience of any part of the Russian Church; it lies in the coordinated development of the missionary duty of the Church of Christ, both on our historic homeland and abroad, to the benefit of the faithful who are in the church, and who comprise, in the countries of the whole world, one flock of the Russian Church as a whole. The basis of our life, its cornerstone is Christ Himself. In Him alone can we find our unity in the struggle of faith, hope and love.

Archbishop Mark of Berlin and Germany

Munich
9/22 October 2003