Posted by George A. Passes
on 7/29/2009, 1:58 pm, in reply to "Re: "Bring back the people who left the church""
Message modified by user LAP 7/29/2009, 2:03 pm
Photini,
Your comments strike a chord of reality.
Many Orthodox jurisdictions march behind their ethnic flags, with few of them marching with more deliberate speed than others. Ethnicity, as a cause that thwarts carrying out the great commission of Christ, has been and continues to be at the center of the debate regarding Orthodoxy in America. Are there signs of change among the jurisdictions of placing the Bible ahead of ethnicity?
As an Orthodox Christian and as a Greek American, I was very glad Archbishop Demetrios made the statement at the 39th Clergy Laity Congress in July of 2008 that the Church needs to bring back the people who left the Church and to seek out the 60 million un-churched people in America. His remarks were inspiring. I thought 2008 was the Year of our Lord, a year in which the first step was taken in a journey that one day people from all jurisdictions, ethnicities and walks of life would worship together as brothers and sisters and share together their cultural traditions. It can happen.
I am the editor of a newsletter/magazine published by a small Greek American association. The reason for my post is that I am writing an article about Archbishop Demetrios’ statement to seek the un-churched and to bring back the people who left the Church. In addition to seeking information from other sources, I had hoped participants in this forum would share, if they know, if the Archbishop and the central administration of the Archdiocese along with the clergy and laity have developed a doable plan of action to achieve these two goals. It is difficult for me to believe that in 2008 a person holding the position of archbishop would have made such a statement without an action plan in place. Perhaps, my post was misunderstood. My purpose was to get information from as many sources as possible to write an article. Understandingly, all jurisdictions of the Orthodox Church are what they are, and, in this case, the Greek Archdiocese is what it is. The most important point is the question as to where the Greek Archdiocese is going in advancing the great commission of Christ.
Thank you for your response.
With best wishes,
George A. Passes
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