John’s Story: Why I Left Eastern Orthodoxy for Evangelicalism
Yesterday, I interviewed a former Southern Baptist who has converted to Eastern Orthodoxy. Today I am interviewing a former Eastern Orthodox believer who has become Baptist. Tomorrow, we will look at the parallels between the two accounts and hopefully better understand these two traditions and why people are converting from one to the other.
John’s Story: Why I Left Eastern Orthodoxy for Evangelicalism
John is a Romanian man in his late fifties who is no stranger to the Eastern Orthodox Church. He was born into a family of Orthodox Christians, in a society where church and state often mix in unhealthy ways. Romanian Orthodoxy is the state religion, meaning that almost everyone born in Romania is already considered a member of the Orthodox church, regardless of devotion or belief.
John’s grandparents were faithful leaders in the Orthodox church. The Orthodox priest was one of the most important people in the village in which John grew up. John’s family was considered “devout” and “religious” by the priest and the rest of the community. Though the church building was just four houses down the street from his, John rarely attended. “I usually went to the midnight Easter vigil,” he recalls. “A few days before Easter, I would go confess my sins to the local priest. But this had no effect on me. When I walked out of a church service, I was the same as before.”
John was baptized into the church when he was six weeks old. Later, he and his wife were married in the Orthodox Church. As John tells me about these years, I sense he resents the past. It is clear that he sees his youth as a wasted part of his life, and he is upset that the priest never taught him the truth about God. “The priest never confronted us in our sins,” he says, with a mixture of grief and anger. “I didn’t have a Bible, but no one encouraged me to read one anyway.”
In his early twenties, John became active in the Communist party in Romania. One evening, he was on assignment to visit one of the Baptist churches and to see how many of the “repenters” (as they were derogatorily called) were present. He was also told to ask the Baptists questions about why they were attending churches other than the Orthodox Church. “I had no intention of converting to evangelicalism,” he says. “But when I heard the Word of God preached for the first time, and the concept of repentance and being ‘born again,’ I was touched. I realized that I had never truly repented of my sins. Here I would go to the Orthodox Church, cross myself, kiss an icon one moment and despise God the next. I realized that the Orthodox church was a societal organization that had taught me nothing.” So John decided to “follow Jesus” and turn away from his sinful past.
John’s family reacted harshly. His wife thought he had gone crazy. His parents told him he was bringing shame upon the whole family. The Communist party began to put pressure on him to give up his newfound faith and continue to be involved in their atheistic agenda.
The pressure from all sides to give up his new identity was overwhelming. “I would have caved had I not begun reading the Bible the Baptists had given me,” John says with a smile. “As I began reading Scripture, I understood Jesus to be the only way to God. I realized I did not need the Orthodox church or even a priest to be my mediator, for Jesus was the mediator between me and the Father.”
Though John does not use the term, it is clear from his testimony that he had acquired an unshakable belief in the Reformation doctrine of sola scriptura. “I realized that the Bible was the authority, even over the Church. The Bible was true, and the Church with all its traditions and rituals was wrong.”
“How did you adjust to the different beliefs between the Baptist church and the Orthodox church,” I ask, looking over my list of differing views.
John explains how he quickly left behind former Orthodox doctrines that he had been taught in church. The intercession of the saints and Mary on behalf of Christians on earth was easily rejected. “That isn’t in the Bible,” he says, without further elaboration. Shortly thereafter, he rejected the Orthodox doctrine of infant baptism. “My baptism when I was 6 weeks old was not a true baptism. Scripture teaches that the one who believes is the one who should be baptized.”
John’s view of salvation changed dramatically as well. As he delved into Paul’s epistles, primarily to the Romans and Ephesians, John came to understand salvation as a gift from God through faith alone, not through good deeds. “My understanding had always been that to be saved, you had to do a certain amount of good works. Paul said we are dead in sins. So I began to ask myself, ‘How can a dead person do good works?’”
“Are you saying that the Orthodox Church preaches salvation by good works?” I ask. John nods in agreement. “That’s all I knew anyway.” He acknowledges that Orthodox doctrine might contradict Orthodox practice in some places, but for John, it’s in practice that one shows what is truly believed.
“How did your family get over their condemnation of your newfound faith?” I wonder aloud. John smiles and begins to get visibly excited. He tells me how his family could deny his new beliefs, but none could deny the visible change in his lifestyle. “I stopped getting drunk, stopped smoking, stopped cursing. I began reading my Bible, going to church, praying. I had been born again,” he says. Within months, his wife, parents, and even his 80-year-old grandmother who had been a mainstay of the village Orthodox church, had all converted, as a direct result of his testimony.
“How sure are you that you made the right decision?” I ask.
“I am totally sure, based on the authority of God’s Word alone,” he replies firmly, again appealing to the sola scriptura principle.
“What would you say if someone were to convert from evangelicalism to Eastern Orthodoxy?” I challenge. John is visibly taken aback by the question. His response comes quickly. “In all my years, I’ve never heard of such a thing.” I begin to explain what it is like in other countries, where Eastern Orthodoxy is a minority and the evangelical tradition dominates. John admits he cannot conceive of Orthodoxy as a minority; neither can he come up with a reason why one would leave a “life-giving relationship with God for a ‘dead’ church.”
“But can there be true believers who decide to remain within the Orthodox church?” I ask, pointing to the Romanian renewal movement “Army of God” within the Orthodox Church that emphasized many of the same doctrines as evangelicalism. John shakes his head, sadly but firmly. “An Orthodox Christian that is truly born again would realize that the church is wrong and would turn to evangelicalism.” For John, coming to Christ and joining an evangelical church are two sides of the same coin.
Ironically, the very assumption John despises in the Orthodox Church (that there is no salvation outside the Orthodox Church) is the same assumption he has made regarding evangelicalism. “The Baptist church is the true Church that is following the teachings of Jesus and the apostles,” he affirms, though admitting the presence of believers in Pentecostal, Brethren, and other evangelical denominations.
“Do you seek to convert your Orthodox family and friends?” I ask, already somewhat expectant of what his answer will be.
“I have pleaded for the past thirty years with my Orthodox friends to come to Christ and know Him personally,” John says, with tears in his eyes. “My Orthodox friends confess Christ with their mouths, but they do not know Him in their hearts. I try to convert people, because I believe the Orthodox Church is wrong and is leading people astray.”
“What about pious Orthodox Christians? Those who do not live sinful lives? Those who remain faithful to the church and who trust in Christ for salvation?” I press him further.
“Religiosity does not mean salvation,” he replies. “People can be sincere and still be sincerely wrong. The Orthodox Church feeds on tradition, not on Scripture. If Orthodox believers would read Scripture without it being interpreted for them by the Church, they would discover the truth,” he adds.
John’s reliance on Scripture is evident. All throughout the interview, John has been backing up his statements with verses he has committed to memory. He rarely gives me an answer without a Scriptural reference or justification.
I thank John for his time, and then ask him to sum up the biggest difference between Orthodox Christians and Baptists. He pauses for a moment, looks at me intently, and says, “Baptists preach that ‘You must be born again.’”
It’s interesting to get a perspective from evangelicals within an Orthodox country. It seems that evangelicals in Romania (if they are like John) are much more exclusive in their ecclesiology than those here in the States. Gotta admire the passion, though.
Comment by Scott A. — November 9, 2006 @ 12:50 pm
As a convert to Eastern Orthodoxy I found this article both sad and inspiring. It comes across that clearly John is very sincere and deeply believes in the Baptist teachings and it seems evident that positive changes were made. I also don’t doubt that there are many village priests in Romania whom are not doing their job as shepherds of the flock. John himself gave a clue as to why this might be: communism. I’m no sociologist, but I have read many accounts of what athiest communism has done to the Orthodox Christians in the Balkan states through re-education classes to isolation imprisonment to death camps. In Romania alone, hundreds of churches and monasteries were shut down and priests were forbidden to hold Christian education classes. Those that did not obey were brutally punished. Do a little research on Ceausescu and his dreaded Securitate. I won’t try to invalidate John’s story re: complacent Orthodox because it’s probably true. Here in America, our churches are filled with complacent Protestants. But this is no litmus test for the validity or self-efficacy of either views. I believe that we (Orthodox and Protestants) can learn much from one another. We Orthodox should take a cue from the Protestants and begin reading our Bibles much more (which Holy Tradition actually dictates), while Protestants need to realize that it is the Church which brought us the Bible and not the other way around. When we deviate from Holy Tradition we get the pluralistic nightmare that can be found in the American religious expression: the Bible says what I say it says and I’m starting a church that reflects my beliefs. 24,000 denominations and sub-denominations later we see the devastation that Sola Scriptura has wrought on the Church.
Comment by Christian P — December 17, 2006 @ 11:51 pm
While I’m sure that there is some truth to this story, such as much of Orthodoxy being dead in Romania or teaching doctrines contrary to The Church, I have to say that this story is sad. It’s sad because John in this story has taken everything that the Orthodox Church believes, and has applied it now to the Baptist church. As stated in another comment, the Sola Scriptura principle has torn and divided Christianity so much that 33,000 denominations later the world sees Christianity as a joke, when Christians can’t even keep thier own house in order.
Comment by Jonathan C — April 11, 2007 @ 11:08 pm
I am glad that John has found a personal relationship with Christ! That is awesome! However, it is quite judgmental to say that all Orthodox Christians are dead and wrong. I, being a former youth minister in a non-denominational protestant church (Vineyard) but now an Orthodox Christian, can tell you that you can be a “dead christian” in any church:Catholic, Protestant, or Orthodox. The Orthodox Church experience is what you make of it; as well as the protestant experience. I am closer to Jesus now, than I ever was before. I think the protestant people as a whole, should learn more about the eastern christians from better sources; such as: a practicing sincere believing orthodox, a bishop, priest, or even the many good books that are out there. Anyway, I love you all! Read your Bibles, pray, and love Jesus with all your hearts! -peace-
Comment by Herman — August 26, 2007 @ 6:03 am
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Pingback by Theron’s Story: Why I Left Evangelicalism for Eastern Orthodoxy « Kingdom People — September 7, 2007 @ 1:47 pm
I don’t question John’s sincerity. But it seems like far too many people convert for entirely the wrong reasons. From the sound of it, his conversion was one emotional impulse after another. I fit the opposite description, and as an Evangelical convert to Orthodoxy, I found that it wasn’t until I really delved into the underlying issues that I understood both sides enough to make a educated decision. Though I’m sure John’s heart is in the right place, as a student of theology, he clearly does not understand Orthodoxy, and I think it’s a shame so many people make life-changing decisions based on emotions and bad experiences rather than truth.
Comment by DavidShankle — November 9, 2007 @ 9:58 am
I should say, before my comments, that I happen to attend a Southern Baptist Church. I would rather refer to myself as a disciple, meaning learner and follower, of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. I wonder, and I do not hope to cause an argument or debate, that should we take away all of our distinctives and just have people share their testimonies of salvation what that would look like? I wonder, if we took away our well trained lingo and simply told the story of how we come to know JESUS, what it would sound like to tell about our walk with God? I was not raised in church at all. I’d read the Bible since my childhood and am a lover of history. Four things helped me along: (1) a grandmother who told me about Jesus and never tried to convince me that I needed her church, but that I needed her Friend; (2) I read the Bible a lot; (3) the Holy Spirit both convicted of my sins and convinced me of my need; (4) I survived myself long enough to surrender. There is NO Orthodox church were I live and one very small Catholic church, one Presbyterian, NO Lutheran, one Episcopalian, several United Methodists, many Baptists (Southern, General, American, Independent, Freewill, and Primitive [and I've probably missed something]{and within all those Baptist groups are arguments over which of them are right}), and all sorts of non-denominational churches. We also have several home churches. We also have one gathering of “Latter-Day Saints” and a gathering of “Jehovah’s Witnesses” but I won’t call them a church because they don’t exalt Christ as God (big “G” I mean). The point to my rambling is simple: take away our allegiances to denominations and I wonder what our testimony of personally relating to God would be? Praise God for people who LOVE JESUS more than they love their distinctives! I am sure many would argue those are mutually inclusive, but I wonder. I am 36 years old and today I know three things: (1) I ain’t half as bad as I once was; (2) I ain’t near as good as I want to be; (3) God ain’t done with me yet!
Romans 12:1-2
Comment by Tim Bowes — November 23, 2007 @ 12:40 pm
For all the intercession of saints, ‘Mary-worship’ and icons, there is nothing remotely as idolatrous in the Orthodox church as Bibliolatry is in the evangelical movement. Evangelicals from my experience can get addicted to ’spiritual excitement’ - a kind of subtle form of pride and even narcissism. They need that ‘reborn rush’ over and over.
Comment by Dan Liebert — January 13, 2008 @ 6:10 pm
As a convert from evangelicalism to Orthodoxy, I found John’s story difficult to take in. I am certainly glad that he is glorifying Christ more now than he had in the past, but it appears that he was merely a victim of sloppy Orthodoxy; this is to say, he was not educated in the Orthodox way as he should have been and rejected a de facto *absence* of Orthodoxy—an inherently questionable reason for making such a life-altering decision. I also noticed that considering his collaboration with communist authorities, he seems to have shifted not from Orthodoxy to evangelicalism, but from atheism to faith, his Orthodox past not playing a major role since it was not exposed to him as comprehensively as it should have been—especially considering the circumstances re: communist atheistic re-education and persecution of the Church. His reliance on Scripture alone seems to be a coping mechanism or antidote to the thoroughness and elaborateness of Orthodoxy, i.e. his new understanding of Christianity does not require as much effort or education since he only needs to acquaint himself with only one thing, the Bible. This, of course, seems to have satisfied his previous unwillingness to look deeper into the Orthodoxy to which he was not sufficiently exposed, by decreasing the “required reading,” as it were. I am truly glad, however, that he seems to be progressing in theosis and towards union with Christ more than he had in the past, but this seems to be because he was not interfaced with the contrivances of the Church and its role of nurturing its parishioners in this process. Bottom line: it appears that he did not leave Orthodoxy because of Orthodoxy, but because of a lack of Orthodoxy. The situation is much different for someone who converts from evangelicalism to Orthodoxy, since the former’s minimalist attitude and relative simplicity makes it 1) easier to become familiar with it and 2) quicker to reject it if one were so inclined (i.e. less to learn, quicker to learn, quicker to reject). I wish John all God’s blessings; there is little doubt that he is by all extents more Orthodox than he was before, but hopefully he one day acquaints himself with the real Orthodox Church to which he was never exposed and comes to view in a more positive light.
Comment by Andrew K — February 22, 2008 @ 7:54 pm
As a seven year old child, raised by a Greek Orthodox dad and a Methodist mom, I looked for God. I knew that from three years old, I loved the Jesus my mom talked about. Then I picked up a Greek catechism book and it talked about Hell. I finally realized that was a place and when my mom was mad and told my older sister to “go there”, she was talking about a mythical place, I thought. I began to get terrified when I read the book. I realized Hell was a real place and I was afraid I would go there. I began to go to church alone week after week, looking for God. My father would drive me there and pick me up because I wanted to go but my family did not. They only went sporadically. I looked and looked for God and one day I said “God please tell me the ‘real religion’ so I can follow you.” Soon after, I was in my sixth grade class and God sat me right next to Ruth. She was a Baptist girl who told me about salvation. She is still the best Christian I know. I don’t know how she could invite me to her home and be friends with me after all the horrible ways I have lived. But, Ruth still loves, still hopes, and still prays. Praise God. I still do not know Orthodox doctrine because I was never taught any. We just went to the church and listened to predominantly Greek which I do not speak. I have no problem with the Orthodox Church but I know the truth. It is only through Jesus Christ and his death and resurrection that I am saved. My husband and I prefer a Baptist church but I have no problem with any church anyone goes to. It is not church membership that matters. There may be many Orthodox Christians who are saved IF they accept Christ’s death and resurrection for the forgiveness of their sins. I acknowledge that I do NO good works. Christ did The GOOD WORK by dying for me and raising again.It was Christ who did it all and thank God for his precious son that a person like me, who is probably the worst of the worst, can be saved. Because of what HE did on the cross, defeating death, we can have new life in Him, and not of our own works. Thank you God!!!
Comment by mar — April 27, 2008 @ 10:00 am