My Wednesday morning started like every good Wednesday morning has started over the last few months since I discovered WRVU-Vanderbilt Radio's morning programming. I find myself excited when I wake up on Wednesday's because I know I will soon have 20 minutes of peaceful liturgical chants delivered by Father Parthenios on his radio show, "Sacred Hymns." Its a unit of time I've set away in my life for quiet reflection and a strong attempt to swallow my contempt for my 8-5 job. Often I have no idea what's being sung, but usually some form of "Jesus" or "Christ" finds its way to my ear in a foreign tongue and I understand enough to know that we are certainly playing for the same team. Its a quiet reverence that I miss in the modern day Christian church. It throws me back to growing up in the Catholic church, being sprayed with water from a tree branch by the priest (for who knows what reason..but it was kind of like catching beads at Mardi Gras..you figured you must be doing something right if you ended up with a drop of water running down your forehead), incense being swung and confessing your sins to a complete stranger. So maybe those weren't the best examples of peace and reverence, but you'll have to take my word for it that the Catholic church has a knack for acknowledging God's presence in both the room and within the individual. This morning Father Parthenios prayed for there to be a peace and unity between the Eastern Greek Orthodox Church and the Western Roman Catholic Church. This threw me right out of my Christian zen state and I began to listen as he described the two as necessary for the other. I had no idea there was this conflict or rift between these two bodies of believers. It turns out its been around for hundreds or thousands of years, but it was new to my ears. Father prayed that just as we require two legs to stand on (don't tell that to Natalie Du Toit..amazing) may these two branches of the church come together and carry the church into the future. When I got to my cubicle at work, I was eager to know more. This was to take definite precedence over "selling the total solution." It turns out that each body of believers believe they belong to the "One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church" and they are a part of the church that was originally established by Christ and the Apostles....yeah..trouble. It turns out that the capture and sacking of Constantinople by the Fourth Crusade in 1204 is what really pissed everyone off and they headed for the big "D" and they don't mean Damascus. All of this just brought to my attention again what a sad fragmented church we are as Christians. Does it matter if I am a descendant of the true "first church?" It seems to me that Christ came to put an end to this kind of thought process. I think if Christ and the Apostles had anything to say about all this it would go something like:
Christ: "Where is your heart? Is it with me and the Father or is it with this meaningless hierarchy of believers you've created?"
Apostles: "oooo...burn...burnn"
Hair Update: Today I was called "
Ronaldo"..it just keeps getting better..watch your back Beckham..watch it.
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