Metropolitan Kallistos Ware is an Orthodox Christian, who reposed in the peace of the church, who was a member of a canonical Orthodox church for almost all of his adult life, and a monk of the Monastery of St. John on Patmos, and who specifically opposed Universalism as a heresy. And he most definitely believed in Scripture and the teaching of Christ. Indeed, he was one of the editors of the Orthodox Study Bible.
Metropolitan Kallistos made a number of invaluable contributions to Eastern Orthodoxy in the English-speaking world, including, but not limited to:
- Writing The Orthodox Church and The Orthodox Way, which introduced millions of Christians to Eastern Orthodoxy and enabled a great many conversions, by demonstrating the beauty of our faith (in The Orthodox Way) and providing a straightforward introduction to Orthodox Christianity and its history in The Orthodox Church.
- Translating the Philokalia (before his repose, he and mother Mary translated the first four volumes; I am not sure as to how much progress has been made on the fifth volume; @ArmyMatt - did you and I recently discuss the fifth volume? I vaguely recall hearing something about an effort being made to complete that translation and publish it, here on this forum.
- Translating, again with Mother Mary, the Lenten Triodion (along with supplements to the Lenten Triodion in a separate volume) and the Festal Menaion; these are excellent translations, in traditional English.
- Delivering many lectures around the world which had the effect of promoting Orthodoxy to new generations, and which inspired many to convert, including myself.
- Conducting ecumenical discussions with the Roman Catholic Church in a manner that respected the concerns of those Orthodox Christians who are understandably wary of the prospects of reunification.
The only group I know of that is consistently opposed to Metropolitan Kallistos is that of the Old Calendarists, but I am not troubled by this; among members of the canonical Orthodox churches Metropolitan Kallistos Ware is much loved, and deservedly so.
I would also note that concerning theistic evolution, no canonical Orthodox church has, to my knowledge, declared this belief to be heretical, and certainly it has not been declared a heresy by an ecumenical council or by a general synod such as the Synod of Dositheus which anathematized Calvinism in 1672.
Thus I believe it is entirely wrong to deny the Orthodoxy of a much-loved bishop of Metropolitcal rank in a canonical Orthodox church whose work has led to many converts to Holy Orthodoxy and who has personally been, together with Mother Mary, among the first translators to make the
Philokalia, the
Triodion and the
Festal Menaion accessible in English, which is now the most widely understood language in the world, having surpassed French for some time, and who reposed in the peace of the church only last year, and who is still being mourned by many, including myself.
Indeed, his death, along with that of Metropolitan HIlarion Kapral of ROCOR and that of Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain, and also of the great composer and organist Sir Francis Jackson, in 2022, is one of several that occurred in that very unpleasant year that continues to be a source of sadness for me (another being the death of my eldest uncle Richard, memory eternal).