Abbot of Esphigmenou Monastery Speaks to TNH about Death Threats, Mount Athos Tensions

Source: The National Herald

By Theodore Kalmoukos

BOSTON – Just days after Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ recent visit to Mount Athos, the Abbot of the new brotherhood at Esphigmenou Monastery, Archimandrite Bartholomew, received death threats—both in writing and online.

A threatening letter, accompanied by photos of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and Archimandrite Bartholomew, was posted on the door of the monastery residence housing the new brotherhood.

The letter reads as follows:

“THE HERESIARCH AND HIS CHILD
 Bartholomew, no matter how much you want to enter the monastery, you will only ever see it in photos. Stop persecuting the struggling fathers, or you’ll be found in a ditch and your heretical father Bartholomew will weep bitterly for failing in his unholy dream of installing you in the monastery.

Bartholomew… if you value your life, stop the persecution of the holy fathers who have lived in the monastery for so many years… if you value your life, stop… just like you say, this is not a threat but a warning…

Orthodox Strugglers…”

In an interview with The National Herald, Archimandrite Bartholomew spoke about the threats and the broader situation at the historic monastery.

The National Herald: Father Bartholomew, what are your thoughts on this threatening letter?

Archim. Bartholomew: This letter demands that I resign from the mission entrusted to me by the Church and abandon my legal obligations concerning the monastery’s administration as a Legal Entity of Public Law. It calls on me to act illegally and anti-ecclesiastically—essentially to ignore the illegal occupation of the monastery and its lands, the risk posed to buildings and relics, and the desecration of what is both a sacred Orthodox pilgrimage site and a UNESCO-protected monument.

They want me to stop pursuing necessary legal actions and refrain from informing the public about the unlawful occupation of our historic monastery by non-Orthodox individuals. If the Old Calendarists (G.O.C.) can seize an Orthodox monastery by force, it sets a dangerous precedent—anyone could claim Athonite land and build illegally.

This undermines the Athonite regime, which has been respected for centuries, even by non-Christian rulers. That respect is now being challenged.

The letter says twice that if I value my life, I should stop. That alone reveals how far removed the authors are from the Orthodox mindset. A monk renounces his own will, dedicates his life to the Church, and finds salvation in obedience, love, and sacrifice through Christ.

TNH: Is this the first time you’ve received such a serious threat?

Archim. Bartholomew:  In the past, members of our brotherhood have suffered beatings, assaults, even bomb attacks—right here on Mount Athos. We’ve received anonymous threats online and by phone, but this is the first time someone has come in person to our door to threaten to kill us. It proves how easily potential attackers can move around the administrative center of Mount Athos—just 100 meters from the Civil Administration, the Holy Community headquarters, and the Mount Athos Police Department.

TNH: Do you suspect anyone specific?

Archim. Bartholomew:  The threat could come from anyone. Mount Athos can be entered illegally through the poorly guarded coastal passage at Koumitsa in Halkidiki, without any record of entry. This route is routinely used by the so-called “blockaded” occupiers for smuggling—and even by journalists from Greece and abroad, who later brag about it on television.

Repairs are currently underway on the border fence destroyed by the occupiers. This protective measure should have been implemented long ago, and naturally, it “bothers” the occupiers, since it will put an end to their illegal entry.

The deeper concern is: who is inciting such hatred, and who might be “arming” the hand of a potential murderer?

We are the targets of slander and disinformation not only from the occupiers themselves, but also from fellow Old Calendarists and others hostile to the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the broader Orthodox world (Romiosýni). They have political allies, especially within far-right “patriotic” circles, and the “Church of the G.O.C. of Greece” openly supports them.

Where else in a law-abiding state can one denomination (the Old Calendarists) demand control of monasteries belonging to another (the Eastern Orthodox Church), especially in a place with Mount Athos’ unique, centuries-old legal status?

Their supporters exist in various countries, including prominent figures in the Greek Diaspora. Even Russian media and the Russian Church have repeatedly backed the occupiers.

When such people attack us with impunity for years, it’s not unthinkable that one day, a “madman” might feel compelled to act out their agenda in the name of so-called justice.

TNH: Have the authorities been informed?

Archim. Bartholomew:  Yes, the police have been notified and have officially recorded the incident.

Take a look at the photos—they show the threatening letter, violence from the occupiers, a hooded assailant (striking “in the name of Christ”), and the barbed wire that now surrounds us. These things are wholly incompatible with the sanctity of this holy place.

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