16,951
edits
Changes
m
link
In 1921, by decree of the Temporary Higher Church Administration Abroad, he visited [[Mount Athos]] and the Holy Land, in order to be acquainted with the state of Russian monasteries in those locations. He then participated in the [[First All-Diaspora Council]] in Sremski Karlovtsi, Serbia, as administrator of Russian parishes in the Constantinapolitan district.
In 1923, at the invitation of Patriarch [[Meletius IV (Metaxakis) of Constantinople|Meletius (Metaxakis)]] of Constantinople, he participated in the so-called "Pan Orthodox Congress" in Constantinople. The Congress made decisions about adopting the new calendar, allowing remarriage for clergy and married bishops, shortening services, eliminating fasts, and simplifying ecclesiastic robes. Archbishop Anastasy voiced his objections to such decisions, which he deemed uncanonical. Because the Ecumenical Patriarchate had forbidden the commemoration of Patriarch St. Tikhon at services in Russian parishes and demanded that Archbishop Anastasy sever ties with the [[ROCOR]] Synod, he was forced to leave Constantinople for Bulgaria via France. In Bulgaria, he participated in the concecration of St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, and then departed for Serbia. In 1924, he was appointed as administrator of the [[Russian Ecclesiastical Mission in Jerusalem]] and departed for the [[Holy Land]], where he spent the next 10 years.
In 1935, Archbishop Anastasy participated in a council called by Patriarch [[Varnava (Rosic) of Serbia|Varnava of Serbia]] with the aim of restoring unity in the Russian Church abroad. The Council was attended by Metropolitan [[Eulogius (Georgievsky) of Paris|Eulogius (Georgievsky)]], who headed the Western European Metropolitanate (the predecessor to the [[Patriarchal Exarchate for Orthodox Parishes of Russian Tradition in Western Europe]]), Metropolitan [[Theophilus (Pashkovsky) of San Francisco]], who headed the North American Metropolitanate (the predecessor to the [[OCA]]), and Bishop Dimitry (Voznesensky), who represented the Far East Metropolis. At this meeting, the unity of the Russian Church abroad was restored (albeit temporarily), and the bishop signed the Temporary Statues of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad [http://www.synod.com/synod/engdocuments/enov_polozhenie1936.html 1], which became the charter governing the [[ROCOR]]. At that time Archbishop Anastasy was elevated to the rank of metropolitan and appointed as assitant to Metropolitan [[Anthony (Khrapovitsky) of Kiev|Anthony]].
