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against pagans?

syo

Well-Known Member
That's not entirely true. Pope Benedict XVI and His Holiness Bartholomew, the Ecumenical Patriarch had prayers together. The Orthodox and Catholic Churches recognize each others' sacraments, especially Holy Orders.
These are steps to some tolerance. Many Orthodox are not happy with this.
 

Martin

Spam, wonderful spam (bloody vikings!)
Judging by experience at my local Moot, modern Paganism is a lame new-age attempt at recreating something scarcely remembered or understood, combined with Wiccan teenage girls grown older. Nothing to worry about there!
 

syo

Well-Known Member
Judging by experience at my local Moot, modern Paganism is a lame new-age attempt at recreating something scarcely remembered or understood, combined with Wiccan teenage girls grown older. Nothing to worry about there!
People just try. :) But paganism can revive, I think.
 

Jainarayan

ॐ नमो भगवते वासुदेवाय
Staff member
Premium Member
These are steps to some tolerance. Many Orthodox are not happy with this.

The most vocal against it is the Russian Orthodox Church, yes. And the Greek Orthodox Church. They have been grousing, bellyaching and grumbling over the revival of the ancient Greek religion for some time now. As far as I know the other national churches are pretty quiet. I'm not Orthodox anymore but I kind of keep tabs. There's an interesting dynamic in the EOC.
 
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sun rise

The world is on fire
Premium Member
I'll give you an example. Orthodox Christians refuse to pray with other people who are not Orthodox. They think all Gods of other religions are fakes, and if they pray with an outsider, they will go to hell. They think that people who have a different religion are tricked into joining that religion. They think that only Orthodox Christianity is the sole correct religion.
That exclusivity has been a feature of religion for uncounted ages. It's breaking down. I've attended interfaith gatherings that included representatives from many different groups Christians, Jews, Muslims, Native Americans and pagans. We all celebrated each other with no condemnation.

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syo

Well-Known Member
That exclusivity has been a feature of religion for uncounted ages. It's breaking down. I've attended interfaith gatherings that included representatives from many different groups Christians, Jews, Muslims, Native Americans and pagans. We all celebrated each other with no condemnation.

e0b63a90562655a712dc81ce7b250bef.gif
This is beautiful but still it's a minority.
 

Martin

Spam, wonderful spam (bloody vikings!)
This is beautiful but still it's a minority.

Why should faiths "get along", given they believe very different things. Isn't mutual acceptance a more realistic goal?
Agreeing to disagree seems more honest than this PC universalist nonsense.
 

Sand Dancer

Crazy Cat Lady
That is not quite true. Rome was very tolerant of religion, and would willingly include the abrahamic god.

As you said, Christianity refused that tolerance and denied the Roman gods by insisting their god was the only god.

Considering Rome, at that time, considered the Emperor to be a deity then Christian denied the Emperor.

A capital crime.

Polytheists don't mind adding another god to the pantheon. Monotheists, however,...
 

syo

Well-Known Member
Polytheists don't mind adding another god to the pantheon. Monotheists, however,...
Yes! There are polytheists who add the Christian God and Jesus to their pantheon. I myself don't reject christianity and I go to christian churches and pray. God is just one more God among others. :)
 

sun rise

The world is on fire
Premium Member
Why should faiths "get along", given they believe very different things. Isn't mutual acceptance a more realistic goal?
Agreeing to disagree seems more honest than this PC universalist nonsense.
It's far from nonsense. It's recognizing that the differences are superficial compared to the shared goal.

One image that can be evoked is climbing a mountain. I have my route up the mountain. Others have a different route. Our goal is the same even if our routes diverge.
 

shunyadragon

shunyadragon
Premium Member
Are you just being wilfully ignorant?

Eastern Orthodox Church - Wikipedia

Commonly called 'Orthodoxy.'
Not willfully ignorant at all. When you referred to Orthodox Christianity that is a claim of different churches. It did not necessarily refer to the Eastern Orthodox Church or its variations. Orthodox can be an adjective, a claim,; or an adjective, part of the name of the church.

From: Orthodoxy - OrthodoxWiki

"The word orthodoxy, from the Greek orthos ('straight', 'correct') and doxa ('thought', 'teaching', 'glory'), is used to refer to the correct theological or doctrinal observance of religion, as determined by some overseeing body. The term did not conventionally exist with any degree of formality (in the sense in which it is now used) prior to the advent of Christianity in the Greek-speaking world, though the word does occasionally show up in ancient literature in other, somewhat similar contexts. Orthodoxy is opposed to heterodoxy ('other teaching'), heresy and schism. People who deviate from orthodoxy by professing a doctrine considered to be false are most often called heretics, while those who deviate from orthodoxy by removing themselves from the perceived body of believers, i.e. from full communion, are called schismatics. Not infrequently these occur together. The distinction in terminology pertains to the subject matter; if one is addressing corporate unity, the emphasis may be on schism; if one is addressing doctrinal coherence, the emphasis may be on heresy.

Derived from late classical and medieval Christian apologetics for orthodoxy, more specify is often applied when defending a claim to orthodoxy or refuting heresy. Apostasy, for example is a violation of orthodoxy that takes the form of abandonment of the faith, be it for some form of atheism or for some other faith, a concept largely unknown before the adoption of Christianity as the official religion of Rome. The first well-known apostate is probably Julian, the last pagan emperor of Rome. A lighter deviation from orthodoxy than heresy is commonly called error, in the sense of not being grave enough to cause total estrangement while yet seriously affecting communion. Sometimes error is also used to cover both full heresies and minor errors."
 

Rival

Si m'ait Dieus
Staff member
Premium Member
Not willfully ignorant at all. When you referred to Orthodox Christianity that is a claim of different churches. It did not necessarily refer to the Eastern Orthodox Church or its variations. Orthodox can be an adjective, a claim,; or an adjective, part of the name of the church.
It does.

Orthodox with a capital O refers to the Orthodox Church.

Just as Orthodox with a capital O within Judaism refers to Orthodox Judaism, the sect.
 

Dave Watchman

Active Member
Orthodox Christians are against pagans and all other religions, in general. My question is: are the other Abrahamic religions against nonabrahamic religions?

I think it's like I'm related to them, like distant cousins.

I don't think the other religions are correct.

So I'm not "for' them.

But they were all baked in the cake from the beginning.

I could tolerate a bus ride with them.

I wouldn't want any harm to befall their individual members.

But I wouldn't be comfortable going to their house for supper.

I think Paul was saying that the Jews are blinded in part until the times of the gentiles are finished.

There's just not enough we have in common with one another.

"For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. - Romans 11:25​

Orthodox Christians say all other religions are cults and fakes. :shrug:

God told Solomon that all his foreign wives would cause him trouble, worshiping all their strange gods.

"The Lord did not want the Israelites to worship foreign gods, so he had warned them not to marry anyone who was not from Israel. - 1 Kings 11-1​

Look around at all the belief systems, you must know not everyone can be right.

When I look up on the screen and see "Pagan", it doesn't really compute in my mind.

It makes me think of a little kid.

It makes me smile.

Like bringing a Viking back to life and asking him about the weak or the strong force.

We're at the cutting edge right now, people are running to and fro, knowledge has been increased.

You can have the god Thor, I'll go with the God who made the thunder and the lightning.

"For he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good,
and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. - Matthew 5:45​

Everyone on the planet can trace their allegiance to one of the seven heads on the composite beast.

In my own opinion,
I'd rather not be wise about this. .
 

Martin

Spam, wonderful spam (bloody vikings!)
It's far from nonsense. It's recognizing that the differences are superficial compared to the shared goal.

One image that can be evoked is climbing a mountain. I have my route up the mountain. Others have a different route. Our goal is the same even if our routes diverge.

The goals are actually very different, it's only woolly-thinking universalist nonsense that wishes them to be the same. This is very patronising to the different faiths, you're like a stoned hippy saying "it's all one, man". Yeah, whatever, roll another, don't Bogart the joint.
 

shunyadragon

shunyadragon
Premium Member
It does.

Orthodox with a capital O refers to the Orthodox Church.

Just as Orthodox with a capital O within Judaism refers to Orthodox Judaism, the sect.

OK you clarified, but in the context of your original post the fact of the capital "O" does not offer clarification reread my post with definition.
 

Darkforbid

Well-Known Member
That is not quite true. Rome was very tolerant of religion, and would willingly include the abrahamic god.

As you said, Christianity refused that tolerance and denied the Roman gods by insisting their god was the only god.

Considering Rome, at that time, considered the Emperor to be a deity then Christian denied the Emperor.

A capital crime.

Rubbish,, 'the Senate refused. Instead, it pronounced Christianity to be an "illegal superstition," a crime under Roman law.'
 
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