• Starting today August 7th, 2024, in order to post in the Married Couples, Courting Couples, or Singles forums, you will not be allowed to post if you have your Marital status designated as private. Announcements will be made in the respective forums as well but please note that if yours is currently listed as Private, you will need to submit a ticket in the Support Area to have yours changed.

I need a shepherd

Lukaris

Orthodox Christian
Site Supporter
Aug 3, 2007
8,497
2,972
Pennsylvania, USA
✟884,757.00
Country
United States
Gender
Male
Faith
Eastern Orthodox
Marital Status
Single
What are some of the things you enjoy about Orthodoxy and what aspects of it do you kind of loathe or find difficult to practice? And please don't mistake this question as a negative one or think I am pursuing this for pure fun. I recognize there is work to be done and that the path is challenging.
Orthodoxy, I believe, reveals the fullness of Christian faith in that we can understand mercy and justice in salvation by grace ( Ephesians 2:8-10 etc.).We can learn about judgment and not be judgmental but hopeful for ourselves and others ( Matthew 22:29-32, Matthew 7:1-12, 1 Timothy 2:1-6 etc.). It is ok for us to be informed as long as we are not presumptuous and put our trust in God according to His commandments and will ( Romans 2:6-16, Romans 9:14-18).

What is frustrating about the situation of American Orthodoxy is that evangelization is scattered or lacking ( there are fine examples of it of course). Many Orthodox folks are good and faithful but do not articulate their faith well ( this is not an intellectual criticism on my part). I don’t believe other Christians should automatically be assumed as having a wrong faith. Many other Christian denominations or whatever are also collapsing with people not knowing where to go and we should be their haven. As an introvert myself, I surely should take care in what I say.

Lastly, I believe a real good, understandable, compact, & substantive book on Orthodoxy is: The Faith We Hold by the late Archbishop Paul of Finland. It is only around 100 pages long. I don’t know how available it might be. Our parish library has it, so maybe another might also. It would be good if this book is better known.


 
Upvote 0
Dec 27, 2024
18
19
41
Indiana
✟4,090.00
Country
United States
Faith
Christian
Marital Status
Married
Politics
US-Republican
What is frustrating about the situation of American Orthodoxy is that evangelization is scattered or lacking ( there are fine examples of it of course). Many Orthodox folks are good and faithful but do not articulate their faith well ( this is not an intellectual criticism on my part).[/URL]

Thank you. I'm going to get the books you mentioned.

With regard to this, I was shocked about how few Orthodox churches exist in major metros such as the one I live in. I think there are only 2 and this is the 27th largest city in America.

My brother-in-laws family is Greek Orthodox. My sister is not Greek. When she first started dating him, his family rejected her and she was not welcome at any function. Now that they have been married for 20 years, this is no longer a problem and she even goes to church with him from time to time but I don't think she herself is Orthodox. I should ask her. We're not super close, but we live in different parts of the nation and see each other every few years. In learning about Orthodoxy, they appear to center around minority communities that are very alien to the typical American experience.
 
Upvote 0

ArmyMatt

Regular Member
Site Supporter
Jan 26, 2007
42,179
20,797
Earth
✟1,603,396.00
Country
United States
Gender
Male
Faith
Eastern Orthodox
Marital Status
Married
Are you from Louisville? I did a quick search here for St. Michael's and you posted about it years ago. That's the church I am thinking about visiting.
no, but I went there when I was stationed at Ft Knox. it’s an amazing parish and worth the drive.
 
  • Winner
Reactions: The Liturgist
Upvote 0
Dec 27, 2024
18
19
41
Indiana
✟4,090.00
Country
United States
Faith
Christian
Marital Status
Married
Politics
US-Republican
no, but I went there when I was stationed at Ft Knox. it’s an amazing parish and worth the drive.
It's not too far from me. About 20-30 minutes depending on traffic.


Thank you for your military service. I've been to Ft. Knox a few times over the years. I took my son to the museum on Ft. Knox several years back and have made a few Ambulance runs on base to the Army Hospital that used to be there. One of my friends made an emergency run to the gold vault and they said they were blinded by lights driving into it and were brought into some kind of tunnel. The dying patient had to be brought out to them as they were prohibited from going further than a fancy looking rotunda type room. Have you ever been inside it?
 
  • Winner
Reactions: The Liturgist
Upvote 0

Lukaris

Orthodox Christian
Site Supporter
Aug 3, 2007
8,497
2,972
Pennsylvania, USA
✟884,757.00
Country
United States
Gender
Male
Faith
Eastern Orthodox
Marital Status
Single
Thank you. I'm going to get the books you mentioned.

With regard to this, I was shocked about how few Orthodox churches exist in major metros such as the one I live in. I think there are only 2 and this is the 27th largest city in America.

My brother-in-laws family is Greek Orthodox. My sister is not Greek. When she first started dating him, his family rejected her and she was not welcome at any function. Now that they have been married for 20 years, this is no longer a problem and she even goes to church with him from time to time but I don't think she herself is Orthodox. I should ask her. We're not super close, but we live in different parts of the nation and see each other every few years. In learning about Orthodoxy, they appear to center around minority communities that are very alien to the typical American experience.
From the start American Orthodoxy has been handicapped by a lack of a strong church social network, religious isolation giving way to secular assimilation, and weakness in generational continuity. Add to this the drift away from Christian faith in the west in general.

I believe my personal family histories give me an uncommon perspective on this ( I don’t mean this in any kind ego sense etc. just by coincidence). I am a convert to Orthodoxy ( about 20 years) but I belong to the parish of my paternal Syrian grandparents whereas my maternal ancestry goes back to the American colonies.

Our parish is truly American & Arabic; 6 men from it died in combat during WW 2. Our liturgy is mostly in English with a fair amount of Arabic ( although this is not in a fixed sense). There is a rotation so the same hymn will usually be in English about 2 out of 3 weeks & Arabic for 1 week ( for example). We pray the Lord’s Prayer in English and Arabic. This is actually a good thing because Syrian people are still coming to America. We even had a person convert from the dominant faith in Arabic lands. I don’t want to give an impression that we are particularly thriving but we are alive. People of various backgrounds attend our liturgy; we are not a closed ethnic clique. We could do a lot better but we are sociable & accessible. I realize Pennsylvania is a bit far for you unfortunately. Hoping I can give you a bit of perspective in my rambling.
 
Upvote 0

Lukaris

Orthodox Christian
Site Supporter
Aug 3, 2007
8,497
2,972
Pennsylvania, USA
✟884,757.00
Country
United States
Gender
Male
Faith
Eastern Orthodox
Marital Status
Single
My post on "What is sin" vanished. Anyone know how to find it? I am trying to learn and was hoping to continue that discussion for a bit.
It seems like that whole thread vanished.
 
Upvote 0

ArmyMatt

Regular Member
Site Supporter
Jan 26, 2007
42,179
20,797
Earth
✟1,603,396.00
Country
United States
Gender
Male
Faith
Eastern Orthodox
Marital Status
Married
My post on "What is sin" vanished. Anyone know how to find it? I am trying to learn and was hoping to continue that discussion for a bit.
accidental deletion, your thread is back up
 
  • Like
Reactions: Lukaris
Upvote 0

The Liturgist

Traditional Liturgical Christian
Site Supporter
Nov 26, 2019
13,948
7,343
50
The Wild West
✟666,571.00
Country
United States
Gender
Male
Faith
Generic Orthodox Christian
Marital Status
Celibate
I’m not going to lie—-I absolutely DESPISE driving to Fresno. 50 miles, lousy traffic, ugly trip. And since I’m a Reader, I get up extra early on a Sundays to allow for traffic and to read at Matins. There are only 10-15 of us in there that early, but it’s beautiful, and my frustration with driving wanes fast. When I start to feel sorry for myself, I think of what monastics give up, the hardships and misery the saints suffered through, I contemplate my former life as a Catholic where my spiritual adrenal gland was completely drained, and the reward for driving up there on 5-6 hours sleep and realize I’m being a baby. Church/relationship with the Lord is not a stay at home affair or a do it yourself trip. We’re meant for corporate worship and prayer. We’re meant for Orthodoxy!

Hey Gurney, unrelated item but I am curious about how some liturgical things are done in your jurisdiction (you’re in the Serbian church, right?), I would love to learn some of what you know as a reader at some point.
 
Upvote 0
Oct 15, 2008
19,428
7,402
Central California
✟280,403.00
Country
United States
Gender
Male
Faith
Eastern Orthodox
Marital Status
Married
Politics
US-Others
Hey Gurney, unrelated item but I am curious about how some liturgical things are done in your jurisdiction (you’re in the Serbian church, right?), I would love to learn some of what you know as a reader at some point.
Ask away….
 
Upvote 0

The Liturgist

Traditional Liturgical Christian
Site Supporter
Nov 26, 2019
13,948
7,343
50
The Wild West
✟666,571.00
Country
United States
Gender
Male
Faith
Generic Orthodox Christian
Marital Status
Celibate
Ask away….

Well for starters, nearly all of my liturgical resources except for one very good prayerbook of Serbian provenance are of ROCOR, OCA, Antiochian and Greek origin. This includes all copies I have pertaining to the typikon. Is there an English language translation of the Typikon as used in Serbian parishes? Since I’ve noticed you do some things slightly differently than ROCOR, OCA and the Patriarchal parishes.
 
Upvote 0