Apostolic heritage of our Church
From http://www.street-theologian.com/2008/02/popular-piety-vs-real-piety.html:
No punches pulled ... just the plain truth.
Our Church leaders must analyze and pray over the simple question, "What does it mean to be an Indian Orthodox Christian?"
Is it really just the language of the Liturgy? Or that we are Malayalees and must always remain a Malayalee Church? Or perhaps blind adherence to a Constitution passed in India in the 1930s? Or the endless lawsuits and bickering over the Throne of St Thomas?
Or is it the Faith that Christ taught his Apostles, and that we are privileged to have handed down to us so we can continue the fellowship of Christians worshiping the Lord?
Once the understanding of what it means to be an Indian Orthodox Christian can be articulated, then the purpose of the Church and how the Church lives on a weekly basis becomes simple.
"When we lose sight of the real core of our Apostolic heritage as the Church, we end up desperately searching for a way to stem the tide of people choosing other faiths. I can not blame someone for leaving the Orthodox Church because they have never felt ministered to nor that their identity in the Church is central to their being. If Sundays are taken over by performance and not sincere worship, than hearts truly searching for Christ will wander. I am truly convinced that the Orthodox Church is complete and has everything to offer anyone who will receive it, but that message of completeness and continuity has no real weight unless it’s genuinely and clearly conveyed on a Sunday to Sunday, parish to parish basis."
No punches pulled ... just the plain truth.
Our Church leaders must analyze and pray over the simple question, "What does it mean to be an Indian Orthodox Christian?"
Is it really just the language of the Liturgy? Or that we are Malayalees and must always remain a Malayalee Church? Or perhaps blind adherence to a Constitution passed in India in the 1930s? Or the endless lawsuits and bickering over the Throne of St Thomas?
Or is it the Faith that Christ taught his Apostles, and that we are privileged to have handed down to us so we can continue the fellowship of Christians worshiping the Lord?
Once the understanding of what it means to be an Indian Orthodox Christian can be articulated, then the purpose of the Church and how the Church lives on a weekly basis becomes simple.
Comments
The most urgent need in world Orthodoxy at this time is the need to engage in an aggressive internal mission of spiritual renewal or outright conversion of our clergy and people to Jesus Christ. All of us—bishops, priests, and people—need to make the Gospel crystal clear and absolutely central in our lives and in our parishes.
http://restlessevangel.wordpress.com/2008/01/30/do-orthodox-know-the-gospel/
His anxious path into EO shows that we are no different from some of the many Anglo-American bloggers. Are we making the right choices that time will show as it makes us better Orthodox Christians? But why don't you read the reply from David Bryan. His eloquent post just goes to show you that this one Orthodox Christian journey need not to criticize other Orthodox (cradle members included) by condemning their approach. I was taken back by his reply before reading his blog for the past 20 days. I ask you if you feel the same way that these people are feeling and if Malayalees are no different from the Americans who inquire about this faith?
P.S. AFR kicks ass! Podcasts galore and ear-tingling sounds from the Russians. All in a Sunday morning before service.
My personal opinion is that this is kinda missing the point ... our clergy have been trained, educated and blessed by God to minister. Some may have different gifts than others e.g., some are natural-born speakers, whereas others may better teach through example.
The behavior of an individual does not diminish the Church teachings. What our Church fails (in my opinion) is understanding that different members of the Church will be at different stages of personal closeness with Christ, and then being able to teach, educate and guide them. Evangelist churches refer to this as Personal Ministry .. and often in our Church we dismiss this as being the responsibility of parents. But, in many cases - how can the blind lead the blind?
This among many reasons is why the role of the priests who are born and brought up outside Kerala will be so important to the growth of our Church ...