Servants Preparation Program

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• Servants Preparation Program
• CMP 102, Denominations

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The Orthodox Church

• And you shall know the truth, and the truth
  shall make you free.
• (John 832)
• Fr. Marcus Mansour
• St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church
• Phoenix, Arizona
• Servants Preparation 2005-2006

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Introduction

• The Orthodox Church is the original form of the
  Church founded by the Holy Spirit on the Day of
  Pentecost, and was spread throughout the world by
  the apostles.
• They founded centers at different places such as
  Antioch, Alexandria, and Rome.
• Looking at the time chart of the previous
  lecture, one may conclude that every time there
  was a break in the church, it was because at
  least one group wanted to make a change in the
  faith.

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Introduction

• At Chalcedon in 451 AD, the faith about the
  nature of Christ was being altered by the
  Chalcedonian group
• In 1054 AD, Rome wanted to alter the Nicean
  Creed, and so on
• Thus, we can confidently say that the Orthodox
  Church in general is the present-day church most
  adherent to the original faith
• Having said this, we can also say that the
  Oriental Orthodox Church is even more adherent to
  the original faith

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The Orthodox Church Faith

• The faith of the Orthodox Church has been covered
  in previous courses in this curriculum such as
  Dogma 101 and 102
• Here, we will highlight the important points
  which will set the tone as we compare with other
  denominations

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The Orthodox Church Faith

• God
• The Creator of this universe is one God
  consisting of three Persons (Trinity) Father,
  Son and Holy Spirit
• While each Person is distinct from the others,
  the three are of the same nature, equal, without
  beginning or end and inseparable
• The concept of Trinity does not mean multiple
  gods, for the three are united in one.
• However, they are important to demonstrate Gods
  eternal characteristics such as love, justice,
  mercy, etc. (review CMP 101)

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The Orthodox Church Faith

• Sin
• Simply, sin is disobedience to Gods
  commandments, which, in turn, separates us from
  His sight (light)
• Therefore, sin causes man to live in darkness
  (death).
• The wages of sin is death (Rom 623)

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The Orthodox Church Faith

• Angels
• They are Gods spiritual creatures created to
  serve God according to His commandments
• When some angels disobeyed God under the
  leadership of angel Lucifer, they became
  darkness, and there is no chance for them to be
  saved
• This is because those angels who fell (called
  devils), fell with their free will.

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The Orthodox Church Faith

• Man
• God created Adam and Eve to care for the garden
• Through the envy of the devil, Adam and Eve were
  persuaded to disobey God (committing sin)
• The result is that man became mortal physically
  (death of the flesh) and spiritually (eternal
  fire)

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The Orthodox Church Faith

• Jesus Christ and Salvation
• Although humans enjoy their free will, they were
  corrupted through the envy of the devil, and not
  on their own
• Humanity deserved a second chance for the mercy
  and justice of God to be perfectly manifested
• The Son (being infinite) would take the form of
  man (Jesus Christ) and without disobeying the
  Father (sinless) accept death in order to save
  Adam and his descendents from the result of sin
• Thus, man can be saved only through the
  acceptance of Jesus Christ as being his personal
  Savior and living by His teachings

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The Orthodox Church Faith

• The Teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ
• The role of the Lord Jesus Christ was not only to
  save humanity from the bondage of death, but also
  to restore humanity back to its original image
• This was done through the foundation of the
  Church
• The Lord gave the Church the keys of the
  restoration through the sacraments

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The Orthodox Church Faith

• The Teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ
• Baptism to be born again through water and
  spirit is to accept death and resurrection with
  the Lord. This action grants the person
  forgiveness of previous sins and makes him a new
  creation
• Confirmation is sealing the body against the
  envy of the devil and granting him the gift of
  the indwelling of the Holy Spirit

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The Orthodox Church Faith

• The Teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ
• Communion is to spiritually live on the Body and
  the Blood of the Lord (the True Manna)
• Repentance and Confession is to cleanse the
  believer from the sins which became a stranger to
  the renewed person

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The Orthodox Church Faith

• The Teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ
• Priesthood is known as the priesthood of the New
  Testament which is necessary for the
  administration of the sacraments and offering
  incense to God
• Holy Matrimony in which the Holy Spirit unites
  man and his bride into one flesh
• Unction of the Sick through this sacrament a
  sick person may be healed from his sickness based
  on his faith and the anointing by the priests

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The Orthodox Church Traditions

• In addition to the sacraments, man should live by
  the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ as noted
  in the Scriptures, the Holy Tradition, the
  writings of the early Church Fathers, and the
  teachings of the ecumenical councils
• These teachings are based on the love of God and
  the love of others as oneself, including the
  enemies
• Practicing such teachings will include fasting,
  praying and works of charity

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The Orthodox Church Councils

• As the church was accepted by more people
  everywhere, strange ideas and teachings appeared
  from time to time in different regions on the
  earth
• The Fathers of the Church would gather in the
  form of an ecumenical council, where the strange
  teaching was investigated and through the
  guidance of the Holy Spirit they would arrive at
  an understanding which is acceptable by all
  churches.
• Those who insist on objecting to the body of
  Christ (the Church as a whole) would be
  excommunicated from the body until they return to
  the true faith

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The Orthodox Church Councils

• Throughout the history of the Church, only three
  such councils took place before any division in
  the body of Christ occurred
• The Council of Nicea, 325 A.D.
• A strange teaching came from a priest in
  Alexandria by the name of Arius
• In simple words, Arius was teaching that There
  was a time when the Son of God was not, and He
  was not before He was produced, and He was
  produced from things that are not, and He is of
  another substance or essence, or created, or
  subject to conversion or mutation.

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The Orthodox Church Councils

• The Universal Apostolic Church at the council of
  Nicea concluded
• Whoever accepts the teaching of Arius, let him be
  anathema
• In order to preserve the divinity of the Lord
  Christ, the council accepted a statement of
  faith, which is today the parts of the Creed
  related to God the Father and God the Son
• In the Creed, we say, Light of Light, true God
  of true God

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The Orthodox Church Councils

• The Council of Constantinople, 381 AD
• Macedonius, bishop of Constantinople, announced
  his denial of the divinity of the Holy Spirit
• One hundred and fifty bishops gathered at the
  city of Constantinople in 381 AD and condemned
  Macedonius for his view
• They added the last part of the Creed Yes, we
  believe in the Holy Spirit to ensure that the
  Holy Spirit is God who proceeds from the Father,
  who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and
  glorified
• Other topics were also discussed such as the
  heresy of Apollinarius

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The Orthodox Church Councils

• The Council of Ephesus, 431 A.D.
• In this council, the unity of Christ was
  discussed and defended against the heresy of
  Nestorious who preached that Christ had two
  separate natures
• Therefore, Mary did not give birth to God, but
  the man Jesus Christ
• Pope Cyril, the pillar of faith and the 24th Pope
  of Alexandria, defended the true faith with 200
  bishops representing the body of Christ at the
  time
• The title Theotokos was affirmed for St. Mary
  as being the Mother of God and the Introduction
  to the Creed We exalt the mother of the true
  light was a result of this council

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The Orthodox Church Holy

• The Orthodox Church is Holy, Catholic (universal)
  and apostolic Church
• Holy because it is guided by the Holy Spirit,
  but the history is not necessarily holy
• People are subject to sins, but when the Church
  as a whole functions in a universal and apostolic
  way, the Holy Spirit protects the Church from
  deviation
• The Holy Spirit guides, teaches and reminds us of
  the true faith (John 1426)
• This is a very important point as we discuss
  church denominations

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The Orthodox Church Catholic

• Catholic (Universal)
• The Church is catholic because it is one Church.
  It must include all believers. So, the Church
  cannot be only for the Copts, the Greeks or any
  other nationality
• The Church may express its love to God through
  the Greek, Coptic, Russian, cultures. However,
  no matter what culture a church branch is using,
  the faith is one, the baptism is one, and the
  Lord is one (Eph 45).

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The Orthodox Church Apostolic

• Apostolic
• The Lord Jesus Christ gave authority to His
  disciples to bind, to loose, to forgive
• In turn, they went all over the known world and
  started branches of the Church everywhere. The
  apostles transferred the authority to new
  appointed people (the priesthood) provided that
  they do not deviate from the faith which was once
  given to the saints (Jude 3)
• This apostolic principle is vital for a church to
  carry the true faith

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The Orthodox Church Apostolic

• Apostolic
• When the Lord Jesus called the apostle Paul to
  the service, and Paul was not one of the twelve,
  the Lord affirmed the apostolic foundation by
  asking Paul to go to Ananias (being one who
  received authority through the apostles) in order
  to accept Paul in the apostleship
• Paul himself said that he received the right hand
  of fellowship from Peter, James, and John (Gal
  29)

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The Orthodox Church Conclusion

• The Orthodox Church is the original form of the
  Church founded by the Lord Jesus Christ, and its
  roots go back to the apostles
• In studying any church denomination, we must
  examine the source of its authority