�итвами святого Григория Паламы, да подаст нам Господь, прежде всего, устоять в его вере, устоять в его Церкви, а потом и получить Царствие Небесное и просиять тем Светом, которым праведники "просияют, яко солнце", и нетварность которого защищал святой Григорий Палама. Аминь.

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Hegumen Gregory (Lourie). Ecclesiology of a Retreating ArmyEcclesiology of a Retreating Armyby Hegumen Gregory (Lourie)
"Skorbnye sobytija, no oni - predrechennogo sbytie"
(These mournful fortunes are but prophesies come true)[1]

This article was written in the summer of 1996 for another publication which never appeared in print. Nevertheless, the article has gained considerable circulation primarily due to its release on the Internet in Russian and English. In response to critical comments, several people, including myself, have amended and supplemented the text to a certain extent. The version appearing in this issue has seen some further elaborations which do not affect the principal content and message of the article. The focus of the article remains on the most general ecclesiastical issues of the current epoch which has witnessed a sweeping and, apparently, final defeat of true Christianity in the world, its retreat and the onslaught of the adversary. In its retreat, true Christianity-s sole concern is to keep some semblance of order in its ranks, so that its dignified retreat does not turn into a stampede. The ecclesiology of the present epoch addresses only one issue: how to preserve the fragments of a defeated army. We already know that it will eventually fail in this, too. The handful of successors to the true Church that will eventually survive will retain very little semblance to an army. Meanwhile, while there is still an army it has to choose its mission itineraries, improve interaction between its units and, where possible, score victories in minor tail fights.

The subject-matter of this article verges on some vast and vitally important areas which this article has never dealt with, and will never discuss in the future. One of them is an overview (updated to the last minute, not last week) of the present situation in the Orthodox world and analysis of certain problems specific to Russia, Greece, Serbia and other nations with an Orthodox tradition. I have endeavored to adhere to the subjects which may be deemed to be common for the entire Orthodox world or a predominant percentage thereof.

The idea of the reflection, which is now presented to the reader, grew out of informal communication between Orthodox Christians of various local churches. лVarious local churches╗ - these are words which should express the only possible difference between Orthodox Christians. But is it like that now? What does the concept of local churches mean in our time? Are there not substantial differences between Christians within the лlocal churches╗? The heresy of ecumenism and the various tendencies of ecclesiastical лrenovationism╗ that are closely linked with it engender not only, and not so much theological discus