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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 281.973
EAN: 9780962271335
Edition: Revised
ISBN: 0962271330
Label: Conciliar Press
Manufacturer: Conciliar Press
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 191
Publication Date: 1992-09
Publisher: Conciliar Press
Studio: Conciliar Press
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Being an Evangelical who has become tired of the games that are played in today's modern church Peter Gillquist's book came at the right time. There still is a Church out there that follows the teaching of the Apostles. This book is only the beginning for me for the study of the Orthodox faith.
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In 1987, concluding a search which lasted more than a decade, some 2000 "evangelicals" joined Eastern Orthodoxy. Most of their leaders, ordained as deacons and priests, had earlier worked for Campus Crusade for Christ. Their journey forms the plot for Peter E. Gillquist's Becoming Orthodox: A Journey to the Ancient Christian Faith (Brentwood, TN: Wolgemuth & Hyatt, Publishers, 1989).
In part one, Gillquist tells of the journey "from Arrowhead Springs to Antioch." In the 1960's, zealous young evangelicals charged like assault troops, determined to win America's colleges cam¬puses. They worked hard, relished the challenge, and elicited many "decisions for Christ." However, to their dismay, "Most of the decisions for Christ honestly did not stick." Admitting what they were doing was not work¬ing, some of them began searching for something deeper, something more permanent. More than a para¬church, they sensed the need for a church. So, in 1968, a number of them left Campus Crusade and began what they later would call "The Phantom Search for the Perfect Church" (21). Some of them established "house churches," and in time a loose coalition of "churches" were knit together on the basis of their leaders' personal ties.
Then the leaders began to meet and study and dis¬cuss what they should do with their fled¬gling move¬ment. They seriously studied not only the Bible: they scoured Church history. And they found, to their surprise, that the Early Church was rigorously Christocentric in its doctrine and thor¬oughly liturgical in its practice. Reading such sources as St Clement of Rome, St Ignatius of Antioch, St Justin Martyr and Hippolytus, they discovered how concerned ancient believers were with who Christ was rather than what He did for us. They also found a worship pattern and a sacramental emphasis quite foreign to most of them. In 1975, they formed the "New Covenant Apostolic Order," which in 1979 became the Evangelical Orthodox Church. They had concluded that for its first 1000 years the Church had maintained a doctrinal unity. "The whole Church confessed one creed, the same in every place, and had weathered many attacks. The government of the Church was recognizably one everywhere. And this one Church was Orthodox" (p.51). Amazingly, of those who through study reached this conclusion, "none of us had ever to our knowledge been inside an Orthodox Church. Most of us did not know it existed. For that reason, I am chagrined to report that we decided to start it over again!" (p.58). So for a decade they studied and discussed and slowly discovered the ancient/enduring world of Eastern Orthodoxy. What they discovered was a deeply traditional, liturgical Church, committed to the apostolic succession of (male) clergy, rightly revering Mary as Christ's mother (Theotokos), using the sign of the cross, etc.--they found a Church which satisfied the one-time Campus Crusaders as the true Church of Jesus Christ. Concluding that Orthodoxy is the way, they next sought to affiliate with one of the existing Orthodox communions. This proved somewhat difficult to do! But in time the Americans were received into the Antiochian Orthodox Church.
Reading this book illustrates the limits of parachurch organizations like Campus Crusade. They have value--but they're limited and ultimately inadequate because they're not a church. Folks need Church! So this book reveals the hunger for Church! That Gillquist and his associates found Church in historic Orthodoxy shows, along with the other books reviewed in this issue, the need some thoughtful Americans have for ancient symbols, historic roots, efficacious sacraments, participatory liturgies. Parachurch efforts often dis¬sipate within a few years--or a few decades at best. Enthusiastic sectarian movements, and the denominations they spawn, usually begin to wither within three or four generations, for enthusiasm wanes with inter-gener¬ational transmission. So again and again we find, in Church history, people rediscovering the value of permanent things, common concrete things like rituals and liturgical years and prescribed celebrations
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I was hoping for more of a "how to guide" for protestants to enter the Orthodox church, but this is more of a questioning and exploration into the Orthodox church which most of us who are seeking to actually become Orthodox have largely already been through.
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Becoming Othodox: A Journey to the Ancient Christian Faith - is like water for the thirsty - for those who are frustrated with the continuation of splintering in the present day protestant church; the lack of unity; the fighting; the lack of reverence in worship; and the lack of effectiveness of the present day protestant church. It is like water for the thirsty for those looking for true worship. This book gives direction on where to look to find a remedy.
Becoming Orthodox is easily understood by those who come from a back ground similar to that of the author. It is written in language they will understand. It begins to answer basic questions and gives a desire to look deeper into what Orthodoxy really is.
It also can be painful to read in that it makes it necessary for one to reconsider whether one has been taught the complete truth. But even in considering these issues, it is evident from reading this book that others have dealt with the same question.
This book is a must read. While beginning to satisfy the thirst of the reader, it will also make the reader thristy for more.
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Protestant denominations and the Orthodox churches have a lot in common in terms of ecclesiastical organization, and a respect for how cultural differences can coexist within the universal church. They differ enormously in terms of liturgy and its role, and liberal Protestants will find much to dislike in orthodox teaching. At the same time, respect for national differences found in both traditions could help them move closer together.
This is the story of a Protestant congregation that felt increasingly uncomfortable in its nondenominational tradition. After researching alternative denominations, they surprised themselves by deciding to become Orthodox. They would describe their journey a bit differently, but I read their story as illustrating two themes: (1) a pull to liturgy and structure as a way to find God in the Church service; and (2) comfort with socially and politically conservative teachings in the Orthodox church.
Both they, and I, were surprised that they had to pick a flavor of Orthodoxy before they could complete the journey - - that is, they had to decide among Greek, Serbian, Russian, and other Orthodox traditions in the United States. This is, it seems to me, the greatest obstacle to Orthodoxy in the US, and there is a clear need for a unified US Orthodox church that could respect these heritages while adopting to the North American context.
This book won't tell you all that much about Orthodox doctrine and teaching, but it's an interesting personal account for open-minded people interested in thinking outside whatever denominational box you happen to find yourself in.
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