Egregoros

@madcuzbad @Deplorable_Degenerate @koropokkur @Bernard @GoyGirl @Nudhul @toiletpaper @hakui One interesting development I’ve seen in recent years, is Appalachian Orthodoxy. They’ve got their own semi-autonomous Monasteries, and a unique cultural Orthodox Chant style. It’s clearly nascent, but it’s very much there and alive.

What this tells me is that at least some White Americans that identify culturally as American, came to the same conclusion I was led to. I doubt they set out looking for trouble with American Protestantism, any more than I did. In my case, the Truth was obvious; Orthodox Theology / Ecclesiology simply appears more “accurate” than Roman Catholic / Western Theological teaching.

As to why other sincere Christians arrive at a different conclusion; I cannot say. Though I have some doubt it’s “intentional”.

@madcuzbad @Deplorable_Degenerate @koropokkur @Bernard @GoyGirl @Nudhul @toiletpaper @hakui The Orthodox Church is sometimes referred to as “the Church of the Seven Ecumenical Councils” (though more accurately we’re the Church of the Nine Ecumenical Councils; but World Orthodox swat me for saying as much 😆).

While the historical record of these Councils and their societal impact is not 100% preserved, few historical considerations are better documented. When one digs in, it’s obvious these were not readily and unanimously accepted by all living Christians, but were rather fiercely contested often with great civil strife up to and including bloodshed and capital punishment.

Many of the details of what were being debated seem rather trivial, to a modern onlookers. Who cares what day Pascha is celebrated ? Who cares if she’s the “Mother of God” or the “Mother of Christ” ? etc etc.

In my sincere observation, the Communion acting/believing more in keeping with this vast ancient Tradition, of uncompromising preservation of The True Faith, are the True Orthodox. Often, it’s observed, the conclusions of a given Ecumenical Council, were a relatively small minority, compared to the wider global adherents of the prevailing heresy of the day. Thus, I believe, this reality is to be expected under certain circumstances.

@madcuzbad @Deplorable_Degenerate @koropokkur @Bernard @GoyGirl @Nudhul @toiletpaper @hakui Right, the Eternal Salvation of a Man’s Soul is far, far beyond my purview. Why I believe as I believe, is independently of my own judgments about whether someone else is Saved or not.

Rather, I stick uncompromisingly with the Traditional Ecclesiology; we believe:

1. there is no Salvation outside the Church, the literal Body of Christ, and:

2. The Body of Christ is identical on earth to the Communion of Faith, the Body of True Believers in the True Faith.

I believe this, because it’s indisputably what all the Saints of The Church have believed, since the beginning of the Church at Pentecost, likely AD 33 (with some wiggle room thanks to some Calendar fog-of-war).

If people somehow miraculously end up Saved on the Right-Hand Side of the Almighty on the Great and Terrible Day of The Lord, that is honestly not something I get to know until that Day.

@Nudhul @Bernard @Deplorable_Degenerate @GoyGirl @KingOfWhiteAmerica @hakui @koropokkur @madcuzbad

Of course. Unlike most people who grovel to the pseudohistorical super Jew, I am able to distinguish between fantasy and reality, and yet also able to glean wisdom from fiction without being dumb enough to take it literally.

The problem with the BuyBull isn't that it lacks the odd bit of wisdom (like kernels of sweet corn buried in faeces), it's that it's been misfiled into the reference section of the library instead of the fantasy fiction section where it belongs. Moreover it's deliberately promoted as fact, when it absolutely is nothing of the sort.

@KingOfWhiteAmerica @Deplorable_Degenerate @koropokkur @Bernard @GoyGirl @madcuzbad @toiletpaper @hakui a lot of people teach biblical lessons very poorly unfortunately. in the midwest it's very common for people to believe that god is a single discrete entity who just swims around in the sky all day while spying on us, but he's invisible so we can't see him in return.

shit like that creates a lot of neuroticism, as if we're all living in a divine soviet-style tattletale panopticon.

there's also a lot of poor translation choices for certain words that leads to confusion (hot passions = wrath or logos = word), but this might be more the average person's lack of language knowledge. greek/latin used to be a common study subject for this reason. the sin of wrath is not anger or retribution, it's impulsivity!

@Nudhul @KingOfWhiteAmerica @Bernard @Deplorable_Degenerate @GoyGirl @hakui @koropokkur @madcuzbad

Never mind that there are about 6,000 manuscripts of the NT (mostly medieval), with over half a million textual differences between them. Most of the books of the NT are demonstrably fraudulent (pseudepigrapha), and altered to suit the theological narrative of whichever pope was in power du jour, which can be amply demonstrated with comparison between versions. Never mind the track record of violent suppression of texts and traditions which contradicted the orthodox dogma that began from the 3rd century onward. The heresiological tradition is chock-o-block with blatant lies and misrepresentation. Never mind what they say about non-Christians. The entire literary tradition of the BuyBull is a non-stop mishmash of violent infighting and deliberate forgeries, and that's before even getting into the historical and archaeological record beyond the texts themselves. That anyone takes that shit seriously is indescribably fucking retarded.