Utah issues same-sex marriage licenses.

[Dorothea]

Due to real estate law It would be very difficult to organize in such communities. The small villages I visited in Greece retained the basic idea of Greg's post. They were established before the automobile thusjust the simple geographic layout itself promoted cohesiveness. The Church fenced to be on the highest ground and tallest building. The Church is the focal point of all that is good. Weddings, baptisms, feast days, and the celebrations with folk dance and foods that follow.

Couldn't a group of Orthodox pull together money to buy so many acres of land and then build on it? I am ignorant to all the real estate laws here, so just asking.

 

[buzuxi02]

I guess they could, but it would also depend what the neighbors would think. Is it a cult to them, will zoning allow for it? Can it ever work with the kids attending secular schools where they will eventually adopt the secular ideology. In Greece the entire village shared the same common history and culture with the church being a center of activity. Outside that setting, in cities the center of life is secular schools, secular friends, bars, clubs etc. After one generation all the boys will flock to wear the girls drink and wear short skirts and the inteligientia tells them that is normal. And when the girls see the competition they too will adopt the provacative dress and loose morals.

And that's precisely why we are discussing this because we have rejected our grandparents way of life for secularism. Just look at how many Orthodox posters on these forums rejoice in diversity and secularism, are glad in no fault divorce, support seperation of state from religion, support basically every secular ideology . In other words it wouldn't work because or own kind would ridicule us as throwbacks including many wordly bishops

 

[gurneyhalleck1]

My godmother always talks about how we should pool our resources and build what she calls "an Orthodox COMPOUND in the country." ROFL! I tell her, "geez, Daria, I get images of David Koresh only with icons around him!"

 

[buzuxi02]

Lol Gurney. Heck just the grief that Elder Ephraim got for building a monastery in Arizona, tells me all I need to know, that it wont work. We will struggle in the faith, we can teach our kids but at the end of the day we will lose many of them as soon as they go through puberty and watch there first rated R movie and their friends start talking about spring break with all the girls in bikinis.

Whats that saying? We have met the enemy, and its us.

 

[rusmeister]

Lol Gurney. Heck just the grief that Elder Ephraim got for building a monastery in Arizona, tells me all I need to know, that it wont work. We will struggle in the faith, we can teach our kids but at the end of the day we will lose many of them as soon as they go through puberty and watch there first rated R movie and their friends start talking about spring break with all the girls in bikinis.

Whats that saying? We have met the enemy, and its us.

I am dubious of the compounded life, but I would risk it anyway. I have already lost my older son and am losing my older daughter, despite our serious attitude toward the Faith.

 

[GregConstantine]

"Couldn't a group of Orthodox pull together money to buy so many acres of land and then build on it? I am ignorant to all the real estate laws here, so just asking."

The answer is "Yes". It is not as hard as Buxuzi02 is making it out to be. There will be issues such as zoning, etc. However, I think Buxuzi02, you may be looking at one specific image of what this community will look like (you keep referring to some place in Greece)
There are many communities scattered around the country set up by various protestant, RC, and even non religious organizations, and they have no problems keeping their communities running. I'm afraid the monastery in Arizona might be an exception, not the rule, as that community has other controversal issues associated with it (please don't start a conversation about the monastery in Arizona, please stick to this topic)

 

[buzuxi02]

I just don't see how you can over time retain the future generations. The groups I know that have success are highly autonomous replacing the government institutions with their own. The Orthodox jews of Brooklyn have their own schools, there own courts, their own customs. It's the same with the Amish. Truth be told they have their own way of speaking and an alternative language if need be.

 

[Dorothea]

I guess they could, but it would also depend what the neighbors would think. Is it a cult to them, will zoning allow for it? Can it ever work with the kids attending secular schools where they will eventually adopt the secular ideology. In Greece the entire village shared the same common history and culture with the church being a center of activity. Outside that setting, in cities the center of life is secular schools, secular friends, bars, clubs etc. After one generation all the boys will flock to wear the girls drink and wear short skirts and the inteligientia tells them that is normal. And when the girls see the competition they too will adopt the provacative dress and loose morals.

And that's precisely why we are discussing this because we have rejected our grandparents way of life for secularism. Just look at how many Orthodox posters on these forums rejoice in diversity and secularism, are glad in no fault divorce, support seperation of state from religion, support basically every secular ideology . In other words it wouldn't work because or own kind would ridicule us as throwbacks including many wordly bishops

 

[Dorothea]

"Couldn't a group of Orthodox pull together money to buy so many acres of land and then build on it? I am ignorant to all the real estate laws here, so just asking."

The answer is "Yes". It is not as hard as Buxuzi02 is making it out to be. There will be issues such as zoning, etc. However, I think Buxuzi02, you may be looking at one specific image of what this community will look like (you keep referring to some place in Greece)
There are many communities scattered around the country set up by various protestant, RC, and even non religious organizations, and they have no problems keeping their communities running. I'm afraid the monastery in Arizona might be an exception, not the rule, as that community has other controversal issues associated with it (please don't start a conversation about the monastery in Arizona, please stick to this topic)

What would the community look like? I mean buildings and such?

 

[GregConstantine]

"What would the community look like? I mean buildings and such?"

It could take on many forms, from large single family home to a farm to a house in a major city.

There is one Orthodox example already in place, St James House in Eagle River Alaska

St. John Orthodox Cathedral - St. James House

I believe St James house provides a fantastic example of what I am talking about.

The challenge before us is getting our bishops and local parishes to see the need for such communities and to have a consistent across the board program.

 

[inconsequential]

This is the chief reason I regret becoming a parent. I do the best I can with my son but I will NEVER have another child, nor will I ever adopt one or even serve as godparent to one.

 

[buzuxi02]

"What would the community look like? I mean buildings and such?"

It could take on many forms, from large single family home to a farm to a house in a major city.

There is one Orthodox example already in place, St James House in Eagle River Alaska

St. John Orthodox Cathedral - St. James House

I believe St James house provides a fantastic example of what I am talking about.

The challenge before us is getting our bishops and local parishes to see the need for such communities and to have a consistent across the board program.

When I was younger my local Parish was the Cathedral goarch church of long island. Is One of the largest parishes in America. It was able to buy many of the surrounding homes to expand the parking lot and use one of the houses as a school. There was even talk to make a nice church library and book store.

I used to imagine how cool it would be if they continued in that path bought up all the surrounding houses and apartment buildings to create an Orthodox community. When I was younger and more optimistic it seemed plausible, the church had something like 2000 members etc. As I got older I saw the impossibility, more secularism not less was and is the trend. Trying to buy homes and rent them to Orthodox to create an Orthodox village would violate housing discrimination laws, etc.

 

[Damaris]

I guess they could, but it would also depend what the neighbors would think. Is it a cult to them, will zoning allow for it?

This is why I don't understand why other Orthodox don't think we should fight back against the cultural zeitgeist. Our options are to let our children grow up in a culture that is becoming more and more bitterly hostile to Orthodox teaching, or running off to the woods or desert to form cult-like communities. Whatever happened to "being in, but not of, the world"?

 

[GregConstantine]

@Damaris,please read what I and others have said here and check out the link I provided at the St James house. I nor anyone else here is suggesting we go out into the woods and form a cult. Please read before making such silly assumptions thank you

 

[buzuxi02]

This is why I don't understand why other Orthodox don't think we should fight back against the cultural zeitgeist. Our options are to let our children grow up in a culture that is becoming more and more bitterly hostile to Orthodox teaching, or running off to the woods or desert to form cult-like communities. Whatever happened to "being in, but not of, the world"?

That's because collectively we are the practitioners of that cultural zeitgeist. It is Christians including Orthodox Christians that have implemented these changes. They do not originate from the middle east, they do not originate from china or japan or africa. We cannot fight back against the cultural zeitgeist because we invented it and we support it, and we openly promote it. As I said, I met the enemy and it is us.

 

[Dorothea]

"What would the community look like? I mean buildings and such?"

It could take on many forms, from large single family home to a farm to a house in a major city.

There is one Orthodox example already in place, St James House in Eagle River Alaska

St. John Orthodox Cathedral - St. James House

I believe St James house provides a fantastic example of what I am talking about.

The challenge before us is getting our bishops and local parishes to see the need for such communities and to have a consistent across the board program.

Cool. I've just brought up the site to check it out. Thanks for sharing it!

 

[rusmeister]

@Damaris,please read what I and others have said here and check out the link I provided at the St James house. I nor anyone else here is suggesting we go out into the woods and form a cult. Please read before making such silly assumptions thank you

I deeply sympathize with the idea of protecting ourselves from the world, but think we should avoid words like "silly" in imputations to others' words here. I think everyone is trying NOT to be silly, and it is hurtful and alienates us from each other.

 

[rusmeister]

This is the chief reason I regret becoming a parent. I do the best I can with my son but I will NEVER have another child, nor will I ever adopt one or even serve as godparent to one.

I do not regret having children. I still have hope in the promise that if we bring up a child in the way we should go, when he is old, he will not depart from (return to) it.

And if life circumstances bring you a child or godchild, then the right thing will be to accept the child and the associated risk and hurt. I think love will win in the end.

 

[GregConstantine]

@rusmeister, it could also be hurtful and alienating if one does not read other's posts and make assumptions and sometimes borderline accusations that are not true. I'm giving everyone here the benefit of the doubt that they are reading the previous posts before commenting, but perhaps I shouldn't?

 

[rusmeister]

@rusmeister, it could also be hurtful and alienating if one does not read other's posts and make assumptions and sometimes borderline accusations that are not true. I'm giving everyone here the benefit of the doubt that they are reading the previous posts before commenting, but perhaps I shouldn't?

Understood and no argument. I just think we should try to avoid hurtful language, that's all.
And unfortunately, not everyone reads prior posts, and many of us are given to unshared assumptions.