The Church

Christ Did Not Leave Us a Bible; He Left Us a Church

"[The Bible] is not what the Lord carefully laid down. And that is why we confess that we believe one Holy, Catholic, and apostolic Church. You see, the Lord left on earth a Church. An earthly body. A community. A family. He did not merely leave an unfleshed memory, or an invisible idea. He did not merely leave a theological set of priciples, that we can argue over, and parse, and pick apart, and then divide over, and accuse one another of being wrong, or who has the gospel the most correct. That is not, thank God, what the Lord left behind. He left behind the Church. The apostolic Church." - Fr. Willbur David Ellsworth

Church Governance

"Plutocracy is a poor system of governance always, and most especially for a Church." -- Fr. Mark Sietsema, Epigrams and Interludes From the Notebook of a Semi-Experienced Priest, Praxis, Spring 2014

It's Not All About the Church

"There is a temptation to preach the Church rather than 'Christ and Him crucified." But what does it profit a man to know the color symbolism of iconography, if he does not practice seventy-times-seven forgiveness?" -- Fr. Mark Sietsema, Epigrams and Interludes From the Notebook of a Semi-Experienced Priest, Praxis, Spring 2014

Liturgical Leaders

"Liturgical Leaders Attend Church Services. The Church always works, and Orthodox Christians are always working. However, the Church is more than meetings, committees, and social events. It is foremost about Jesus Christ and the gift of liturgy. This is the most important work of the Church. No matter how busy he or she is, an Orthodox leader makes time to attend liturgy weekly and to be shaped by the liturgical life of the Church. Liturgical leaders are attentive and allow themselves to be shaped by the Church's teaching. They make it a priority to live the liturgy in their daily lives with humility, mercy, and without apology. Liturgical leaders conform to the Church and do not ask the Church to conform to them. Blessed Theophylact reminds us that "Merely to hear the word of God saves no one and is instead a condemnation. After hearing, one must do.'" -- Andrew Estocin, The Sounding, The Work of a Leader Begins at Liturgy, July 24, 2014

See Also

The Church Is The Body