Want to convert but no Churches in my area

[S. John]

Greetings,
I have an frustrating situation. I have been studying Orthodoxy for the last four months and have even attended some Orthodox services while traveling to get a hands on feel for the faith. I feel very drawn to Orthodoxy from my studies and attendances but in my area there in no Orthodox Church for two and a half hours in any direction. I travel for a living and it gives me a chance to attend a variety of Orthodox Churches, however, I am have been told conversion is a very "hands on" process with the Father's guidance. Can anybody offer advice on what to do? I feel like I am "bursting at the seems" attending these services while not able to participate in what I feel drawn to. I am ready to get on with becoming Orthodox but feel my regular travel - along with the fact there are no Churches anywhere near my home - is a serious problem at this crucial stage.

Any comments on my situation would be greatly appreciated!

Peace,
Stephen

[M. Rallis]

Dear Stephen:

First, I would encourage you to embrace the special difficulty that you've encountered due to your home being so far from an Orthodox parish. I've always found that there is a special reward any time there has been a need to go out of my way, or over come some road-block in order to attend services.

Second, you should consider contacting the parish priest at the nearest Orthodox parish, and relate to him your special situation, just as you did in your post here. My guess is that he will be delighted to help work through the logistics of bringing you into the Church. For instance, if you were close to our parish here in North Carolina, we could have you come into town on a Saturday aftternoon, meet with our priest, attend Vespers, stay overnight with a family in the parish, then attend Orthros and Liturgy Sunday morning, etc. You may also want to do some reading and individual study, and the local parish priest could be a valuable guide for this.

in Christ

Michael

[S. John]

Thanks Michael for the advice. The long drives have given me much time to think and listen to recorded sermons. What is the amount of time one needs to spend as a Cathecuman (sp?)
before they can get baptised into Orthodoxy?

Peace,
Stephen

[Trudy]

Hi Stephen,

For my own personal experience, my spiritual father required a minimum of 6 months "regular" attendance at church before considering me for reception into the Church. "Regular" for me was twice a month because my husband was not interested in Orthodoxy and I told him I would attend Protestant services with him twice a month. Father was in agreement with the idea so as to keep peace in the marriage, which at the time was not the case. Though it is now!

Father met with me to talk monthly. He answered a lot of my questions and addressed as many of my concerns as he was able. I had done quite a bit of reading outside of speaking with Father as I had the privilege of taking a college history course that was about the theology and history of Eastern Orthodoxy. That really helped.

All this to say, it would be up to your priest. http://www.monachos.net/mb/clipart/happy.gif

May God bless you and keep you as you journey to the Orthodox Church.

In Christ, Athanasia

[Fr Anthony Falsarella]

Stephen,

That would depend on the priest and the amount of time he would feel necessary in preparing you for your reception into the Church. This is done in a face to face meeting so a number of questions can be asked and answered. Also, it would have to be determined if baptism is necessary or if you will be received by Chrismation. The priest will have to follow the guidelines set forth by his respective hierarch.

I hope this helps.

In IC XC,
Father Anthony+

[Baroness]

There is no particular amount of time one has to spend as a catechuman - it varies from person to person. Some take a year, maybe two. Others, may only take a couple of months. It all depends on the person, their circumstances, where they've been, if they're converts etc. etc. etc. But, I will pray for you and hope you are able to find an answer to your above search, and can get in touch with the priest :-)

[S. John]

Thanks everyone! I will be looking into this with more diligence. This thread has been a great help.

I have another question when considering this all important phase and my status thereafter. Does it matter which juridiction one enters Orthodoxy concerning communion when attending Church away from one's "home Church"? Since I will still be traveling quite a bit even after I become Orthodox I would be attending various Churches during my travels. Would I only be able to receive communion or make confession at the jurisdiction I was baptised into? I was thinking that once I was actually baptised into Orthodoxy I would contact the Churches in advance to let them know my situation.

Thanks again to all for the thoughtful responses!

Peace to all,
Stephen

[Father David Moser]

Stephen,

Other than some ultra-conservative jurisdictional groups (especially rampant in the US) there is usually no problem receiving sacraments in a different jurisdiction if you are traveling. The only thing that you have to know is that different traditions have different standards for preparation, some more strict than others, so it is always good to contact the priest in the parish where you are ahead of time (going to the Vespers/Vigil the night before is a good time for this) to know what preparations he will expect of you.

Fr David

[S. John]

Thanks for the response Fr David. I am in the USA so comment is well taken. Any comments on the acceptance of UOC amongst other Churches? I attended a UOC Church which was a good experience but I notice that their jurisdiction is very limited (which is not a problem for me if they are credible). Given my situation I am wondering how they might fit into my situation.

Best,
Stephen

[David Perry]

First of all if you haven't checked out http://orthodoxyinamerica.org/ you might be surprised to find an orthodox parish closer to you then you think http://www.monachos.net/mb/clipart/happy.gif

After you are Chrismated, if you will be traveling frequently:
Ask your priest to write you a letter stating where & when you were Chrismated,which parish you are a member of, which juristiction and which bishop it is under. Call ahead to the parish you will be visting (or email) the priest there and let him know you wish to receive the Chalice. If you don't get to speak or correspomd with him ahead of time, introduce yourself and show him your letter.

[S. John]

Thanks David. I visit orthodoxyinamerica.org often. No parishes for at least 2.5 hrs. My concern is the period I need to spend as a Cathecuman (sp?)which I hear requires very frequent attendance. With my frequent travels for work plus the distance to any Orthodox Church near my home (whin I am not traveling) I am finding this to be a challenge. However, I will not be deterred. I need to find a parish that can take all of this into consideration and begin my studies!

Thanks everybody for the excellent comments on my situation.

Best,
Stephen

[Fr Seraphim (Black)]

Dear S. John,
Can there be any obstacle to seeking Our Lord? Travelling by car??? I have had the blessing to live in Romania. It is a very impoverished country. Consider the blessing you even have a car!
On the Feast Day of St. Parascheva, between two million and three million wait patiently in line to venerate her incorrupt body.
How spoiled we are in N. America!
I cannot behold the material richness of N. America, and witness the devotion/sacrifice of Romanian Orthodox Christians, without wondering.
Do you realize that 70% of Romanians earn less than one US dollar per day?
I hang my head in shame.
If you desire Orthodoxy, THERE IS NO OBSTACLE.

[Fr Raphael Vereshack]

Dear S. John,
You wrote,


However, I will not be deterred. I need to find a parish that can take all of this into consideration and begin my studies!

Yes- don't be deterred by the geographic distance. God's grace is larger than this and He will compensate according to our effort.

In our parish we have a family who lives a 2 1/2 - 3 hour drive away. They can only make it about once a month (but this is also due to other responsibilities). I was wondering how this would effect their spiritual life but I can see no bad effects. It even can be used to one's benefit- one soon realises one has to have a constant spiritual life of prayer, reading, etc in order to maintain one's Orthodoxy. Also it can help that there is email nowadays to keep up steady communication with the priest.

In Christ- Fr Raphael

[S. John]

Fr. Raphael - and everybody - thanks for your encouraging comments. I will be putting 100% into this task of finding the right Church.

Here's another question. Does conversion into Orthodoxy require only Chrismation? I have not had a proper Baptism. I was 'Baptised' by a fringe protestant (if you can even call him that) self appointed home-Church preacher who 'dunked' me once "in the name of Yahweh". No mention of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. I feel the need to have a proper Baptism as well as Chrismation.

Thanks,
Stephen

[Father David Moser]

Chances are you would be required to be received by baptism since there was no baptism in the name of the Trinity - the final say, of course, is up to the local ruling bishop.

Fr David

[S. John]

Thanks for all of the helpful comments everybody.

Peace,
Stephen