www.byzcath.org Forums Faith & Christian Life Parish Life & Evangelization East-West Young Adult Discussion Group

I'm looking to start a discussion group about the Byzantine Church and Eastern Christianity that would include Latin Catholics in the Philadelphia area. My main question was what people's experiences have been, and what the best way of going about it would be. I've mentioned it to the pastor of St. John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic Church in Pottstown, and he is open to hosting it.

If anyone could give me input on a good place to start formatwise, I'm very interested.

Slava Isusu Christu,
John

Sorry I don't live in the area.
Please explain to me as an Eastern Orthodox Christian, why I would want to join this group. I mean it sounds unevely stacked with both Eastern Rite Catholics and Roman Catholics.
If you want to include a western voice, then it is unfair not to include other western churches such as the Lutherans or Anglicans which are both liturgical churches.
Sorry, I can't see the value of meeting with Roman Catholics and Eastern Rite Catholics.

Theology on Tap is popular among young people.

Orest, are you prejudiced against Catholics, whether Eastern or Western rite? I've been in numerous groups where it's been the other way where I've been the only Catholic, and everyone else has been Orthodox. I will hold my tongue for risk of being uncharitable.

Besides, I am aiming at getting ideas for an intra-Catholic discussion group. If Orthodox or others want to join, that's fine.

Hello, John. It's very good that Fr Nick offered to work with you on this. He's very personable and knowledgeable about this.

Dear John in your first post you wrote the following:


As you can see you said "Byzantine Church and Eastern Christianity." Thus, implying that you meant Eastern Catholic (Byzantine) and Orthodox (Eastern Christianity.

Now, in your second post, you have stated your group is to be "intra Catholic".
I was reacting that in my opinion, a discussion group that had twice as many Catholics (Eastern & Western Rite) would not be attractive to Eastern Orthodox Christians because the Orthodox would be outnumbered.

John,

Last year, I spent several weeks sitting in a church-school classroom with about ten Byzantine Catholic teenagers (9th-12th grade). They had next to no idea what Eastern Christian theology is. So, for those who might be curious, your forum could provide an excellent opportunity for this age group to ask questions that they might feel uncomfortable asking otherwise.

Depending on how serious you want the conversation to be, you might use a book club format and use the USCC publication, "Eastern Catholics in the United States of America" as a starting point.

Another useful text to help Eastern Catholics understand what Pope John Paul II was calling them to return to would be a brief online article, "Roman or Melkite, What's the Difference?" http://www.melkite.org/OES-RomanMelkite.htm.

/mark

John,

I realized your proposed discussion group is for young adults, perhaps my story about the high school age group will still be helpful for young adults.

/mark

John,

I would recommend "The Face of God" by Archbishop Joseph Raya as a good text with which to start. Of course, it is not jsut about READING, you can also incorporate experiences such as visiting various Churches, attending Divine Liturgies, visiting an icon studio, etc etc.

Great idea, though. I would say: Invite the more ecumenically minded Orthodox in your circle of friends to come and participate. If they come to your program, great. If they do not, maybe they will if it gets established. But I would not plan to target them as an audience if your goal is to help educate Latins on the Eastern churches. You might consider inviting some Orthodox clergy to come and speak on a specific night, or even to visit a Vespers service if none is offered in your parish. You might also consider doing some joint apostolate focused on te works of mercy. That is a great way to build bridges through shared charity.

God bless,

Gordo

"shared charity"

I agree. The Byzantine Forum, as with most Christian forums, could probably benefit greatly from some postings that are focused on what we are doing to heal this world. Along the lines of the metaphor of the Church as being a hospital, I view our churches as places where the world has been inoculated and we are sent forth after Divine Liturgy, filled with what the world needs - the Most Holy Spirit. We share it with everyone we meet. We share it with the world.

Take a read of half a dozen Christian forums/discussion boards and you'll see what non-Christians and those who have stopped attending see. I think, in a way, they are reaching out when they come to these boards; they are seekers, looking for signs of charity which spark hope.

Theological debate is fine. Are there any Christian forums to which I might refer people where they can experience a lot of support for Eastern Christian charity? I have six children, three of whom are the ages 19, 21, 23. (=Young adults) They are very computer/Internet savvy. They are connected to the world in far-flung places with people whom they've never met face-to-face. They want to make a difference in the world (acts of charity). They'll need Christian support and understanding.

Perhaps Christian acts of charity could be offered as a major topic for the East-West Young Adult Discussion Group.

/mark

Please forgive me. I should say that it is very wonderful that this particular thread is focused on Parish Life and Evangelization. I'd love to see more of this.

(I'm not real familiar with posting to discussion boards. I read them from time to time, but don't post. Is there a good "how-to" book on how to use all the features/functions of this discussion board program?)

/mark

The biggest obstacle is the ignorance of many Roman Catholics. I attended a Coptic Church several times where they began their discussion by praying the hours from the Agapeya. I was thinking of maybe starting out by praying out of the Horologion.

I'd like to develop a format that could be successful, starting small, taking baby steps.

Mark,
Do you attend St. John's in Pottstown? I ask because that's my parish.
,John

Hello Mark, sorry your link didn`t work for me.

Dear John Ross,

With 12 psalms for each Hour at a minimum, I daresay the Agpeya is anything but a "baby step!"

Alex