The Moscow Synod of 1620: Concerning the Baptism of Roman Catholics

Author: Metropolitan Philaret Romanov In the heart of Tsarist Russia, under Patriarch Philaret Romanov, the Synod of Moscow held in 1620 issued a defining decree affirming the true Orthodox tradition concerning the reception of Latin heretics. The Synod declared that all converts from Roman Catholicism must be received solely by triple immersion, not by Chrismation, Confession, or Vesting, as is still done today by the Soviet-created Moscow Patriarchate.This historic ruling, issued by the Patriarchal Synod, proclaimed that the Latin sacraments are without grace, and that, from the time of the baptism of Rus’, the Russian Orthodox Church had never permitted the improper reception of heretics.In later centuries, however, many Orthodox jurisdictions, influenced by ecumenism and the false council of 1666–1667, departed from this apostolic tradition. The decree of the 1620 Synod, presented here in its complete English translation for the first time, offers a clear and authoritative witness