Who We Are

Vestiges of Christianity is a news blog maintained under the direction of Bishop Bryan D. Ouellette, Ph.D., SOSM. Our goal is to reconcile ancient Christian theology with contemporary orthodox Christian practices and understandings. Our praxis carries with it a strong eastern liturgical focus while maintaining a freedom of spirituality that is true to ancient Christian ideology. We welcome anyone who desires to discover gnosis through the expression of early Christianity. We use the word "gnosis" with the intention to reflect its original meaning of soteriological knowledge, mystical wisdom and spiritual realization. While we encourage a working philosophical comprehension of Classical Gnosticism from antiquity, we are not a Gnostic or reconstructionist church. Our theology is orthodox, our approach, furthermore, is mystically liberating.

Monday, February 28, 2011

Concerning our Departure from the Greater Gnostic Community

The communities of the Holy Monastic Order En Deus, the Holy Nicholean Catholic Church, and the Holy Imperial Russian Orthodox Church feel that we must formally separate ourselves from any membership in the greater (and somewhat amorphous) contemporary Gnostic community. As some of you may have been aware, we have been members in good standing with the Universal Church of Autogenes, now called the Universalist Gnostic Communion under the leadership of Bishop Mansell Gilmore and to this day we still feel that the UGC is one of the few Gnostic communities of quality currently in existence. They do hold valid apostolic succession under their bishop and through his inspiration they work very hard to share gnosis with the world. We love Bishop Gilmore dearly and we always will.

Our ministries, however, have come to some realizations concerning the contemporary Gnostic community that have left us deeply saddened and concerned. The following list will provide our followers with each specific reason for our departure. While it should be noted that the Universalist Gnostic Communion, as an institution, has not violated any of the principles we set forth below, the very use of the word “Gnostic” in the classical sense is something we wish to no longer apply to ourselves. We are a Christian ministry. We have always been a Christian ministry in the most orthodox sense of the term, but we have chosen to remain non-dogmatic, making Gnostic churches appealing to us. But as we have grown, we have truly discovered that our special charism is not to attach ourselves to what many in our circles consider to be heretical beliefs.

We are not heretics.

We are not apostates.

We love the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church and we wish to heal her wounds. In light of this we offer the following reasons for our solemn decision:

1. We perceive in the greater contemporary Gnostic community a virulent reactionary approach toward the orthodox churches, particularly the Roman Catholic Church. We reject on our own moral principles, and even on the principles espoused by most of the Gnostic community that such frank bigotry is not something we can associate with in good conscience. Further, and as a result of this and other issues, including those outlined below, we feel any formal or even indirect association or affiliation with any Gnostic community at large or in particular inhibits our ability to heal the wounds of the greater One Holy catholic and Apostolic Church. To fail to do so would make it appear to most of those outside the Gnostic community, and in particular those to whom we feel called, that we approve of such bigotry, anger and hatred (whether overt or even unconscious).

2. It has always been our contention that Gnosis never left the Greater Christian Church--it may have been sporadically forgotten, ignored, or repressed, although on occasion (unconsciously) taught and embraced. Our stated mission is not to replace the orthodox churches with a “gnostic system”, but, rather, to help the orthodox churches experience the gnosis they already possess. As such, we feel no new system is needed or required. Instead, we hope to heal the Greater Church from the outside in, recalling to it the teachings it has always held, albeit imperfectly.

3. Further, we perceive, and it seems unable to deny, that the greater contemporary Gnostic community is riddled with religious bigotry and intolerance projected back at the orthodox churches and those who sympathize with their sacred traditions. Our experience in the greater Gnostic dialogue is that the ‘rules’ of Gnostic ‘tolerance’ apply only to those that oppose the Church; anyone who asks the same tolerance for those within the mainstream churches are often ridiculed and chastised. In fact, many Gnostics appear to engage in the very behavior they report to be fighting.

4. Rightly or wrongly, recent history has imbued the word “Gnosticism” with a negative weight of which we have resolved to relieve ourselves for the sake of accurately describing our mission and charism. Again, the greater contemporary Gnostic Community often seems to use words like “heretic” and “apostate” as if it were a badge of honor in some imagined militia against their perceived enemies. We feel this tendency exacerbates an already difficult situation, making healing with the Greater Church impossible, and, frankly, marginalizing the movement unnecessarily. Our goal is to further gnosis---but Gnostics, in our opinion, and as a whole, are making the possibility of gnosis being again accepted by the Greater Church ever more remote. We cannot allow that to happen through any action or inaction of our own.

5. It is clear to us that most, if not all, contemporary Gnostic communities do not wish to be reunited with or recognized by the Mother-Church—far from it. While we see this as unfortunate, we of course respect the right of those individuals to maintain it. Our ministries, however, are only concerned with healing old (and new) wounds, not with cutting deeper ones.

We hope this helps to better define our position. We will continue to speak positively of Gnosis and Gnosticism as a philosophy, but from this point forward, only through the lens of our own authenticity, that is, as Christians. Again, we wish to affirm that these observations are general in nature and do not apply to any one group or institution. As we move forward, we hope that the world will be ready for what we have to share. The time for extremism is over. It is time to heal. Now.

With love and blessings,

Patriarch Nicholas III in mundo +Bryan D. Ouellette, Ph.D.

Holy Imperial Russian Orthodox Church

Holy Nicholean Catholic Church

Holy Monastic Order En Deus

Friday, February 18, 2011

Pedophilia and the Priesthood: an Esoteric Causality

We see stories about it nearly every week in the news. It's a phenomenon that ruins Churches, disillusions parishioners, and destroys lives. Today, Bishop Bryan D. Ouellette, Ph.D. Patriarch of the Holy Imperial Russian Orthodox Church and the Holy Nicholean Catholic Church will discuss with co-host Dr. Michael Jon Kell the actual causes of pedophilia in ministry, which he contends has esoteric origins. Why is this happening? Why is it so prevalent? How is it preventable? Tune in and learn the truth about this social crisis.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THE BROADCAST

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

New URLs

The Holy Nicholean Catholic Church and the Holy Monastic Order En Deus can now be accessed directly by going to the following urls:

nicholean.org

holymonasticorder.org


Many thanks and blessings!

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Consecration Reception of Bishop Bryan D. Ouellette, Ph.D. in ecclesia Sovereign Patriarch Nicholas III

Consecration Reception of Bishop Bryan D. Ouellette, Ph.D. in ecclesia Sovereign Patriarch Nicholas III from Holy Monastic Order En Deus on Vimeo.

After the Consecration and Patriarchal elevation of Bishop Bryan D. Ouellette, Ph.D. in ecclesia Sovereign Patriarch Nicholas III, Tsar Peter Alexander Mikhailovich Romanov performed a rare esoteric ceremony to celebrate the occasion before the reception which has been preserved on video here.

Thursday, February 3, 2011