Women's Ordination, an Eastern Orthodox View

The Continuum ^ | 1/11/2007 | Poetreader

[redgolum]

I would label most of American Christianity Zwinglian.

There is a little book called "The Anonymous God" that addresses this very point. Now, growing up LCMS in the area I did, I was very distrustful of the "Christianity lite" that seems to be so popular. After reading this book I can understand why so many of the older folks were very hesitant about different aspects of the American civil religion. You are right Lightman, most of American Christianity is of a Zwinglian flavor, and is trending to a polytheistic philosophy.

[Bokababe]

One of my favorite stories came from William Jovanovich (Harcourt, Brace & Jovanovich) talking about his father with his father's friend back in the early 20th century mining towns of Colorado.

Jovanovich's father and his friend, both miners, were staying at a boarding house one night when the KKK broke in and tried to go after them with baseball bats. Jovanovich's father kept a pistol under his pillow and started firing at these hooligans in the dark. He asked his father's friend whether or not they killed anyone and he said that he didn't know because the cowards ran away. Jovanovich asked why the KKK attacked them and the friend answered, "Because the KKK had a list of people they hated: Jews, Catholics and Blacks. They heard Orthodox and thought we were Jews. Their main problem was that they should have had a longer list!"

[RobbyS]

The media really doesn't know you exist, or they give you a pass because you don't have the numbers to threaten them. I find it intersting, IAC, that Michael Dukakis and John Kerry seems to have much the same view of the world. Both eastern and Latin Christian have been corrupted by secularism, to the degree that their religions seems to have had had litle effect on their thinking.

[Bokababe]

"I find it intersting, IAC, that Michael Dukakis and John Kerry seems to have much the same view of the world. Both eastern and Latin Christian have been corrupted by secularism, to the degree that their religions seems to have had had litle effect on their thinking."

Which only goes to prove that there are corrupt politicians of every religious creed. The question is whether or not it politics are what corrupted them, or whether the corrupt of all types choose poltics?

One year, I actually registered as a Democrat to vote for Paul Tsongas in the presidential primary -- I do think that he was the real deal -- he was brilliant and conveyed a real spiritual presence, but he wasn't high on the charisma scale -- I am understating that, he had a voice that could be used as "anesthesia". But I do think that he as a really good man and would have been a good leader. He won the New Hampshire primary, but was later eclipsed in the party by charismatic showman, Bill Clinton. Five years later, Tsongas died.

[Kolokotronis]

"One year, I actually registered as a Democrat to vote for Paul Tsongas in the presidential primary -- I do think that he was the real deal -- he was brilliant and conveyed a real spiritual presence, but he wasn't high on the charisma scale -- I am understating that, he had a voice that could be used as "anesthesia"."

I knew the Senator. He was a fine man but a real liberal. If I recall right, he left Orthodoxy for the Episcopal Church because of both churches' stands on women's ordination.