On the Freemasonic Roots of the Ecumenical Movement - St. Seraphim of Sofia

St. Seraphim of Sofia discusses an important aspect of the Ecumenical Movement in the 20th century: Freemasonry. Presenting to the Moscow Pan-Orthodox Congress of 1948, which included representatives from nearly all autocephalous Orthodox churches, St. Seraphim highlights the well-known Freemason, John Raleigh Mott, the main promoter of "unity" among separate Christian groups. Mott spearheaded the 1910 World Missionary Conference in Edinburgh and the first meeting of the World Council of Churches in 1948. Mott helped send Protestant student missionaries with the YMCA to evangelize Orthodox countries and for his ecumenical efforts won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1946. St. Seraphim understands that ecumenical efforts only serve to blur the boundaries between the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church (the Orthodox Church) and other sects claiming to be part of the Church. Such blurring draws people away from the only place, as St. Seraphim teaches, men can become saints: the Orthodox Church. Unfortunately, despite St. Seraphim's warning of the sinister nature and dreadful consequences of the Ecumenical Movement for Holy Orthodoxy, the Patriarchate of Moscow joined the World Council of Churches at its Third Assembly in New Delhi in 1961 and has been one of its most active members ever since.

-READ the book of his life and works:
-READ a brief account of St. Seraphim's life here:
-RESOURCE to help laity write respectful letters to their hierarchs:
-FIND an Orthodox parish and monastery near you:

This recording is an excerpt from "Does the Russian Orthodox Church Need to Participate in the Ecumenical Movement? (Part II/II)":

TEXTS on Freemasonry and Orthodoxy:
-Freemasonry: Official Statement of the Church of Greece (1933):
-Freemasonry and the Orthodox Church. This article details, among other things, that Ecumenical Patriarchs Meletios (+1935) and Athenagoras (+1972) were Freemasons:

VIDEOS on Freemasonry from an Orthodox viewpoint:
-Elder Athanasios Mitilinaios on Revelation
-Freemasonry: Today’s Satanic Gnosticism by Fr. Peter Heers (analyzing the teachings of Elder Athanasios Mitilinaios)

BOOKS/ARTICLES on Ecclesiology and Ecumenism:
--Orthodoxy and the Religion of the Future by Fr. Seraphim Rose
--The Orthodox Church and Ecumenism by St. Justin Popovic
--The Missionary Origins of Modern Ecumenism by Fr. Peter Heers
--A Confession of Faith Against Ecumenism (signed by saints, elders, hierarchs, priests, and laity around the world):
--On Common Prayer with the Heterodox According to the Canons of the Church by Fr. Anastasios Gotsopoulos
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St. Seraphim teaches:

From this, it is obvious who really stands behind the ecumenical movement: Freemasons, longtime foes of the Orthodox Church. It is also clear to what end the ecumenical movement, at all of its gatherings since its inception, has striven: not a dogmatic union of all so-called “Christian churches” with the Orthodox Church, but a commixture of both, achieved by means of the falling away of the Orthodox from their Faith through an ecumenical familiarity with heretics, especially with Protestants. This commixture is equivalent to the destruction of Orthodoxy.

For not joining the ecumenical movement as the Orthodox ecumenists have, we are accused of an essential lack of love for non-Orthodox Christians. However, through their involvement in the ecumenical movement, Orthodox ecumenists break the Holy Canons; violate Orthodox ecclesiological dogma; establish friendships with Protestants and Freemasons at ecumenical gatherings, which makes them lenient toward Protestants propagandizing in Orthodox countries; and assist the enemies of the Orthodox Church in their work for Her elimination.
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Orthodox Wisdom is dedicated to sharing the writings and lives of the Saints of the Orthodox Church. Glory to Jesus Christ!

[OrthodoxWisdom]

At 7:17 St. Seraphim begins speaking about Freemasonry, but the preceding is important context to understanding the whole approach of the ecumenical movement and leading figures like John Raleigh Mott.

[Jeremiah-puvp]

The context warning above about freemasonry is an indication that you're speaking the truth. Thank you!

[HickoryDickory]

A desperately needed message for today. Saint Seraphim of Sophia, prayer for us!

[dylanpabon]

JesusChrist please protect our souls from this evil modern world societies 🙏🏻☦️

[Vlad-ortho]

Thank you from Russia. It’s crystal clear that most of ex-communicated heretics among Russian Orthodox Church’s clergy had strong leaning towards protestant heresy.

[lindamorgan]

Thank you. We all have to say no to Ecumenical Movement . I have learned lots listening to your presentation. Common sense says it is wrong but nice to know more background and the facts to back our opinion. God Bless

[NavelOrangeGazer]

What's the saying "communism for the poor, masonry for the rich, atheism for the intellegensia."

[JesusForgivesTodayhq]

Here is the true gospel : How You Can Know You Have Eternal Life ! Realize you are a sinner being sorry. Sin is lying, evil thoughts, lust, etc. Therefore, do not trust in your own works to go to heaven because you realize, being a sinner, you cannot offer the perfect blood sacrifice that God requires to pay for sin. Instead, believe, meaning fully trust firmly, that in Christ's love for you, on the cross, His one perfect blood sacrifice, when Christ bled, suffered and died, in your place, paid for your sins in full, past, present and future ! Believe that Jesus rose from the dead ! Believe Jesus is God Almighty, God the Son, alive for evermore ! And believe that the sinless blood of Jesus Christ is what cleanses you from all sin, which purifies your soul ! Then the Lord Jesus will forgive you of all your sins and give you eternal life ! And you will be sealed with the Holy Spirit who will fill you with God's love forever, thank God ! Rom.3:25, 5:8, 9, 10:9, Is.53:5, 6, II Cor.5:21, Ephes.1:7, 13, 4:30, Heb.10:14, 38, 39, I John 1:7, 5:7, 13, 20

[stephenmorrison]

Wow.... I was not aware of the association with the YMCA and John

[machinotaur]

Wait, Freemasons did YMCA? Dang it! This is like learning that the Salvation Army isn't just a thrift shop with an aggressive Christmas fundraiser all over again!

[GnohmPolaeon.B.OniShartz]

As usual, i could not be more different. Yet? As usual. I couldn't agree more.

Bring the mind and body together so the soul may return from war.

So we may all, march to war.

And it cannot be forced as many wish.

"No white flags, we've had enough. No giving up. This is our war to win."

[CSep-tnxm]

An important note: according to the World Council of Churches, all of the Eastern Orthodox Churches (with the exceptions of Georgia, Bulgaria, and Estonia) are members of the World Council of Churches.

[billygoat]

JESUS IS GOD ALMIGHTY AMEN JESUS IS THE CREATOR MASTER SON OF GOD 💪 😁 JESUS IS GOD ALMIGHTY JESUS SAVES NOT RELIGION ONLY JESUS CAN SAVE YOUR SOUL BRO TRUST JESUS CHRIST AS YOUR SAVIOUR TODAY CAUSE YOUR NOT PROMISE ANOTHER SECOND DON'T WAIT UNTIL ITS TO LATE 🙏 BELIEVE THE GOSPEL 1ST CORINTHIANS 15:1-4 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the GOSPEL which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; 2 By which also ye are SAVED, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. 3 For I delivered unto you first of all that Which I also received, how that CHRIST died for our sins according to the scriptures; 4 And that HE was buried, and that HE rose again the third day according to the scriptures: Ephesians 1:13 In WHOM ye also TRUSTED, after that ye heard the word of TRUTH, the GOSPEL of your SALVATION: in WHOM also after that ye believed, ye were SEALED with that HOLY SPIRIT OF PROMISE 😁

[anastunya]

What a coincidence! I was just reading about St. Seraphim of Sofia in an essay about the troubled history of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church. It said St. Seraphim was very pious and holy, nothing about his skill at apologetics. Sounds like the NKVD “informed” the saint about only the ecumenical groups that had some Masonic leaders. The Saint probably knew nothing of Rev. Frank Buchman’s “Oxford Groups” that were so influential in the resistance to Hitler in the twentieth century, including Orthodox royal families using Rev. Buchman, a Lutheran, as a spiritual adviser. Stalin said he hated Buchman’s message of peace, , because he did not want workers and owners of businesses to reconcile.
This essay uses the classic logical fallacy of the strawman. They define all conversations between Orthodoxy and other Christians or religion as ECUMENISM!, using examples from the twenty century trying to lure Orthodox to give up their beliefs. In my experience, such interfaith interaction usually leads to Catholics and Protestants inquiring into becoming Orthodox. The Moscow version of Orthodoxy has yet to renounce, denounce, and exorcize Stalin’s politicization of the church and the seminaries he founded, and recently seemed to have doubled down on using ikons and church services to bless the Kremlin’s imperial designs on its neighbors. Since the invasion of the Republic of Novogrod and murder of the Metropolitan who refused to bless the invasion, the Kremlin has established a pattern of accusing the Pope or the West of threatening Orthodoxy to justify its political ambitions. Typical of the Kremlin to use only the words of a Russian saint living in Bulgaria, taken out of context, to pitch their propaganda. The Orthodox Church and its ikons are not props to be used for political purposes.

[EdiTheDon]

Isnt ecumenism being pushed by the RCC?

[priestmethodiuschwastek]

Timothy, do your listeners usually use such vitriol in their communications with Orthodox clergy and others? It is strange how much passion they express while withholding what I presume are very good arguments. Thank you for posting this reading though. It is very helpful to be reminded that even Sergianists in the 1940s were leery of involvement in the WCC. If they had stuck by their position in the 60s and maintained it, at least we wouldn't be dealing with that now. I love this channel.

[archievolunteer]

Something happened to the video of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion examined by St. Seraphim Rose?

[OrthodoxChristianTreasures]

Dr. Mott was an American, he was born in Iowa.

[FictionCautious]

All churches united under nataS.?
Great shocker, right?

[orthodoxpilgrimofficial]

And why are we still in the World Council of Churches if ecumenism is supposed to be so bad? Makes no sense at all what someone has claimed!