Can Byzantine Catholic attend Orthodox liturgy?

[Zekariya]

When a person begins attending an Orthodox church because obviously they feel something is lacking in there Catholic one, the handwriting is often already on the wall that they are beginning the process that will take them out of the Catholic church.

And many Latins go to SSPX parishes because they prefer the old Rite. You are reading more into this than there actually is.

 

[Peter_J]

Originally Posted by Cavaradossi
Russian Orthodox, of course. I am an Orthodox Christian, and I have never been turned down for communion at a Russian parish, so long as I have notified the priest there ahead of time that I have recently been to confession, and that I am in good standing.

Hi VicFerrari and welcome to the forum.

Obviously, the Russian Orthodox Church (or the Antiochian Orthodox Church, or the Romanian Orthodox Church, etc) doesn’t just automatically share communion with any church that has the word “Orthodox” in its name – just like Rome doesn’t necessarily allow intercommunion with the Anglican Catholic Church even though “Catholic” is part of it name.

Your statements are a little bizarre – think about it, would you criticize the Russian Orthodox for not giving communion to members of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church?

BTW, have you considered put something more specific in your profile than just “Christian” (which applies to the vast majority of posters)?

 

[Peter_J]

While the official line from the West is that you have to go to a Catholic liturgy, I’ve heard MANY priests (particularly Melkite) say that it’s better to go to your Orthodox counterpart Church than an RC church.

I don’t know if I’ve ever heard that exactly, but I do know there’s a dispensation – for any Melkites living in parts of the US that don’t have Eastern Catholic parishes – to attend Orthodox liturgy rather than LC mass.

 

[Peter_J]

Rome officially does not seek the
Orthodox Christians into Communion with Rome…

It is you who are mistaken. “Pastoral activity in the Catholic Church, Latin as well as Eastern, no longer aims at having the faithful of one Church pass over to the other” - the Balamand Statement

 

[dvdjs]

I just don’t think you’re being fair to others by dismissing their viewpoints as bitterness or historical griping when all they’re doing is sticking to their traditional understanding of what their faith consists of and does not consist of, which is what they’re encouraged to do by Rome these days…

I don’t know if it is unfair, but it may be inappropriate - especially if it were to come from an ultramontane outlier, or from someone for whom it is “none of their business”.

However, I think that the criticism is not without entirely without merit. Some ECs, rather than just living the joy of their tradition, spend too much time taking on attitudes informed by events of a century ago, or more. I wish the focus was on the immanent joy.

There is much to discuss about authenticity of tradition, organic development of tradition, and pastoral sensitivity in the implementation of elements of tradition. But it requires some patience and broad knowledge to reach a mature understanding of tradition. It really cannot help, to dismiss viewpoints contrary one’s own as reflecting obsequiousness.

Paying close attention to the concerns of Eastern and Oriental Catholic posters here makes it hard for me to believe this to be the case. This is the obsequiousness I’m talking about: …

Your take on obsequiousness is interesting. As in a marital relationship, what is required is deference to one another out of common love. Not: “Here I stand, I cannot do otherwise.”, which does not lead to good.

… how Rome treats its “Eastern lung”, since that’s none of my business in the first place …, but that’s not going to stop me from recognizing and rejecting lousy attitudes, no matter who holds them.

I wish you well in “recognizing and rejecting lousy attitudes, no matter who holds them”.

 

[Peter_J]

The Ruthenian priest has given his blessing to do so. But i will probably play it safe and attend the Sat evening RC mass, and then Orthodox liturgy on Sunday. Although i will continue to probe this matter further.
Thanks to everyone for your help!

Hi O.N. This ^^ post is a bit confusing, since your profile says “Religion: Orthodox becoming Catholic”. (Or have you already become Catholic, and just haven’t updated your profile?)

 

[dvdjs]

Hi VicFerrari and welcome to the forum.
Your statements are a little bizarre – think about it, would you criticize the Russian Orthodox for not giving communion to members of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church?

Come on. In fairness to VicFerrari let us acknowledge that it would be easy for someone to pick up information on the internet that is no longer true.

So first: what is this Russian Orthodox church: MP, ROCOR, OCA (formerly ROGCC), ROCA, ROCIE …
Second: Understanding intercommunion may be complicated by economies If these are not discounted, then there is abundant evidence for Orthodox-Catholic intercommunion; perhaps directives on con-celebration are more informative.
Third: In this light, I would be ask for an outline of the directives of canonical Orthodox churches with the also canonical ROCOR from its inception until 2007. That is all “ancient” history now, but it is understandable that it would be easy to have read per-2007 information that has not been updated.

It is easier that has been admitted in the rebuttals for someone to have a misimpression of inter-communion of concelebration with the EOCs.

 

[dvdjs]

It is you who are mistaken. “Pastoral activity in the Catholic Church, Latin as well as Eastern, no longer aims at having the faithful of one Church pass over to the other” - the Balamand Statement

No he is not. The original statement that was PaulfromIowa responded to did not clearly differentiate re-establishment of communion between the churches, versus missionary activity aimed at having the faithful from one church pass to another. It was clear from the whole quote of PaulfromIowa that he was talking about the former. And he is definitely not mistaken.

 

[Zekariya]

No he is not. The original statement that was PaulfromIowa responded to did not clearly differentiate re-establishment of communion between the churches, versus missionary activity aimed at having the faithful from one church pass to another. It was clear from the whole quote of PaulfromIowa that he was talking about the former. And he is definitely not mistaken.

You are mistaken. The Catholic Church seeks for the Orthodox Church to come into Communion with Rome. She does not seek for individual Orthodox Christians to come into Communion with Rome. I was speaking of the latter (that is why I said “Christians” not “Church”).

 

[Michael_Francis]

Closed pending review by moderator Catherine Grant.