Posted by Fr. George (FrGeorge) on 2/28/2007, 12:22 pm, in reply to "Re: Who really cares what the SBC is trying to do?" Have I said anything that would lead you to believe that I don't think education is a prerogative? No, I am not in favor of the 'ethnic club' model, either. However, we need to deal with the people we have. A significant number, but no longer a majority, fit into that catagory. What shall we do with them? Sell the buildings and throw them out into the streets? Perhaps we can send them pious priests who will serve lots of liturgies and lecture them about fasting? I think you know what I am talking about. That does not work. What does work is that we try to keep everyone close to the Church and hope for their conversion. If they will not convert, perhaps their children will through their exposure. Funny story: a friend of our raised their kids in a culture-club parish, and in adulthood all of them left the Church. One day, one of the adult children was sitting in his cubicle, and his supervisor walked in and asked him if (since he was Syrian-Lebanese) he was Orthodox. Perplexed, he said he was as a child, but had left the Church. The supervisor chided him, and stated that she was a catachumen at the local Orthodox parish. He eventually went with his boss to church one Sunday, and found a community that was very different from the 'old days.' He 'reverted,' and his wife and children were Baptised. Since then, one of the siblings has followed suit. That 'ethnic club' experience had planted seeds. Yes, they were dormant for far too long, but they still bore fruit once watered. That's what we hope for.
Dear Dr. Bob,
Responses:
