How united are we after all?

[Wryetui]

One thing I like about the roman-catholic Church is its unity, they really are "One bread, one body" but we seem to be some national churches that are alienated from each other, how can this be?

 

[gzt]

Which?

At present there's an issue between Jerusalem and Antioch. And Antioch is a little miffed about others not backing them up in it. Other than that, what's the problem?

 

[ArmyMatt]

we share the same faith and the same chalice. we share it not only with all Orthodox today, but all since Pentecost. no other Church, not even Rome, can make that claim. not even close.

 

[rusmeister]

I think if anyone may think that Tradition is only the Creed or only the Councils, or that we may decide for ourselves what it is, we will not wind up sharing the same faith. One of the most pernicious tendencies I see among us, even here at TAW, is an ability of choice to dismiss or deny certain consistent teachings as "not Tradition", or "not valid, because Christians of the past didn't know what we know now". THAT is a tremendous source of schism.

 

[buzuxi02]

Rome is not unified, their laity are at each others throats. Between south american liberation theology, between traditionalists and modetnists, between the various uniate factions, they are a mess.

Orthodoxy does not view unity through a bureaucratic administration of buddy buddy bishops. Instead the fullness of the Church is found on a local level where the laity are gathered around a right believing bishop with apostolic succession taking part in that one and same Eucharist.

 

[prodromos]

One thing I like about the roman-catholic Church is its unity, they really are "One bread, one body"

I suggest you read up on St Alexis Toth to learn how far from the truth the above statement is, plus it wasn't that long ago in the USA that Catholicism was a bunch of ethnic enclaves, the Irish Catholics in their church and the Polish Catholics in their church a few blocks away, with no interaction between them at all.
I'm afraid the OP statement is more than just a bit naive.

 

[All4Christ]

One thing I like about the roman-catholic Church is its unity, they really are "One bread, one body" but we seem to be some national churches that are alienated from each other, how can this be?

There are many many schisms within the Catholic Church that are truly schisms of beliefs...and within the RC church, there are a wide array of beliefs accepted as well. Maybe not as much as some of the Protestant churches, but they aren't united in a single faith more than Orthodoxy.

 

[truefiction1]

One thing I like about the roman-catholic Church is its unity, they really are "One bread, one body" but we seem to be some national churches that are alienated from each other, how can this be?

The Romans identify unity with sole emphasis on Christ (His Body), which is why they must have a visible (bodily) representative of Christ who serves as a sign of unity. But it is merely a rational (purely cognitive) symbol of unity and not True Unity. True unity is the work of the Holy Spirit, Who reveals to us the True Christ in His real, visible (bodily) presence in the Eucharist.

They need a man, one who can never truly be Christ, to serve as a symbol of unity to hold them together. We need the Holy Spirit to dwell in us so that Christ and the Father make their home in our hearts, (as our Master teaches us through Scripture). In this is our unity -- that one God resides within us, in three persons, thereby making of us a family in Christ. There is no true unity outside of our Holy Tradition, which I have just attempted to describe. If you experience it you'll know this to be the only Truth.

By the work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts and minds, the Eucharist alone is the real presence of Christ in His Church. He is with us now because of the Holy Spirit Whom He sent, there is no vicar. There is no true unity there. I'd be careful not to be deceived by appearances.

 

[gurneyhalleck1]

My priest is Serbian and his parish is under the Serbian Church, but who is the guy who is taking Father's confessions, home visits, and other work right now while Father recovers? HIS GREEK PRIEST FRIEND DOWN THE STREET! The same Greek priest sat by his side in the hospital and shares VBS, youth group, college Orthodox clubs, and other things with our Serb parish. The Greeks and Serbs are super tight in Fresno. Different bishops, but at Forgiveness Vespers and all through Great Lent they go back and fourth with services shared by BOTH parishes. I think until we can finally have unity in North America, we just have to be happy with situations like this. Like Rus said, the biggest thing we have to worry about are Orthodox Christians who rationalize secular humanism, modernist tripe, shrug their shoulders at the new pansexuality and false science garbage of the new age, and try to hip up Orthodoxy as cool and current.

 

[gzt]

That's often kind of the case - there's only a couple priests in the area, who's going to be the priest's buddy? The other priests. They're the only ones who understand.

 

[Wryetui]

I must thank you all for the replies. You know, the only Orthodox Church I met is mine, the Romanian Orthodox Church because that's all what we have on my country so that's why it gave me the wrong feels and sensation, but your replies really comforted me and returned common sense to me, we are truly the One, True Church founded by Christ!

 

[ArmyMatt]

I suggest you read up on St Alexis Toth to learn how far from the truth the above statement is

an even more modern example is that of Fr David Kirk, who started the Emmaus House in Harlem. he was Byzantine Catholic, who became Orthodox at the end of his life. the Latin bishop tried to force their Western practice on him, and he realized how he was never one in faith with them when he joined the Eastern Rite.

 

[GregConstantine]

Theoretically we are united, practically speaking, no.

 

[stray bullet]

Rome is not unified, their laity are at each others throats. Between south american liberation theology, between traditionalists and modetnists, between the various uniate factions, they are a mess.

Orthodox doesn't have dissenters?

 

[truefiction1]

Orthodox doesn't have dissenters?

I doesn't seem likely that anyone is suggesting that there are no dissenters. There has always been dissenters from the very beginning, as indicated in the earliest of written records of Scripture. The point that is being made is that the OP's perceived unity in RC doesn't actually correspond with reality.

 

[Albion]

I suggest you read up on St Alexis Toth to learn how far from the truth the above statement is, plus it wasn't that long ago in the USA that Catholicism was a bunch of ethnic enclaves, the Irish Catholics in their church and the Polish Catholics in their church a few blocks away, with no interaction between them at all.
I'm afraid the OP statement is more than just a bit naive.

...and you could easily push that point a little further and point to the fact that the largest Old Catholic church in the USA came into being precisely because of that rivalry between ethnic (but historically Roman Catholic) populations. This may also remind us that there is no church in all of Christian history that has suffered the loss of more adherents through schisms and splits than the Roman Catholic Church.

 

[ArmyMatt]

Orthodox doesn't have dissenters?

we do, but when it comes to heresy, they are cut off (or at least, should be cut off) or are corrected. the doors are always open if they repent if they fall into heresy.

 

[E.C.]

We are as united as much as we are separated.

Yes, there are places like those described in Gurney's post, where despite the difference in bishop the people are united. Yes, there are places like Virginia Beach area where five out of the seven area churches do no acknowledge each others' existence. However, when it comes to theology and the obvious pastoral issues, there is concensus and in times of natural disaster we'd help each other out. What is important though, is that we commune in each others' parish and typically whenever two Orthodox people in the States meet they tend to become good friends.

 

[Light of the East]

One thing I like about the roman-catholic Church is its unity, they really are "One bread, one body" but we seem to be some national churches that are alienated from each other, how can this be?

Ummmmmmmm....they may be "one bread...one body," but there are some things that they just don't "get" because of a Roman ghetto mentality. Specifically, they need to understand that the Roman Rite is not the Church, it is part of a Church which consists of 22 other Rites as well. Syro-Malabar, Maronite, Melkite, Byzantine, Mar Thoma....just to name a few. Most Romans live in rather blissful ignorance of the rest of the Church.

Then....unfortunately, there are those who have the "Bishop Ireland" approach to the Church, which is to say that unless it is Roman, it is highly suspect. We Byzantines had fits with these guys for decades as they meddled in our affairs here in the USA.

Sheeesh!