OCA's Metropolitan Jonah Resigns

So sad. I know that not everyone liked him, but when I met him he seemed like he was a very kind and patient man. He was kind to my son and not everyone is.

That really sucks. I always LIKED him!

That is unfortunate. I pray for a worthy replacement.

This is really sad and disappointing. OCA still has some rough waters ahead and I wonder how long this is going to last.

Lord have mercy.

Goodbye Metropolitan+ Jonah

Oh dear

This is very sad , and will I fear lead to all sorts of uncomfortable questions .

Prayers for the OCA that they will emerge from this new trouble stronger than ever

The individual call to study to become a Doctor of the Eastern Orthodox Church?..

One becomes a true theologian in Orthodox Christianity by praying.
Western Theologians study God, attempt to dissect Him, and sometimes fragment Him to pieces.
I knew several Catholic seminarians who became atheists as a result.

Metropolitan Jonah is a monk, most of the OCA bishops were not monks, or like Bishop Benjamin, only spent a few weeks in a monastery, but never really lived the monastic life. I think that is the difference, and why there was strife. Monastics can make worldly bishops feel very uneasy as they can see into the soul.

nevermind

Ortho_Cat said:

"As per your unanimous request"

I wonder what led to this "unamimous request"??

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To be honest, I think this is the part that makes me the most uneasy. I can't blame Metropolitan Jonah. If his own brothers don't want him.... This whole thing is troubling.

I think at the end, though, it really does come down to this:

I had come to the realization long ago that that I have neither the personality nor the temperament for the position of Primate, a position I never sought nor desired.

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He's phenomenal in many ways and will be of great service to the Church in the coming decades, but the head of the OCA needs to have the ability to function well as the leader of the national organization in addition to being a great spiritual and pastoral leader (as much as I hate using the leadership in a churchly context). Certain voices will try to make this about a "lavender mafia" and the "culture wars", but I think they're wrong. The former is silly and the latter only comes into play insofar as it distracted from his real duties and played into his "[having] neither the personality nor the temperament for the position".

I am Antiochian & attend an OCA church out of town when visiting family there. Since Fr Jonah's tenure as Metropolitan, I had seen this parish transform from a stable congregation to a thriving one with a young priest overseeing a flock with a burgeoning playpen of infants & children. I cannot say if the whole OCA has been like this but I tend to think so at least in varying positive degrees. I pray that all will be well with Fr Jonah, the new Metropolitan, & the OCA.

This breaks my heart. Metropolitan Jonah worked incredibly hard to fulfill the expectations placed upon his shoulders. He was also one of the most kind and gentle people I have ever met.

Count me as one of the bewildered regarding the "unanimous request".

Lukaris said:

I am Antiochian & attend an OCA church out of town when visiting family there. Since Fr Jonah's tenure as Metropolitan, I had seen this parish transform from a stable congregation to a thriving one with a young priest overseeing a flock with a burgeoning playpen of infants & children. I cannot say if the whole OCA has been like this but I tend to think so at least in varying positive degrees. I pray that all will be well with Fr Jonah, the new Metropolitan, & the OCA.

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I would probably attribute that to local conditions first.

Lord have mercy

Wow. Reading the OP, it brings sadness to my heart. I pray for Met. Jonah and the OCA.

Ioannis said:

To be honest, I think this is the part that makes me the most uneasy. I can't blame Metropolitan Jonah. If his own brothers don't want him.... This whole thing is troubling.

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Eh, I wouldn't read too much into it. It could be as simple as "hey guys, I'm not cut out for this, so I want to resign" "Ok, we all agree, please write us a formal letter". That's the way things work in Church governance.

Dn. Nikolai