private vow valid?dispensation possible?

[OOConvert]

Before I decided to become orthodox I made a private vow of celibacy,but I now see that i can't do it for the rest of my life.I wanted to ask does the OO church only bind you on public vows accepted by a priest or bishop or also private vows,and can it ever be dispensed and how?

 

[dzheremi]

I'm not sure I understand the situation. If you made the vow before you became Orthodox, and are now Orthodox, then I don't see why it should matter. I mean, before I converted to Orthodoxy I was Roman Catholic, and so I lived according to that church's rules and practices, but obviously now that I am Orthodox I don't do that anymore. It doesn't mean that I didn't do so then, or that I should continue to do so now, since obviously the way of life is very different between the two.

I don't know anything about making such vows in any case (I'm not aware of having to make them in front of any church authority; celibacy is rather what is expected of everyone who is not married, whether they've made a personal vow or not), but I would have a very hard time imagining a circumstance in which vows made before entering the Church are still required to be held to by the believer after their entrance into the Church, with the exception of those which are also legally binding, like marriage (e.g., a situation wherein one spouse converts but the other doesn't; it's not ideal, but it does happen, and in those cases the priority seems to be making sure that any children are raised Orthodox, and of course inviting the non-Orthodox spouse to the Church, should they be open to it).

 

[OOConvert]

I'm not sure I understand the situation. If you made the vow before you became Orthodox, and are now Orthodox, then I don't see why it should matter. I mean, before I converted to Orthodoxy I was Roman Catholic, and so I lived according to that church's rules and practices, but obviously now that I am Orthodox I don't do that anymore. It doesn't mean that I didn't do so then, or that I should continue to do so now, since obviously the way of life is very different between the two.

I don't know anything about making such vows in any case (I'm not aware of having to make them in front of any church authority; celibacy is rather what is expected of everyone who is not married, whether they've made a personal vow or not), but I would have a very hard time imagining a circumstance in which vows made before entering the Church are still required to be held to by the believer after their entrance into the Church, with the exception of those which are also legally binding, like marriage (e.g., a situation wherein one spouse converts but the other doesn't; it's not ideal, but it does happen, and in those cases the priority seems to be making sure that any children are raised Orthodox, and of course inviting the non-Orthodox spouse to the Church, should they be open to it).

Does clerical dispensation exist in the oriental Orthodox church and is a vow valid if it isn't done in fron of a episcopal authority?

 

[dzheremi]

I honestly do not know. That would be a question for a priest or bishop. Have you tried reaching out to your priest or bishop? I don't know anything about OO churches in the Netherlands (I know the Coptic Church is there, since I've met Coptic-Dutch people), but maybe if you can find some way to contact a priest or bishop to answer your question, it would be helpful.

In your other thread on Predestination I offered a reply from my own bishop, HG Bishop Youssef of the Southern United States, via the Q&A section of the diocese's website. You can also ask a question to be answered via the same website, by following the email link that is at the bottom of this page, where it says "Ask a question": http://www.suscopts.org/q&a/

If you cannot get an answer locally, this might be a good alternative to try.

 

[OOConvert]

I honestly do not know. That would be a question for a priest or bishop. Have you tried reaching out to your priest or bishop? I don't know anything about OO churches in the Netherlands (I know the Coptic Church is there, since I've met Coptic-Dutch people), but maybe if you can find some way to contact a priest or bishop to answer your question, it would be helpful.

In your other thread on Predestination I offered a reply from my own bishop, HG Bishop Youssef of the Southern United States, via the Q&A section of the diocese's website. You can also ask a question to be answered via the same website, by following the email link that is at the bottom of this page, where it says "Ask a question": http://www.suscopts.org/q&a/

If you cannot get an answer locally, this might be a good alternative to try.

I contacted them,hope they will reply.I think the OO church sees vows as binding forever and irreversable.if that is the case then I would have to become a monk afterall.

 

[archer75]

Not OO here, but definitely talk openly to your priest or bishop about this.

 

[OOConvert]

Hello guys,I talked to bishop anba arsemy the top Bishop in The Netherlands,and he dispensed me from the vow,prayed over me and made me kiss the cross.We also talked a bit about why I decided to come to orthodoxy.he's very intelligent and Kind.he speaks english,dutch and arabic fluently.his kindness and humbleness is of a True apostle.I felt for the first time as if I met a living Saint.

 

[OOConvert]

I visited a Bishop yesterday and he dispensed me from the vow.

 

[dzheremi]

Very good.