Catholic converts to Orthodox

[StAugustine]

Yes, if you count St. Augustine as a Church father. But most of the Orthodox don’t.

Who besides him is against it?

 

[pacloc]

What writings are you both referring to about Church Fathers and contraception? I thought pills and condoms are a new invention that no Church Father could talk about because they did not exist. I know very little about what Orthodox allow, but from what I have read it seems that non-abortion causing birth control is the only thing up for debate which would mean barrier types I’m guessing. I don’t think this was a topic back then. Also, how could this topic be the basis of joining the Orthodox Church or not? Seems quite the wrong emphasis. No one is going to stop you from believing contraception is wrong, just because sometimes out of concession it is allowed for some.

 

[otrrl]

Anyone here who converted from RCC to the Orthodox Church? I’m wondering what were your reasons for doing so and how has it changed your life?

I found a book explaining the OC at the public library. They feel they are more moderate than Catholics or Protestants – to them, the CC has ADDED too much to the faith (papal infallibility, dogmas of Mary, etc.) and the Protestants have take too much away.(liturgy, priesthood, books of the Bible, etc.)

On the balance, the OC’s (there are more than one OC) and they don’t always agree, and they don’t always teach morality directly, e.g. the immorality of contraception and abortion – they leave it up to individual discretion. So, it’s not all sunshine and seashells in the OC’s.

 

[Angel_Gabriel]

I’m pretty certain St. John Chrysostom was against anything that deliberately avoided the conception of a child. I’ll have to look for some of his writings to confirm that. But I may be mistaking him for another Father.

 

[babochka]

Yes, if you count St. Augustine as a Church father. But most of the Orthodox don’t.

Who besides him is against it?

Of course the Orthodox count Saint Augustine as a Church Father. He was less influential in the East, but there is no doubt as to his status.

A very small minority has rejected him in modern times.
http://faculty.georgetown.edu/jod/augustine/bless_aug.htm

 

[dochawk]

actually, the Romans had condoms. sheepskin, iirc.

 

[Catholicwife32]

According to your logic, Nestorianism, a heresy the EO don’t even accept, isn’t a bad thing. The Dogmas the councils define aren’t infallible.

That doesn’t follow at all. I said the Holy Spirit guides the discussion. It is this guidance that allows the conclusions of the councils to be infallible.

 

[UrbaErmito]

It’s my observation. I am from South America and even the Eastern Catholic churches (“uniats”) have more vitality.

 

[UrbaErmito]

I would agree with you to some degree in regard to evangelizing and historically there is a case for nationalism interfering with this process. However, this is changing and a large percentage of the growth of Orthodoxy in the US is due to converts. Many churches are primarily made up of converts. For instance there have been a large number who have left the Episcopalian church for Orthodoxy due to the liberalization it has undergone in regard to issue of social morality.

Yes, nationalism is an important factor. However, this factor exists also among Eastern Catholics, and yet they enjoy more vitality, acceptance, and freedom in my experience in South America. The Orthodox Church in North America is autocephalous, perhaps it is more an exception than the rule.

 

[UrbaErmito]

You can start with the OCA (but, like ACROD, its origin is actually in the pig-headed bigotry of a certain RCC bishop I refused to name), and there are several more. I’ll leave it to our EO members to list them (I can’t even keep up with the EC, or the current count [which seems to change every year or two, and then there’s the one that we’re not sure whether or not went extinct, and . . . I leave it as “about two dozen”)

I believe I answered above.