Mission Monthly – January 1998
“Today religion, or at any rate doctrine, is not with the majority of people a dominant issue and does not arouse major passions… Modern historians are, I think, retrojecting into the past {Church history} the sentiments of the present age when they argue that mere religious and doctrinal discussion cannot have generated such violent and enduring animosity as that evinced by the Donatists, Arians, or Monophysites, and that the real moving force behind these movements must have been national or class feeling… I would maintain that when the sectarians {the Orthodox} declared, as they did on our evidence declare: ‘We hold the true faith and are the true Church; our opponents are heretics, and never will we accept their doctrine or communicate with them, or yield to the impious government which supports them,’ they meant what they said.”
Fr. John Meyendorff quoting A.H.M. Jones in The Byzantine Legacy in the Orthodox Church
One of the most dominant and notable absences from the makeup of modern culture has to be a loss of the sense of history. I speak for myself in considering how difficult it is to look backwards when I am so busy looking forward, and I suspect that I speak for many others as well. In a society based primarily on the external achievement of individuals is it any wonder why there is little or no emphasis placed upon the need for understanding the past as much more than novelty, reminiscence or intellectual knowledge in giving foundation to the decisions of today or the plans for tomorrow? This, coupled with the resulting feelings of self-importance arising from the error and pride of a self-satisfied society, can and does suppress both the interest in history and the ability to interpret it without, as A.H.M. Jones stated above, “retrojecting into the past the sentiments of the present age.”
As Christians in our post-Christian era this tendency is of utmost danger. The age of relativism and self-determination has provided just the needed ammunition for our adversary to place us in the state of indifference and complacency. Our lack of understanding of the past and a cynical attitude towards Church authority in directing the lives of Her people has lured this society to the brink of spiritual blindness.
To those who allege that the Church of antiquity was too harsh and intolerant I would charge with discrimination as well as a significant measure of ignorance and sentimentality. We can neither relativize nor romanticize the past in studying those who stood up for True Belief. The needs of their society, just like those of ours, demanded discernment, definition and decision. Christianity from the beginning has boldly proclaimed, both within Herself and to the greater society, that: Yes, there are absolutes, standards and Truth!
I must confess here my own place within this critical analysis and the newness of revelation which the reading of Church history brings to my culturally biased mind. I find it very difficult to imagine in this age of “live and let live” the condemnation of anyone, either for heresy or immorality; the thought of such conflict and divisiveness is just as distasteful to me as to anyone. HOWEVER!, what am I to make of the objective facts of history, the theological controversies, the shedding of blood, moral definition and (yes!) political intrigue, and the involvement of ordinary people in the ebb and flow of the development of the Christian Church and Her affect upon society? Christians of antiquity were not afraid to “mix it up,” moreover they believed it to be their responsibility as Right Believing Christians to defend the Faith revealed by God Himself (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) through the “Ecclesia” (the Body of Christ). The Church was not only not afraid to condemn or depose when necessary, but the action of “Anathema” was to put the person out, like the unbeliever, to a state worse than non-acceptance called “excommunication.” What does this say to us as Orthodox Christians living in our age of pluralism and political correctness? We are faced with countless “religious” perspectives, many of which would frankly scandalize our Church Fathers. The great American tradition opposing the discussion of politics and religion would seem strange to the mind of the historic Church when it was said that one couldn’t even walk down the street without encountering a heady theological discussion. Today there is a need for the Orthodox Church to (re)discover its voice and, when necessary, speak the Truth with love.
I am so weary of seeing my Faith disrespected and ridiculed for Her conviction, but this is to be expected (since those who hate Christ will certainly hate us). Maybe Christianity at times has not made the best example of itself but that is no reason to back into a corner, fearing to move or speak. If our primary “reason for being” as Orthodox Christians is to rightly worship the True God in right belief, then our primary desire must also be for unity and peace, but not at the hand of compromise or surrender. It would be so nice if we could go about our business without the worry of conflict but Church history tells a much different story, one that isn’t always so neatly defined. There will always be a day of reckoning (or many days) when God will demand an account of our faith. Believing in Jesus Christ means sharing in His Cross. I pray for strength for all of us as we encounter the ever-present hostilities towards True Christian beliefs and standards. “Live and let live” just won’t cut it in Orthodoxy. Let us pray that God will give us the wisdom to face any challenge to our faith as Orthodoxy in America continues to emerge from its immigrant roots; and even more importantly, the courage to love as we share with those who only wish to provoke. Ours is a faith not of law and order but rather of love and order. Order because we cannot tolerate immorality and falsehood, and love because through our humble proclamation and defense we must desire, as our Father in Heaven, not the death of the sinner but rather that he should turn to Him and live!