No, Orthodoxy is Not Just Another Expression of Christianity
In this post I want to address the claim by Protestants ignorant of Orthodoxy that the Orthodox church is simply another valid expression of Christianity, another denomination in which they that feel inclined to the liturgical style of worship can feel comfortable. This idea is pretty useful for those who don't know very much about Orthodoxy, have no desire to look into Orthodoxy, and at the same time want to keep the peace in the name of tolerance and acceptance of... pretty much anything.
Ok, maybe that's going a bit too far.
But I have heard it stated that Orthodoxy is pretty much just another denomination that as a Christian you are free to choose. Baptists, Lutherans, Methodists, Anglicans, Pentecostals, Brethren, any of the hundreds of varieties of Mennonite, Reformed, and Orthodoxy. Take your pick. It's all about the style of worship and what suits your fancy.
This is not reality, however. I became Orthodox not because my personality is more well-suited to the liturgical style of worship, I became Orthodox because I couldn't ignore the historical claims they were making as the ancient church - the first church. The worship style had absolutely nothing to do with it. In fact, I had made up my mind to become Orthodox before ever setting foot in an Orthodox church, and I think I was better for it. Not that everyone has to do it the way I did, but I studied and faced up to the doctrines that the Orthodox church has preserved, and accepted Her as my theological and doctrinal authority before I ever knew how wonderful the service itself was. I did not join the Orthodox church because I was drawn to the Sunday morning service.
But this is not the typical protestant experience when moving churches. Usually one feels out of sorts with their church and leaves to find another church that emphasizes certain doctrines or sings certain songs. They leave because they are looking for something that will captivate them on a Sunday morning. And so when they hear of someone converting to Orthodoxy, they assume it's because that person feels more comfortable in a Sunday morning service in the Orthodox church.
So, why is the Orthodox church not simply another expression of Christianity? Because it is the expression of Christianity. All others came after. It is not simply another denomination because the Orthodox church claims to be the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church. She claims to be the only church that has kept the doctrines that were once for all delivered unto the saints. She claims that She is the fullness of the Christian faith.
So what in the world is the difference between Orthodoxy and other protestant denominations then? Why does all this matter?
When trying to bridge the gap between two very distant views, or in this case trying to understand just how distant two views are, it is beneficial to state not necessarily the truths espoused by each, but rather the process whereby they have each arrived at those truths. One of the key words here is epistemology, that is, the source of one's knowledge.
I have lived most of my life as a protestant, and so I can still speak with some confidence as to how they understand how God has revealed truth to us. It goes something like this:
With this structure, the Bible becomes the sole means of understanding what the apostles taught and ultimately what Jesus Christ Himself taught. If this is your reality, then of course you want to stress Sola Scriptura, and be suspicious about practices not found in the Bible. So, let's add to the image one more piece: a practice found outside the Bible:
Ok, maybe that's going a bit too far.
But I have heard it stated that Orthodoxy is pretty much just another denomination that as a Christian you are free to choose. Baptists, Lutherans, Methodists, Anglicans, Pentecostals, Brethren, any of the hundreds of varieties of Mennonite, Reformed, and Orthodoxy. Take your pick. It's all about the style of worship and what suits your fancy.
This is not reality, however. I became Orthodox not because my personality is more well-suited to the liturgical style of worship, I became Orthodox because I couldn't ignore the historical claims they were making as the ancient church - the first church. The worship style had absolutely nothing to do with it. In fact, I had made up my mind to become Orthodox before ever setting foot in an Orthodox church, and I think I was better for it. Not that everyone has to do it the way I did, but I studied and faced up to the doctrines that the Orthodox church has preserved, and accepted Her as my theological and doctrinal authority before I ever knew how wonderful the service itself was. I did not join the Orthodox church because I was drawn to the Sunday morning service.
But this is not the typical protestant experience when moving churches. Usually one feels out of sorts with their church and leaves to find another church that emphasizes certain doctrines or sings certain songs. They leave because they are looking for something that will captivate them on a Sunday morning. And so when they hear of someone converting to Orthodoxy, they assume it's because that person feels more comfortable in a Sunday morning service in the Orthodox church.
So, why is the Orthodox church not simply another expression of Christianity? Because it is the expression of Christianity. All others came after. It is not simply another denomination because the Orthodox church claims to be the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church. She claims to be the only church that has kept the doctrines that were once for all delivered unto the saints. She claims that She is the fullness of the Christian faith.
So what in the world is the difference between Orthodoxy and other protestant denominations then? Why does all this matter?
When trying to bridge the gap between two very distant views, or in this case trying to understand just how distant two views are, it is beneficial to state not necessarily the truths espoused by each, but rather the process whereby they have each arrived at those truths. One of the key words here is epistemology, that is, the source of one's knowledge.
I have lived most of my life as a protestant, and so I can still speak with some confidence as to how they understand how God has revealed truth to us. It goes something like this:
- God sent His Son, Jesus to this earth.
- Jesus taught twelve disciples who became His apostles
- The apostles (and those closest to them) wrote the Bible
- The Bible is given to the world
- The job of each church is to now read that Bible and interpret for themselves using whatever means they deem good and necessary in order to understand the truth of what God has revealed to us.
Each protestant denomination, whether they are Baptists or Lutherans, Anglicans or Methodists, Mennonite or Pentecostal, is trying their best to understand this Bible and model their practices and their lives around it.
I really wanted to make a graphic for this, so here it goes:
I picked the practice of crossing one's self because it is a relatively simple practice that is pretty benign when it comes to provoking people. For the Protestant, crossing one's self is found outside of their epistemological system. It is not found in the Bible, and therefore cannot be determined one way or another if it is of beneficial value to the Christian. There are loads of other practices that fall into this same category, and most protestants have taken the stand that we do good to eliminate all these practices from our lives and focus solely on what the Bible preserves because there is no way we can be certain if these other practices are the truth or not. Carrying on that premise, the Protestant groups I grew up in then took the next step and declared that "all truth that God intended us to know regarding faith and practice can be found in the pages of scripture". Everything we need to know is in the Bible and now we just have to be smart enough with the way we interpret it, submitting to the Holy Spirit all the way, in order to really learn all that God has given to us.
Ok, that was easy to write. That's what I have believed my entire life. Every protestant denomination will follow this line of thinking more or less. I'm not going to get into any objections I have right now. The job I have obligated myself to do is to explain why the Orthodox Church is not just another denomination.
This is how the Orthodox church views her source of knowledge. It starts with Christ and the apostles, who founded the Church (that is, one Church - not many). And the truth delivered once and for all to the saints is kept alive through various means. I've chosen the seven that Fr Thomas Hopko highlights in his book Doctrine and Scripture - Volume I of THE ORTHODOX FAITH. In a system such as this, the practice of crossing one's self can definitely be part of the faith delivered to us today through the Church. This is also where praying to Saints, the veneration of Mary, and a sacramental understanding of the world all exist. And once one allows this model of knowledge to become their framework, a lot of the "suspicious" behaviour simply becomes normal. And with the blinders off, you even start to find these kinds of behaviours in the Bible itself!
That last graphic might give you some uneasiness. That first graphic might give you some uneasiness. What matters most, the point I am trying to make in this post, is that they are fundamentally different from one another. And that is why Orthodoxy is not simply another expression of Christianity.
Protestants need to understand the claims of the Orthodox Church. I want my friends and my family to understand why I left the Church of my youth and the last 30 years of my life to join another church, and why I'm so insanely joyful about it.
Blessings upon each and every one of you :)
Joey
That last graphic might give you some uneasiness. That first graphic might give you some uneasiness. What matters most, the point I am trying to make in this post, is that they are fundamentally different from one another. And that is why Orthodoxy is not simply another expression of Christianity.
Protestants need to understand the claims of the Orthodox Church. I want my friends and my family to understand why I left the Church of my youth and the last 30 years of my life to join another church, and why I'm so insanely joyful about it.
Blessings upon each and every one of you :)
Joey