Title: Are we experiencing a Triumph of Orthodoxy? Source:
YouTube URL Source:https://youtu.be/Tg13beGm-WY?si=U-hqv62E7uSMrHjf Published:Mar 14, 2025 Author:Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick Post Date:2025-03-14 19:31:02 by Orthodoxa Keywords:Orthodox Church, growth surge Views:1002 Comments:25
While both Protestants and Orthodox Christians share core Christian beliefs, they differ in areas like authority, salvation, and liturgical practices, with Protestants emphasizing the Bible as the sole source of authority and salvation by grace through faith alone, while Orthodox Christians value tradition and the Church's teachings alongside the Bible.
from the internet
The Bible > Orthodox church teachings. Not even close.
The Bible, which was written by the Church and for the Church, itself declares what the source of authority is:
1 Timothy 3:15
"But if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the Church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth."
Note that even in this verse, St. Paul, who is Timothy's Bishop and ordained Timothy as a Bishop, tells him that he'll give him much more detailed instructions in person (oral tradition) and this letter is just to help out a little before St. Paul arrives in person.
And the Church isn't just some guy picking up a Bible and announcing that he's in charge of a Church now. In all of Paul's epistles, it is pretty clear that he expects to be obeyed by the congregations that are under him, because he's their Bishop. He was ordained, using the system that Jesus Christ instituted - Jesus founded a Church, not a free-for- all bookclub where everyone is free to interpret and misinterpret scriptures however they wish. You can read in Acts 13 about how the Elders of the Church (Bishops) laid hands upon St. Paul and St. Barnabas and ordained them.
My Orthodox Church can show detailed lists of who ordained who all the way back to the Apostles. Most of the Protestant denominations in the USA don't go back even farther than a century, and none of them have a line of ordinations going back to Jesus like the Orthodox Church does.
The Church, the pillar and ground of the truth, is the body which can correctly interpret the Scriptures. The Protestant approach is the same thing Joseph Smith and the Mormons did, just make up a bogus "church" and tell everyone that it really is the church even though he just made it up.
Here's the line of succession for the Patriarchs of the Church of Antioch mentioned in the Book of Acts and which still exists today:
Peter I (c. 37/47–c. 53/54)[4][a] Evodius (c. 53/54–c. 68/83)[b] Ignatius (c. 68–c. 107 or c. 83–115)[c] Heron I (c. 107/116–c. 127/128)[d] Cornelius (c. 127/128–c. 142/154)[e] Heron II (c. 142–c. 169 or c. 154–c. 164)[f] vacant (c. 164–c. 169)[g] Theophilus (c. 169–182)[h] Maximus I (182–190/191)[i] Serapion (190/191–211/212)[j] Asclepiades (211–220)[k] Philetus (220–231)[l] Zebinnus (231–237)[m] Babylas (237–250/251)[n] Fabius (250/251–253/256)[o] Demetrius (253/256–260/261)[p] Paul (260–268)[q] Domnus I (268–273)[r] Timaeus (273–279/280)[s] Cyril (279/280–303)[t] Tyrannion (304–314) Vitalis (314–320)[u] Philogonius (320–324)
Patriarchs of Antioch from 324 to 360
Eustathius (324–330) Paulinus I (330)[v] Eulalius (331–332) Euphronius (332–333) Flacillus (333–342)[w] Stephen I (342–344) Leontius (344–357)[x] Eudoxius (358–359) Annanius (359) Paulinus II (362–388) Evagrius (388–392/393) Alexander (414–417)[aa] Theodotus (417–428)[ab] John I (429–441)[ac] Domnus II (441–449)[ad] Chalcedonian line Maximus II (450–455)[ae] Basil (456–458)[af] Acacius (458–459)[ag] Martyrius (459–471)[ah] Peter II (471)[ai] Julian (471–475)[aj] Peter II (475–477)[ak] John II Codonatus (477)[al] Stephen II (477–479)[am] Calendion (479–484)[ao] Peter II (485–488)[ap] Palladius (488–498)[aq] Flavian II (498–512) Severus (512–518)
Paul the Jew (518–521) Euphrasius (521–526) Ephraim of Amid (526–546) Domnus III (546–561) Anastasius I of Antioch (561–571) Gregory (571–594) Anastasius I of Antioch (restored) (594–599) Anastasius II (599–610) Gregory II (610–620) Anastasius III (620–628) Macedonius (639–662) George I (662–669) Macarius (669–681) Theophanes (681–684) Sebastian (687–690) George II (691–702) Stephen IV (743–744) Theophylact (744–750) Theodore I (750–773) Theodoret (781–812) Job (813–844) Nicholas (846–868) Theodosius I (870–890) Simeon (892–907) Elias (907–934) Theodosius II (936–943) Theocharistus (944–948) Agapius I (953–959) Christopher (960–967) Eustratius (969)
Seal of Theodore II (Theodore of Koloneia) Theodore II (970–976) Agapius II (978–996) John III (996–1021) Nicholas II (1025–1030) Elias II (1032–1033) Theodore III (1034–1042)
Seal of Basil II Basil II (?-?) Peter III (1052–1056) John IV (1056–1057) Theodosius III (1057–1059) Aemilian (1074–1078) Nicephorus (1079–?) John V (or IV) (1091–1100)
John VI (or V) (1106–1134) Soterichos Panteugenos (elect, 1156–1157) Euthymius (1159–1164) Macarius II (1164–1166) Athanasius I (1166–1170) Theodosius III (1180–1182) Elias III (1182–1184) Christopher II (1184–1185) Theodore IV (Balsamon) (1185–1199) Joachim (1199–1219) Dorotheus (1219–1245) Simeon II (1245–1268) Euthymius (1268–1269) Theodosius IV (1269–1276)
Theodosius V Villehardouin (1276–1285) Arsenius (1285–1293) Dionysius (1293–1308) Mark (1308–1342) Ignatius II (1342–1386)
Pachomius (1386–1393) Nilus (1393–1401) Michael III (1401–1410) Pachomius II (1410–1411) Joachim II (1411–1426) Mark III (1426–1436) Dorotheus II (1436–1454) Michael IV (1454–1476) Mark IV (1476) Joachim III (1476–1483) Gregory III (1483–1497) Dorotheus III (1497–1523) Michael V (1523–1541) Dorotheus IV (1541–1543) Joachim IV (Ibn Juma) (1543–1576) Michael VI (Sabbagh) (1577–1581) Joachim V (1581–1592) Joachim VI (1593–1604) Dorotheus IV (or V) Ibn Al-Ahmar (1604–1611) Athanasius II (or III) Dabbas (1611–1619) Ignatius III Atiyah (1619–1634) Cyril IV Dabbas (1619–1627) Euthymius II (or III) Karmah (1634–1635) Euthymius III (or IV) of Chios (1635–1647) Macarius III Ibn al-Za'im (1647–1672) Neophytos of Chios (1673–1682) Athanasius III Dabbas (first, reign) (1685–1694) Cyril V (or III) Zaim ( 1672–1694, 1694–1720) Athanasius III Dabbas (second reign) (1720–1724)
Sylvester (Dabbas) (1724–1766) ] Philemon (1766–1767) Daniel (1767–1791) Anthemius (1791–1813) Seraphim (1813–1823) Methodius (1823–1850) Hierotheos (1850–1885) Gerasimos (1885–1891) Spyridon (1891–1898) Meletius II (Doumani) (1899–1906) Gregory IV (Haddad) (1906–1928) vacant (1928–1931) Alexander III (Tahhan) (1931–1958) Theodosius VI (Abou Rjaileh) (1958–1970) Elias IV (Mouawwad) (1970–1979) Ignatius IV (Hazim) (1979–2012) John X (Yazigi) (2012–)
So which Apostle ordained the first Bishop of your Church? If there wasn't one, then the leadership claims of your Church's Bishop's, Elders, Pastors, whatever title they might use - is bogus.
My Church was founded by Jesus Christ with St. Peter being the very first Bishop of Antioch. If your Church can't trace it's history back to the original Church, then it is a modern made-up fake "church". People in it might still do things pleasing to God, but they aren't in the Church that Jesus founded.
