The Paths of Discourse

Channeling my inner academic here, I’d like to offer an outline of what I think are very different paths that I see as being currently intertwined in our discussion. Perhaps it could be beneficial to separate them?  I am very interested in the input of the others in this group.

1. The political aspect: There appears to be a growing concern in some parts of the Church about the desire of the current leadership of the OCA (much supported by the conservative element in the Church, especially among the Evangelical and Episcopalian converts) to get actively involved in political issues, consistently aligning themselves with the more conservative agenda. It is especially notable since this involvement does not appear to espouse an all-encompassing social agenda, since it does not take any interest in the matters of social justice which some would argue are the natural purview of the Church. Moreover, in the course of this political thrust His Beatitude Metropolitan Jonah has been very consistent in employing the rhetoric which is divisive, derisive, and threatening to a large body of individuals – not just the homosexuals in the Church and in the rest of the world, but also those who happen to espouse views more compassionate than those articulated by him. It is more than disappointing – it is endangering the message of the Church to the world. It is worth noting that His Beatitude is not alone in the Orthodox world in his quest, but is perhaps most closely allied with the similar momentum in the Russian Orthodox Church. In the context of this aspect there is a bigger issue of the Church’s engagement of its contemporary culture, especially of the diverging matters in that culture and its contemporary multi-confessional plurality.
2. The theological aspect: There is a matter of what informs the mind of the Church and how her teachings get formulated. There is a whole issue of theology of gender and Christian anthropology, and the enormous amount of “homework” that needs to be done in this area if we want to understand and resolve the challenges at hand in the proper ecclesiastical way. Matters of gender and sexuality in the Church are not limited to homosexuality; they include priesthood, ministries, and challenges of contemporary civil unions. It is a huge area, definitely bigger than an online forum can handle, but this conversation probably serves to contribute somewhat. Not to mention that there are some “lurkers” in this group who are preeminently qualified to speak and write on the topic.
3. The pastoral aspect: In very broad terms, how to deal with the “situation on the ground” while the “homework” is being done and the major political and church/state issues are being played out. What happens when a person finds him/herself in an ecclesiastical vacuum, or even under attack. This is probably where personal engagement cannot be overestimated or replaced by an online community, but it is also where the openness and outreach of an online forum may help break through to the disengaged.