Tag: conversion

What if a heartbroken Catholic knocks on my church door?

· Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick
I have watched now over the past few weeks as each awful page is turned in the growing sexual abuse scandal in the Roman Catholic Church. It’s been bad for years now, but what’s come out just recently is looking even worse. I have been very hesitant to say much publicly on this, because it is so fraught with possible missteps. So forgive meā€¦

20 Years of Being Orthodox: 6 Things I’ve Learned

· Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick
Today marks the 20th anniversary of my reception into the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church — the Orthodox Church. I was just 22 years old at the time and still in college (I had something of a “career” in college, accumulating one BA, most of another, and three minors, all while working to support myself). In 1998, April 19 was Pascha, and atā€¦

Those Who Quit Church: Why Do We Talk About Converts More?

· Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick
Recently, someone wrote to ask why the Orthodox blogosphere and media seem to talk far more about converts to Orthodoxy than people who have been Orthodox and have left off coming to church. This is a hard subject, and it’s one I don’t recall seeing talked about much online. This (with some edits and additions) was my response: I will relate why I thinkā€¦

Truly This Was the Son of God!

· Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick
Sunday of the Fathers of the Seventh Ecumenical Council / Feast of St. Longinus, October 16, 2016 Titus 3:8-15; Luke 8:5-15 Very Rev. Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, one God. Amen. Our main commemoration today is the Fathers of the Seventh Ecumenical Council, who theologized beautifully on what it meansā€¦

Awake, O Sleeper! Dream Logic and Spiritual Life

· Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick
Twenty-Sixth Sunday after Pentecost / Thirteenth Sunday of Luke, November 29, 2015 Ephesians 5:8-19; Luke 18:18-27 Rev. Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, one God. Amen. One of my favorite metaphors for spiritual conversion is to awaken from sleep. There is actually a lot about spiritual life that resembles sleeping orā€¦

12 Reasons Why I Became and/or Remain an Orthodox Christian

· Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick
Lists like this are usually so much clickbait, I know, but I thought it was nevertheless worthwhile to compile a list of most of the reasons why I became and/or remain an Orthodox Christian. Some of these things were not really on my radar when I became Orthodox in 1998, but they are part of the reason why I genuinely do love belonging toā€¦

Choosing Orthodoxy

· Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick
There is a critique in Orthodox convert circles, especially in what one reads on the Internet, of the “problem” of converting to Orthodox Christianity. Part of the problem, the argument goes, with American culture is its emphasis on conscious choice, that is, consumerism. We are bombarded nearly non-stop by our advertisement culture to make various selections which will be sure to enrich our livesā€¦