March 3, 7534
It is impossible to be saved outside the Church (naturally, we mean the Orthodox and true Church). This truth is so firmly rooted in the Old Believer consciousness that we need not prove its validity. The “patristic” testimonies concerning the essential truth of the Church for salvation are known to all of us. Therefore, in…
“And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein.” (Rev. 11:1) “And though the Spirit is one, yet the gifts are not equal,for the recipients of the Spirit are not equal;Such is the…
The Lord Jesus Christ once said: “Verily I say unto you, If two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of My Father which is in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in…
A person who has decided to follow Christ and become a true Christian needs to carefully read the Gospel and understand that hostility from relatives and close ones toward any true Christian’s faith is not unusual. Our Lord Jesus Christ told His disciples: “If ye were of the world, the world would love his own:…
We should not presume to take God’s judgment into our hands. We do not know who will perish or who will be saved—that is God’s domain: “There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy.”(James 4:12) We should focus on our own salvation: “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.”(Philippians…
The Russian Orthodox Old Believer Church is the modern name for the Church founded by Christ Himself. In the Creed, we profess: “I believe… in one holy, catholic, and apostolic Church.” By this, we affirm that we preserve the same true faith that once existed throughout the entire universe. We do not require any correction…
We believe and confess that an Orthodox priest, in relation to a heretical bishop, is by no means “lesser,” but—by virtue of his belonging to the True Church of Christ and his authority to bind and loose sins—he is “greater” than a heretical bishop who has not joined the Church of Christ. While there is…
The Holy Fathers call schismatics (heretics of the second rank) those who introduce novelties into Church tradition, thereby separating themselves from the unity of faith. The Orthodox Old Believers not only introduced no novelties but actively resisted the innovations attempted by Patriarch Nikon and his like-minded followers. The holy martyr Protopriest Avvakum wrote in his Fifth…
The medieval Russian concept was slightly different and more comprehensive in its original form. Its essence can be summarized as follows: the First Rome, the Orthodox kingdom, fell into heresy; the Second Rome (Constantinople) fell to the Turks; now the last Orthodox kingdom is Moscow, the “Third Rome.” If Moscow were to fall, there would…
It is quite common to hear statements like this: “I am Orthodox, baptized, but I don’t go to church. I don’t trust priests. But I believe in God in my soul. I wear a cross. I’ve been taught not to steal or wish harm on others. I believe that’s enough. After all, the main thing…