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Seminar 4:
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Melburnians have the virtually unique opportunity to visit an Eastern Christian Church of any rite on any Sunday. Part of our ethnic mix is a rich variety of Orthodox churches, both those related to Constantinople (especially the Greeks) and the Oriental Orthodox families. Almost all branches are represented by a congregation in Melbourne. Many Western Christians find that Orthodox liturgy and theology is attractive; for some it is the charm of the unfamiliar; for others, Orthodoxy has preserved truths and customs which they miss in their own traditions, increasingly affected by secular culture. In the USA, large numbers of Evangelical Protestants, and in Great Britian, many disaffected Anglicans have found a new home in one or other of the Orthodox churches. Why is this? What is the attraction over such a cultural divide? What can we learn as Western Christians by greater understanding of our Eastern Christian neighbours?
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