By the grace of God, I found Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxy found me! After all, it wasn’t lost!! The Gospel reading this morning in Matthew speaks to me: “Then He touched their eyes, saying, “According to your faith, let it be to you.” And their eyes were opened.”[Mt. 9:29-30] I didn’t know that my eyes were closed or at least not all the way closed, because through my formation over decades, I was drawn closer and closer to the fullness of the truth; although here in the Bible-belt, the fullness is a quite a bit foreign. But Glory to God, now I see!
With the thousands of interpretations of scripture and the numerous Christian family traditions passed down through generations, it is easy to be blurred or askew a bit. Even in the construction of this Holy Ghost Building, as Bill Monroe and the Bluegrass Boys would call it, at many times I grabbed my 8’ level and eyeballed the bubble to ensure the walls were plumb and true. That bubble can be a teensy bit off at the angle I am viewing it or how dead center the bubble falls between the two lines. And of course at times we used a laser level which casts a line on the wall or posts and is .2 millimeters per minute within total accuracy. That’s pretty close, but still not exact! There is always the possibility for human error as I read the level and there is also some warp in the building materials! And so it is with our personal opinions and interpretations of the faith of our fathers.
In the Gospel of John, our Lord wrestles with traditions that have become a bit off bubble: “Then Jesus was saying to the Jews who had believed Him, “If ye abide in My word, truly ye are My disciples; “and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.” They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s seed, and have never yet been enslaved to anyone; how sayest Thou, ‘Ye shall become free?’” Jesus answered them, “Verily, verily, I say to you, that everyone who doeth sin is a slave of sin. “And the slave abideth not in the house forever; the Son abideth forever. “If therefore the Son should set you free, verily ye shall be free.” [Jn. 8:31-36]
New Hieromartyr Hilarion wrote: “We know and are convinced that falling away from the Church, whether into schism, heresy, or sectarianism (denominationalism), is complete perdition and spiritual death. For us there is no Christianity outside of the Church. If Christ established the Church, and the Church is His Body, then to be cut off from His Body is to die. Only the Church lends purpose and value to one’s existence on earth; Only service to the Church, in my belief and conviction, lends purpose and value to our activity on Earth; …if you do not serve the Church there is no sense in any activity whatsoever; and there is no sense in continuing to live on Earth.” (New Hieromartyr Hilarion (Troitsky), Archbishop of Vereya)
Here in this “Holy Ghost Building” before we could move in, the county insisted we hire an engineer to inspect and determine if we had constructed it true and plumb. With the weight of the roof and possible snow-load, it was imperative that the massive load be transferred straight down onto the strong foundation. The walls cannot lean or they will be forced over and endanger anyone within the structure! They simply won’t stand the test of time! And so it is with the many other interpretations of Christianity, splintering and fracturing is a norm as that path sways with the winds of change.
We too cannot lean left or right and this is why the church in her wisdom has many disciplines that help us navigate the straight and narrow. They are proven methods that when combined and practiced regularly, will help us all not be a half-bubble off plumb. They will help enrich our lives as we shed the slavery of sin and fully find freedom without end, a freedom that is out of this world and with our eyes wide open!!
Fr. Gabriel Weller 7-27-2025
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