Becoming Orthodox: A Journey to the Ancient Christian Faith

The quotes are the last words in the book. This 'manifesto' (imho) is not another 'conversion' story but rather the true story of a spiritual journey; a journey embarked by a group of fervent evangelical Protestants (Campus Crusade for Christ leaders) and which lasted over a decade. Peter E. Gillquist (the author) is a brilliant marketeer and presenter of his group's spiritual journey, of their search for the ancient faith and original New Testament Church. The book is devided into three sections: Part I describes the group's pilgrimage through the history of Christendom. This was done by assigning each members an area of research, such as church history pre-reformation and post-reformation, Biblical doctrine, and Christian worship. As Gillquist sumarizes this new journey in the last chapter, "the change came for us when we stopped trying to judge and reevaulate Church history, and for once invited Church history to judge and evaluate us." Part II entitled "Orthodoxy and the Bible" is the meat of the book (imho). Here Gillquist does an excellent job of explaining (and not overpowering or over-analyzing) the most mis-understood and puzzling components of the Orthodox faith and praxis. These topics include: a) explaining the use of all 5 senses in Orthodox worship, b) the reasons for having a Christian historical tradition ("Traditon is there not just to preserve the Bible, but also to interpret it."), c) using the title "Father" (Fr.), d) why should we honor Mary (aka Theotokos - God-bearer), e) and why does a Christian cross oneself? Part III is a narative highlighting the lows and highs of a decade of pilgrimage before the Evangelical Orthodox Church (EOC - the name of over 2000 Protestants, 17 dioces who were becoming Orthodox) had been accepted and included into the Antiochian Orthodox Church. As my title suggestions, this books is a great marketing tool for anyone interested in the Orthodox Church and Faith. One should not expect doctoral answers to difficult questions from this 191 page book (although a lot of Biblical verses are quoted and used for explanation). Personally I found the writing style very easy to read (the larger font and spacing definitely helped), coherent and logical, and even entertainining in some spots. I wish Gillquist would have written more about the ones who dropped out early on from the church history research, or the priests/bishops in EOC who did not join the Antiochian Orthodox Church. As a liturgical Protestant I certainly do not agree with the statement that "to forsake the Church, you must also forsake the faith" (pg.143) and I wish Gillquist would have spent more time talking about ecclesiology and its view and development throughout the history of Christendom. Nevertheless, I found the tone, style, and content of this book to be non-polemical, Christian, and informative. I would recommend it for any Christian (Protestant, Catholic, Orthodox) interested in why a large group (over 20

Do you think that you are the only one who is dis-satisfied with Western Christianity? Is the constant blaring of praise music from a band and Power Point presentations on the church wall losing its appeal? Have you moved from church to church looking for something that is not quite there, not filling that spiritual hole that eats at your soul. Is all of your Bible study not answering the questions that keeps eating at you? Then reading the story of Peter Gillquist and his friends' search for a true relationship with God may be the first step on setting your mind at ease. Fr. Gillquist was part of the Christian movement on college campuses during the 1960s and 70s. He and his friends were trying to offer to those of that generation a Christian alternative to free love, drugs, and sex. In their outreach to the youth they met on college campuses came very tough questions that despite all of their religious zeal were not being answered by Evangelical Protestanism. As Fr. Gillquist and his friends searched for the truth, they found the truth lay not in the Western Church, the Church of Rome, Calvin, Luther, or Crammer. Their search for truth took them back to the Early Church, when there was no difference from East & West. As Fr. Gillquist and company found answers to very tough questions that tore at their souls, they realized that their core beliefs were those of Eastern Orthodoxy, the Church that has remained unchanged for a thousand years. The story of Fr. Gillquist goes from the discovery of true Christian faith to the founding of a church based on Orthodoxy to final acceptance in the Eastern Church. If you are searching for something that is lacking in your current Christian life and have wondered what Orthodoxy is all about, then read the journey of Fr. Gillquist, it may well start you on your own journey where you re-connect with God. While it may be a well worn saying, this is a must read for those who wish to have an understanding of Orthodoxy

I was given this book to read by a fellow Methodist following our discussions regarding the disconcerting effect that certain seminaries have on sincere, loving Christian pastors. He had underlined a passage in which an older Christian warned a would-be student about unbelieving professors and the negative outcome of being taught by so-called "experts" in theological studies: those who have intellectualized and rationalized faith right out of their own Christian lives. For some reason, it never occured to me that this book would be about Eastern Orthodoxy (so far removed have I been from any exposure to this branch of Christianity.) Late one evening, I started reading Father Gillquist's open-hearted search for Ancient Christianity. It touched my heart and mind, and I could not put the book down. If you long for spiritual wholeness and deep-down peace, read Father Gillquist's account of his journey from Evangelical Protestantism to the Ancient path. I believe you will find nothing offensive to your own beliefs, and will gain some real insight into this branch of Christianity that has changed little since the Apostolic days.

Peter Gillquist charts the journey that so many of us have been on. What makes their story particularly amazing is that they didn't start from Orthodoxy. In complete ignorance, these Campus Crusaders began to study and to search. When they discovered Orthodoxy, in typical Protestant fashion they set up their own Evangelical Orthodox Church. The remainder of the book chronicles their journey through theological and ecclesial waters, their attempts to overcome protestant proclivities against certain practices and their search for union with an Orthodox fellowship. What makes their story amazing is that they started from *nothing* but church history and the Bible. This journey is reflected in my own. I intend to buy copies for my family who cannot understand how I could become Orthodox. I expect it would be helpful for Protestants who have visceral reactions against any suggestion that one particular church might actually come close to embodying the "New Testament Church."

_Becoming Orthodox_ by Peter Gillquist is a first-person account of the spiritual journey of a group of evangelical Christians over a period of fifteen years to their reception into the Antiochian Orthodox Church. Many of them had been involved in Campus Crusade for Christ during the sixties and had remained in contact with each other during the seventies as they founded churches around the US. They agreed to study Church history to find out what the original New Testament Churches practiced. They noted from early Christian documents such as the writings of the Church Fathers that the Church had Bishops (ordained by the Apostles themselves), a hierarchial structure, Tradition, liturgical worship, communion as the literal Body and Blood of Christ, inscense, icons, the use of "Father" in addressing Priests, the veneration of the Virgin Mary as Theotokos ("God-bearer") and the Sign of the Cross. In examining the Schism of the Church in 1054 between Rome and the East, Gillquist and his fellow pastors acknowledged that Rome had erred in its Papal claims of universal authority over the Church, and the Western alteration of the Creed which originally stated that the Holy Spirit only proceeded from the Father, when now the Roman Catholic Church teaches that the Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son (known as the "Filioque"). Gillquist and his affiliated group of churches, which they had labeled the Evangelical Orthodox Church, sought to join one of the Orthodox Churches in America. They were unsuccessful in meeting with the Patriarch of Constantinople, but they were reviewed and accepted by the Patriarch of Antioch and the Antiochian Archdiocese in North America. The style of this book is remarkably easy and engaging, especially when it comes to the discussion of the "Filioque" in the Creed, and appears to be quite popular among both Orthodox and non-Orthodox readers, which is one of this book's strengths.