Something Wicked this way comes, but not the thing you think.

 

This article was originally published on CopticNN in 2020, but has since been requested by a few people, so I guess it is time for a 2025 re-publishing.

“Something wicked this way comes, but not the thing you think”

Dcn Daniel Malyon

“Something wicked this way comes”, we hear many say at this time of year. Whether it be children dressed as vampires, neopagans measuring the daylight, or overzealous preachers warning of the evils of the, ‘devil’s birthday’ on October 31st. However to myself and many others, the evil of this time of year does not lie in claims of pagan holidays but in the tragic tale of encroaching protestant propaganda in our rhetoric and the commercial appropriation of a sacred time of year in western Christendom. 

The fact is that each year we are met with flurries of adverts for a mysterious event called Halloween, one which brings joy to many and horror to an equal proportion of the Orthodox Christian population of the world. However, the reason for this horror is where the mystery lies, since a lot of this horror comes from a long lasting historical piece of propaganda which originates with anti-Catholic sentiment and an opposition to the concepts of feast days and the veneration of saints.

We find the origins of Halloween in the 8th Century when 27th October (now 1st November) was made the date of the Feast of All Saints in the western Church, in the east this had been earlier in the year but the new date was made a day of obligation for western Christians, with the feast of All Souls remembered the day after. This moving of the Feast of All Souls was not a coincidence, but associated with the Church’s belief that those in heaven and those of earth are linked through the Church, as we always remember during our commemorations in the divine liturgy. As this grew, and the English language also began to develop, the words ‘All Hallows eve’ (The eve of the Feast of All Saints) became something different, Hallowe’en. This the term Halloween was born, not as a pagan or satanic feast but as the simple eve of the western Christian date for the feast of all saints. On this day, Christians would visit Church, say prayers for the departed and offer alms to the poor to remember the works of the saints, their ancestors, and their own salvation. This also led to the development of traditions such as ‘souling,’ where poor children would go door to door collecting alms; and mumming, where actors would travel to homes and taverns in costumes to perform traditional and biblical plays. Both would later form the basis of trick-or treating.  

With the protestant reformation, and its irrational opposition to any aspect of Christian tradition which did not comply with its understanding of the biblical church, views on the origins of various festivals started to take a turn in western Europe. It is from this, and the obscure fringes of western academia, that we see our ‘something evil’ creek through the gaps. Along with their claims regarding Jesus being a replica of Horus and Easter being a Babylonian goddess of Death, a claim that Halloween is simply a Christianised version of the feast of the pagan death god ‘Samhain.’ This is a common claim seen even today amongst protestant groups, however the historical existence or worship of the ‘great God of Death, Samhain’ is itself a fiction. In the 18th Century, before archaeologists were even able to fully study Celtic and early pagan religion, a number of western academics simply put names and words from myths together and hoped their made sense, one of these was the existence of a God of Death named Samhain, which appeared in a number of articles at the time but has now been conformed to have been an error, with the word Samhain simply meaning a sacred time, or the Celtic new year on November 1st.

However, with the claims of the Feast of All Saints being held on the feast of the pagan God of Death the Protestants had gotten the ball rolling for their anti-veneration crusade alongside the emergence of neo-paganism and its created rituals for feasts of which the original purpose is nigh-on-unknown, we see the emergence of the modern myth of Halloween. This took its next step across the Atlantic with the growth of the evangelical protestant movement in the USA. 

In the US by the mid 20th century, practices such as trick-or-treating had grown in popularity alongside the gifting of Halloween cards with images of witches or lanterns, all practices associated with the Feast of All Saints in Catholic and European nations. All of these were taken as a sign of the sinister origins of the feast by protestant preachers in the US who began to rail against the holiday as a pagan and demonic sabbath which must be stamped out. This led to fundamentalist and often anti-Catholic preachers such as Jack Chick crusading against the holiday, inspired by their dislike of the Christian holiday as much as the modern American incarnation, one ready for businesses to cash in on as a commercial product for selling to the youth as a ghoulish festival of scary costumes, bags full of sweets and monster movies. This, alongside the rise of groups like the Church of Satan, who claimed the holiday as one of their feasts, brought about the modern American mindset regarding it. One which has since spread across society, along with its decadence, literature, and historical ignorance.

In the modern day this propaganda which originated from both the neo-pagans seeking to undercut the historical faith and from protestant Christians seeking its destruction, has become engrained as the fact of the matter in the cultural memory of many in the west, demonstrating our ignorance as to our own tradition and knowledge of the Christian heritage of the western world. In wider immigrant communities with no knowledge of this history or stock in western European heritage it has become even more so, with Christians from other cultures crying out that “Halloween is Satanic,” and condemning the very Saints of the Church by announcing that, “Christians who do not condemn Halloween are demons,” not knowing that under the commercial wrapping of the event in American culture lies the solemn memorial to departed and to the saints in their glory. 

Sadly even in our own Coptic Orthodox community, where the veneration of Saints is paramount, we seem to fund people turning to these polemicists for our understanding of the event due to historical ignorance and biases based on what they see around them today. This has led to a vast amount of misunderstanding surrounding the origins and often to many condemning even the notion of this western Christian tradition under the guise of defending the faith, inadvertently buying into the very anti-Christian sentiment promoted by these evangelicals in the 1960’s. However if the Church is to seek out its mission to the west we must understand its Christian heritage and pre-existing practices in their truest form and instead of destroying them in a blaze of ignorance we must strip away the modern consumer culture which has perverted them and proclaim the Christian glory behind them in its fullness. 

So, what do I mean when I say, “something wicked this way comes?” When I speak these words, I announce the coming of a monument to our ignorance. Yes, the Halloween we see advertised around us today is indeed monstrosity created by those seeking to pervert the historical Church, but more wicked is the willingness of many within the historical Church willing to propagate this myth. If we are to call ourselves members of the “One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church” we must not walk with those who promote deceptions about the heritage we preserve but work in our fullness to return this to Christ. Yes, rail against trick or treating, materialism and the glorification of evil. Visit your Church to pray for the intercession of the Saints on this day, as Christians have done for a millennium and still do around the world, myself included. But do not buy into the anti-church-based hysteria and ignorance as to the truth of this day, since its origins and truth are found in Christ and it is there that we must return it. 

Holy Week in the Coptic Orthodox Tradition.

 

This Sunday marks the beginning of Holy Week in the Orthodox Christian tradition, following the first 48 days of the Great Lent. As a minority tradition in the UK, the rites f this week for the Orthodox are quite different to those majority Christian communities around us. Therefore I thought it a good idea to explain the rites of Holy Week in the Coptic Orthodox tradition.

In the Coptic Orthodox Church Holy Week comprises of around 60 hours of services, including liturgies, the general funeral, daily pascha services and the 22 hour Good Friday and Bright Saturday prayers and vigil, and over 450 scripture readings, including all four Gospels in their entirety alongside the complete books of Psalms and Revelation in a single day.

The week begins with Psalm Sunday, one of the seven major feasts of the Coptic Church calendar, starting with the Palm Sunday procession on Sunday morning during morning incense (matins) and the liturgy following. In earlier periods the Palm Sunday procession would occur outside of the church, but this practice was forbidden in Egypt by the Caliph in the 10^th century and therefore the procession only occurs within the church building. The Palm Sunday procession consists of a procession to twelve points in the church, most often beside specific icons, with Gospel readings on themes or events associated with the feast. During the Divine Liturgy the events of Palm Sunday are recounted from all four Gospels, so that the event is explained from all four perspectives.  

Following the end of the liturgy the community will traditionally hold the general funeral prayer, this is a prayer held for the whole congregation as no funerals are permitted to be held during Holy Week. The general funeral prayer is received by the entire congregation, recognising that this week we are continuing to focus on the coming death of Christ, meaning with this prayer complete the rite of the funeral has been held for all and any who may die in the coming days. The day ends with the first of the week’s Pascha services, in this case the 9^th and 11^th hours of Palm Sunday.

Monday through Wednesday of Holy Week in the Coptic Orthodox Tradition consist of ten daily service known as ‘Pascha services.’ These are held for the 1^st, 3^rd, 6^th, 9^th and 11^th hours of each day, and the same for each evening, however these are often compacted parishes to cover one long morning service, and one long evening service. Each of these services consists of the readings of the prophecies for the day, the chanted Coptic psalm, the Gospel,  the Doxology (the Coptic hymn ‘Thok te tigom’ – Meaning “Yours in the Power…”), the reading of the patristic commentary for the Gospel, and supplication prayers. As with midnight prayer services, the priest and choir lead these services from the same level as the congregation and without vestment, as it is not a formal liturgical event.  This continues as it is for the first three days, apart from the addition of the line “PaSoteer EnAgathos” (My good saviour) to the Thok Te Tigom from the eve of Wednesday. This is a symbol of the Lord beginning his passion at this point, since on Wednesday of Holy Week the chief priests and scribes began plotting his downdall.

With Holy Thursday the Holy Week begins to take on a more formal setting. The day begins with the Lakkan, the liturgy of the waters, in which the highest ranking priest in a parish will wash the feet of the other priests, deacons, and congregants. This service consists of the traditional raising of incense, along with key prayers and the blessing of the water before the washing of the feet. This is followed by the Divine Liturgy, which commemorates the Last Supper, followed by the appropriate Pascha services for the eve of Good Friday. A major change which occurs on this day is an inclusion of an additional line to the ‘Thok Te Tigom’ doxology, which states “Tagom nem PaEsmou pe EpChois,; Afsopi nei evsothria ethouab.” Meaning “The Lord is my strength, my praise, and has become my holy salvation.” This is added to remind the congregation that the evnts henceforth express the strength an love of Christ on the cross.

In Coptic Orthodox Churches there is no service which surpasses that of Good Friday. In most Churches this day’s services last approximately 22-23 hours, beginning around 7am and ending 6am on Bright Saturday. The day begins with the Pascha services which run continually from around 7am, most of the congregation arriving for that point and remaining standing apart from the readings and prostrations.  Each of the Pascha services gives the prophecies, Psalms, and the four Gospels relating to each part of the day from the judgement of Christ to his eventual burial with the commentaries explaining the event.

A key aspect of each of these ours is also the changing setting of the Church, with the icon of the crucifixion being added to the front of the Church with crosses, incense, and rose petals which foreshadow the later burial.

By the sixth hour the theme is entirely on the Cross, and a number of key hymns are recited to remember this, including the ancient hymn O Momogenis (Oh Only begotten) which was written by St Severus of Antioch. This is followed by the Gospels pertaining to Christ on the cross and the chanting of Aripamevi (Remember me…) in memorial of St Dismas, the thief on the cross, and his salvation. On the 9^th hour Christ’s death is remembered and his icon is censed by the Priest.

Though other days in Holy Week usually end with the 11^th hour, Good Friday ends includes the 12^th, in which the burial service of Christ is held. Following the 12h hour Gospel and Psalm the priest will lay the Icon of Christ on the altar and wrap the icon in a white linen cloth with incense, rose petals, and spices. This is then covered and two candles placed beside it to represent the two angels present at the tomb. The priests and deacons will then read Psalms 1-3 until Psalms 3:5 “I laid down and slept”, at which point the lights of the Church are turned off, and no one speaks, mourning the burial of the Lord. At this point people who remain will read the entirety of the book of Psalms. Moat at this point quietly break their fast or get some rest before the start of the vigil.

At around 11pm on Good Friday a unique service occurs, the Apocalypse service. This is unique as it is a service unique to the Coptic tradition (as far as I am aware) and it is also the only time that the Apocalypse of St John (Book of Revelation) is read in the Coptic Church since it was only formally added to the canon of scripture after the lectionary was formalised. This puts the text and this service in a very unique position.

The Apocalypse service is a vigil held before the closed altar, in which the text of the Apocalypse of John is read in its entirety along with prayers, processions, and additional readings and prophecies. The service begins with the reading of Psalm 151 (Yes, our Bible has 151 Psalms), which signifies the end of the reading of the Psalms from the 12^th hour, there is then the morning incense service for the Saturday, with praises and readings of the praises taken from the Old Testament such as those of Moses, Hannah, Jonah, Manasseh, Isaiah, Daniel, Hezekiah, Elijah, David, and the Three Young Men. These are added signifying recognition of the act of Christ on the Cross. Following this the Book of Revelation is read formally from the lectern, with processions and hymns at significant points. Following the end of all 22 chapters of the book of Revelation there is a divine liturgy. On a personal note this service goes remarkably smoothly considering that those servicing have usually been awake for 20+ hours.

On Saturday evening comes the most important event in the church calendar, the Liturgy for the Resurrection of our Lord. It is the holiest point in the holiest week of the liturgical calendar. The liturgy of the resurrection is celebrated in the paschal tune and includes some key differences to the annual service. The first major notable event is the resurrection narrative. This is a part of the service in both the Alexandrian and Byzantine rites, and tells the events of the harrowing of Hell using the wording of Psalm 27:7-10 to express the opening of the gates of Hades and freeing of those captive when Christ died on the cross. This begins with he chanting of the words, “Christos Anesti” (Christ is Risen) by a Deacon outside of the altar, which begins the “Resurrection play” which is a chanted dialogue between the deacon and priest, using the narrative mentioned in Psalm 24. At the end of this the altar is opened and the lights turned on, commencing the Paschal procession to the hymn of “Christos Anesti.” This same procession occurs in every liturgy for the next 50 days, until Pentecost.

After the hymn, the four Gospels are read, all expressing the resurrection. This is followed by a sermon and the Papal message from His Holiness the Patriarch of Alexandria. From this point on the liturgy continues as normal, with the extended paschal tune. In most Churches there is then n agape meal consisting of meat, dairy, and other foods which were not permitted during the great lent.

I wish you all a blessed Holy Week and Resurrection, even if you are not celebrating or have already done so.

“For we are members of one another.” – Forsaking Bitterness

 

Originally posted on CopticNN

In our fast paced and modern lives, based around quick communication and quicker reaction we often do not take time reflect; however, this lack of reflection and introspection can often give rise to the struggle of controlling anger and lack of consideration of the impact of these feelings on ourselves and our faith. In fact, both scripture and the writings of the Church fathers warn of this constantly and give numerous reasons why we need to be cautious about our failures to stop and consider others.

In his letter to the Ephesians, St Paul dedicates vast swathes of his writing to warnings of the impact of a lack of insight when dealing with others. He begins the fourth chapter of the letter with a plea to, “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace,” (Ephesians 4:3) reminding the community that collaboration and cooperation with another in our spiritual lives is a task which requires effort on all our parts. Throughout the chapter St Paul uses this opportunity to express the link between acceptance of the weaknesses of others and growth in the Christian life.

In this way we are warned here to take time to think of the impact of our activities on those around us and reflect on the situations which may surround us when confronted with anger or bitterness towards others for our weaknesses or theirs. St Basil discusses this also in his sermon on anger, stating that it leads us to act irrationally since those caught in the throws of anger, “do not have time for the perception of what they have suffered, since the whole of their soul has been moved toward revenge against those who have grieved them.” This presents us with a challenge since we are all often caught in the bonds of annoyance or frustration, having felt wronged, and we see this become especially common today where we are open to means of communication which can respond in short and quick terms without the need for any physical or emotional closeness to others, effectively foregoing the need for any consequence or witness of the implications. 

St John Chrysostom discusses this in his 8^th homily on the Epistle to the Ephesians, emphasising the need to recognise the unity of ourselves and our brothers instead of enmity at times of strife. He says that we should, “Bind yourself to your brother. They bear all things lightly who are bound together in love.” In this there is a recognition of our natural biases towards those close to us, however the solution he offers is not a novel one but I vital part of the Christian message, to recognise that all are our brothers and sisters and therefore there is to be no favouritism in our dealings with each other, echoing Christ’s own sentiment in Luke 8:21 that, “My mother and my brethren are these which hear the word of God, and do it.” In these words, all we interact with become closer and to be treated equally with respect as those brought into life in Christ. These words can apply in any situation, and not just to those who share our faith but all those who share in being part of God’s act of creation.

So how do we overcome this struggle? It is not an easy task. However, we are given many examples in the words of the Apostles and Fathers to guide us in this challenge. The first of these we can take it is to stop and consider our responses to the actions of others. St Basil speaks of this as to, “give your thoughts the opportunity to choose the good portion,” and considering that the actions you take will either assist that person in their growth, demonstrating God’s love. If you choose in such situations to act in spite it will have the opposite impact and drive that person further to their own anger and potentially into the hands of other sins. A similar sentiment is expressed by St Paul to his Ephesian brothers, whom he tells “In your anger do not sin,” (Ephesians 4:26) in this manner telling them to think before they take actions which will lead to the suffering of others. This manner of thought before action leads one to the opportunity to assess their situation and reflect before they turn from godly acts. This also allows the opportunity to reflect and apply this response when in struggles, giving the opportunity for prayer and development in these virtues.

Similarly, another way to build up a habit against anger and bitterness is to actively practice Christian virtue. This is again a key theme mentioned by St Paul in his letter to the Corinthians when he advises them to, “put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness,” (Ephesians 4:24) warning them against continuing to practice deception and anger. In this way, if we are to seek to emulate Christ through a life of virtue we should be constantly vigilant in avoiding sinful passions. This can mean working on both our prayer life, which is the basis of all virtue, and on the application of our faith in our daily lives through recognition of the virtues of humility and peacefulness in our actions we can work to avoid lapsing into anger and malice, always being reminded of the example set in the life and teachings of the incarnate Word of God.

This leads to a final thought. St Paul finishes the 4^th chapter of his letter to the Ephesians with a command to the people, he says, “Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you”. (Ephesians 4:31-32) In this we are reminded of this important promise of the Christian faith, that to be born again in Christ does not mean to become immediately perfect but to have the opportunity of salvation in him. In this we are given the opportunity to dwell alongside others and together to cast of our old selves and become what we are made to be. In this we are not called to rashness but to compassion, not to bitterness but to forgives, and not to wrath but to the divine forgiveness through Christ and his life-giving Cross. There can be no greater glory than this, so it is certainly worth taking time to reflect upon before any action.

Book Review: "Voyager from Xanadu" By Morris Rossabi

 

Voyager from Xanadu: Rabban Sauma and the First Journey from China to the West
By Morris Rossabi
ISBN: 9780520262379
Price: £16.60

I originally picked this text up after listening to the final episode of the Timur Podcast and seeking to read more on the politics of the various khanates following the death of Chinggis Khan, especially with regards to the various key Christian actors involved. Having previously read quite deeply into the topic I was pleased to find that this book went into significant detail on the place of the Church of the East in the Yuan Dynasty and Ilkhanate, and offered much more detail on the journey of Rabban Bar Sauma.

To summarise the book and its purpose, the text is an overview of the journey of Rabban Bar Sauma to the West and his encounters with the various religious and secular rulers and authorities, along with the implications of the journey with regards to the political relationships between the Ilkhanate and its western neighbours. Throughout the book, we see the historical context of his visit to a various state and the way in which this played into his treatment, from the mild response from the cardinals on his first visit to Rome, to the exaltation of the kings of both England and France at the possibility of a crusade against the Mamluks. This along with the occasional side mention of the changing politics of the east allows the narrative to play out wonderfully or the historically midned reader.

One wonderful benefit of this is that we are given the whole scope of the journey, not just following Rabban Bar Sauma as he journeys, but being given an additional layer of context to every gift, handshape, or Mass he is involved in, helping us understand the significance of every act. Rossabi’s style of writing also provides a great flow, making this less of a discussion of an historical record and closer to a piece of journey fiction based in the medieval period. However this writing style is also something of a burden for the reader, since Rossabi is often so engaged in the narrative that we are not treated to the use of Bar Sauma’s own text, in fact Bar Sauma’s own journal is hardly even quoted in the text. For myself as a theologically minded reader, I would have been interested in reading Rabban Bar Sauma’s own word’s from some of his debates and discussions with the cardinals in Rome and scholars elsewhere, but instead we are given an overview of it by Rossabi instead.

This also raises one more issue for myself as someone coming to the text to explore the theological implications, since Rossabi’s own understanding of the theological landscape and debates of the period are somewhat inaccurate at points. Examples such as calling the Jacobites of the Syriac Church “Monophysite” and referring to Bar Sauma as a Nestorian without addressing the implications for this on his visits to the Byzantine empire or Roman Church (minus a strange interaction regarding the filioque) leave me as a reader seeking elsewhere for a clearer discussion. In this manner, Rossabi’s book failed to scratch the itch it promised to.

Overall this was an enjoyable book and recommended for anyone wishing to know about this specific historical episode, however if you are seeking dept or a detailed overview then you should look elsewhere.

Discussing Orthodox Faith: Playing to our Strengths

 

Originally posted on CopticNN

I am going to start this piece by saying something crazy, I am Orthodox because it is truth. I am not Orthodox because it is fun, I am not Orthodox because it is convenient, and I am not Orthodox because it suits my lifestyle. I am simply an Orthodox Christian because it is the fullness of the faith, found inside the living and apostolic Church as guided by the Holy Spirit. This is the greatest strength of the Church and the greatest weapon of the Church when confronting challenges in expressing the faith to others.

For many Christians around the world the expressing of faith to others is done through adapting the worship or making changes in expression to accommodate for a change in the audience, seeing many traditions as being outmodes or subjective, Though as mentioned in our previous article, this can often serve to only weaken to the resolve of someone seeking the faith as they would see it undervalued by those inside. In the same manner that one would not destroy or vandalise a priceless artifact, we would not dismantle or undermine the traditions passed down if we see them as apostolic or given through Christ himself to the world. This leads us to the question of the value of the faith’s apostolicity and historical significance in dialogues regarding faith and how these are indeed the greatest tools in the arsenal of the evangelist in the postmodern religious landscape.

Firstly if we speak of the historicity of the Church, we are speaking of its role in the history of Christianity from the life of Christ to today. This is something that many Christian communities cannot address, having their origins in schisms and splits from other communities or from the Church itself, since it is difficult to justify one’s belief as Christianity in the most traditional sense when ones founder rejected this faith. In the same manner many religions have strayed so far from their own historical origins that they are almost meaningless as an historical faith, such as western Buddhism which many see as an ‘alternative lifestyle,’ rejecting many of the foundational or traditional praxis or ethics for the sake of promoting itself to the new-age movement in the western world.

However this places Orthodox Christianity in a unique position, keeping its origins clear and its historical values and faith close to it. In this manner it is a beacon and living expression of the faith of the early Church, something many seek in this world of replicas and individualism, something I myself was drawn to. The historical veracity and continuance of apostolic tradition is a vital aspect of the Church in the world today as this is spoken of as vital in scripture. St Paul teaching in 2Thess 2:15, “stand firm and hold fast to the teachings we passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter.” For many this simply means the words given in scripture, however from an orthodox perspective this can apply to the praxis, ethics and doctrines given by the fathers alongside scripture and its interpretation, allowing Orthodoxy to breathe in the world as a living expression of the faith of the Apostles themselves. In this way, Orthodoxy appears to those who seek the living expression of this faith.

In a similar manner the Apostolicity of the faith itself is important when expressing the Orthodox faith to others. If one is seeking the faith of the apostles they will seek the faith which accords with the faith taught by the Early Church, in this way they will be drawn to Orthodoxy. The English Catholic Saint John Henry Newman stated, “To Be Deep in History Is to Cease to Be Protestant,” and he was right in this. To discover the aspects of faith which were expressed in the Church at the time of the Nicene fathers and not find them in ones own Church or amongst those Christians visible in your life can be devastating to ones faith, in the same manner that one would feel ashamed to discover their parents had deceived them regarding their identity. In this manner, Orthodoxy is unique in not having this crisis of identity amongst Christians today.

In this same way, Orthodox Christianity can be seen as amongst only a few faiths which has not liberalised or culturally warped its doctrines. If we are to compare it to examples in Judaism, where we see the destruction of the temple and emergence of rabbinical Judaism then later the rise of the Chassidic movements, we see a gradual shift from anything resembling the Jewish faith two thousand years ago. In the same manner Islam has failed to be able to express its faith in the modern world in the opposite sense, enforcing doctrine without justification, which is again against its own historical praxis of incorporating Hellenic philosophy as seen in places such as early Baghdad and Damascus. Both of these serve as examples of how Orthodoxy has been able to present itself as a doctrinally, and in its ethos, the living Church of the apostles, a vital point of emphasis for one explaining why Christianity is a historical and Apostolic Faith.

So what is the message here? It is a simple one. Do not see the Church’s history as a burden or something which cannot be a point of value. Many seeking the Church today will find solace in its historical viability and clear representation of the apostolic faith as proof of its heritage in a religious marketplace fully of diverse yet unrooted traditions. As Christ himself Said of the faith of his Apostles, “on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” In the same way we must say that on the rock of the faith of the Apostles we must found our own evangelism, and if we do this then the gates of hell can never prevail over our work. 

Discussing Orthodox Faith: Audience and the dangers of pre-packed evangelism

 

Originally posted on CopticNN

Someone I often notice when speaking of my personal journey to the Orthodox faith is that people do not hear what they expect to. A number of years ago I attended a converts group and explained how I came to faith through philosophical enquiry and was told, “we don’t want to hear about philosophy, when did you open your heart to Jesus?” Needless to say, I didn’t attend the group again. However, this incident raises an interesting challenge regarding the expression of our faith to others, and that is the risk of alienating them through not speaking to their need.

In my own secular life, I work as a teacher, and the question of differentiation comes up often in my planning. We are trained to ask, ‘what level are you teaching to?’ and ‘How does the lesson link to prior learning?’ In the same manner, we need to ask the same question when speaking about our faith or trying to present it in a manner which would be meaningful to others. After all, what benefit is it to speak of the marvel the crucifixion to someone who hasn’t come to terms with the concept of the salvation it brought. Similarly, we would not spend the majority of our energies convincing a well-studied catholic enquirer of the importance of the fathers or apostolic succession. Therefore, we need to step away from the presumption that a ‘pre-packed’ view on evangelism or the position that all come to Christ in the same way,

Let us take two examples and compare these. Imagine that you have a visitor to your parish who has come from a Pentecostal background and left due to a family issue, they would be seeking to find community and a church which can provide comfort. They may also face difficulties in areas such as the veneration of the Saints, or the use of Icons in the Church. This means that anyone helping with their catechesis will need to adapt their approach to these specific needs through themselves having a comforting approach and a depth of understanding of these issues. In a similar way, if there were to be someone coming from a non-religious background and seeking to become Orthodox following some personal epiphany regarding the faith. This person may have background in addressing philosophical questions and need their entire understanding rebuilt from the ground up and need to address tough questions on theological challenges such as the nature of God. Similarly approaches may differ based on someone’s prior theological education or their own prayer life, both of which impact the approach the Church should take when introducing someone into the Church and catering for their development.

As both of these examples show, the view that someone’s spiritual and catechetical development can be presumed is an absurd one and one which the Church needs to address, otherwise we risk falling into the common danger of ‘prepacked evangelism’ which we see often amongst some communities who will take a generic and often impersonal approach to their introduction of the faith to others. This is also something we often see in our own communities where an enquirer whose needs or questions are not answered will be blamed if they do not attend again or lose their way in their journey of faith. However if we are to take an intelligent approach to this challenge it can be solved by looking to the example of Christ in his interactions with people of differing backgrounds and foundations in their faith.

In John 4 we see Christ’s interaction with the Samaritan woman, in which he refers to her concerns over the Jewish/Samaritan schism in a manner which gives us pause to think. When she asks, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (John 4:9) due to views on ritual purity he responds by pointing out, ““If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” (John 4:10). In this manner he addresses her concern though raising his divinity, leading to a discussion on his teachings and the nature of salvation. Following this he calls her to him through speaking of the end of this schism through the person of Christ, stating, “a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.” (Jhn 4:21). In doing this there is no dismissal of either her previous views nor a vindication, but a catering to the discussion she needed for her salvation. Applying this to the modern challenge in evangelism in a multi-faith society, we need to ask “what is their prior understanding? What needs to be stripped away, and what can be built on?” In this manner we can both take down any misconceptions and build up and need for development based on the manner of someone’s prior learning.

In its missionary and evangelism work, the Coptic Church has made strives in its approach to bringing faith to other communities and growing in the multi-faith and often postmodernist world, however without ensuring that the evangelism that appears is catered to the recognition that diversity is not simply intercommunal but also intracommunal it is bound to hit a brick wall. If we cannot speak to the individual and their own experience in our attempts to bring others into the Church, we will struggle to bring anyone into the Church. In the same manner, if we cannot cater to the individual needs of the person coming into the Church, we should not be surprised if they seek it elsewhere.    

Discussing Faith: Culture, language, and the modern Areopagus.

 

Originally published on CopticNN

As Orthodox Christians, we often bemoan the state of our missionary work in countries unreached by the faith, however these efforts have been growing recently, with missions and parishes emerging in the far-east, sub-Saharan Africa, and South America.  Recently I had the blessing to speak with a missionary association in Cairo, discussing the challenges facing those travelling around the world to share their faith, and how to counter these. One of the biggest challenges discussed was regarding cultural dialogue and the challenges of expressing the Christian faith in communities where even the most basic Christian theological terminologies were not a part of the vernacular.

Though this may sound like an obscurity, when we look at prevailing theologies outside of those areas occupied by Abrahamic faiths, we see the challenge facing those whose role it is to express our apostolic faith to others; it is often seen as being incompatible, at a theological level, with the local culture. Because of this It becomes the role of the missionary to develop a theological dialogue between themselves and an audience who have no shared concepts or vocabulary to base their discussion on.

Let us look at an example. Imagine an orthodox missionary were to travel to rural Mongolia, armed with a collection of materials and a fluent understanding of the local language. They would have the capacity to explain their belief but not to translate these in a sense that would permeate in a culture whose religious literacy is tied up largely in Buddhism and native shamanism. The challenge would no longer be one of how to begin a discussion but of how the discussion can be understood accurately and in a meaningful way. Even concepts which we largely take for granted in discussions, such as the concept of a personal (relatable in some sense) God, may become far more difficult to express to someone whose concept of God is impersonal or whose faith is traditionally deistic. In the same manner we would be required to address concepts far beyond this such as trinity, incarnation and eschatology, without risking falling into creating our own theologies or misrepresenting them.

The western Philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein discussed this challenge in his theory of Language Games. He implied that the vast majority of philosophical disagreement is grounded in the differences in use of terminology and that, “Philosophical issues arise when language goes on holiday.” To get by this issue one would be expected to understand the rules and terminology regarding discussing that subject, like someone would be expected to understand and play by the rules of chess when in a game of chess. In the same manner, if someone were to engage in a theological discussion with someone whose only understanding of religion comes from non-theistic or deistic traditions they would be expected to discuss things in a way that would be meaningful to their audience, otherwise the discussion would be fruitless. This is exactly the challenge faced by missionaries, not the ability to discuss faith, but to have it understood in a meaningful way.

This dilemma may imply that I feel missionary work in such cultures is futile, however I for one relish the existence of this challenge and recognise it as having been one which the Church (both our Oriental Orthodox, and the Eastern Orthodox) have had to face in the past and have done so before. In the case of the Eastern Orthodox we have examples such as Cyril and Methodius who literally developed a new alphabet to allow Slavonic communities to read the Gospel. However, the greatest example can be seen in Acts 17, where St. Paul discusses the faith with Greek philosophers, applying their own terminologies and sentiments to demonstrate the nature of God, bringing many to the faith.

St. Paul’s Areopagus sermon is the perfect example of knowing your audience and their culture, allowing St Paul to engage fully in their discussions and bring them to the understanding of the faith. If we break this sermon down, we will see this in its entirety. St Paul begins by discussing their forms of worship and beliefs through the inscription to the ‘Unknown God.’ And explains, “the One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you: God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands.” (Acts 17:23) in doing this we see him acknowledge the personal nature of their previous theology and apply it to his words regarding the Christian faith. Following on from this, he explains to them the errors of applying their worship to this theology, using the shared belief regarding the nature of God as his basis, allowing understanding and agreement. We also, in this instance, see an area where there is no shared basis, when we are told, “when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked, while others said, “We will hear you again on this matter.” (Acts 17:32). However in this instance, many seem to wish to continue to hear and understand, thus giving St. Paul his opportunity to continue to share based on his willingness to reference their beliefs and use them to explain the Christian faith and its truth.

With the example of St. Paul in the Areopagus, we see both the challenges and rewards which missionaries can face when expressing the faith to others. By using and referencing the ‘Unknown God’ and how He is known through Christ, St. Paul was able to win many to the faith, however he also recognised the challenge of expressing belief in an afterlife to those who do not recognise the post-mortem existence. It is in matters such as these that the modern missionary will look to establish a shared understanding of language on the nature of body, soul and spirit where available. However, topics of eschatology remain something of a challenge to express even to those within the Church at times.

Overall, the challenge of filtering the truth of our faith through differing cultural contexts is one which the Church faces increasingly as it looks outwards to missions in cultures with no prior understanding or exposure to Abrahamic faith, and especially to Christianity. However, through recognition of the need to work within the bounds and rules of the prior language and cultural or religious landmarks of those we are seeking to bring to Christ, we can break down the language barrier and allow for a more meaningful and thorough dialogue, deepening the love of Christ in those we wish to welcome into his Church. Christ called us to bring all nations to him, this will always seem a daunting task but once the first wall is broken between the Church and those it seeks to welcome, others will seem much smaller.