Ecumenism...

[ModernDaySpyridon]

Read...and discuss.

 

[Greg the byzantine]

HAHAHhahaa I just read part of the article, too much for me right now.

But you guys they do hit on a good point that a lot of converts to Orthodoxy do tend to get very anti-Catholic for some reason. I have noticed it a lot actually.

 

[Grigorii]

Haven't finished the whole article just yet,.. But it looks very good. I agree with the author so far. I've noticed the same trend. Many former Protestants take their fundamentalism into the Orthodox Church. Their doctrine changes, significantly,.. But not their attitude towards dogma. Nor their attitude towards the RCC. Imo a very unhealthy and unwelcome trend. One I hope will be overcome. It has come so far that I've had my Orthodoxy questioned more than once for opposing this trend and for taking a decisively positive stance on true ecumenism (such as suggested by Fr. N. Afanasieff, Fr. Sergius Bulgakov, and today Fr. Michael Plekon, prof. Peter Bouteneff to name a few significant names in ecumenical relations).

Gregorios

 

[MariaRegina]

Of the 4 examples he gives, I know the last three.

And yes, my priest said to be very careful and basically agreed with this article.

Note it was written before 2000. Kind of dated but still very relevant.

 

[OnTheWay]

Well I've got comments, but date night, so see you all on Monday.

 

[gzt]

Just FYI, that's David Bentley Hart's brother.

 

[jckstraw72]

I would say that in converting to Orthodoxy ppl fall in love with the Truth in a way they never knew they could, and thus every other church pales in comparison and they want everyone else to find the same thing.

.....and ive found myself having much more repect for the Catholic Church since becoming Orthodox

 

[Prawnik]

Just FYI, that's David Bentley Hart's brother.

Is that bad? Is(n't) that illegal?

 

[prodromos]

.....and ive found myself having much more repect for the Catholic Church since becoming Orthodox

My experience too, in varying degrees.

John

 

[Servus Iesu]

I'm a convert to the Roman Church from Methodism, and I've had some blow outs with Easterners in the past, but I do like you guys. For one thing, I've long since lost interest in 'debating' with Protestants, but I find that often times discussions with Orthodox/TAWers are interesting and edifying. Usually you have pastristic sources on a given topic from which I can learn something, even if obviously not coming to exactly the same conclusions that you do. Hence the reason I lurk in TAW and read many of your discussions, even when I don't post.

By the way, I'm taking Greek now, so in the future you won't be able to confuse me just by throwing around a lot of Greek words

 

[gzt]

spanakopita! baklava! homoousios!

 

[rusmeister]

I'm with jackstraw and prodromos - I have a serious respect for the Catholic Church now as a result of becoming Orthodox. My father's family is/was Catholic, and I never understood or respected it. Then my father died this year, and I was unable to fly overseas to attend the funeral, but made a big push to get him buried Catholic (I had the only statement from my father in an e-mail stating that he was born Catholic and would die Catholic, and I encouraged him to seek out a Catholic priest rather than not engage with faith at all).
My family made the Catholic service happen, even though my brothers and sister are all (more or less) Baptist - according to their theology he wasn't "saved".
I'm not into bashing other faiths. They are closer to or farther from the Truth.

 

[Akathist]

I would say that in converting to Orthodoxy ppl fall in love with the Truth in a way they never knew they could, and thus every other church pales in comparison and they want everyone else to find the same thing.

.....and ive found myself having much more repect for the Catholic Church since becoming Orthodox

I agree with all that you say here. However, I had a healthy respect for the Catholic Church before finding Orthodoxy. I was starting to convert to that faith.

I had a couple areas of "concern" but I had not started to take RCIA (again, it would have been my second time through RCIA as I had nearly converted to Catholism over 10 years before that).

What stopped me from continueing on in that conversion was not so much a theological issue (at first) but the whole "annulment" thing they had and the fact that my husband was talking about coming back at the time and he had been married before. Then the thought that I might end up needing an annulment if he does not return and my just hating the idea of an annulment.

I started to look at the EO Church because annulments were not a part of our faith. But as I came to love Eastern Orthodoxy, I discovered that the couple "little things" that bothered me were also not a part of the Eastern Orthodox Church too.

Nevertheless, I maintain my respect for Catholism.

I also have respect for some forms of Protestantism as well. I did not lose all of my respect during the conversion process. (But honestly, I have lost some being a part of CF. sad but true.)

 

[Michael G]

.....and ive found myself having much more repect for the Catholic Church since becoming Orthodox

Really? I have had the exact opposite experience since embracing Orthodox Christianity.

 

[Argent]

For me, the important thing is that the "essentials of the faith" are agreed upon. I find that the Orthodox churches, the RCC and conservative Protestant churches, such as my Baptist church, agree on the "essentials of the faith." Beyond that, the NT teaches us not to argue about doctrinal differnces. I have no doubt that I will see OCers, RCCers and others when we all get home.

 

[Virgil the Roman]

I am glad alot of you folks, have a some respect for the Catholic Church. I as well have a lot of respect for Orthodoxy in return.

 

[rusmeister]

Really? I have had the exact opposite experience since embracing Orthodox Christianity.

Well, Michael, by way of explanation, I was raised in a Baptist climate that taught things about the Catholic faith that simply ain't true, and the Catholics have turned out to be much closer to the Truth on quite a number of things.

 

[a_ntv]

I was raised in a Catholic nation, and I was always told by my priests and theology teachers: "you shall always look at Orthodoxes, they have true sacraments, we shall learn a lot from them, council vatican II was deeply influenced by orthodox," and so on....

 

[jckstraw72]

For me, the important thing is that the "essentials of the faith" are agreed upon. I find that the Orthodox churches, the RCC and conservative Protestant churches, such as my Baptist church, agree on the "essentials of the faith." Beyond that, the NT teaches us not to argue about doctrinal differnces. I have no doubt that I will see OCers, RCCers and others when we all get home.

"3. Paul said that we as Christians should be of one mind and have no divisions amongst us. When confronted with Paul’s claim, many of the Protestants I speak to say they are united over the primary or important doctrines, which deal with our salvation. They, however, disagree on the secondary or unimportant ones that don’t affect our salvation.
The third challenge is to find in the Scriptures this idea of primary and secondary doctrines."


one of the Willard preacher's contentions with differences between protestant and orthodox doctrine.


ps. sorry, this is choirfiend logged in on jckstraw72's computer.

 

[Emmanuel-A]

Really? I have had the exact opposite experience since embracing Orthodox Christianity.

I think that converts from Roman Catholicism like us probably have a different view. I mean, I don't know what it's like to be a protestant or a convert from protestantism, it's probably a more difficult move.

While I don't like many aspects of Roman Catholicism and holds Holy Orthodoxy as the Truth, I reckon that the RC church holds treasures of Sanctity and Faith.

When I converted, my priest, after telling me I was ready to enter the Church, told me that he wanted to make sure I really wanted to be an orthodox for the sake of Orthodoxy, not out of spite for my former faith.