I took one of those little online questionnaire thingies a bit ago. It was supposed to tell me which belief/denomination/church structure I most closely matched with based on my answers to some questions. Turns out I'm mostly Eastern Orthodox. What the heck? I don't even know what that is. Should I go out and buy a robe made of natural fibers and learn some chants...or maybe get a little jewel planted in my navel??? I have no idea what that means.
All the "biggies" were in the list. Even the ones I've been associated with; those being Assemblies of God, Baptist, and now Church of Christ/Cambelite. (gotta qualify that with the Cambelite so we sound less cultish, i guess) The way I see it, pretty much, is that I was "yanked up" in the Assemblies of God, ran quickly to the first friendly Baptist church I could get into without being re-baptized as an adult, went through some pretty nasty trials and started actually trying to figure out Christianity for myself, and ultimately landed in the Church of Christ which suits me about as well as any other building I've been to where people profess Christ. I actually love the acapella singing (no it's NOT a salvation issue) and I love the way water baptism is tied directly to the moment one decides to make Jesus the Lord of their life. (even though I have disagreements with the rest of their "doctrine" about it). But...I do like it that we baptize folks at the time they put on Christ instead of some time later when we decide to fill up the baptistry and make a "service" out of the 6 or 8 people who got "saved" during the last year.
And now I find out that I'm Eastern Orthodox? I gotta check this out. I hope I'm not going to hell or anything. (kidding!!)
grace
p.s. I did happen (on a whim with one of my teenage friends) to get a little jewel planted in my left ear cartilidge yesterday....hmmm.
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6 comments:
Eastern Orthodox? Well, in a nutshell, that's Catholicism without the Pope.
See, the Eastern Church never accepted the primacy of the Bishop of Rome, and the Western and Eastern branches of the Church split over that issue in (if memory serves) the late Fifteenth Century.
But if you're Catholic, you can still take Communion at an Eastern Orthodox Church, and visa versa. So they're separate, but not totally separate. It's complicated.
I've always had a soft spot for the Assemblies of God because when I was a kid, I was a Royal Ranger. That's the AG boys club. Or at least here in the Bay Area, that was the AG that ran the Royal Rangers. They did a lot of outreach in low income neighborhoods, which is how I got involved.
I learned more stuff in Royal Rangers! Lots of camping & general outdoors skills.
I always say thanks to the Royal Rangers, you could have parachuted me into the Yukon with a compass and a Bowie knife, and I would have been fine.
I guess I could still manage out there now, but I'd need to pack my eyeglasses, a tube of Ben Gay and some Arthritis Pain Formula.
And I guess I'd have to arrange for somebody to feed the cats.
Hey Kurt!
Ah yes...the Royal Rangers and Missionettes! I was only involved in Missionettes for a short time, but long enough to at one point get one of the little turquoise blue jumpers and a few badges to go on it. It was like Brownies for the evangelical. I think my mom got cross-ways with one of the leaders or something because my stint as a missionette was short-lived. Sounds like your Royal Ranger group did a great job with you, though! :) Good thing they didn't know you were gay! haha! Sorry, just had to say that. ;) I'm bad, I know.
I guess it's the Eastern Orthodox in me.
Your history is really interesting. What made you want to get away from the AG? Was it the charismatic stuff? A lot of people don't feel comfortable with that.
There's a charismatic movement in Catholicism, but it's pretty small. Usually it's one of the liberal parishes that will have a charismatic mass once a month or something.
Kurt,
I guess it was/is the charasmatic stuff that concerns me most. I found more charisma than deep, profound, Christian love and living there. I also realise this is just my personal experience, so I'm not bashing the movement as a whole. It's a spiritual walk that I'm seeking...which sometimes looks charasmatic but not always, if that makes sense. I guess alot of what I grew up with, looks like entertainment and sort of a "crowd mentality" to me now and I began longing for something more substantial. I pretty much decided that none of us have it all figured out exactly as God intended. On the other hand, I don't have a problem with "charasmatic" worship, per se. I'm weird.
Personally, I am sort of fascinated by charismatic churches. It seems like a form of Christian mysticism with prophecy and "speaking in tongues."
And the Orthodox churches have particularly beautiful ceremonies and architecture.
. . . Just some mindless ramblings to let you know I am around. ;-D
Robert: I'm of the opinion that they all have something to bring to the table....as long as they are bringing Christ crucified for our forgiveness...i'm pretty good with it for the most part....
why are you so absent lately??? but thank you for letting me know you are "around"....whatever that means....
i have email, ya know....
love,
grace
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