Orthodox

From Missiopedia

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The Orthodox bloc of churches, (using "bloc' in the sense indicated by the Missiopedia page on Traditions), are the churches whose history did not come under the Bishop of Rome but Constantinople. They are often referred to as making up the "Eastern Church", in contrast to the "Western Church" which is made up of Protestants and Roman Catholics. There are a large number of Orthodox church bodies today, often divided along national lines, but they generally maintain closer links with each other than with the the Western Church.

Within the Orthodox bloc, there is a further distinction between those of the Monophysite churches who follow monophysitism, believing that Christ had a single nature, and those who hold the Diphysite or Diophysite) teaching that Christ had both a human and a divine nature.

Many Orthodox churches speak of missionary outreach more in the past than in the present. They point to the spread of the early church and the widespread presence of Orthodox churches as evidence (Veronis 1994). Many Protestants (and also many Orthodox) are unaware of some of the Orthodox missionaries who crossed cultural and linguistic barriers to carry the Gospel to unreached peoples. Some of the most recent examples include the planting of Orthodox churches during the time when Alaska was under Russia, led by such people as St. Herman of Alaska and St. Innocent.

Currently, many Orthodox churches around the world are unhappy with Protestant missionaries reaching out to people that the Orthodox feel are part of their flock. On the other hand, in the USA, a number of American Protestants are joining Orthodox congregations.

[edit] References

• Schaeffer, Frank. 1994. Dancing Alone: The Quest for Orthodox Faith in the Age of False Religions. Holy Cross Orthodox Press.
• Veronis, Luke Alexander. 1994. Missionaries, monks, and martyrs : making disciples of all nations. Minneapolis: Light and Life.