The Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church Issued Its Final Decision

The Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church issued its final decision regarding the Council of Crete and the document titled: “Relations of the Orthodox Church with the Rest of the Christian World.”

By unanimous decision — with all bishops present at the Synod meeting held on November 15, 2016 — the Holy Synod:

• Recalled that on June 1, it had requested the postponement of the Council, and that three other Autocephalous Orthodox Churches (the Patriarchates of Antioch, Georgia, and Russia) had done the same afterward.
• Noted that while representatives of the media and various heterodox religious groups were invited to observe the Council, no representatives of the Orthodox Church in America — which is recognized as an autocephalous Church by the Bulgarian Patriarchate — were invited, not even as observers.
• Also observed that the document titled “Relations of the Orthodox Church with the Rest of the Christian World” was not signed by many of the hierarchs present at the Council — some of whom are leading Orthodox theologians.

Further Concerns Raised by the Holy Synod Regarding the Council Document:

Paragraph 4

The Synod clarified that the Church’s prayer for “the unity of all” does not refer to restoring unity with other Christians (as if the Church has lost it), but rather to the return of those who have fallen away to the Church through Baptism, Chrismation, and the Holy Eucharist.
The Synod strongly rejected various theories of unity promoted by heterodox circles, such as the “invisible church theory,” the “branch theory,” the “equality of doctrines theory,” and the recently introduced baptismal theology, which claims there is a primitive unity in a “common baptism.”
These theories are rooted in the doctrine of created grace, which has been condemned by the Orthodox Church.
The Synod also rejected the Vatican II Decree on Ecumenism, viewing it as an expression of the same erroneous ecclesiology.

Paragraph 5

The statement that the Orthodox Church participates in ecumenical initiatives “with the goal of restoring the unity of all Christians” is unacceptable, because the Orthodox Church has never lost its unity.
Heresies and schisms fell away from the Church — not the other way around. The Body of Christ cannot lose its original ontological integrity, as its unity stems from the very nature of Christ Himself.

Paragraph 6

The phrase “The Orthodox Church accepts the historical name of other Churches and ecclesial communities not in communion with her” contradicts Paragraph 1, which affirms that the Orthodox Church is the One Church.
Orthodox dogma and canons make it impossible to accept the existence of multiple Churches. Accepting the “historical name” implies acknowledgment of actual ecclesial status, which contradicts both Paragraphs 1 and 2.
The Synod stated that unless explicitly clarified, this phrase misleads the faithful into believing that multiple true Churches exist — a position that contradicts Orthodox ecclesiology.

Paragraph 12 (original paragraph 20)

The statement that “the goal of theological dialogues is the final restoration of unity in right faith and love” is naïve and ignores the multi-dimensional character of such processes.
Unity must be founded on Orthodox faith, shared doctrine, canonical tradition, and a common liturgical and spiritual life.
The path to unity involves repentance and confession of the Orthodox Faith and Baptism.

The Synod proposed modifying the phrase:

“…based on the canonical criteria of the already established church tradition”
to:
“…based on the canonical criteria of the Orthodox Church’s tradition.”

Overall Concerns

The Synod found many ambiguous expressions, inconsistencies, and problematic ecclesiological language in the document. It also observed that the text fails to clearly define the primary goal of ecumenical dialogues, which is the return of heterodox to the Orthodox Church.
Instead, Paragraph 16 even appears to legitimize the World Council of Churches, from which the Bulgarian Orthodox Church has long since withdrawn.

The Synod further disapproved of the scholastic and overly concise tone in which theological dialogues are regulated (Paragraphs 9–15).

Paragraph 22

The claim that “the safeguarding of Orthodox faith is ensured only through the synodal system” is challenged.
The Synod stressed that the final criterion for accepting church councils is the awakened dogmatic conscience of the entire Orthodox pleroma — the fullness of the Church.
A council is not automatically valid just by being convened; its correctness must be confirmed by the faith of the entire Church.

Final Conclusion:

The Synod summarized its decision by stating:

“The Council of Crete is neither Great, nor Holy, nor Pan-Orthodox.”

Reasons include:

• The non-participation of several Autocephalous Churches
• Organizational errors and theological mistakes
• Although the efforts of those involved are appreciated, the Synod found deviations from Orthodox tradition, as well as dogmatic and canonical inconsistencies that contradict the spirit and letter of the Ecumenical and Local Councils.

The Synod concluded that the Crete Council texts must be subjected to further theological review, correction, editing, or replacement in order to better reflect the Orthodox Church’s tradition and spirit.

On the Bulgarian Orthodox Church’s Position:

The Bulgarian Orthodox Church remains a living and inseparable member of the One, Holy, Catholic (Sobornic) and Apostolic Church.
As a part of the Body of Christ, it continues to maintain fraternal, Eucharistic, spiritual, dogmatic, and canonical communion with all other Local Orthodox Churches — both those that participated in the Council of Crete and those that did not.

The Church is not a worldly institution but a divine-human organism. It must not be influenced by political interests, social pressures, or ideological divisions.
Its Head is our Lord Jesus Christ, who said: “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.”

Lastly, the Synod reaffirmed that autocephaly and conciliarity are not contradictory principles, but mutually supportive aspects of Church life that must function in unity.

Le Saint-Synode de l’Église orthodoxe de Bulgarie a pris position sur le Concile de Crète et le texte « Les relations de l’Église orthodoxe avec le reste du monde chrétien »

Official source:

https://bg-patriarshia.bg/news/stanovishte-na-sv-sinod-otnosno-sabora-v-krit-2016-i-teksta