GOARCH for those who are familiar

[Mercurius1]

I belong to the Antiochians and have only really attended 2 GOARCH (America) parishes, so, I am not overly familiar with them.

My questions is, is GOARCH considered more "liberal" or modernist than the other jurisdictions? This is the impression that I get from what others have said. Having converted from Roman Catholicism, is GOARCH equivalent to modern Catholicism in their laxity, etc? 

 

[Iconodule]

My questions is, is GOARCH considered more "liberal" or modernist than the other jurisdictions? This is the impression that I get from what others have said.

Eh, it really depends. A lot of critique of so-called modernism comes from some other modernist tendency masquerading as traditionalism. Yes, a lot of GOARCH parishes have pews, (lightly used) organs, etc. but the talismanic significance that some polemicists attach to these things is really overblown. 

Having converted from Roman Catholicism, is GOARCH equivalent to modern Catholicism in their laxity, etc?

Not at all.

 

[Dominika]

Pews and chairs are in the regions that have been Orthodox 2000 years.  There are no pews in younger local Churches. Lol it even applies to Poland (southern Polandas first accepted Chtistianity and moreover in Eastern, Slavic rite and its churches have pews while other regions no).

 

[biro]

I go to a GOARCH parish. We're as Orthodox as anyone else.

 

[Antonis]

What has been preached, expected, and lived in the larger part of the GOA for the past number of decades suffered a significant disconnect from the Orthodoxy before it, and in cases contemporary with it. Doctrine, prayer, fasting, the sacraments, you name it. Aesthetic issues are more symptomatic of these underlying problems than anything else.

But, things are getting better because of the grassroots. I think this redirection will not be only surface-deep.

 

[Mercurius1]

What has been preached, expected, and lived in the larger part of the GOA for the past number of decades suffered a significant disconnect from the Orthodoxy before it, and in cases contemporary with it. Doctrine, prayer, fasting, the sacraments, you name it. Aesthetic issues are more symptomatic of these underlying problems than anything else.

But, things are getting better because of the grassroots. I think this redirection will not be only surface-deep.

Thanks for that. In what ways are they getting better?

 

[WPM]

yes, the Greek Orthodox.

 

[Antonis]

What has been preached, expected, and lived in the larger part of the GOA for the past number of decades suffered a significant disconnect from the Orthodoxy before it, and in cases contemporary with it. Doctrine, prayer, fasting, the sacraments, you name it. Aesthetic issues are more symptomatic of these underlying problems than anything else.

But, things are getting better because of the grassroots. I think this redirection will not be only surface-deep.

Thanks for that. In what ways are they getting better?

To sum it up briefly, I think we are acquiring an appreciation for the Tradition, which previous generations may have been ignorant of, or worse, despised.

There is a renewed emphasis on the above that I listed, and there are a few factors in this, I think. One is the increased availability of English-language spiritual materials. It is hard to ignore the pull of such a beautiful Tradition. It speaks for itself, which is why I am confident of the positive movement of the Spirit in America.

Another factor is the arrival in America of a monastic tradition. There is no Orthodoxy without such a tradition. Even those who are uncertain about or opposed to this tradition have been unwittingly positively affected by its arrival through spiritual materials and a genuine ethos which America is sorely lacking.

I think among the youth there is a genuine desire for authenticity in faith. Formal attendance of the social club church doesn't cut it anymore. This desire is also reflected in our younger clergy, I think. The positive movement I'm talking about is definitely bottom-up, which is why I called it grassroots. Leadership is often (not always) ambivalent or even hostile to a return to the Tradition or a Faith which expects more than dues.

Again, the genuine life in Christ is the strongest magnet. Those with well-disposed hearts can't help but be attracted.