Three Georgian monasteries in U.S. move to split after leadership ouster

A church split has occurred in the United States of America: three Georgian monasteries, whose abbots and abbesses had previously been removed from their posts, have withdrawn from the jurisdiction of the Georgian Orthodox Church. The decision followed accusations of canonical violations and links to a number of controversial clerics.

According to the data provided, in March the Georgian Orthodox Archdiocese in North America announced the suspension and removal of Archimandrite Athanasius (Clark), former abbot of St. James the Apostle Monastery in Oklahoma; Archimandrite Christopher (Hadasoka), former abbot of Holy Spirit Monastery in Maryland; and Abbess Emiliana (Hanson), former abbess of St. Nina Monastery in Maryland.

At the Diocesan Assembly held on October 11 at St. David the Builder Cathedral in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, a report was read on how these monasteries left the jurisdiction of the Georgian Church. In particular, Father Paul Zakaria presented a report on canonical issues in the diocese, focusing specifically on the three monasteries that separated due to canonical violations committed by their abbots.

Bishop Savva further explained in detail the reasons for these decisions, expressing regret at the monasteries’ departure from the diocese, but emphasizing that the disciplinary measures imposed on their leaders were necessary and unavoidable according to Church law. Former members of the monasteries who remained loyal to the diocese also spoke out, expressing pain and sorrow over the separation of their brethren.

Although the official statement did not give details of the canonical violations, the monasteries are associated with Elder Dionysios (Kalambokas), a highly controversial monk who is the spiritual head of a network of monasteries in Greece, Europe and America. Elder Dionysios and his monasteries have repeatedly changed jurisdictions and have even been associated with non-canonical clergy. According to some reports, Starets Dionysius has been expelled from both Mount Athos and the Holy Land in the past, and was reportedly himself deprived of his ministry by the Church of Greece in 2022.

Moreover, it is well known that the monasteries were linked to «Archbishop» Melchizedek of the «Palestinian Orthodox Church of America,» another notorious jurisdiction-changing figure who held services and «ordained» priests at these monasteries. The Jerusalem Patriarchate and the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America issued official warnings about him, informing the faithful that he is not a genuine hierarch and does not belong to the Orthodox Church.

Recall, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia made a statement in which he expressed pessimism about the future of the ecumenical movement aimed at rapprochement and unification of Christian denominations. According to him, at the current stage there are serious obstacles to the further development of dialog in this direction.