Thanks for this. I would imagine it’s a rollercoaster to get profiled like that and then see the imperfect result. I’m not Orthodox but learning about its demands helps me to see the gaps in the evangelicalism I stepped into 15 years ago.
I really don’t understand the recent push to represent Orthodoxy as a macho boy’s club and I have to wonder if it does more harm than good. Yes, it’s bringing more young men into the church, but we have so many male catechumens at our church who are there without their wives and children… (Not a criticism of anything you said specifically, just the angle of the article.)
There is a lot of talk floating around lately about the apparent"feminization" of American Christianity (both Protestant and Catholic) and I think it's partly due to the influx of young male converts to Orthodoxy. But I tend to think that the masculine/feminine dichotomy being set up is a false one, because true Christianity is not just for men or just for women - it's for both sexes, regardless of stereotypical expressions of one or the other.
I’m Catholic (Roman rite) but I have found the concept of theosis very useful!
Thanks for this. I would imagine it’s a rollercoaster to get profiled like that and then see the imperfect result. I’m not Orthodox but learning about its demands helps me to see the gaps in the evangelicalism I stepped into 15 years ago.
Dude, I wrote a thing for psychology class about this very article that you were in. Small world
I really don’t understand the recent push to represent Orthodoxy as a macho boy’s club and I have to wonder if it does more harm than good. Yes, it’s bringing more young men into the church, but we have so many male catechumens at our church who are there without their wives and children… (Not a criticism of anything you said specifically, just the angle of the article.)
The advice I received early on was "Beware of the Orthochads." There can definitely be excess.
There is a lot of talk floating around lately about the apparent"feminization" of American Christianity (both Protestant and Catholic) and I think it's partly due to the influx of young male converts to Orthodoxy. But I tend to think that the masculine/feminine dichotomy being set up is a false one, because true Christianity is not just for men or just for women - it's for both sexes, regardless of stereotypical expressions of one or the other.
I also issue with “feminine” being used as shorthand for overly emotional and lacking in asceticism in these conversations.
*take issue
Orthodox Christianity is Otherworldly:
https://substack.com/@stevenberger/note/c-79148675?r=1nm0v2