why convert to orthodox christianity

In 1993, I was chrismated and joined the Eastern Orthodox Church. A radical conversion to Christianity. These groups mostly came over willingly. It is not about rules and regulations but rather guide posts to make choices to transition to what we were designed to become. 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 must sound like vague, fluffy religious talk (though in my experience it is anything but). Calvin objected to the "tyranny of human tradition which is haughtily thrust upon us under the title of the Church." Greenland. Included in this liturgy is an anathema on all those who reject icons. Take Russia as an example: First, the majority of Russians are non-Christian and unevangelized. It makes no appeal to a doctrine of transubstantiation and instead simply affirms the mystery. 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. Rather, Orthodoxy affirms a single source of revelation, holy tradition, of which Scripture is the preeminent among several forms. 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. Do we mean essential for salvation? Affectionate attempts to obscure this quest feel suffocating. Heres a clue to a third possibility. But dont do it for all the wrong reasons. Liturgically, the Orthodox ethos of a formal worship setting will attract some Christians, but to many other vibrant movements within evangelicalism it will have little if any appeal. Like baptism, the Eucharist is administered to infants. Thatwould be interesting. Naturally, it is crucial to know what the Church teaches and acquire an Orthodox mindset on the intellectual level, so to speak, but it is equally crucial to grow in identifying with the People of God, the worshipping community, through fellowship. Geoff Harvey on Thu, 20/11/2008 - 11:15am. The so-called Photian Schism brought this matter to a head. It is why I think a number of people have a list of groups they have been in here. This is not just an explanation but an apology, and even an appreciation for the perseverance of friendship in the face of truly annoying behaviour. The so-called Eastern Orthodox Church is actually not one but thirteen "autocephalous" or independent, self-governing churches. Greece, 9 million Orthodoxy has always affirmed that Peter was the "first among equals" (primus inter pares) ; but unlike Roman Catholics, the Orthodox have always denied that he held any "primacy of power" (primatus potestatis). Linguistic factors posed other, very practical problems. 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.". "It's typically an immigrant faith, so I was really interested in that experience and why it spoke to. Sizable groups of the Russian population are disenchanted with Orthodoxy for a number of reasons. The Eucharist is a true, propitiatory sacrifice. Cerularius condemned Humbert and entreated Orthodox believers to "flee the fellowship of those who have accepted the heretical Latins." Everyone associates Orthodox worship with sensory richness, but its also rich in theological content. More than 70 percent of the roughly 75,000 Antiochian Orthodox Christians in the United States are converts. Anxious to avoid the siege of his capital, Basil II turned to the Rus' for assistance, even though they were considered enemies at that time. De Maistre, Billington says, was "convinced that Russia was an instrument chosen by Providence for the salvation of Europe." He was "fascinated by the possibility of converting this vast land to Catholicism." He launched a program towards that end. The basic theological impetus for the ever-virginity of Mary (besides the fact that it is presumably historically true and would have been passed down from the early days of the church) is the fact that Mary was profoundly sanctified by her role as the living sanctuary in which God dwelled (quite literally) for nine months and from whom he If our only reason for converting is more somber, reverent, and beautiful worship, the newness of this experience soon wanes. The West used unleavened bread, the East did not. John 17:14.16). 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 Orthodox Church has existed since the day of Pentecost and when we truly believe and become truly attached, not merely by baptism or chrismation, not merely by our presence but by our actions and our inner convictions, then and only then do we truly become connected to the Church, to Jesus Christ the Saviour and therefore to the Trinitarian God, the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit. Handcarved He promptly left Constantinople. Why should we welcome that? Sign up to receive a regular email newsletter from Fr. And for Orthodoxy, this argument from holy tradition is of great significance. 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 the words of contemporary Orthodox theologian Thomas Hopko, "everything in the church flows out of the waters of baptism: the remission of sins and life eternal." There is a myth in Orthodoxy that people only became Eastern Catholics under force by Catholic kings. Her name is right belief. 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. 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. "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. 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. Tom Hanks Legion Media The famous Hollywood actor converted to Orthodox Christianity as an adult. Legislation pending in Russia, for example, could, if implemented, curtail Western missionary enterprises. Most notable are its beliefs about baptism and the Eucharist. A priest can provide guidance and support to help converts discern whether the religion is right for them. By joining Orthodoxy one inherits a theological package that includes central elements that have traditionally troubled many Protestant evangelicals and omits doctrines many evangelicals consider nonnegotiable essentials of vital Christianity. Nicola Yanney, Holy Man of Nebraska, Out of Appalachia: Orthodox Christianity and the Old Regular Baptists, What Do You Believe In? Reaching for the Transcendent on the Streets of New York, http://www.firstthings.com/web-exclusives/2007/12/icons-will-save-the-world, cool blog entry by Fr Andrew Damick - Christian Forums, http://www.orthodoxresearchinstitute.org/articles/liturgics/athenagoras_remarriage.htm, http://www.oodegr.co/english/ekklisia/marriage_divorce.htm, http://www.oodegr.com/english/ekklisia/marriage_divorce.htm, http://www.patheos.com/blogs/justandsinner/the-church-fathers-interpretation-of-the-rock-of-matthew-1618-an-historical-refutation-of-the-claims-of-roman-catholicism-by-william-webster/. 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. Well, was it so? Administered to infants who are fully immersed three times, baptism effects the "bath of regeneration" by which a person is born again, wholly cleansed from both original and actual sins, and, consequently, saved from guilt and punishment. Another danger is converting to Orthodoxy simply because it is beautiful. Conversion means belief and acceptance in Jesus Christ, the God-man, as the Savior of the world. 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. Orthodox Christians believe you must be converted every day- every day - and everyone must start with this step if they desire to make spiritual progress and be saved. There are two sides to this coin, as well: Some people become Orthodox for all the wrong reasons, while some dont become Orthodox for all the wrong reasons. Can we attempt to put into words why a host of people have converted and continue to convert to the Orthodox faith? Worshipers prostrate themselves before them and kiss them. Why have so many Evangelical ministers embraced the Orthodox faith? After that, Orthodoxy is by far the best possible choice of religion for Russia because of Byzantium. On June 16, 1054, Pope Leo IX's legate, Cardinal Humbert, delivered a Bull of Excommunication to the Orthodox Patriarch Michael Cerularius on the altar of the Church of the Holy Wisdom at Constantinople while the patriarch prepared to celebrate the Divine Liturgy, condemning him and his court. It depends on where you put the emphasis. Is Orthodox different from Catholic? Indeed, what Protestant converts to Orthodoxy have often sought is not only a conscious continuity with the historic, apostolic past, but also a richer experience of God's majesty and mystery through a more liturgical worship setting. The first four enjoy special honor due to their antiquity. I think people just dont believe me, and I hardly provide a good personal example. For example, I know someone that spent over a year studying almost every aspect of Orthodoxy, including many fathers of the Church and practically every nuance of both doctrine and history. But Islam's conquest of this same area eventually isolated the Eastern Christians centered in Constantinople from their counterparts in the West centered in Rome. Conversely, evangelicals argue that this forensic framework for sin and salvation is not merely a historical and unduly negative carryover from Augustine and Anselm, but rather is the clear teaching of Paul in his Letters to the Romans and Galatians. 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. There is not going to be a restored "Celtic" Orthodoxy or "Anglo-Saxon" Orthodoxy. All Rights ReservedDesigned by Fr. 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. The Reformers did not reject tradition as a help to wisdom, as a reading of Calvin, Luther, or Wesley easily shows. Sara Villate, 10, by a menorah during Hanukkah. And yet, not all of these journeys have worked out. It also must be noted that embracing the faith involves a running to Christ and His Church as the Ark of Salvation, rather than a running away from somethingother than sin. If they are looking for an ethnic identity because they feel they have none. 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 awhile to get it, because its gotten by a process of immersion, by soaking in a context of worship. In chrismation, performed immediately after rising from the baptismal waters, the priest anoints the infant with a special ointment, making the sign of the cross on various parts of the body, thus acknowledging the gift and seal of the Holy Spirit. One finds that the Orthodox Church is indeed the pillar and foundation of the truth (1 Tim.

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