Who really was the one to whom we owe the existence of
our Independent Orthodox Church. Part Two. After the latest actions
of the union between the Pope and the Patriarch, it would be good to review the most
A dramatic moment in the history of Orthodoxy.
This moment came at the Council of Ferrara-Florence in 1438.
The Byzantine Empire was in dire straits. The Turks were approaching. Emperor
John Palaeologus was asking for military help from the West. But the price was
heavy. Union with the Pope, months of negotiations, pressure, money,
promises, threats. And in the end, almost all the Orthodox bishops
signed the text of the Union. All except one. Mark the
Eunuch, bishop of Ephesus, stood alone against the Pope, the
Cardinals, the emperor, political expediency, and said the uncanny.
union of truth. This moment was so decisive that the Pope himself
said we did nothing. Mark was the only bishop who did not sign, but
He was also the most respected theologian in the East. And indeed, when the bishops
Returned to Constantinople, the people revolted. The churches were closed to the
unionists. The signatures were revoked, and the union collapsed before it was even implemented.
One man kept Orthodoxy standing. That is why Mark the Eunuch
remained in history as a pillar of Orthodoxy. The only one who did not sign and
The living symbol that truth is not measured by a majority.
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