24 November / 7 December 2001
Holy Great-Martyr Catherine

Beloved-in-Christ faithful clergy and flock of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad.

The adherents and followers of the wayward metropolitan Lavr [Laurus], so-called, who is attempting to seize ecclesiastical power in our Church, have left us, departing completely off the spiritual path.

Seeing the discord in our Church, I resumed the rights attendant to [being] the head of the Church. In response to this, archbp. Lavr’s Synod, with the participation of bishops Michael and Gabriel, launched a real persecution against me. I was subjected to arrests by the civil authorities, without the least indication being given of any reason for my [supposed] guilt. It was exclusively for the sake of cleansing the Church of such apostates, that new bishops: Bp. Sergii of Mansonville, Bp. Vladimir of Sacramento and Bp. Varfolomey of Grenada — faithful to the traditional confession of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, and following in the footsteps of Metropolitans Antonii, Anastasii and Philaret — were ordained with my blessing and participation.

The apostates led by archbp. Lavr cannot be considered as being within the enclosure of the Church.

I call upon all the faithful sons and daughters of our Church of Christ to endure steadfastly the anguish and distress of our troubled and wicked time, and firmly to confess the Orthodox Faith.

I invoke the blessing of God upon all faithful followers of Christ’s Truth, and thank everyone for [your] help and prayers for me, a sinner.