In the world, not part of it

When the Church gets too close to the State, it's typically not the latter that suffers. Rather, the Church loses sight of its divine calling, becoming instead an enabler and accomplice to the baser impulses of worldly power:

Romanians will tell you that their Church kept them spiritually alive and inspired during the hardships of the repressive, 45-year Communist regime.

But the truth is that it also kept the regime well informed about its people. Collaboration between priests and the Secret Police (Securitate) was not accidental, but thoroughly planned and implemented.

The Church has kept stubbornly silent over the past 17 years after the fall of Communism, blocking any attempt of disclosing its stained past. ...

Now, the death of its national head, Patriarch Teoctist on July 30 and the campaigns to succeed him has set the scene for selected disclosures and “dirty campaigning” among the bishops who are eligible for the highest seat in the Orthodox Church...

After the fall of Communism, Teoctist defended himself by saying he had to play along in order to “save” the Church. But not the churches that were bulldozed, apparently. Nor the followers of other denominations who were forced to pray illegally. The Orthodox Church managed to become a “state church” in a Communist, atheist regime. For that privilege, its clergymen had to “play along”, just as Teoctist did. Confessions were perfect means for the Securitate to find out about people’s plans, relatives abroad, adulteries or illegal abortions, in order take “appropriate measures” against the respective people.

Much like the Catholic Church and many evangelical "megachurches," the Orthodox church owns great material wealth amongst a poor people. None of the ornamental trappings meet the physical or spiritual needs of those who need the Church the most. Nor does it speak Truth to power when the leaders of this world need to be checked. While I'm certain many individual leaders and laity worked for the Kingdom even amidst repression and persecution, the alliance of Romania's Orthodox hierarchy with the brutal regimes of the 20th Century does not honor the One who said these words:

While all the people were listening, Jesus said to his disciples, "Beware of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and love to be greeted in the marketplaces and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. They devour widows' houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. Such men will be punished most severely."