Cyprus hierarch: The priest who called the pope a heretic said honest truth
Christ forgave Protopresbyter John Diotis all his sins for his confession of faith, the Cypriot metropolitan believes.
Metropolitan Neophytos of Morphou of the Orthodox Church of Cyprus said that the Greek priest, who called the pope a heretic, said the pure truth, according to the myrophoros website.
During a sermon on the feast of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker in the monastery of St. Nicholas in the village of Orunta, Metropolitan Neophytos reminded the believers of Pope Francis's visit to Athens.
His Eminence said that among those who were waiting for the moment when the Pope would enter the Archdiocese was Father John Diotis, who made a great contribution to the Church, “since it was through his efforts that the entire Patrology of Min was published in 150 volumes and patristic writings spread worldwide."
“At the sight of the pontiff, this old man raised his voice and shouted, “Pope, you are a heretic!” He was instantly grabbed by the police and dragged away. The police did their job. But Father John also did his job,” the hierarch recalled.
He is sure that "at that very moment Christ forgave and blotted out from the Book of Life all the sins committed by Father John for his courageous confession of faith."
Moreover, Vladyka believes that the priest spoke the honest truth, and his words were not insulting: “We will not concelebrate with the Pope and with whatever pastors, because they distort the faith.”
“Moreover, someone has to tell them the truth when everyone else is silent. Why are we silent? For fear of the Jews? Or because out of fear of the police? Where is that spirit of self-sacrifice possessed by saints, for example, Saint Nicholas, who was imprisoned by Constantine the Great? And it was Christ Himself and the Mother of God who liberated him. Christ handed him the Gospel, while the Mother of God gave him the omophorion,” emphasized Metropolitan Neophytos.
According to him, “there are different ways to attain holiness: either great exploits, or confession of faith, or martyrdom in the name of Christ. But be that as it may, the sine qua non is the purity of the Orthodox faith. Only then do we become partakers of the holiness of God: the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,” the hierarch summed up.
Earlier, the UOJ wrote that in Athens, the police detained an elderly cleric for shouting "Pope, you are a heretic!"
