www.byzcath.org Forums Faith & Christian Life Prayer Converting to Orthodoxy

You bring up points that are very valid and ones which I have considered. I agree with what you say. I see certain contradictions in the Eastern Catholic position. These are just observations. I mean no disrespect to the Eastern Catholic Churches. If it had not been for the Byzantine Catholic Church, I would still think that Christianity was only composed of Roman Catholic and Protestant Christians

I go with all love and respect to my Catholic brethren.

Columcille

Columcille,

I will be praying for you and your wife. I know the tension that changing can bring on: My wife and I have different backgrounds and approaches to the Christian life, and these are never "fun" moments.

May His Resurrected Life Reign in both your hearts,
Walt M

Dear Eric and Columcille,

First of all, I ask the Moderator to place this in another thread with respect to the rules governing the prayer thread.

But didn't someone say that theology is prayer?

I think it does no one a good service to oversimplify a position as Eric has done here.

No Eastern Catholic can, in good conscience, say that about the Church. It is simply nonsense from BOTH Catholic and Orthodox positions.

Eastern Catholics are in communion with Rome, just as Latin and other Catholics are.

And it is not just a matter of governance. If that were so, our bishops and people would not have given their lives in defence of the Catholic Church as they did during the soviet terror.

The ecumenical theology of the Catholic Church is more developed than that of the Orthodox Churches, but that isn't our fault .

Again, if truth is seen only in black and white, and how can it be, then I can understand how you feel about the Catholic Church.

But that is precisely why I cannot bring myself to be Orthodox.

Prayers, prayers . . .

Alex

Alex-

If Truth isn't black and white it isn't Truth.

Columcille

Dear Columcille,

O.K., Big Guy, but how can we sinful ones, with our minds darkened etc. ever be completely sure about these things?

Life is a struggle for us toward the Truth and there will be people who, with the lights God gives them, have different understandings of it.

We may think them wrong. The question is, does God think them wrong?

Also, I think it's a slippery slope on the Orthodox truth ride.

There are Orthodox jurisdictions who think they have more truth than even most Orthodox.

So it's not a question of whether Truth itself exists. We know it does.

It is all about our human weakness to fully comprehend it. We make mistakes in our struggle.

I believe God only asks that we keep struggling with His Grace.

And that is also why I think we need to be understanding of others in this regard. It is not about relativism.

It is about our moral weakness with respect to this.

But we really should have started a new thread on this.

True or not, guess who's going to get berated for getting us off the prayer topic! It ain't gonna be you!

Prayers, prayers ...

Alex

Columcille,

I think you made a good choice. It sounds like your struggle was similar to mine. Check your profile, I sent you a message.

BTW, I just joined this forum so Hello Everybody!

In the Name of the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit. One God, Amen.

Brother Columcille!

Finally something I can agree with you about! Congratulations on your conversion to Orthodoxy, God is with you. I will pray for the strength of your family as you go through this transition.

p.s. And now we work on the conservative stuff…

Aklie Semaet

Acknowledging Alex's statement about being off the "prayers" topic (strictly speaking), might I offer a theological nugget to be used first for meditation and then for prayer?

Pontius Pilate asked the question: "What is truth?" Theologians (and others) have struggled with this question for millenia. In terms of the Scholastics (and some Eastern theologians), truth is considered to be the perfect correlation of the "reality" and our ability to comprehend it.

The Lord God of Hosts is both the Alpha and the Omega and incorporates in Himself all of reality. We humans, though oftentimes taken with ourselves and our abilities to reason, are really horridly imperfect and terribly limited in our ability to understand spiritual reality. Thinking about how we can comprehend Truth, we must draw back and realize our total imperfection. But, all is not lost. Christ told us that He is the way, the truth and the life. And He also told us that "God is Love; whoever abides in love abides in God and God in him."

Thus, our ability to both love God and love our neighbor increases our understanding of "truth". The more we love (and REALLY care for!) God and our neighbors, the closer we come to the "real Truth" that is God.

Might I suggest that we all devote some un-distracted meditation time and discoursive prayer to how well we love, and how we can improve our ability in coming closer to God.

Let us all love one another so that with one mind we may profess: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, Trinity one in essence and undivided.

Blessings.

So that's my problem.

Tell me Alex, does your wife type fast?

Brother Aklie-

Thank you. I think we probably agree on more things then you think.

Politically, by the way, I'm a left leaning Libertarian. So I guess that means that I think both Rush Limbaugh and Joseph Lieberman are full of hot air

Thank you for your prayers.

Columcille

Dear Columcille:

Throughout human history, TRUTH has been perceived from three vantage points: yours, mine, and the right one!

Vaya con Dios, my friend.

AmdG

[ 08-23-2002: Message edited by: Amado Guerrero ]

Dear Columcille,

If you are left-leaning, you most definitely have my prayers . . .

May the Grace of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Love of God the Father and the Communion of the Holy Spirit be with you always.

Alex

Alex-

And with thy spirit.

Columcille