How to tell

edited December 1969 in Non-Orthodox Inquiries
How does one determine whether one is in the faith or is not?

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Comments

  • I'm not so sure I understand your question..
  • You are technically in the Orthodox faith if:
    1. You are baptized.
    2. You have been anointed with the Holy Myron.
    3. You commune regularly.
  • I agree with Severus, but it's also important to mention
    if you believe in the Bible as the Word of God:
    in Jesus as God's Son who came on earth to die for us, thus saving us and to raise us with Him from  death by His resurrection and if you abide by the highest commandment: to love the Lord your God, with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind..

    God bless you
    Please pray for me

  • [quote author=Severus link=topic=7288.msg97911#msg97911 date=1228340223]
    You are technically in the Orthodox faith if:
    1. You are baptized.
    2. You have been anointed with the Holy Myron.
    3. You commune regularly.

    You must do 4 out of 7 Sacraments. Severus, I think ur missing Repentence/Confession
  • [quote author=coptmorous link=topic=7288.msg97914#msg97914 date=1228343327]
    [quote author=Severus link=topic=7288.msg97911#msg97911 date=1228340223]
    You are technically in the Orthodox faith if:
    1. You are baptized.
    2. You have been anointed with the Holy Myron.
    3. You commune regularly.

    You must do 4 out of 7 Sacraments. Severus, I think ur missing Repentence/Confession


    The four out of seven are for salvation, not for being recognized as part of the Orthodox Church.
  • Oh ok then ;D I guess i misunderstood...
  • also it is important for us to love on another.. this is the most important! Loving is the key to christianity (there are many keys btw.. and this just happens to be one.. the most important one!!) and ones actions on earth is really important, we are like gods ambassadors on earth.. we witness him!!! if one cannot tell from our actions that we are different from the world then there might be something wrong.  :D
  • [coptic]+ Iryny nem `hmot>[/coptic]

    Seeing as how the aim of the Church is to offer the means of salvation through the sacraments, I would think that all 4 sacraments that are necessary for salvation should be listed when identifying who's 'in' so to speak.  That being said, God can (and almost certainly does) save whom He wishes, through any means He wishes.  God is not restricted to the sacraments, but we are.

    As for belief in the Bible being the Word of God, I'm of the opinion that Christ is the Word of God, not the Bible.  The Bible is inspired text.  But then, my views on this have already been made clear in another thread, so no need to rehash it here.
  • Kefas! Welcome back! It's been such a long time... I think we can safely say that the whole community thoroughly missed you!

    As far as all four sacraments being needed to be 'in', you have a point. Also, I guess you can say that if you are 'in' you should be attaining salvation, which must be done through the four mandatory sacraments. All of these elements are tied together.

    I stand corrected.
  • [coptic]+ Iryny nem `hmot>[/coptic]

    Merci beaucoup.  :)
  • 3 Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. 4 He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. 6 He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.

    1 John 2:3-4
  • [quote author=Severus link=topic=7288.msg97917#msg97917 date=1228344204]
    [quote author=coptmorous link=topic=7288.msg97914#msg97914 date=1228343327]
    [quote author=Severus link=topic=7288.msg97911#msg97911 date=1228340223]
    You are technically in the Orthodox faith if:
    1. You are baptized.
    2. You have been anointed with the Holy Myron.
    3. You commune regularly.

    You must do 4 out of 7 Sacraments. Severus, I think ur missing Repentence/Confession


    The four out of seven are for salvation, not for being recognized as part of the Orthodox Church.

    ANY 4 of the 7 sacraments, and you attain salvation (generally speaking)?
  • no  ;)
    the 4 sacraments that everyone should do are:
    baptism
    chrismation/confirmation (=meyroon), of course these 1st 2 often happen together
    confession
    communion

    the other 3 are optional:
    anointing of the sick (u r exempt if u are well!)
    marriage (yes, sorry, it's optional!) or accepting a call to be a monk (this is the considered equivalent to marriage)
    priesthood.

    so if u are a married priest who was baptised and confirmed but who never confesses his sins or takes communion, that's not enough. this is a theoretical random choice of 4 sacraments, obviously it wouldn't happen like that.

    as far as i can see, the coptic church doesn't preach as much on the sacraments as the catholic church because (as others have said) we want to emphasize that it's important to keep all of God's commandments and love one another as ourselves (Jesus' 'new' commandment given through the disciples). we do this in the power of the Holy Spirit, through a relationship with God through faith in the death and resurrection of our Almighty Saviour. the 4 sacraments above are the ways that the church community makes a public declaration of faith and takes care of the spiritual growth of the Christian.
  • Forgive me if I am wrong, but breaking everything down into steps and formulas is what the Roman Catholics and Protestants do: "you are truly saved if you've done this, this, this, and this, but this is optional unless this."  This is how the Roman Catechism is set up, this is how the heretical Roman teaching is passed along, and this is completely contrary to Orthodox tradition.  What about St. Mary of Egypt?  Without being baptized she was already holy by the time St. John Climacus found her.  Yes, the Holy Mysteries (Sacraments) of the Church are necessary, but we must also bear in mind the principle of ekonomia, or economy. 
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