Over on The North American Anglican, an ACNA Priest has written an excellent article in response to David Bentley Hart’s book That All Shall Be Saved.
Fr. Ben Jeffries argues that Universalism is a Hydra-type heresy with multiple heads that needs to be countered and resisted.
When I was converting to Eastern Orthodoxy, my Intro to Orthodoxy class advocated one such “Hydra Head” Titled “Dare We Hope for the Salvation of All?”
The three Hydra Heads mentioned are straight up Universalism proper, Annihilationism, and hoping for the salvation of everyone, as mentioned directly above.
Fr. Ben is seeking to defend scripture by countering the current Universalism stampede.
Where I currently fall in this debate is as follows:
Like any parent, it is needful that God sometimes uses carrots, and sometimes uses sticks when it comes to the toolbox of motivation.
I’m with Fr. Ben when he argues forcefully against “Straight Up Universalism.” I believe that unfortunately, hell will indeed be populated. This is a fearful thing, and should remind us that there is a hell to shun, and heaven to gain.
How I deal with / understand the firm, scripture-based arguments in support of a populated, eternal hell, is as follows.
God is absolutely good, and being absolutely good, has the prerogative to do what He deems wise and fitting.
He can, therefore, make exceptions to any laws or rules that He has established without violating His Goodness. God, being a good and perfect Tree of Life by definition only bears good fruit.
In Him there is no darkness at all.
Let God be True and Every Man a Liar.
God is Good, and the lover of mankind.
Who are you, oh man, to talk back to God?
With man, this is impossible, but with God, all things are possible.
So, I believe, along with Father Ben, that God working through the men who wrote down the Holy Scriptures, included the admonishments about hell on purpose and with goodly intent as a wise and caring Heavenly Father. However, some of my conclusions differ from the one’s he reached in his article. A high view and respect for Holy Scripture is completely mandatory for faithful Christians, but this can play out differently than what Fr. Ben concludes as a result.
These frightening scriptures about hell are meant to motivate us towards Godly living and Repentance. This does not mean, however, that God binds himself by these scriptures, because He is totally a Free Agent.
This is why The Eastern Orthodox believe, along with Anglican writer C.S. Lewis, that people can be prayed out of hell, and that some people actually in Hell can be redeemed, even after their death. C.S. Lewis The Great Divorce and the examples of the ghostly beings found within the pages come to mind.
God can, if He so chooses, annihilate those who are eternally lost. If we as human beings put even our suffering animals out of their misery, what do you suppose God might do, being kinder and greater then the very best among us?
We are worth infinitely more than sparrows and animals, and The Lord, being good, is not blind and callous to the sufferings of others.
What did Jesus say? “If you, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children . . .”
I personally have concluded the following things, because everyone has to by necessity come to useful conclusions about these matters.
First, we can hope for the salvation of some, perhaps even many, but not all.
“Hoping for the salvation of all” should be seen as a hyperbolic statement, only.
God is free to Annihilate lost souls if He so chooses, but we don’t know whether He will or won’t do this. Again, another matter way above our pay grades.
God is free at all times to alter or make exceptions to anything He has ordained, being the only truly free and non-contingent person / being in the universe. He is the final and righteous Judge, and His judgements are true, and altogether righteous, based on His Holy and utterly good character.
So if He ultimately acts in a way that seemingly contradicts what He has inspired in Holy Writ, Holy Scripture, that is once again, His sole prerogative.
This is a paradox, and we should not be surprised or astonished by such paradoxes.
Our Holy Faith is full of these.
God in His mercy is likely to do many unexpected things at the Final Judgement, and these things are firmly above our pay grade.
God is great, and worthy to be praised, Amen!
Friday, March 20, 2020
Tuesday, February 25, 2020
Alleluia. Restored and Grateful
Happy and Blessed Saint Matthias Day.
Today I was restored to Full Communion in Holy Orthodoxy with a needed Economia as well.
Thanks be to God.
Reader Columba
Today I was restored to Full Communion in Holy Orthodoxy with a needed Economia as well.
Thanks be to God.
Reader Columba
Friday, February 21, 2020
In Flux. Part Three
The women’s sacramental ordination issue is proving to be too much to ignore.
I just had my first Liver Amangioma Surgery and in God’s Providence I met the patient in front of me and his wife.
They were missionaries to Portugal for nine years as General Baptist Christians.
Now, they are based out of one of my earliest churches, South Holly Baptist Church, a GARBC church.
This church highly values scripture and are opposed to women’s ordination to the pastorate on that basis alone. My inherent conservatism indeed came from somewhere, as this experience has reminded me.
Add to this the Holy Tradition of the Undivided Catholic / Orthodox Church, and there really can be no doubt or compromise on this issue.
I must either return to official Orthodoxy, or as a last fallback position, to the G-4 Anglicans to partake of the Holy Communion.
I cannot commune at Rez / The ACNA.
Terms of my surrender to be determined soon.
Lord, Have Mercy. Christ Have Mercy.
Reader Columba Silouan
I just had my first Liver Amangioma Surgery and in God’s Providence I met the patient in front of me and his wife.
They were missionaries to Portugal for nine years as General Baptist Christians.
Now, they are based out of one of my earliest churches, South Holly Baptist Church, a GARBC church.
This church highly values scripture and are opposed to women’s ordination to the pastorate on that basis alone. My inherent conservatism indeed came from somewhere, as this experience has reminded me.
Add to this the Holy Tradition of the Undivided Catholic / Orthodox Church, and there really can be no doubt or compromise on this issue.
I must either return to official Orthodoxy, or as a last fallback position, to the G-4 Anglicans to partake of the Holy Communion.
I cannot commune at Rez / The ACNA.
Terms of my surrender to be determined soon.
Lord, Have Mercy. Christ Have Mercy.
Reader Columba Silouan
Sunday, January 19, 2020
Screetch. Full Stop Part Two
I am double-hearted and double-minded right now.
“If your eye is single, your whole life will be full of Light.”
Well, I’m not there yet. Hopefully very soon I will get there.
“Love does no harm to the neighbor, thus love is the fulfillment of the law.”
My immediate neighbors remain my wife and children.
So loving them should fulfill any of “The Law’s” requirements.
At least, it’s a start.
The example of my dear in-laws is instructive.
One was Methodist, One was Roman Catholic.
Their compromise was The Episcopal Church, and at the Episcopal Church, they have remained.
It looks like that for the sake of love, I need to compromise.
What exact form that’s going to take is in flux, but I’m arriving at the point where if it causes ANY hardship to my family, it is therefore Out Of Bounds.
So, I’m leaning towards sticking with Rez and the ACNA, and supporting my son at Saint Matthew’s.
Lord, Have Mercy on me, the sinner.
So, I can change the name of this blog to orthodox parker (lowercase) and be done with it, for now.
The Lowly Reader
Columba Silouan
“If your eye is single, your whole life will be full of Light.”
Well, I’m not there yet. Hopefully very soon I will get there.
“Love does no harm to the neighbor, thus love is the fulfillment of the law.”
My immediate neighbors remain my wife and children.
So loving them should fulfill any of “The Law’s” requirements.
At least, it’s a start.
The example of my dear in-laws is instructive.
One was Methodist, One was Roman Catholic.
Their compromise was The Episcopal Church, and at the Episcopal Church, they have remained.
It looks like that for the sake of love, I need to compromise.
What exact form that’s going to take is in flux, but I’m arriving at the point where if it causes ANY hardship to my family, it is therefore Out Of Bounds.
So, I’m leaning towards sticking with Rez and the ACNA, and supporting my son at Saint Matthew’s.
Lord, Have Mercy on me, the sinner.
So, I can change the name of this blog to orthodox parker (lowercase) and be done with it, for now.
The Lowly Reader
Columba Silouan
Saturday, January 18, 2020
Screeeetch. Full Stop
Well, so much for THAT idea.
I’m going to look at being restored to The Orthodox Church.
The deal breaker for the ACNA besides where I disagree with them on some doctrinal grounds is this “dual integrity” Women’s Ordination issue.
It came to a head for me recently when one of the woman deacons highly praised a largely fictional TV series about Pope Benedict and Pope Francis.
Some of her sermon was great, but that was terrible.
To Saint Tikhon’s tomorrow.
New plan now in play.
The Idiot Formerly Known as Reader Columba Silouon
I’m going to look at being restored to The Orthodox Church.
The deal breaker for the ACNA besides where I disagree with them on some doctrinal grounds is this “dual integrity” Women’s Ordination issue.
It came to a head for me recently when one of the woman deacons highly praised a largely fictional TV series about Pope Benedict and Pope Francis.
Some of her sermon was great, but that was terrible.
To Saint Tikhon’s tomorrow.
New plan now in play.
The Idiot Formerly Known as Reader Columba Silouon
Sunday, January 5, 2020
Out of the Ashes
Out of the Ashes comes a new hope and dream.
I occasionally look into the Saint Peter’s Tallahassee Anglican Cathedral website.
I love what they’ve done with that place.
As a newly minted “Anglodox” I’ve started to dream anew.
Why not pray (and pray and pray some more) for the founding and firm establishment of a shared Conservative Anglican cathedral here locally in Colorado?
Along the lines of what they’re doing and have seen happen in Tallahassee?
Yes, new and frustrating issues have cropped up among the conservative Anglicans of the ACNA and CANA over issues such as Woman’s Ordination, but perhaps such concerns could be laid aside in an Anglican Ecumenically Shared Cathedral?
One of the partners would be the ACNA’s Rocky Mountain Diocese, which possesses the lion’s share of ACNA churches in Colorado and the greater Mountain West.
Another would be the ACNA’s International Diocese, which has two parishes locally.
The third partner could be the Reformed Episcopal Church, which has at least two churches in Colorado, and could ostensibly use a third in Colorado’s largest city (the greater Denver area).
A likely fourth partner might be the Anglican South Sudanese Church that meets at Resurrection Anglican Fellowship.
Perhaps at such a cathedral, some ground rules specific to said theoretical parish (for a cathedral church also functions as a parish for the cathedral community that lives and worships there) could be amicably agreed upon?
Start out by said theoretical parish following the current REC model of addressing WO.
Women interested in serving could obtain fully paid ministerial positions, but agree to sacrifice serving at the altar as fully-vested clergy for the sake of Anglican unity. Perhaps they could wear clerical collars and act as Chalice Bearers in a compromise move, but not wear vestments?
Add in faithful usage of the 2019 Prayerbook and the 2017 Book of Common Praise and you might really have something.
Cathedral churches are usually highly committed to ecclesiastical High Arts. Such a situation would be splendid! This is a nice, big dream to arise from the ashes of personally train-wrecked Western Rite hopes from the past. To God Alone be the Glory. Amen.
Okay. Prayers ascending. This could take a while.
Blessings in The Holy Trinity,
The Lowly Reader Columba Silouan
I occasionally look into the Saint Peter’s Tallahassee Anglican Cathedral website.
I love what they’ve done with that place.
As a newly minted “Anglodox” I’ve started to dream anew.
Why not pray (and pray and pray some more) for the founding and firm establishment of a shared Conservative Anglican cathedral here locally in Colorado?
Along the lines of what they’re doing and have seen happen in Tallahassee?
Yes, new and frustrating issues have cropped up among the conservative Anglicans of the ACNA and CANA over issues such as Woman’s Ordination, but perhaps such concerns could be laid aside in an Anglican Ecumenically Shared Cathedral?
One of the partners would be the ACNA’s Rocky Mountain Diocese, which possesses the lion’s share of ACNA churches in Colorado and the greater Mountain West.
Another would be the ACNA’s International Diocese, which has two parishes locally.
The third partner could be the Reformed Episcopal Church, which has at least two churches in Colorado, and could ostensibly use a third in Colorado’s largest city (the greater Denver area).
A likely fourth partner might be the Anglican South Sudanese Church that meets at Resurrection Anglican Fellowship.
Perhaps at such a cathedral, some ground rules specific to said theoretical parish (for a cathedral church also functions as a parish for the cathedral community that lives and worships there) could be amicably agreed upon?
Start out by said theoretical parish following the current REC model of addressing WO.
Women interested in serving could obtain fully paid ministerial positions, but agree to sacrifice serving at the altar as fully-vested clergy for the sake of Anglican unity. Perhaps they could wear clerical collars and act as Chalice Bearers in a compromise move, but not wear vestments?
Add in faithful usage of the 2019 Prayerbook and the 2017 Book of Common Praise and you might really have something.
Cathedral churches are usually highly committed to ecclesiastical High Arts. Such a situation would be splendid! This is a nice, big dream to arise from the ashes of personally train-wrecked Western Rite hopes from the past. To God Alone be the Glory. Amen.
Okay. Prayers ascending. This could take a while.
Blessings in The Holy Trinity,
The Lowly Reader Columba Silouan
An Unexpected Change
Sometimes things in a person’s life happen, taking that person in an unplanned and even mostly unwanted direction.
We don’t always get what we want, but sometimes in the end, we get what we need.
The Rolling Stones were onto something with that song.
Technically, I’m no longer Eastern Orthodox.
Things happened in 2019.
Circumstances literally served to drag me out of my Orthodox parish, in some ways kicking and screaming.
“But God.”
I’m now attending an ACNA parish ten minutes from where I live.
I recently sought to return to Holy Orthodoxy in an OCA parish even closer to my home than the ACNA parish, but it just isn’t happening. Okay. Uncle. I give it up to Him.
Well, perhaps the OCA parish is equidistant. Whatever. The point is, I’m out of communion with The Orthodox Church, since I’ve become unattached to any local Orthodox parish.
You can’t lack the one without lacking the other.
“But God.”
It’s too long a story to get into here. My beliefs really haven’t changed. Well, maybe 1% of them have changed and that’s probably enough to land me in my current situation.
Or perhaps that one percent was always there, and I’m only getting my absolutely just desserts.
Lord, Have Mercy.
Father Christopoulos of the local Greek Orthodox parish, in a counseling session asked me if I am an “all or nothing” type of person. I responded initially with an “I don’t know” but then concluded, that yes indeed. I am, at that. Probably why I was seeking out an “All or nothing” Church.
The Eastern Orthodox Church is, indeed, an All Or Nothing Church.
That’s not intended as criticism, but I do think it’s a factual statement.
Well, I guess getting that was not what was truly needed. God seems to be giving me what I actually need. I need to be more NOT All or Nothing. But, that’s just me, and not necessarily anyone else.
It seems to be a personal issue that becomes quite the problem if un-dealt with and un-repented from.
Well, okay then. I’ve been “But Godded” so I guess I’ll roll with it. I surrender!
So, without further ado, I’m renaming this blog.
I’m an Anglodox Christian. A strange, hopefully numinous mix of Anglican and eastern orthodox.
I guess I always have been. Who knew? But I know now.
I can’t capitalize “Eastern Orthodox” now, even though I wish I could. The Orthodox won’t allow me to define myself this way unless I formally return to their ranks. Sigh and So Be It.
Out of the ashes of shattered dreams and expectations, we’ll see what God does.
It’s entirely fitting that the name of the parish I’m becoming more and more attached to is Resurrection Anglican Fellowship.
I’m certainly in need of a Resurrection before my final one happens, hopefully to Life Eternal and not to the other place.
I really and truly don’t want to go to that other terrible place.
Lord, Have Mercy. Christ, Have Mercy.
I hope to double and triple the amount of prayers I offer up this time around and speak and be agitated and agitating much, much less.
I should of taken this prayerful approach back in the Wellspring Days.
So, I’m kind of undoing my first sin of Schism by technically allowing for a second instance of one.
But hopefully since this wasn’t really my intent to go in this direction, The Lord will overlook and forgive this second instance of technical Schism while I repent from the first instance way back in 2005 when I took us out of the AMIA and Wellspring Anglican Church.
Lord, Have Mercy!
Thanks be to God, who gives and has given to us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Still the lowly Reader, Columba Silouan
an Anglodox Christian
January 5, 2020
We don’t always get what we want, but sometimes in the end, we get what we need.
The Rolling Stones were onto something with that song.
Technically, I’m no longer Eastern Orthodox.
Things happened in 2019.
Circumstances literally served to drag me out of my Orthodox parish, in some ways kicking and screaming.
“But God.”
I’m now attending an ACNA parish ten minutes from where I live.
I recently sought to return to Holy Orthodoxy in an OCA parish even closer to my home than the ACNA parish, but it just isn’t happening. Okay. Uncle. I give it up to Him.
Well, perhaps the OCA parish is equidistant. Whatever. The point is, I’m out of communion with The Orthodox Church, since I’ve become unattached to any local Orthodox parish.
You can’t lack the one without lacking the other.
“But God.”
It’s too long a story to get into here. My beliefs really haven’t changed. Well, maybe 1% of them have changed and that’s probably enough to land me in my current situation.
Or perhaps that one percent was always there, and I’m only getting my absolutely just desserts.
Lord, Have Mercy.
Father Christopoulos of the local Greek Orthodox parish, in a counseling session asked me if I am an “all or nothing” type of person. I responded initially with an “I don’t know” but then concluded, that yes indeed. I am, at that. Probably why I was seeking out an “All or nothing” Church.
The Eastern Orthodox Church is, indeed, an All Or Nothing Church.
That’s not intended as criticism, but I do think it’s a factual statement.
Well, I guess getting that was not what was truly needed. God seems to be giving me what I actually need. I need to be more NOT All or Nothing. But, that’s just me, and not necessarily anyone else.
It seems to be a personal issue that becomes quite the problem if un-dealt with and un-repented from.
Well, okay then. I’ve been “But Godded” so I guess I’ll roll with it. I surrender!
So, without further ado, I’m renaming this blog.
I’m an Anglodox Christian. A strange, hopefully numinous mix of Anglican and eastern orthodox.
I guess I always have been. Who knew? But I know now.
I can’t capitalize “Eastern Orthodox” now, even though I wish I could. The Orthodox won’t allow me to define myself this way unless I formally return to their ranks. Sigh and So Be It.
Out of the ashes of shattered dreams and expectations, we’ll see what God does.
It’s entirely fitting that the name of the parish I’m becoming more and more attached to is Resurrection Anglican Fellowship.
I’m certainly in need of a Resurrection before my final one happens, hopefully to Life Eternal and not to the other place.
I really and truly don’t want to go to that other terrible place.
Lord, Have Mercy. Christ, Have Mercy.
I hope to double and triple the amount of prayers I offer up this time around and speak and be agitated and agitating much, much less.
I should of taken this prayerful approach back in the Wellspring Days.
So, I’m kind of undoing my first sin of Schism by technically allowing for a second instance of one.
But hopefully since this wasn’t really my intent to go in this direction, The Lord will overlook and forgive this second instance of technical Schism while I repent from the first instance way back in 2005 when I took us out of the AMIA and Wellspring Anglican Church.
Lord, Have Mercy!
Thanks be to God, who gives and has given to us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Still the lowly Reader, Columba Silouan
an Anglodox Christian
January 5, 2020
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