Son of the famous Romanian philosopher Constantin Noica, Father Raphael Noica is renowned as one of the greatest Romanian contemporary elders.
Father Raphael has recently given an interview for Doxologia.ro, speaking about the Holy and Great Council of the Orthodox Church, which took place this June in Crete.
Nothing was done on the line to sell Orthodoxy, Fr. Rahael Noica said. On the contrary, I consider this Council a good start. Other councils should follow it in order to specify certain things, and everyone agrees with this.
Referring to other Christian Churches, Elder Raphael pointed out the following: How could we not say they are a church, since they have the awareness of being church? On the other hand, in our own conscience, how could we think of them as Church, when knowing that the Church is One and Holy? And I say this not because I am Orthodox and a patriot, but because it is a reality.
Especially in the Old Testament, God made many concessions (applied economy) because of human helplessness, Fr. Raphael said.
If you take a closer look, especially in the Old Testament, God made many concessions (applied economy many times). Through economy, we call them a church, but our dogmatic conscience should not decrease. These are two things related to the life in God: if we are too rigorous, then we can lose God. If we become careless, then we lose God also.
The first economy applied by God is related to Adam and Eve. Adam falls, and God says: The man has now become like one of Us, knowing good and evil (Genesis 3:22). How then has man become like one of Them, since he had been separated from God? Through economy, God speaks a human language, addapted to man’s understanding; and often He makes concessions observing human helplessness. God wants to share something in order to raise man higher and higher unto deification. So, let our zeal be not as of some [ who reject the decisions of the Council, TN], but let not my economy trick me neither.
At the end of the interview, Fr Raphael noted that the Romanian Orthodox Church was well prepared for this Council. He also made reference to the statements of Metropolitan Ierotheos Vlachos regarding the delegation of our Church.
Patriarch Daniel, far from being an ecumenist, was the backbone of Orthodoxy at this Council. I think no other than His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel is more appropriate and capable to defend our Church today.
