Orthodoxy's side

[Woodsy]

Hello all, this is my first time posting in this forum, I believe.

Haveing been exposed, via CF, to viewpoints, arguments, and history of which I had previously been ignorant, I am coming more and more to see the truth of Cardinal Newman's comment, "to be deep in history is to cease to be a Protestant."

My current area of inquiry, however, is as follows:
Having been convinced that Protestantism has abandoned so much of early Church teachings and practice, aren't there really two contenders left on the field - Catholicism and Orthodoxy?
I was listening to a very good tape of Catholic apologetics in the car with my wife the other day, and I was agreeing mightily with the speaker's contentions that Protestantism has wandered quite far away from what the writings of the Early Church Fathers indicate was believed and practiced by the students of the Apostles in the 1st century Church. But then, I mentioned to my wife that I wondered why that same argument in defense of Roman Catholicism wouldn't also amount to a defense of the Eastern Orthodox Church.

I have learned and bemnefited so much by addressing my questions about Catholicism to Catholics, and so I bring this question to my Orthodox brethren. I appreciate your consideration and input.

 

[MariaRegina]

My dearest Tribe:

Perhaps I should encourage you to read The Mountain of Silence written by Kyriacos Markides and published in 2001. It is available in hardback or paperback from Amazon.com

Kyriacos Markides introduces a hieromonk named Father Maximos of Mt. Athos. The book has lots of humorous episodes and the author is very sensitive so as not to offend Protestants and Catholics.

Also available from Amazon.com is The Orthodox Church by Timothy Ware (Bishop Kallistos Ware). This book is also available from Amazon.com in paperback. You will find that Bishop Kallistos, a former Anglican, likewise writes lovingly so as not to offend Catholics and Protestants. The book is very scholarly and is used at several colleges as a text.

Both books are written from the historical viewpoint but you need that background to understand the Church.

Hope this helps.

Elizabeth

 

[Reader Nilus]

Hello all, this is my first time posting in this forum, I believe.

Haveing been exposed, via CF, to viewpoints, arguments, and history of which I had previously been ignorant, I am coming more and more to see the truth of Cardinal Newman's comment, "to be deep in history is to cease to be a Protestant."

My current area of inquiry, however, is as follows:
Having been convinced that Protestantism has abandoned so much of early Church teachings and practice, aren't there really two contenders left on the field - Catholicism and Orthodoxy?
I was listening to a very good tape of Catholic apologetics in the car with my wife the other day, and I was agreeing mightily with the speaker's contentions that Protestantism has wandered quite far away from what the writings of the Early Church Fathers indicate was believed and practiced by the students of the Apostles in the 1st century Church. But then, I mentioned to my wife that I wondered why that same argument in defense of Roman Catholicism wouldn't also amount to a defense of the Eastern Orthodox Church.

I have learned and bemnefited so much by addressing my questions about Catholicism to Catholics, and so I bring this question to my Orthodox brethren. I appreciate your consideration and input.

A wealth of information is found at Christian Orthodox Publications, Booklets, articles, Bishop Alexander Mileant Another site worth looking at would be BIRTH OF THE THEOTOKOS MONASTERY And this link to an article by Archpriest Sergius Bulgakov which highlights the difference between Orthodoxy and Roman Catholicism, The Vatican Dogma.
Jeff the Finn

 

[Woodsy]

Hmm, I hope no one has been offended by this thread or the questions I have asked.
I did not mean to pit Catholicism against Orthodoxy. Nor did mean to ask Orthodoxy to defend itself against Protestantism.
I truly asked in innocence the question that went through my head as I listened to the tape of Catholic apologetics.
I apologize if any offense was taken.

And thank you for the kind responses provided thus far.

 

[CopticOrthodox]

Here are two books defending Orthodoxy vs. Protestantism, written in response to a Protestant group trying very hard to convert the Orthodox Christians in Egypt to Protestantism: http://suscopticdiocese.org/stmaryhouston/ss/comp_theology.pdf and the sequal: http://suscopticdiocese.org/stmaryhouston/ss/priesthood.pdf

 

[Reader Nilus]

No offence taken. One of the main differences between the west and the east, is that the Eastern Orthodox and that includes the Oriental Orthodox as well, did not have a scholastic period like the west, nor did the basic philosophical outlook change as it did in the west after Thomas Aquinas. Orthodoxy would also claim that the church of the Fathers is what we adhere to, as the faith once delievered. When we enter the Orthodox Church we confess that we will pass the faith on unchanged. For us Tradition is how to read the Bible, how to worship and so forth, the Church Fathers and Mothers are authorities, and the Ecumenical Councils define what we believe. The Living Prayer tradition of St Catherine's Monastery on Sinai and The Holy Mountain are ever bubbling founts of Living Water. We are not trying to reinvent the wheel, or find the lost Christianity, for us it never was lost, that it needs to be found.
Jeff the Finn

 

[Orthosdoxa]

Greetings,

I have a web site that I designed for people wanting to know more about Orthodoxy. Feel free to browse it and the articles on it.

stienekel.tripod.com

 

[Maximus]

Tribe -

You will find a great deal of similarity between Roman Catholic and Orthodox apologetics, especially where Protestants are concerned. That is because Roman Catholic and Orthodox beliefs are identical on many basic issues (even when partisans from both sides claim they're not).

If you are interested in the differences, a brief summary of them can be found in the pamphlet Orthodoxy and Catholicism: What Are the Differences?, by Father Theodore Pulcini ( available at Conciliar Press).

Another excellent book is Michael Whelton's Two Paths: Papal Monarchy - Collegial Tradition, available here.

 

[Philip]

Also available from Amazon.com is The Orthodox Church by Timothy Ware (Bishop Kallistos Ware). This book is also available from Amazon.com in paperback. You will find that Bishop Kallistos, a former Anglican, likewise writes lovingly so as not to offend Catholics and Protestants. The book is very scholarly and is used at several colleges as a text.

To this I would add Bishop Kallistos' other book, The Orthodox Way.