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Ben Luigi

@RealBenLuigi

Nov 2, 2025

Orthodox Saints and their support of the Romanian Iron Guard, Legion of Archangel Michael🧵

I do not endorse every single action of theirs, nor do the Saints. But this does not mean that it wasn’t a movement grounded in Orthodox Christian virtue.

“It was at that moment that the belief took hold in me — and it has never left me — that one who fights for God and his people, even if alone, will never be defeated.”
- Corneliu Zelea Codreanu

Fr. Iustin Pârvu (highly venerated)

The initiators of the Legionary Movement were, first of all, model Christian people; they were models of society. They brought a great contribution to the nation and to the Church in that period. They rebuilt the church and spiritual life of the people, because there had been a certain decline. They maintained a burning flame of prayer, they maintained a living spirit of sacrifice and self-giving, of humanity. Those young people did not pursue political goals, but only to exalt the nation along the line of the Church. It was not a matter of some error, of putting the nation above the Church, but only of bringing the nation into the Church, and to this consolidation contributed the highest minds of our culture and spirituality of that time, which we now bury.
They succeeded in giving the peasant a cheaper bread; that was, moreover, their goal. Besides that, they played a very important role in containing communism. For example, in 1920, when the red flag was hoisted in Iaşi above the workshops in Nicolina, alongside Marx’s photograph, Codreanu rose and threw that red rag down from there. Then many young people attached themselves to the Legionary Movement. There were many foreign maneuvers that introduced corruption into our country, especially the Russians and the Jews, who controlled the press, education and commerce. The Legionnaires had nothing against the Jewish people as such. Indeed, there were many Jewish sympathizers of the Movement, and Radu Gyr himself founded the Jewish Theatre. However, they rose up against them when they threatened our Romanian territory.
Politics has always been like the paganism with which Christianity fought over the centuries, since its beginnings. As then, as St. Justin the Martyr and Philosopher said, the Christian must renounce pagan immoralities, then learn the Christian law, know the true philosophy of cultivating spiritual qualities and then apply them practically in everyday life. This is what the Legionary Movement did, and their sincere work was crowned by the good God with martyrdom. Of course those who won wrote history and wrote it as they pleased, turning the legionnaires into terrorists, Nazis, anti-Semites. It is known that there was a friendly relationship between Codreanu and the chief rabbi of Romania, who was very impressed by the Captain’s personality, and they engaged in discussions. The Captain was even against Nazism. If it were not for the Legionary Movement we would have had the same fate as the Serbs, as they were decimated by the Germans, with the protection of the papacy included. After all, both the Russians and the Germans were states with a strong atheistic doctrine.
Romanian youths, sympathizers or members of the Legionary Movement, were the only ones in Europe who openly rose up against communism. They rose up against the totalitarian abuses and the sins promoted by communist doctrine, with all its injustices and scourges. These young people greatly enraged Freemasonry, the enemies of Christianity, and awakened all of Europe from the drowsiness in which it was.
These martyrs are inconvenient even after death. But they will all come before judgment and will see to whom truth and justice belonged. If here on earth they could not be convinced even by our sacrifices, they will be convinced beyond by the decree of God. “Depart from Me, for I do not know you…”
These martyrs who were part of the Legionary Movement had nothing in common and no connection with Hitlerism. They are now accused of fascism precisely to discredit the movement, yet all the great men of culture of Romania from that period supported this movement. We are not interested in the political question. These young people were imprisoned especially for their religious convictions which could influence the Christian masses…
(Text taken from the book “From the Teachings and Miracles of Father Justin”, Justin Pârvu Foundation) atitudini.com/2015/03/parint…

St. Ilarion Felea

“I have not engaged in politics and I am not a Legionary, but I speak as a priest: The Legionary Movement will surely triumph, because:
(1) it has won over the youth of the country;
(2) it has a leader who knows what he wants and is listened to;
(3) it has as its foundation truth, faith, and Christian love—and against these we have no power.”

“Nu am făcut politică și nu sunt legionar, dar vorbesc ca preot: Mișcarea legionară va birui sigur, căci: (1) a cucerit tinerimea țării; (2) are un cap care știe ce vrea și e ascultat; (3) are la temelia ei adevărul, credința și dragostea creștină și împotriva acestora nu avem nicio putere.”
— Quoted in the Romanian theological journal Teologia (2008), citing Felea’s wartime personal journal (Opera vieții mele – ziar personal 1937–1944). revistateologia.ro/downloads/Teol…

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Ben Luigi

@RealBenLuigi

Jul 1, 2025

Orthodox Saints answer the question: do Muslims and jews worship the Christian God? 🧵

According to Daniel Sahas, Muslims who entered the Church were required to anathematize the God of Muhammad as early as the late eighth century.

Byzantium and Islam by Daniel Sahas, pg. 434 almuslih.org/wp-content/upl…

St. Gregory Palamas (1296-1359):

Brutally taken out of context by Latin schismatics. Aside from my post yesterday, here is further evidence of him explicitly saying they do not worship God, but serve Satan:

“They have turned away from the true light and embraced a shadow, calling it God, but it is not He whom we worship. They think they are pleasing God by their works, but they are far from the truth.”
Patrologia Graeca Vol. 151

In Greek, "Ἀπεστράφησαν τὸ φῶς τὸ ἀληθινὸν καὶ ἀντελάβοντο σκιὰν, καλοῦντες αὐτὴν Θεόν, ἀλλ’ οὐκ ἔστιν οὗτος ὃν ἡμεῖς προσκυνοῦμεν."

archive.org/details/patrol…

> “As for Muhammad, we do not see that the Prophets bear witness of him, nor do we have the witness of him performing any miracles and noteworthy works. It is true that Muhammad started from the East and came to the West, as the sun travels from East to West. **Nevertheless, he came with war, knives, pillaging, forced enslavement, murders,** **__and acts that are not from the good God but instigated by the chief manslayer, the devil.__**”
`— St. Gregory Palamas, Against Islam: Letter to His Church While in Turkish Captivity.`

> “Another disciple writes, ‘Even if an angel from heaven preach any other gospel to you than that which we have preached to you, let him be accursed’ (Gal. 1:8). **The Evangelist says, ‘Every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God’ (1 Jn. 4:3).** **__How shall we accept a book (the Qur’an) that says there shall come one (Muhammad) from God, who is not actually the Lord, when the Evangelist declares, that one is not from God, if he does not confess that Jesus, who has come in the flesh, is the Lord?__** **__This is not possible to do — no, it is not.__**”
`— St. Gregory Palamas, Against Islam: Letter to His Church While in Turkish Captivity.`

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Ben Luigi

@RealBenLuigi

May 7, 2025

Given there are those blaspheming Tsar St. Nicholas II today, I find appropriate this thread: The Coronation of the Russian Tsar🧵☦️

The procession to the Cathedral of the Dormition, where the Coronation ceremony will take place:

The ceremony begins with the prayer of the Metropolitan as follows:

“O Lord our God, King of kings and Lord of lords, who through Samuel the prophet didst choose Thy servant David and didst anoint him to be king over Thy people Israel; hear now the supplication of us though unworthy, and look forth from Thy holy dwelling place and vouchsafe to anoint with the oil of gladness Thy faithful servant N., whom Thou hast been pleased to establish as king over Thy holy people which Thou hast made Thine own by the precious blood of Thine Only-begotten Son. Clothe him with power from on high; set on his head a crown of precious stones; bestow on him length of days, set in his right hand a scepter of salvation; establish him upon the throne of righteousness; defend him with the panoply of thy Holy Spirit; strengthen his arm; subject to him all the barbarous nations; sow in his heart the fear of Thee and feeling for his subjects; preserve him in the blameless faith; make him manifest as the sure guardian of the doctrines of Thy Holy Catholic Church; that he may judge Thy people in righteousness and Thy poor in judgment, and save the sons of those in want and may be an heir of Thy heavenly kingdom. [Aloud] For Thine is the might and Thine is the kingdom and the power, of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.”

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Ben Luigi

@RealBenLuigi

Apr 30, 2025

Refuting the “which Orthodox Church” narrative once and for all. Debunking the most low-tier nonsense objection against Orthodoxy🧵

1. This objection is akin to saying “Which Catholic Church? There’s Novus Ordo, TLM, Byzantine Catholic, Chaldean Catholic, Sedevacantists, SSPX, Old Catholic, Coptic Catholic, etc. How do I know which one is the true one?”

2. There is only one Orthodox Church. Russian, Romanian, OCA, Greek, Serbian, Antiochian, Bulgarian, and Georgian are all just examples of jurisdictions in the Orthodox communion. As an Antiochian Orthodox I can commune in any of them, and even if it’s a different language I will recognize the Liturgy. When my wife and I visited Greece, we knew exactly what was occurring throughout the service, even though we didn’t understand a word.

Note: This was the same ecclesiology of the first millennium, where Rome, Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem all had their own jurisdictions but were still one Church.

For canonical Orthodox parishes in America, check out this website:

assemblyofbishops.org/directories/pa…

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Ben Luigi

@RealBenLuigi

Aug 15, 2024

The Eastern Orthodox view of the Papacy🧵 (1/6)

(2/6)

The best summary of the ecclesiology of the First Millennium is from St. Theodore the Studite:

But here it is a question of divine and heavenly decisions and those are reserved only to him to whom the Word of God has said: “Whatsoever you shall bind upon earth, will be bound in Heaven and whatsoever you shall loose on earth, shall be loosed in Heaven.” And who are the men to whom this order was given?– the Apostles and their successors.And who are their successors? –he who occupies the throne of Rome and is the first; the one who sits upon the throne of Constantinople and is the second; after them, those of Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem. That is the Pentarchic authority in the Church. It is to them that all decision belongs in divine dogmas.”
St. Theodore the Studite (Taken from Fr. Francis Dvornik’s, “Byzantium and the Roman Primacy” p. 101)

In other words, Rome was the First See, but not alone as the Rock of the Church.

The Roman Catholic 8th Ecumenical Council similarly states:

“God established his church in five patriarchates and decreed in his gospels that they would never at any time totally fall away, since they are the heads of the church. For the saying ‘And the gates of the underworld will not prevail against it’ has this meaning: if two were to fall away, people are to have recourse to three, and if three fall away, they are to have recourse to two, while if it so happened that four were to fall away, the single one remaining in the head of all, Christ our God would call back again the remnant of the body of the Church." Price, Acts of Constantinople 869, pg 343

Notice in the case of mass apostasy across 4/5 patriarchs, the one upholding Orthodoxy becomes the head: and Rome is not mentioned.

(3/6)

The debate boils down to this: what has higher authority, Ecumenical Councils or the Pope. Now, Roman Catholics will try to slip by this by saying “we don’t reject Ecumenical Councils, the pope can’t supersede them!” But their doctrine begs to differ:

“Therefore, faithfully adhering to the tradition received from the beginning of the Christian religion, we teach and define that it is a divinely revealed dogma that the Roman Pontiff, when he speaks *ex cathedra*, enjoys, through the divine assistance, that infallibility promised to him in blessed Peter; and therefore that the definitions of the same Roman Pontiff are irreformable of themselves and not from the consent of the Church.” – Pastor Aeturnus, Vatican I

The following are from Bishop Gasser and his work as the Vatican’s official interpreter of Pastor Aeturnus:

"If these words of Christ are to have their necessary force, then it seems to me that one should conclude that the brothers, that is, the bishops, in order that they be firm in the faith, need the aid and advice of Peter and his successors and not vice versa." (Gift of infallibility Pg. 52)

“It can in no way be deduced that there is a strict and absolute necessity of seeking that consent from the church or from the bishops.” (Gift of infallibility Pg. 55)

"That the infallibility granted to Peter was to have passed to his successors is also proved - in use the words of Cardinal Cajetan - from the fact that when the Pope makes a judicial and definitive decision determining that something is heresy and that it must be held as such by the Church then it is clear that we are all bound to accept his decision and that whoever pertinaciously clings to the opposite view is considered a heretic." (Gift of Infallibility, p. 24)

Pope Gregory VII at the Council of Rome in 1080 even went as far as to say:

"We desire to show the world that we can give or take away at our will kingdoms, duchies, earldoms, in a word, the possessions of all men; for we can bind and loose.”

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Ben Luigi

@RealBenLuigi

Aug 11, 2024

Did a Roman Catholic just say “your church allows contraception” or “your church allows divorce” or “your church can’t decide on rebaptism” or “your church doesn’t have a head and can’t call Ecumenical Councils”?

Save this thread for when they do🧵

“Your church allows contraception”

When medically necessary, as determined by their priest. Hate to break it to you, but your church allows the same:

Additionally please see this article by Ubi Petrus on the patristics of the matter:

catholic.com/qa/birth-contr…
ubipetrusibiecclesia.com/2022/04/21/con…

“Your church allows divorce”

We have the same view as Jesus and St. Basil in canon 9, divorce is permitted for adultery.

Your church on the other hand allows “annulments” for the following reasons:

1. Found out your spouse doesn’t have a high social status.
2. You didn’t know marriage was permanent (lol what).
3. Ironically, adultery.

And many more.

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