Are orthodox churches racist?

truthseeker32

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When I first attended an Orthodox parish (Antiochian) I received a warm welcome. The parishioners were excited to share their personal stories with me and learn of mine. I was invited to an after DL meal and greatly enjoyed the experience. In contrast, the RC parish I attend in my home town isn't racist per se, but people tend to keep to themselves. It is a diverse congregation, but the Africans stick to the other Africans, Latinos stick to the other Latinos, and so on. Nobody has ever gone out of their way to introduce themselves. It is saddening how impersonal the parish is.
 
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RobNJ

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lolwut???

NO. i'm indian & i'm russian orthodox. the home parish were i grew up in in hawaii is so racially diverse. whoever told you that russian orthodox churches are racist is a liar. anyway, you sound like you are trolling.

Sounds like it to me, too. :doh:
 
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ArmyMatt

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When I first attended an Orthodox parish (Antiochian) I received a warm welcome. The parishioners were excited to share their personal stories with me and learn of mine. I was invited to an after DL meal and greatly enjoyed the experience. In contrast, the RC parish I attend in my home town isn't racist per se, but people tend to keep to themselves. It is a diverse congregation, but the Africans stick to the other Africans, Latinos stick to the other Latinos, and so on. Nobody has ever gone out of their way to introduce themselves. It is saddening how impersonal the parish is.

same as my first experience in an OCA parish nearly 7 years ago
 
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ArmyMatt

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Easy G (G²);61039816 said:
Are there a lot of Orthodox Parishes in the Caribbean/West Indian Islands?

that's a good question. I would imagine not that many, but there are bishops over the Caribbean and Central/South America (Guatamala's Orphanage coming to mind), so I would assume they would be there.
 
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Gxg (G²)

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that's a good question. I would imagine not that many, but there are bishops over the Caribbean and Central/South America (Guatamala's Orphanage coming to mind), so I would assume they would be there.
Good to know..
 
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Gxg (G²)

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There's about five in Puerto Rico. ROCOR has a sizable presence in Haiti. I think the Antiochians probably have a dozen or so throughout as well.
What paticular branch is present in Puerto Rico?
 
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gzt

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In general, unfortunately, Sunday morning is the most segregated couple hours in the week. The Orthodox Church is officially against racism and its parishes can be incredibly diverse, given that many different nations have substantial native Orthodox populations.
 
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Lukaris

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No , they are not racist as others have said. There is often a diverse laity. I think sometimes this can also be an understandable misconception from an outsider visiting a parish that rarely sees visitors. A rather isolated group of people may be very ethnic but this may be merely by default & will often extend a heartfelt "hello" but may not be able to expand upon this until a visitor would become more familiar to them.
 
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Gxg (G²)

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No , they are not racist as others have said. There is often a diverse laity. I think sometimes this can also be an understandable misconception from an outsider visiting a parish that rarely sees visitors. A rather isolated group of people may be very ethnic but this may be merely by default & will often extend a heartfelt "hello" but may not be able to expand upon this until a visitor would become more familiar to them.
It seems that concept is present within many churches of all denominations. It'd be like having a black person (from a COGIC/Church of God) attend an all white Prebysterian fellowship and stand out if that fellowship rarely has minority visitors. Due to the lack of familarity, many may simply be perplexed as to how to handle the situation..
 
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Gxg (G²)

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Gxg (G²)

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There's about five in Puerto Rico. ROCOR has a sizable presence in Haiti. I think the Antiochians probably have a dozen or so throughout as well.
Was able to find out on OO Churches present in the West Indies.




Wishing that others would consider coming down into the Caribbean--namely places like Jamaica or Bahamas and other places--and consider working with the Orthodox down on that side . Don't know why it slipped my mind that Ethiopian Orthodoxy is big for many Jamaicans (in light of Bob Marley being baptized into the Ethiopian Church and Ethiopian Orthodoxy becoming stronger after His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie came over/sought to teach other Rastafarians on how they needed to worship the Christ he worshipped rather than thinking he was Christ). Ethiopian Orthodoxy seems to be strong over on the Island side....and if nothing else, beautiful people and a wonderful land to live in:).​
 
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ArmyMatt

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Easy G (G²);61373024 said:
Was able to find out on OO Churches present in the West Indies.





Wishing that others would consider coming down into the Caribbean--namely places like Jamaica or Bahamas and other places--and consider working with the Orthodox down on that side . Don't know why it slipped my mind that Ethiopian Orthodoxy is big for many Jamaicans (in light of Bob Marley being baptized into the Ethiopian Church). Ethiopian Orthodoxy seems to be strong over on the Island side....and if nothing else, beautiful people and a wonderful land to live in:).​

that's interesting.
 
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