Rogue Orthodoxy
Practicing Orthodox Christianity in a society that is hyper focused on individualism can be awkward. It can be difficult. It can also be wrong when we make up our own disciplines. We read what we want, watch what we want, and pray how we want, and we’re wrong for it.
While we are free to live and believe as we wish, that doesn’t always make our choice the best Orthodox choices. What often makes this situation worse is that we read the lives of the martyrs many of whom ‘took on the pagan world’ and think we need to go to battle for Orthodoxy.
Again, we would be wrong. In the lives of the martyrs, it was extremely rare to find a saint that challenged the pagan elites. Rather, they were willing to stand up for their faith when forced to deny it. There is a difference between going to battle and defending the faith.
I recently had a conversation about faith in society and, specifically, the role of the Church. My answer was a surprise. I think Orthodox Christianity has the cure for America, but I don’t think it is our job to ‘go out and fix’ everyone we encounter.
It is arrogant to think it is our job to fix others, especially when we still have so much about ourselves to fix. We ‘like to think’ we are modern martyrs willing to stand up to those evil secularists. We won’t even stand up to the temptation of pride that attacks us daily.
We think we are willing to suffer for Christ at the hands of society, but we won’t even suffer to give up our will to our spiritual father. Go back to my opening paragraph. We read what we want, watch what we want, pray how we want, and even fast like we want.
Every time we choose our own discipline, we are doing the opposite of denying ourselves, as we were invited by Christ. (see Mark 8.34) This is what I mean by rogue orthodoxy. We allow our pride to trick us into believing WE are the ‘new’ St Mark of Ephesus. We are not.
If you want to defend Orthodoxy, begin by fighting the temptation to make up your own disciplines. Orthodoxy isn’t a buffet. It is a full meal, and our spiritual father guides us through all the courses.
Rather than read about Orthodoxy, try living it through the guidance of your spiritual father. I suspect you will find it more difficult to tame your ego than to tame society. If your spiritual father thinks you are ready to ‘take on the pagan world’ he will send you. Don’t send yourself.
If you’re new to Orthodoxy, and especially if you are still in the process of becoming Orthodox, stop trying to teach it. Stop trying to guide others. Stop trying to correct others. The baptismal water hasn’t even dried behind your ears.
The discipline of focusing on my sins rather than correcting the sins of others is as much if not more Orthodox than knowing how many prostrations are ‘correct’ during evening prayers.
The monasteries you like to visit and the elders you like to quote all focus on conquering their own sins. If you want to be like the elders, start with obedience to your spiritual father. Your ego is hard enough to defeat on a good day. Don’t make it harder by going rogue.
