And I thought that the complaints would come from the Russian Orthodox, but then, could it be more nationalist-driven?
“And I thought that the complaints would come from the Russian Orthodox, but then, could it be more nationalist-driven?”
Well, the Eastern Orthodox Churches are riddled with nationalism and always have been. Take my nickname, for instance. Vladimir is a common Russian Orthodox name. If I actually joined ROCOR (Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia) I might very well be expected to take a specifically Russian or generally “Orthodox” name. I have a friend who joined a Western Rite branch of an Orthodox Church and took the name “Ambrose” after St. Ambrose of Milan. There’s nothing wrong with that, but why would I be expected to choose, say, “Vladimir” rather than “Walter” - which is the English way of saying Vladimir after all. Why? Because these Orthodox Churches are really ethnic/national Churches.
Here’s another example:
“What is special about the seminary in Jordanville is that instruction is exclusively in Russian. In earlier days, uttering the English language could result in punishment in the form of prostrations, such was the strictness of rule. But this had its pluses, for the present Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, Metropolitan Hilarion, learned Russian during his time in Jordanville. And he wasn’t alone; for many future pastors of the Russian Church Abroad, Jordanville opened the door to the treasury of Russian Orthodox culture, which is simply unimaginable without the Russian language and divine services in Church Slavonic.”
I don’t care that they have instruction in Russian in Jordanville. But it is a NATIONAL language. Latin, at least, was not a national language but an international language of education, culture and faith.
“Those Americans who have met with true Orthodoxy have been unable to abandon it, many have been obliged to learn the Russian language, Russian culture and Church Slavonic services.”
Did you see that? “Obliged to learn the Russian language”? I have nothing against studying Russian - did it myself way back when. But “obliged to learn Russian”? And this is not to study holy things on a deep level, or become a priest, but simply to simply live as a ROCOR Church-going member.
Even the people writing this know this isn’t right:
“The fathers who founded the monastery left a legacy to preserve the Russian Orthodox services in Church Slavonic, but today more and more Americans want to learn about Orthodox Christianity. Forcing them to learn the Russian language would seem unreasonable. At the time, the main goal of Russians living abroad was to preserve the traditions of their Russian culture. One cannot say that today, this goal has lost its purpose, but at the same time we cannot hinder the local population from converting to Orthodoxy.”
http://www.russianorthodoxchurch.ws/synod/engdocuments/enart_orthodoxyinamerica.html