Sunday, May 23, 2010

Orthograph #87 - Super-something

 

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

I went to the other extreme. I've actually offended a couple of Ortho-celebrities, because of my anti-activist commitments.

Told one famous fellow to his face (much more rudely than he deserved, though I didn't mean to be rude at all) that it was a fools errand and the source of more of his spiritual distress than all the scandals the whole synod could commit.

el cuerpo negro said...

wait a second...do you mean to suggest that the responsibility for saving the world isn't on my shoulders? Jesus already did that??? all that incense must be getting to your head! LOL

Steve Robinson said...

OK, I admit it. I'm Iron Man.

Clint said...

I really feared that I would fall into this one when we began the real conversion a couple of years ago.

I think I am doing OK on this one... I hope...

But I really do know the struggle.

But it hit me awhile back that I simply don't know enough to be of much good at this point. I have more praying and learning to to do first.

Maybe that is why a LLLLOOOONNNNGGGG conversion process was pretty good for me.

Steve Robinson said...

Hi Clint, I had a looonnng conversion process too. But the longer I'm Orthodox and the more distance I get from my first 5 years of intense hopes for ordination the more I see how important it is to get firmly rooted in "Orthodoxy", not just zeal, and information about theology, forms and rubrics,... and not just for laymen but for future clergy formation. The long conversion process only got me to the Church with more information and resolve, but the fact is, I still wasn't "in the Church" and its life and spirit had not transformed me, it had only enticed me. I came with a certain "maturity" but that development had not been formed or transformed by the Church and needed (and still needs) to be formed and matured by the Holy Spirit within the life of the Church. I don't believe this maturing process can happen in the context of seminary because it is not "parish life" much less "real life" where a priest will be ministering. Don't fall for the flattery of the admiration of your zeal and knowledge by either laymen or clergy and be tempted to ordination before you are truly ready. Take it slowly, you can never go wrong being more mature going into ministry.