(From Dina) A Q&A with Brad Jersak.--It's long (80 min), but there's a lot to digest. I liked the discussion of our journeys through life and ongoing growth in faith and knowledge of the Lord.
Comments
Jon
2 years ago
So many good takeaway's in this. Orthodoxy has some good teachings, that the Western church has missed out on and it has been refreshing to learn more about the pure roots of the Orthodox Church. (The Catholic church too for that matter, as they were pretty much the same until the time the Pope crowned Charlemagne the first emperor of the so called Holy Roman empire.) I loved his Easter reading of St. John Chrysostom beginning at 1:05:00 It was great to hear Brad read it, so alive!-- compared to how monotone and humdrum the services I saw in other Orthodox churches. I lived in Orthodox Greece for nearly five years and have visited quite a few times since then. I felt the Orthodox church was quite toxic and they were very intolerant of Protestants, Pentecostals and other Christians. The church there (and elsewhere) has definitely strayed away from the anointed teachings of their early church father John Chrysostom's in his message against the improper use of wealth: "Do you wish to honor the body of Christ? Do not ignore him when he is naked. Do not pay him homage in the temple clad in silk, only then to neglect him outside where he is cold and ill-clad. He who said: "This is my body" is the same who said: "You saw me hungry and you gave me no food", and "Whatever you did to the least of my brothers you did also to me"... What good is it if the Eucharistic table is overloaded with golden chalices when your brother is dying of hunger? Start by satisfying his hunger and then with what is left you may adorn the altar as well." This is the biggest complaint of Greek youth, how filthy rich the Church is there, while how so many Greeks struggle and can barely make ends meet.
Frank
2 years ago
Thanks, Dina. Really good talk. It's amazing to me that Brad could just sit down and do this off the cuff for more than an hour. Loved the talk, and loved the audience too, who were all so natural and enjoying themselves, the message, and each other. Seemed like a house church of some sort, or a gathering in someone's house. And John, I definitely agree about the Orthodox priests in Greece. They all dressed in black and the spirit they projected was often black too, and you just got the feeling that they didn't like you. Bad walking advertisements for their religion and their faith. Lord help us to be good advertisements of the love of God.
Jon
I loved his Easter reading of St. John Chrysostom beginning at 1:05:00 It was great to hear Brad read it, so alive!-- compared to how monotone and humdrum the services I saw in other Orthodox churches. I lived in Orthodox Greece for nearly five years and have visited quite a few times since then. I felt the Orthodox church was quite toxic and they were very intolerant of Protestants, Pentecostals and other Christians.
The church there (and elsewhere) has definitely strayed away from the anointed teachings of their early church father John Chrysostom's in his message against the improper use of wealth:
"Do you wish to honor the body of Christ? Do not ignore him when he is naked.
Do not pay him homage in the temple clad in silk, only then to neglect him outside where he is cold and ill-clad.
He who said: "This is my body" is the same who said: "You saw me hungry and you gave me no food", and "Whatever you did to the least of my brothers you did also to me"... What good is it if the Eucharistic table is overloaded with golden chalices when your brother is dying of hunger?
Start by satisfying his hunger and then with what is left you may adorn the altar as well."
This is the biggest complaint of Greek youth, how filthy rich the Church is there, while how so many Greeks struggle and can barely make ends meet.
Frank