To Whom Are Bishops Compared by Those Who Assert They Cannot Err? And Regarding Free Will #
New Ritualist: Your reasoning is eloquent, but it’s unfair. Suppose the Church could exist without a bishop, like a ship lacking some of its crew, and that, by preserving the Orthodox faith, it remains a sound vessel. Even so, you Old Believers are still in the wrong. After all, you had no bishops because you believe that all of them fell into error. The question then arises: where is it written that all bishops can err and go astray?
Old Ritualist: And where is it written that they cannot?
New Ritualist: There’s no need to prove that. Individually, any bishop might err, but collectively—never. It is in the nature of the episcopal rank that all bishops of the Orthodox Church cannot fall into error. This is what our Orthodox Church teaches.
Old Ritualist: First, this is written nowhere. Second, if bishops cannot err and fall into error, then that would mean they are not human. Consider for yourself: who cannot err and go astray? Only God, on the one hand, and animals, on the other. God cannot err or go astray because He is the highest, most perfect, all-good, and all-holy being. Animals, and all creatures devoid of reason and free will, cannot err or go astray because they lack intelligence and free will. Therefore, if your Church teaches that bishops cannot err or go astray, it places them either on par with God Himself or with mindless beasts. Both of these views are equally blasphemous and contrary to the teachings of the holy apostles and fathers. Humans, no matter what rank they hold, are always capable of falling into error. The holy Apostle Paul teaches that not only bishops but also apostles and even angels from heaven can err and fall into error, which is why he pronounces an anathema on them if they dare to stray into error (Galatians 1:8, reading 199). And the holy Apostle John the Theologian plainly says: “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us” (1 John 1:8, reading 69). The Council of Carthage in its 128th rule decrees: “It is also decreed concerning the words of the holy Apostle John: ‘If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us’ (1 John 1:8). If anyone dares to interpret this as if it were said only for the sake of humility, and not as a true statement, let him be anathema. For the Apostle continues and adds: ‘If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness’ (1 John 1:9).” This makes it very clear that these words are spoken not only for humility but as a matter of truth. For the Apostle might have said: “If we say we have no sin, we exalt ourselves and lack humility,” but instead, he said: “we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us,” thus plainly showing that anyone who claims to be without sin does not speak the truth but lies (complete translation of the canons). The venerable Evagrius teaches: “There is no angel who cannot sin, nor is there a demon who is evil by nature; both were created by God with free will” (Philokalia, vol. 1, p. 617). From this teaching of the holy apostles and fathers, it is evident that no rational creature is incapable of erring and going astray; not only bishops but even apostles and heavenly angels could err and fall into error, though, without a doubt, they will not.
New Ritualist: By teaching that bishops, apostles, and even angels from heaven can err and sin, you clearly demean and insult them. This is an unforgivable audacity, which is rejected by our Orthodox Church. It teaches that not only angels or apostles but also bishops cannot err or sin.
Old Ritualist: The teaching that not only bishops but apostles and even angels could err is not my own but that of the holy apostles and fathers, and as such, it is neither demeaning nor insulting to anyone. In fact, it is your teaching—that bishops cannot err—which is demeaning and insulting to them: it likens them to mindless animals and deprives them of the hope of eternal blessedness for upholding the Orthodox faith. A sheep cannot be fierce; it is a very meek animal. But for its meekness, it can receive no reward from God, precisely because it cannot be anything but meek and cannot become fierce. Beasts, animals, and in general all creatures cannot err, cannot stray into heresy; but they receive no reward for this, precisely because they cannot err or stray into heresy. The same applies to your bishops: if they cannot err or fall into error, cannot deviate from Orthodox faith, then they deserve no reward for holding it, because they cannot do otherwise, they hold it by necessity, not out of love for God and His holy commandments. Such teaching held by your Church indeed degrades and offends the dignity of bishops. And if your Church teaches that they cannot err and go astray by virtue of their qualities and holiness, like God Himself, this is an unforgivable audacity that insults God Himself.
The teaching that bishops can err and sin, and can uphold Orthodox faith, contains nothing strange or absurd, nor anything opposed to the Word of God. If they can err and fall into error, can deviate into heresy, but do not do so out of love for God and His holy commandments, they will receive a great reward from God. The martyrs could have denied Christ, but they did not—and for that, they received the Kingdom of Heaven. The holy ascetics could have committed all manner of evil deeds but refrained—and for that, they received a worthy reward from God. The holy fathers and teachers of the Church could have fallen into heresies and errors but did not—and thus, they were deemed worthy of inheriting the Kingdom of Heaven. On the other hand, unbelieving pagans could have believed in Christ, but they did not—and thus, they perished. Heretics could have refrained from falling into heresy but did not—and so they will be condemned to eternal torments.
This teaching of the holy apostles and fathers on the free will of every person to act as he sees fit and to receive due recompense for his deeds is in no way demeaning or insulting either to bishops, apostles, or even to angels themselves. St. Basil the Great writes:
Why is a man wicked? By his own choice. Why is the devil evil? For the same reason; because he had a free life and was given the power either to remain with God or to turn away from the Good. Gabriel is an angel and always stands before God. Satan was an angel and completely fell from his rank. The will preserved the former in the heavens, and the free will cast down the latter. The former could have become an apostate, and the latter could have refrained from falling. But one was saved by insatiable love for God, while the other became rejected through separation from God (Works of Basil the Great, Part 4, Homily 9, p. 157).
Thus, the free will to choose good or evil, to keep or break the commandments of God, and to uphold or reject the Orthodox faith is in no way humiliating for bishops, nor even for the angels themselves. But your teaching, that bishops allegedly cannot err or fall, indeed degrades and insults not only bishops but every rational creature, making them akin to mindless animals, and contradicts the teaching of the holy fathers.
St. Basil the Great also addresses those who question why sinlessness was not granted in our very nature, such that it would be impossible to sin even if we wanted to. He writes: “For the same reason that you do not consider your servants reliable only when they are bound, but when you see them fulfill their duties voluntarily. Therefore, God also desires not forced, but voluntary actions. Virtue comes from free will, not from necessity; free will depends on what is within us, and what is within us is free. Therefore, whoever blames the Creator for not making us naturally sinless does nothing less than prefer an irrational nature to a rational one; he favors an unmoving, will-less nature over one endowed with free will and autonomy” (Works, Part 4, Homily 9, p. 156). Thus, the teaching that bishops, as human beings endowed with free will, can err, go astray, and also uphold the Orthodox faith, is not at all degrading or insulting to them. If they uphold the Orthodox faith by choice, then this is a virtue; if they uphold it by necessity, then holding the Orthodox faith is not a virtue, for virtue comes from free will, not from necessity.
And if bishops, as you teach, cannot deviate into heresy or sin, cannot help but uphold the Orthodox faith, and thus remain in it out of necessity rather than of their own free will, then holding the Orthodox faith is no virtue for them, and they can expect no reward from God for it, just as a sheep receives no reward for its meekness, or an animal receives no reward for being unable to fall into heresy. Generally, mindless and unfeeling creatures, like cattle, trees, or stones, fulfill the laws established by the Creator without fail. So, by your teaching about bishops being unable to stray into error or sin, you grievously demean and insult them, likening them to senseless animals or to completely soulless creations.
It is even worse if you claim that bishops cannot err or go astray because of their personal or hierarchical qualities, virtues, and attributes. This would equate them to God Himself, who by His nature cannot err; and that is a great and audacious blasphemy. The venerable Ephraim the Syrian teaches: “If by nature we are evil, then the Creator is to blame; but if our free will is evil, then the guilt lies with us. If we lack free will, then for what is our will held accountable? If our will is not free, then God judges it unjustly; but if it is free, then it rightly faces judgment. Accountability is inherently tied to freedom. The law encompasses both; for free will is accountable if it oversteps the boundaries set by the Judge. Why should a truthful Creator deceive us? If He did not give us freedom, then He gave us no law” (Works of Ephraim the Syrian, Part 5, ch. 146, pp. 38-41). “Blessed is the Creator, who does not compel the faithless; for they have received free will” (ibid., p. 350). The outcome of the battle depends on a person’s free will—whether they are victorious or defeated in this struggle (ibid., ch. 169, p. 322). “All men have intelligence and with it, free will; thus, each one lives according to his will; God compels no one to live either virtuously or wickedly. Each person’s choice determines good and evil. For every man ought to live well and godly, for he possesses both reason and free will: thus we praise those who choose good by their own will, not out of necessity; and especially all Christians ought not to be forced to correct sinful stumbling. The Lord crowns not those who avoid sin by necessity but those who willingly do good. What is naturally good is a requirement; but what is chosen freely is praiseworthy and leads to salvation” (Gospel Commentary, Homily on the Prodigal Son). “God neither forces nor compels one to His will, but respects free will. Who, having invited one to honor and crowns and feasts and festivities, drags him forcibly, tied, into it? No one; for that would be oppressive, not honoring. God calls us to heaven willingly, and sends to hell unwillingly; and why do not all make this choice? Only because of their own weakness, which God does not remove from us. Why not? Because He honors us, calling us kindly with His goodness.” (Great Catechism, ch. 43, p. 193).
In the Gospel Commentary, we read: “The Gospel: ‘Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick, and it gives light to all that are in the house’ (Matt. 5:15). Explanation: ‘I, says (Christ to the apostles), have kindled the light of your heart and placed it on high to shine to all; and that the grace that is in you should not go out depends on your effort. This is what it means to not put it under a bushel, but to let the light of your life shine to others’” (Commentary on Matthew, reading 11).
After all of this, how can you dare to proclaim that bishops cannot err or go astray by the nature of their rank? Does this not insult God? Is it not an affront to the episcopal rank to either equate bishops with God or liken them to mindless, senseless creatures lacking free will, such as cattle, trees, or stones? Do you not strip them of the hope of receiving eternal bliss for upholding the Orthodox faith?