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You say, "Pope Benedict is pursuing ecumenism," and that Pope Benedict "thinks [ecumenism is] the right thing to do and what our Lord wants."

We say say, to you and to Pope Benedict XVI, "To those who attack the Church of Christ by teaching that Christ's Church is divided into so-called 'branches' which differ in doctrine and way of life, or that the Church does not exist visibly, but will be formed in the future when all 'branches' or sects or denominations, and even religions will be united into one body; and who do not distinguish the priesthood and mysteries of the Church from those of the heretics, but say that the baptism and eucharist of heretics is effectual for salvation; therefore, to those who knowingly have communion with these aforementioned heretics or who advocate, disseminate, or defend their new heresy of Ecumenism under the pretext of brotherly love or the supposed unification of separated Christians, Anathema!"
(The Synod of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, 1983)

Because of its great importance to the Catholic Church, the above anathema is included in the Synodicon of Orthodoxy. And the person who saw to this anathema being promulgated in the first place has been glorified as a saint of the Church, St. Philaret of New York City, the New Confessor.

It's official. Your Pope is a heretic, as are also all who follow him.

That's final and there is no room for discussion.

"Who am I, unworthy sinner that I am, to judge him or any man as to his spiritual progress?"

"It's official. Your Pope is a heretic, as are also all who follow him."

"That's final and there is no room for discussion."

An apparent total inability to appreciate the inherent contradictions within your own posts combined with a mindset that would be right at home in Al-Qaida makes any notion of rationale discourse utterly impossible.

Not that this isn't what one might reasonably expect from an adherent of a Church that gladly licked Russian communist butt in order to be the immoral recipient of stolen Catholic Church property and point-of-the-gun converts within enslaved Ukraine for decades!

The posting reads like a Saturday Night Live spoof.

"Philaret of New York, the New Confessor" - as if!

As one of my OCA friends said, "They glorified him even before the medical examiner had signed the death certificate."

Their monastery specializes not only in incense but in Southern Baptist and Episcopalian converts. You know, people who, having left a very liberal denomination, find that even the Orthodox Church isn't strict enough for their tastes.

Besides, what fun would there be in leaving a denomination riddled with strife only to end up in one where there wasn't in-fighting. As I said, if you don't collect stamps or do model railroading, the antics of a group like the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia - hurling anathemas hither and yon - makes for endless hours of diversion.

But to suggest that anyone outside of a few small parishes filled (now) with disgruntled converts and (before) with Russian exiles, would take anything "Philaret of New York" would issue seriously . . . please.

Certainly not Roman Catholics in communion with Pope Benedict XVI.

No, Philaret was just one of . . . how many "Orthodox" bishops traisping around New York playing church?