I just read this article about Franklin Graham's Festival of Hope in Kiev, Ukraine. This is a good example of why the Orthodox Church is not happy about the Westernization of...I mean crusade into...I mean evangelization of Russia and Ukraine by Protestant Church, Inc.
The opening line spoke of the beauty of the golden churches in Kiev "A feeling of Old Testament gravity and ritual hangs in the air."
Then the author recalls Graham's story of Nicodemus:
"He was a very religious man ... conscientious in all his religious duties.” But for all of that, he said, Nicodemus was still troubled in his soul, unsure of how one is able to stand before God. So he went to Jesus by the cover of night to ask Him. “When Jesus answers his question, ‘You must be born again,’ Nicodemus must have been stunned,” Franklin said. “He was a Pharisee, the strictest of all religious sects. They dedicated their lives to upholding the law of God.” He continued, “You see, religion is not enough to save you.” After being in their country just a while, Franklin said, he could see Ukraine was a very religious nation—but, like Jesus told Nicodemus, religion is not enough. We have to be born again.
[Can I tell you just how much I've come to love the phrases "born again" and "personal savior"?]
Franklin explained why: “You can’t work for your salvation. If you could work for it or buy it, you would boast about it. The only way you can experience forgiveness is by God’s grace through faith in His Son Jesus Christ. ... It’s coming into an agreement with God. ... You’re telling God, I want to turn from my sins. I don’t want to go back to that old life. I want that new life.”
Graham takes cheap shots at Orthodoxy, shows a complete lack of understanding of her teachings and misleads people by telling them that the Church does not believe in salvation by grace but by works. You'd think these "great wise" leaders would be the ones most educated about other faiths so as to have a better understanding of their own. I guess not. Or does he know the truth and yet choose to mow over it in order to win more to his side?
(Kind of off topic, but I can't move on without pointing out how he says that "salvation by grace" equals an "agreement" between man and God. hm. Interesting how that works.)
I could go on and on about the issues I have with Big Chrisitanity's evanglization efforts in Russia....but I'd better not. All I'll say is GO SOMEWHERE ELSE.
But, Glory to God, despite such efforts to elbow out Orthodox culture, the Russian Orthodox Church is bouncing back and is continuing to grow. The blood of the martyrs is bearing great fruits, and the unity of the Church is even stronger than before.
I heard about this article from Fr Stephen's blog. He is much more graceful and helpful in his response in "The Orthodox Church and Personal Salvation".
17 comments:
You know, I have respect for Billy Graham, but I was unsure about his son. Now, reading this article, I realized why. Bill Graham, when he came across denominational issues like baptism, would just say something like, "I'll let your personal beliefs decide what that really is - my wife has one idea, I have another" so that he could include many different sects of Christianity. His son seems to be going the TBN route of, "Here's what I believe, and if you don't agree then you don't have salvation."
Nice link to Fr Stephen's blog. I especially liked this response:
You could always say “I eat his flesh and drink his blood - that’s pretty personal” … I wonder how that would go over?
I think I react to his words for two reasons. First is people like him keep insisting that the Russian Orthodox Church should be welcoming evangelists into their country because, after all, "we're sharing the same Good News about Jesus". This article is good (and frustrating) in that it shows the truth about the relationship between the two churches: instead of supporting the Orthodox culture and church (if there is so much in common), these groups are coming in to take over. It's really irritating because the Russian church has just come out of a major crisis of the government first trying to corrupt her and then just killing her off all together. Meanwhile the "friends" from the west are basically taking advantage of the situation. Just the other night during a non-related discussion, the effectiveness of "colonization through religion" was mentioned.... My second problem is just the blatant misinformation about the Church's teachings. It's not so much the fact that he thinks that he is right and the Orthodox are wrong that I have a problem with (because I, myself, think that he is wrong), it's the whole two-faced situation that gets me.
Anyway...
tony-allen, I saw that too. yeah I don't think that'd go over too well, lol.
There's actually a fellow at YouTube whose with the Orthodox Church in Canada - I forget what title he has, but if you look at his first several videos he responds to an evangelical Christian who was spreading falsehoods about the Orthodox Church.
http://youtube.com/user/allsaintsmonastery
I haven't watched his recent stuff, I really need to get back into it.
This isn't meant to be polemic, it's a sincere question. (I swear)
An Orthodox parish near my home conducts an annual "Mission to Mexico". The last time I checked, Mexico seems to be pretty firmly established in the "canonical territory" of the RCC.
Would this be a violation of the concept so often put forth by the Russian Church?
My church does a "Mission to Mexico" as well, but as far as I know they're not evangelizing or trying to convert any one, they're doing charity work (building homes, etc).
Tony,
I would agree that they're not proselytizing, but I'm sure they're evangelizing.
Do you think the Russian Church would take issue if devout Catholics from Poland embarked on a similar "Mission Ukraine"?
Brendan, it's a good question to ask, I think. The evangelicals certainly are not the only ones trying to "evangelize" Russia, and the RCC is no exception. I googled 'proselytism and evangelism' and found the RCC listed as often as evangelical churches as a group associated with some of the most extensive proselytism (even specific references to their work in Russia).
So yeah I think the issue is exactly proselytism, and the Orthodox Church holds the same viewpoint on it no matter who is doing the proselytizing.
Petronia,
But do you think Moscow would look upon devout Polish Catholics doing "charity work" in Ukraine (a la Project Mexico) as charity or proselytism?
I think this is an example of one man's proselytism being another man's charity.
Again, to my knowledge they leave people alone spiritually, and do not try to change people's minds in any way, shape or form. They do charitable work because they believe it is their duty to do so.
You ask how it would feel if the shoe was on the other foot. Well, Muslims in my community also do charity work, but they don't try to convert people to Islam, they just try to help those who need it. Certainly it might open people to their beliefs and get people curious, but that is for the individual person to be guided, and is much different than an organization such as Franklin Graham's specifically going to an area to convert people to their point of view.
To suggest "one man's proselytism being another man's charity" overlooks the fact that Franklin Graham is not really doing charity in the same way Missions to Mexico is. The article makes it clear he's there to hold speeches and services as his father used to, and to turn people away from Orthodoxy.
Brendan,
Your quotes around 'charity work' make me think you don't see the Catholics doing charity work without the intent of proselytism (as is often the case). But I agree with tony-allen that there still are good people in the world (like the Muslims in his community and Orthodox Project Mexico) that are out there truly to do charity for the sake of charity.
There is nothing wrong with meeting needs. It is actually what we are commanded to do, if we love God. Proselytism and charity work can actually be mutually exclusive, though the trend is to combine them--ie. taking advantage of someone's weak state.
To ask hypothetically what Moscow would do with the RCC is really unanswerable because it simply depends on the situation. I guess you could take a more specific look at history and current affairs to find out. The Russian Orthodox Church does not suffer from "other religion-phobia" if that's what you're asking.
Did you read the full article I linked to about Franklin Graham? You can bet that if an Orthodox leader came to RCC territory on the premise of "charity only" and then delivered a speech like that, they probably wouldn't be too happy. No one likes a proselytite. :)
Btw, thanks guys for reading and taking the time to comment! It's nice to have these little conversations. I learn a lot this way.
>>Btw, thanks guys for reading and taking the time to comment! It's nice to have these little conversations. I learn a lot this way.>>
Me too! It's been great.
I really don't understand how someone can think that these people who live their life doing good, but aren't explicitly "born again" when they were born believing with all their heart in God, won't be saved. I believe they will.
Petra,
I feel the same way with non-Orthodox missionaries going into Greece.
When my husband (then fiance) went to Alaska with the OCMC the evangelical "missionaries" there sent out a flyer warning people that we were coming to "confuse and lead astray" their people. I couldn't believe it, their people? These people have been Orthodox longer than their evangelical church had existence....Anyways, I TOTALLy feel your frustration. We must pray for God to strengthen His Holy Church and for these people to not be led astray. God help us.
Just a small comment-not trying to stir the pot but I feel like I should say this. All men everywhere are lost and on their way to Hell. Jesus' proclamation was to make disciples teaching them to obey everything He had commanded. Rote obedience to the law without being a new creation. The Bible is clear that salvation to man comes as through the preaching of the Word (Rom 10:13-15). The question then should not be, "What do you believe?" for the Scripture says, "Even the devils believe, and tremble (Jas 2:19). The question we should all be asking those whom God brings across our paths (and I do believe that no one we come across is by coincidence) is, "Has God made you a new creation?" As St. Paul has said, "What counts is a new creation" (Gal 6:14-16). The entire book of Galatians is premised on the fact that the Galatians had begun trying to perfect themselves by means of the Law rather than grace. In response to another comment left on this post, "Yes. It DOES matter whether one is born again! Jesus Himself stated in John 3:3, speaking to Nicodemus, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again."
In conclusion, I would just say that evangelism is a natural part of the Christian life. I do not evangelize to "have converts" but because I desire all men to be saved from the coming wrath. I love people and don't want them to go to Hell. That is why I evangelize.
I may have been way off base on the subject of this thread but I felt like I needed to say it. Thanks for your patience.
Together in His Labors,
SDL
Clarification on one of my thoughts:
Rote obedience to the law without being a new creation does no one any good.
Sorry about that.
Grace to all,
SDL
Steven, I don't find your comment off-base at all. The comment threads always take on a life of their own, anyway. It is your perspective, respectfully shared. Thanks!
"Rote obedience to the law without being a new creation does no one any good." I definitely agree with this. The "law" in Orthodoxy is actually better spoken as a treatment for our dying souls; it is the path of inner repentance and sanctification. We obey not out of fear but out of love and the hope of being renewed.
I'm not sure how one could ask "Has God made you a new creation?" if it's not clear what god or what kind of "new creation". Even with using Scriptures, there are so many individual interpretations of "humility" and "obedience" and so forth that I'm not sure how "new creation" is even defined outside of a distinct belief system.
I certainly respect your love for others and your desire that all would come to the knowledge of the truth.
As for myself, I (am trying to) follow St Seraphim of Sarov's advice: "Acquire a peaceful spirit, and around you thousands will be saved."
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