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To: 1 spark
The same link I posted above, an official church website, also has this to say:

"It is basic Christian doctrine that the Holy Spirit may act wherever and whenever. Presuming to constrain the activity of the Holy Spirit - to limit God Himself- is not the way. Orthodoxy recognizes and accepts the mandate to seek Truth and to follow the Holy Spirit wherever He leads, including in other religions or philosophies when his Truth is to be found there.[37]

The way of Orthodoxy is to converge on the golden mean, carefully avoiding extremes and the pitfalls that can lead to destruction. The Tradition of the Church fosters the understanding of Truth in all the experience of the human person. As the sun shines and gives life and energy to the physical world, the Son of God, the Logos, illuminates every human person who "comes in the world" (Orthodox prayer to the Holy Spirit). The Holy Spirit and the Logos offer Life to all. However, the centrality of Christ, the "Savior of the world", the Logos, is not to be dismissed. He was incarnate for universal salvation and is "the same forever".

The salvation of all people, including non-Christians, depends on the great goodness and mercy of the Omniscient and Omnipotent God who desires the salvation of all people. Those who live in faith and virtue, though outside the Church, receive God's loving grace and salvation. Saint Paul reminds us, "O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and how inscrutable His ways!" (Rom. 11: 33).

442 posted on 12/15/2004 11:53:37 AM PST by MarMema
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To: 1 spark; MarMema
Spark, read #407 again and see what the official Orthodox Church says: there is no salvation outside of Eucharist. And the Eucharist is only for the members of the Orthodox Church.

All these other quotes are make-do damage-control kumbaya nonosense rationalizations, lip service, etc. so as not to portray the Orthodox Church as inclusive when in fact the Orthodox Church is the most inclusive of all Christian churches.

Most of the quotes you read here are by various apologetics from feel-good books that are much more idealistic than the practice and the canons of Orthodoxy.

444 posted on 12/15/2004 1:47:53 PM PST by kosta50 (Eastern Orthodoxy is pure Christianity)
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