Noted. My comment- converts to any religion are often difficult people.
We have seen Jewish and also Messianic people discover orthodox Christianity- even one chap from our own forum- because they saw a continuity with Judaism within that tradition, and that's worth noting. Many books have been written to prove a continuity within the Orthodox Church with that of the Levitical priesthood and more. That's all fine and nice, but the fact is that the Jewish root of that tradition has often struggled to survive.
Clericalism has basically run the Orthodox Church for centuries and has manifested in endless disputes over jurisdiction and painful warring over customs that has overturned much of the emphasis on the Gospel the original church was endowed with.
This issue, coupled with the union of nationhood and religion which manifests in nationalistic pride (which can turn to anti-semitism easily if the prevailing culture has that seed) has often meant the Orthodox churches are hotbeds of hypocrisy and worldly values. Let's face it, the only place one will see "Christians" having a literal fist fight on tv is when you get two or more competing Orthodox churches brawling over jurisdiction over a custom in a country they aren't even from.
This crazy mix of clericalism and nationalism is not found in the NT. Hence the problem.
IOW- while the Orthodox churches can lay claim to having a clear link to the Jewish root, that just isn't enough to make a place of peace and pilgrimage for every Jew. While some can seek the good within the tradition, some of us can't make the cultural connection nor come to terms with the rampant clericalism and endless unChristian and haughty hubris about "authority" that comes with it.
I think you have experienced some of the flow-on effect of those problems when the near-sighted and poorly taught converts give you a hard time over something that they aren't used to. Well, put on your best Russian accent and yell "is outrage!!!" and they might accept you easier.
I hear ya.
Point: I have been told by more than one version/nationality of Orthodox Christian that I needed to join their church to be "safe". When one thinks that one must adapt the culture and language of whatever nation that church comes from, the proposition becomes rather akin to assimilation. I don't want that in my life. I just tell them the old rule "lex orandi, lex credendi" and that I don't believe their prayers against the Jews and consider them heretical, and thus I am prevented from joining them. I think deep down they know they need to repent of them and begin to open the door a little to welcome back the original messengers of the Gospel.
