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. In his homily, Father Vladimir explained the history and theology of icons, adding that the heresy of iconoclasm was alive and well: "Just look around us at all the Protestants. Thats just a fraction of a thorough march through what happened at the first Council of Nicaea, and why it was important (including Arius unpleasant death from digestive indisposition: his bowels were torn by a divine hookin a repulsive manner his soul came out). Russian Baptists, Adventists, and Pentecostals feel persecuted. While evangelicals might be eager to argue there is no biblical warrant for icons, for the Orthodox it is enough that icons have always been a part of church tradition. As Philip said to Nathaniel, Come and see [John 1:46]. He states that in Gaul, before setting out towards Rome, Constantine and his army saw a great cross in the sky. There are no doubt some ways that he is the same person he will always be, and there are ways Orthodoxy and every other church has significant points in common, not least that we love the same Lord. Orthodox Christianity has a rich tradition of meditation, of fasting, of praying, of giving alms. I do not wish to antagonize anyone and if there is a place online where I might go to better have my questions answered, please. Religion became a state of the Roman Empire, and Christianity became an enormous and influential religion nationwide. Orthodox worship can be overwhelmingly beautiful and attractiveon multiple, deeply-felt levelsbut this should not be the only reason why a person converts. Some have even ended in apostasy. "We are Orthodox because (we) follow the same laws like in other Orthodox communities in the world," explains Meyer Sanchez, assistant to a rabbi in Medelln. In many of these lands, Orthodoxy exhibits an unveiled distrust and even xenophobia toward the massive influx of Western missionaries into their backyards. One of the problems the Orthodox Church currently suffers in this country is a lack of converts. There is not going to be a restored "Celtic" Orthodoxy or "Anglo-Saxon" Orthodoxy. But that was too little, too late. Orthodox Priest Explains Why Many People in the West are Converting to Orthodox Christianity. During my project I gained. The essence of it was to evangelize younger aristocrats, future leaders of the land. Can we attempt to put into words why a host of people have converted and continue to convert to the Orthodox faith? For church membership? Second, whatever failings Western missionaries might bring to their work, and whether Orthodoxy likes to admit it, many Russians are responding very positively to a clear, contemporary presentation of the gospel by Protestant missionaries. Further, they identify themselves by reference to Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul), the "new Rome" of Emperor Constantine, and to the first seven ecumenical councils of the church. Andrey brings us the news about Orthodox Christianity (the form of Christianity . She stands firm on her dogmatic and moral teachings. Liberalism is not a word in the Orthodox vocabulary. In the first place, Christians believed Jesus to be the true God rather than a semi-god. But the claim to be Christ's one, true church remains the clear Orthodox position. Since then, Western and Eastern Christianity developed separately, under very different social and cultural conditions. Click for reprint information. Why did Kievan Rus convert to Orthodox Christianity? Vladimir fled to his kinsman Haakon Sigurdsson, who ruled Norway at the time. Inherent in this claim, of course, is the charge that both Catholics and Protestants have lapsed from the true faith into error, if not outright heresy. 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. Rich worship taught the faith to literate and illiterate, peasant and emperor, and its essentially the same as our worship today. Some have argued that evangelicals eager to "contend earnestly for the faith" (Jude 3) will find an ally in Orthodoxy's allegiance to the basic truths of Christianity. Each of them had his idiosyncrasies, and they regularly disagree. The reality of the difficulty of living the Orthodox life then bubbles up, and apostasy from exhaustion is a real risk. Orthodoxy, advocates suggest, reveals and corrects evangelical reductionism and superficiality. Underneath were written the Greek words en toutoi nika, "In this sign, conquer." Now, the question stands: If one is convinced that Orthodox Christianity possess the fullness of truth and is God . She rightly claims the wholeness of the truth. Why would a Protestant Christian convert to Eastern Orthodox Christianity? 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. Writing a book on Eastern Orthodoxy and working through the manuscript with my Russian students helped me to compare Orthodoxy and Protestant evangelicalism. Failing to remember (or be taught) this, we are scandalized and even lose our faith in the Church, not distinguishing between the divine and human natures, or confusing them. One finds that the Orthodox Church is indeed the pillar and foundation of the truth (1 Tim. Subscribe for our weekly newsletter not to miss the most interesting articles on our blog. By the end of the sixth century, neither group could speak the other's language. Why Convert to Orthodox Christianity? 1. It is why I think a number of people have a list of groups they have been in here. The collapse of the Roman Empire created a power vacuum that was increasingly filled by the growing power of the Roman papacy. We must be willing to embrace mystery, to submit to other authorities, and to ultimately submit to the Church Herself. Protestant Christianity," Andrei went on, "is a cheap, terrible substitute, and an Orthodox believer who knows his own faith will never go there.". 3:15). As independent churches, they are not bound together by any unilateral or monarchical organization, nor do they owe allegiance to a single primacy, as Roman Catholics do to the pope. Orthodoxy appeals to the soulnot just to the intellect or the senses. The genius of this principle is that it allows us to disagree with other believers, even vehemently so, yet in an edifying fashion with a degree of theological modesty and a perspective that seeks a deeper consensus within the bounds of true faith. But the impulse is to exaggerate the differences when you fear being hugged to death. Orthodox spiritual life gives central prominence to the sacraments. Share your feedback here. One can find people who interpret this ecclesiological exclusivity more leniently; in fact, some would argue that the best Orthodox scholarsGeorge Florovsky and John Meyendorff, to name twowould allow for such leniency. 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 . When I visit prisons where floors are shiny, morale is noticeably higher. In fact, what Orthodox converts "vow to accept" diverges significantly from important, basic tenets of evangelical Protestantism. Eastern Christians would hear nothing of it. It is not surprising they become disaffected and leave. The last reason Orthodox converts are obnoxious resembles the reason adolescents are obnoxious. As we said, conversion is a love affair. Along with Roman Catholicism and Protestantism, Orthodox Christianity is one of the world's three major Christian traditions. It is a good question, one I will answer in due course. Hymns like these offer quite a theological education to anyone who comes to services, and if you didnt catch it all, theres a good chance theyre going to sing it two more times. Here is an overview of the steps you can take to convert to Orthodox Christianity: The basic framework of services like the Divine Liturgy or Vespers doesnt change much, but every day of the liturgical year provides prayers for saints and feasts that can be added to that framework. If anyone is unwilling or not ready to submit to the Church in all areas of life, they should stay awayuntil or unless they are ready to do so. Do we mean essential for salvation? . I can't be the only one who's observed a friend converting to Orthodox Christianity and noticed them instantly, literally overnight, losing their sense of . The conversion of 2,000 evangelicals in 17 congregations "from Alaska to Atlanta" in 1987, recounted in Peter Gillquist's Becoming Orthodox, is only a small window into a larger phenomenon. They have not given up the idea of being clergy. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. All Rights ReservedDesigned by Fr. When Martin Luther burned the books of Catholic canon law at Wittenberg's Elster Gate on December 10, 1520, he symbolized an important Protestant distinctive. It takes a while to get it, because its received by a process of immersion, by soaking in a context of worship. All Rights ReservedDesigned by Fr. Conversion may be unnecessary if you're open to a Reform wedding: Reform Judaism permits interfaith marriages, though roughly half of all Reform rabbis still abjure officiating at them. It took me a few years to sense that there was a whole other something going on. Are Orthodox Christians "Bible believing?". Home / She is conscious of being the true Church founded by Christ. Rather, "theosis" (literally, "deification"), or the progressive transformation of people into full likeness to God, in soul and body, takes center stage. The sacraments. Step Two: Repentance There is no salvation without repentance. During those years of discovery I labored to absorb new ideas and excise stubborn old ones. Albania, 160,000. Romania, 19.8 million The blog includes recent news and ministry updates of the Convent, as well as other information about Orthodox Christianity that may be useful to those who are either making their first steps in church or want to learn something new about our faith. As the Body of Christ, the Church is a Divine-human organism, just as with the Person of Jesus Christ, the God-Man. Twitter | However, I do think that there are certain factors that influence and even cause these abandonments and apostasies from the one, true Church. Before you start the process of converting, you will want to speak with a priest in the Greek Orthodox Church. The Orthodox Church has been, for me, the ultimate revelation of what it means to be "in Christ"; my upbringing in Evangelical Protestantism has not only helped me appreciate this now, but was very much preparing me for this all along [1]. We should expect nothing less of ourselves than total respect for and even love of the history, theology, and culture of Orthodoxy; still, two things ought to be said about Orthodox complaints about Protestant proselytizing. Another danger is converting to Orthodoxy simply because it is beautiful. If anyone is unwilling or not ready to submit to the Church in all areas of life, they should stay awayuntil or unless they are ready to do so. I hope so. One finds that the Orthodox Church is indeed "the pillar and foundation of the truth" ( 1 Tim. There is a distinct set of conservative converts to Eastern Orthodoxy, which depending on your perspective either left, or was left by, Roman Catholicism in the Great Schism of 1054. The East allowed some priests to marry, while the West required celibacy. The Eucharist is a true, propitiatory sacrifice. Submitted by Fr. 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. In fact, it promises a Cross and joining with Christ in both suffering and humiliation. Because we confess and believe in the one holy, catholic and apostolic Church, this means we are not looking for a Church that fits our own preferences and ideals, but rather one that teaches us what our preferences should be. I hope so. 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. 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. 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. July 2012 edited December 1969 in Coptic Orthodox Church As an Eastern Orthodox Christian, I am interested in finding out why all of you converts out there converted to the Coptic Orthodox Church, and not any one of the Eastern Orthodox Churches readily available in so many parts of the world. This icon, Wedding Icon of The Mother Of God I've chosen Oriental Orthodoxy over the Byzantine Church because I believe that ours is closer in doctrine and liturgy to the earliest Christians. While the Church is certainly Divine in one respect, She is also comprised of human beingshuman beings that can, and do, err. Site Map | The late Orthodox theologian John Meyendorff once remarked that the ultimate conflict between the Orthodox East and the Latin West, both Catholic and Protestant, resided in two different ideas about tradition. 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. 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. They conceded a special honor to the Western papacy but insisted that the bishop of Rome was only the first among equals. Her admirable heritage of perseverance amid terrible fires of persecution has been noted even by non-Orthodox admirers, as one of her strongest attractions and sources of strength. If the world hates you, be aware that it hated me before it hated you If they persecuted me, they will persecute you (John 15:18. In the year 311, Emperor Constantine moved the political capital of his empire from Rome to Constantinople. If someone is approaching the Orthodox Church from a purely rationalistic standpoint, they will almost surely find it wanting. Required fields are marked *. Our digital archives are a work in progress. But I slowly came to see that I cant communicate it. 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?" Those who will guide you through your period of instruction and formation surely will help you in this regard. Another issue is becoming Orthodox because one thinks the Church will reward them in some way for doing so. The Orthodox Church in America, with roots in Moscow and about 85,000 adherents . At the time I was so occupied with comprehending this strange thing called Orthodoxy that I emphasized the differences, and was impatient with kindly big-tent suggestions. I kept finding myself in conversations with nice people who wanted to assure me that this very thing I was so excited about in Orthodoxy is something they have in their church as well. Becoming Orthodox is not a conversion but more so a transformation of self. While Protestant evangelicals have never agreed on the precise meaning or mode of the sacraments, they have historically emphasized two related truths that diverge from the Orthodox understanding of the sacraments. If a richer liturgical life is what a believer wants, converting to Orthodoxy is hardly necessary. Most notable are its beliefs about baptism and the Eucharist. Not to be outdone, the Orthodox could respond in kind. 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. These Protestant movements, important in their own right, are liturgical light years from Orthodoxy. But the impulse is to exaggerate the differences when you fear being hugged to death. Wynona is a Catholic planning to marry an Orthodox man, but as she tells us, "my Catholic parish priest is not giving his consent for this marriage, so it will be held in an Orthodox church.". Thank you for this! 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. When you convert, you must verbalize your commitment to live in accordance with all of the Torah 's commandments as they are explained in Torah law. Contact | Fr. Much like a divorce where numerous and complex problems fester for years and then coalesce around a single event, the defining moment for a distinctly Orthodox identity came with the Great Schism of 1054. Spiritual enlightenment changes everything. It was like seeing a face emerge from a random pattern of dots, and then wink at you. Theologically, just what is at stake in the differences between Protestant and Orthodox theology? Icons are, quite literally, a "theology in color.". Wow, like it very much. As we move constantly between Unity and Trinity in God, so we must move between the parts and the whole in the Church, the whole being infinitely more than the sum of the parts. For Eastern Christians, this was yet another Roman encroachment upon their autonomy. Nicholas reversed the decision, reinstating Ignatius and deposing Photius. Well, was it so? Icons. This should trouble evangelicals (as well as other Protestants), especially when it is combined with the Orthodox idea of who constitutes the church and how one enters the church. These groups mostly came over willingly. 20). What Scripture proclaims by word, the icon proclaims by color. The Orthodox Church is the ancient Church that Christ and the Apostles established. And I would try hard, no doubt to the point of rudeness, to convince them this was not so. At the beginning, I thought I knew what I was getting into. In 858 Photius was appointed as Orthodoxy's new patriarch at Constantinople, replacing Ignatius, who had been exiled and later resigned his duties.

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