Notify me of followup comments via e-mail. Becoming Orthodox means being willing to submit to the Church and Her bishops, who might not be interested in ordaining you. Further, the Orthodox reject the idea of inherited guilt; we are guilty only for our own sins rather than for the inborn consequences of Adam's fall. The unchangeableness of dogma as well as the purity of rite [are] entrusted to the care not of one hierarchy but of all the people of the church." Why Converts to Christian Orthodoxy Are So Obnoxious by Frederica (Of course, for every person insisting that there were no differences, there was another person asking me to explain the differences. To my friend who asked why I had not converted to Orthodoxy, the answer was surprisingly easy. Second, in biblical interpretation the Reformers placed the Scriptures above the church. Ask An Eastern Orthodox Christian: Conversion Process - SpokaneFVS The Orthodox Church has suffered throughout her history. ), since the Reformation, justification by faith and substitutionary atonement have enjoyed pride of place in our understanding of the doctrines of sin and salvation. we'll be happy to answer it! I love the Church, and so I find it difficult to understand how a person could not see the beauty in our faith, leaving it all behind. If only they would realise that they are rotting corpses trapped in worshipping themselves. Orthodox worship can be overwhelmingly beautiful and attractiveon multiple, deeply-felt levelsbut this should not be the only reason why a person converts. (To be fair, we should note that a large number of Orthodox have become evangelical Protestants as well.). Granny and Pops and Uncle Pete love the little guy, and theyre going to be kindly and patient with him because hes going through a phase. I will always remember my first visit to an Orthodox church in Russia. Converting to Orthodoxy - SPCK Publishing But one insightful reader asked a penetrating question: "Your book does a fine job comparing the two traditions; why have you not converted to Orthodoxy?" In the first place, Christians believed Jesus to be the true God rather than a semi-god. During those years of discovery I labored to absorb new ideas and excise stubborn old ones. Most people like to be polite and get along, so they highlight what we hold in common. Required fields are marked *. Thumb through Calvin's Institutes or a volume of John Wesley's Works and you will see our Protestant forebears thoroughly engaged with patristic tradition. Why Would a Protestant Convert to Eastern Orthodox Christianity? Why I Converted to Judaism | My Jewish Learning But it's just fantasies, and they going to get themselves hopeless frustrated when it become clear that the fantasies can't become reality. Holy Orders are a mystery (sacrament) of the Church, and the Spirit blows where it will. Then C" The strengths of a group draws them but after a while the weaknesses bubble up. Why have so many Evangelical ministers embraced the Orthodox faith? As with liturgy, conversion to Orthodoxy is hardly a prerequisite for a renewed engagement with apostolic tradition. The sum of all parts wont add to the total. Debate is more plentiful than research, but also indefinite. Reasons for Vladimir I's Conversion to Christianity and | Studymode Here, according to Ronald Roberson's 1993 book The Eastern Christian Churches, is a list of these churches and their approximate sizes: Constantinople, 3.5 million She is committed to the same, unchanging, absolute truth. Antioch, 750,000 Share your feedback here. I sincerely wish to know everyone's reasons for converting to Orthodoxy. So why should someone desire to join the Orthodox Church? So it would be wise to visit a parish near you, perhaps for the celebration of Vespers on a Saturday evening or the Sunday morning Divine Liturgy. They become clergy in their group. 7 Hollywood stars who adopted Orthodox Christianity One of the problems the Orthodox Church currently suffers in this country is a lack of converts. The numbers are staggering! You haven't "arrived" in this life. Icons. Handcarved The Conversion of Russia - Catholicism.org Sara Villate, 10, by a menorah during Hanukkah. But that was too little, too late. When you are the only Norse guy and most of your lands are Slovianskian, it makes more sense to convert yourself than to convert them. Roman Emperor Constantine's Conversion to Christianity - Classic History Yeah, I think Ive gotten it out of my system. The beauty and majesty of her liturgical services celebrating the majesty and mystery of God continue to be a major attraction to many seekers of a religious experience that transcends the mundane reality and elevates the spirit to the divine realm. In contrast, Orthodoxy offers a view of theological authority that is internal and pneumatic rather than external and dogmatic. Have something to add about this? The Orthodox Church is the only Church, originally founded by Christ and still retaining the apostolic succession and the undistorted teaching of the Lord and . . For Eastern Christians, this was yet another Roman encroachment upon their autonomy. From Protestant to Orthodox - Orthodox Christianity serving Costa Mesa, CA Two points that have been hallmarks of evangelical identity deserve special scrutiny: the relationship between Scripture and tradition, and the relationship between Scripture and the church. This book cover is made to order i, Hand-painted Icon of Christ the Pantocrator (acryl. As Saint Paul reminds us, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another [Romans 12:5; see also Ephesians 4:25]. Overall, is the Orthodox church growing in America or is it slowly dying, as the older cradle Orthodox are dying and fewer cradle Orthodox either convert to other churches [primarily Protestant churches] or morph into Deists or worse?. Christianity had, in fact, penetrated "Russia" by the early 900s, when at least one church had been built in the ancient city of Kiev. It was electrifying. In the security of the Orthodox Church one finds peace, reassurance. This is particularly notable in the mid-1st century, when the circumcision controversy came to the fore. But only lately has it dawned on me that I must have strained friendships over the years due to my vocal enthusiasm for my adopted church. Converting to Orthodoxy. Orthodoxy affirms the real, physical presence of the body and blood of Christ in the Eucharist (as do Catholics, Lutherans, and many Anglicans), yet unlike Catholicism it is content not to explain how this happens. She rightly claims the wholeness of the truth. Young teens go through a few years when they are trying to understand their own unique identity and trying to establish it in the face ofwell, it would be one thing if they had to establish it in the face of hostility, because, even though that would be hard, it would be bracing and clarifying. Affectionate attempts to obscure this quest feel suffocating. It is why I think a number of people have a list of groups they have been in here. Kate Forbes Is Done (or Why an Orthodox Christian Can Never Lead a And for Orthodoxy, this argument from holy tradition is of great significance. While Rome stumbled toward destruction in 476, Constantinople enjoyed relative theological and political stability for another 1,000 years, until it was sacked by the Turks in 1453. Early on in the life of the Christian church, the Greek-speaking East and the Latin-speaking West began to diverge. In many of these lands, Orthodoxy exhibits an unveiled distrust and even xenophobia toward the massive influx of Western missionaries into their backyards. Women and men who marry into the Orthodox Jewish faith are required to convertand both genders follow an identical process. A person (who is searching within) goes through clerical education to explore questions. In Protestantism there arose the doctrine of sola scriptura. Calvin objected to the "tyranny of human tradition which is haughtily thrust upon us under the title of the Church." Submitted by Fr. Why had a group of conservative American Christians converted to Russian Orthodoxy? And such a journey can only be spoken of from experience. John A. Peck, The Apostolic Mission of Journey To Orthodoxy, Orthodox Church in Harbin, China Reopens as an Orthodox Church, "When We Speak of Christ, We Must Start With Christ" - An Interview With Fr. Orthodox spiritual life gives central prominence to the sacraments. Also, while evangelicals wholeheartedly embrace the full-orbed New Testament descriptions of the work of Christ (reconciliation, ransom, redemption, forgiveness, adoption, etc. He mentions one Church, not many. * Protestant theologian Adolf von Harnack once described the Orthodox church as "in her entire structure alien to the Gospel and a perversion of the Christian religion, its reduction to the level of pagan antiquity." Luther urged that Christianity would stand or fall with this doctrine; Calvin called it "the hinge upon which all true religion turns.". Thus, when an Orthodox believer once asked why his church did not do more doctrinal teaching, his priest responded, "Icons teach us all that we need to know." But the Church is not dependent upon any one convert or their family, nor will the Church reward people (beyond the mysteries and salvation) for converting. My husband had been an Episcopal priest for 16 years, and we had gradually moved from an evangelical-style low church to the more liturgically-fancy high church. Orthodoxy looked like taking that escalator up one more floor. Other religions and faiths occupy themselves with this life, with this world. In this video, Fr. Vladimir I, a great prince of Kiev, reigned from 980 till 1015 and succeeded in the mass conversion of the Eastern Slavs.1 Throughout his reign Vladimir's agenda had . I cant be the only one to have done this. Shortly after the beginning of our own catechumenate as a family, we saw friendsand their familiesbegin journeys towards the East. Cyprus, 450,000 This is not just an explanation but an apology, and even an appreciation for the perseverance of friendship in the face of truly annoying behavior. What Do I Need to Do to Become Greek Orthodox? - Greek Boston In fact, what Orthodox converts "vow to accept" diverges significantly from important, basic tenets of evangelical Protestantism. Schisms had already occurred in the Christian church, and others would occur later, but the Great Schism was the first of such major consequence. Conversion involves a change or transformation in vision, direction and heart, one rooted in repentance and the acknowledgement of Our Lord as the One Who is truly the Christ, the Son of the Living God, Who came into the world to save sinners. I can remember that, after Id been Orthodox a few years, developing an increasing sense of tension or frustration. its the same every year, year after year), it soon becomes familiar, and perhaps even boring for some. In the Orthodox calendar, the first Sunday of Lent celebrates the Triumph of Orthodoxy, a commemoration of the final triumph of icons in the long and bitter battle with the iconoclasts (literally, "image-smashers") on March 11, 843. Orthodox Christian churches are drawing in far-right American converts Made using e, Book Cover for the Epistle One thinks, for example, of those committed to full ministerial status for women, the centrality of lay ministry and spiritual gifts, charismatically inclined groups, seeker-sensitive churches attempting to reach baby boomers or Generation X'ers with novel worship formats, and so on. In 999, Leif, the son of Erik, was converted to Christianity by Olaf Tryggvason. Rather, "theosis" (literally, "deification"), or the progressive transformation of people into full likeness to God, in soul and body, takes center stage. The Catalog of Good Deeds is the official blog of the Catalogue of St. Elisabeth Convent. 2. In the East the local parish priest could administer the sacrament of confirmation; in the West only the bishop could. Albania, 160,000. The East allowed some priests to marry, while the West required celibacy. After being dunked in this sea of hymnography for a few years I began to recognize an underlying unity among all the elements of Orthodoxythe worship, the fasting, the exhortations to humility, the companionship of the saints, all of it. Everyone associates Orthodox worship with sensory richness, but its also rich in theological content. Rather, they are a source of revelation. Put more starkly, Orthodoxy explicitly rejects the historic Protestant idea of sola scriptura. It must sound like vague, fluffy religious talk (though in my experience it is anything but). The move was far more than geographic. Similarly, Protestants like Thomas Oden, Donald Bloesch, and others have shown that one need not join Orthodoxy to immerse oneself in the patristic past with joy, gratitude, and a sense of accountability to that "great cloud of witnesses" of the last two millennia. The Orthodox Church in America, with roots in Moscow and about 85,000 adherents . Doing so will make much of what you have read come alive, in the sense of seeing how that about which you have read is actually lived. Think of it in the following way. Like baptism, the Eucharist is administered to infants. At a minimum, Protestants need to move beyond ignorance of these neighbors. John Meyendorff writes that "the Christian faith can in no way be compatible with the notion of sola scriptura." One need not travel overseas to encounter Eastern Orthodoxy. The true details behind her The Eucharist, according to the Divine Liturgy of Saint Chrysostom (the normal liturgy for Sundays and weekdays), is "for the purification of the soul, for the remission of sins, for the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, [and] for the Kingdom of Heaven.". Others charge complicity with the state, both past and present. For example, their local parish was too ethnic; the priest wasnt nice or outgoing; their spouse wasnt interested; they found logical inconsistencies in the writings of the fathers; and so on. My ideas havent changed, and Im always glad for a good discussion, but maybe Im past the need to belabour them. Now, the question stands: If one is convinced that Orthodox Christianity possess the fullness of truth and is God . Oden, for example, who delights in referring to his theological method as "paleo-orthodox," is now working on a comprehensive patristic commentary on the whole Bible to be published by InterVarsity Press. Are Orthodox Christians "Bible believing?". Evangelicals focused on social ethics may also find little comradeship in Orthodoxy, as there is nothing in Orthodoxy comparable to the body of Catholic social teaching, for instance. This absorbed my attention so much that I was apt to expound my current level of comprehension to anyone who stood still in my vicinity. Orthodoxy, advocates suggest, reveals and corrects evangelical reductionism and superficiality. Why did Kievan Rus convert to Orthodox Christianity? It depends on where you put the emphasis. 1:4). Discussion online about converts to Orthodoxy in America includes papers and blogging by writers in venues such as Public Orthodoxy of the Fordham Orthodox Christian Studies Center, the allied Orthodox Theological Society of America, and various blogs and social media. When the media seized on John Paul II's statement, they not only missed his main point, they missed a wider story. Because everyone has their own presuppositions in which they interpret reality and thus no surprise you'll find people based on these presuppositions won't accept Christianity. It is precisely this view that elevates Scripture above the church and actually encourages private interpretation that the Orthodox theologian Georges Florovsky once called "the sin of the Reformation.". We must be willing to embrace mystery, to submit to other authorities, and to ultimately submit to the Church Herself. Poland, 1 million These arguments wont convert anyone. In this Orthodox view, Scripture stands within rather than above the church, and to distinguish its authority from that of the church is a mistake of method. Here are a few reasons from this man's personal reflection. Heres a clue to a third possibility. In an encyclical letter of 1848, the Eastern patriarchs stated this most emphatically: "Infallibility resides solely in the ecumenicity of the church bound together by mutual love. In Russia, the largest figure usually cited for the Orthodox Church is 85 million people (some estimates are as low as 50 million), which means 100 million Russiansmore than half the countryare not affiliated with Orthodoxy. Four important areas deserve ongoing dialogue. It took me a few years to sense that there was a whole other something going on. Yet, at times there are questions of conscience and matters of principle. This is a sufficiently serious reason for reproach: We are right to expect that the Church will point out a path toward God, independently of the jolts and shocks of the epoch; that it will remain,. Converts to Orthodoxy usually precede their decision with voluminous reading and research, so their friends must endure agitated lectures on church history, ancient heresies, and what words mean in Greek. There are other problems as well: overlapping jurisdictions, lack of communication across jurisdictional lines, and a tendency to isolate ourselves from communities in which we live. On the Path of Love: From Islam to Christianity, Madagascar: Church Opens Huge Complex with Church, Schools, Orphanage, Old Folks Home, Australia: Orthodoxy Fastest Growing Church amidst General Christian Decline. While reading about the Orthodox Christian tradition is certainly important, it is crucial to stepliterallyinto an Orthodox Christian parish church near you to witness/experience the Churchs worship and fellowship. You can make an appointment to talk to our parish priest Fr Athanasios by contacting him at (03) 9387 7693. When I visit prisons where floors are shiny, morale is noticeably higher. Different from forms of western Christianity, there is no rationalization or theorization of dogma because its focus is on symbology rather than the literal. Whereas Western Protestants want to hear the written Word spoken in the sermon, Orthodox believers want to see it in the visual images of iconsas well as hear it in the spoken word. Orthodox believers see things very differently. Different Orthodox theories exist as to what, exactly, this means. At times it can be a healing group especially during the Liturgical services in particular the Eucharist and the Holy Prayer Oil services. He senses that its something much more profound than that, as he is turning into a different person, the adult he is destined to be. But the impulse is to exaggerate the differences when you fear being hugged to death. Without waiting for a response, Humbert exited the church and declared, "Let God look and judge." Converting to Judaism has defined my high school experience Constantine had once controlled the entire Mediterranean perimeter, and as a result, Christianity flourished. YouTube | Converting to Orthodox Judaism Is a Lot. Here's How 3 Women Did It. - ELLE Orthodox Christians and some Eastern Catholics baptize by triple immersion upon invocation of the Trinity; the only time the Orthodox Church permits other forms of baptism is in the case of an emergency. The final declaration of the Second Ecumenical Council of Nicea (787) that ratified the use of icons appealed to the "written and unwritten" tradition of the early church. 3:15). How to Convert to Greek Orthodox Christianity Orthodoxy attracts seekers with her other-worldliness, with her holiness, with her worship, with her services and sacraments, with the form and content of her religious expression, with her iconography, with her chanting, with her mysticism, with her monasticism, with her life between heaven and earth. One feels that the Church is not just a worldly organization, but a divine-human organism.
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