ReaderJohn wrote:
Well, dear Presbytera, that's why so many left following the Lord when He told them, quite literally, "Eat Me" in John Chap. 6. They thought it sounded cannibalistic. But the Lord was quite serious. It is interesting to note that many Protestants, who interpret almost everything else in the Bible literally, insist that John 6 is figurative. The Orthodox intrepretation from the beginning is literal on this point. Holy Communion is the literal Body and Blood of Jesus Christ Who is God, therefore, we eat God. And, as Fr. Alexander Schmemman related--we are what we eat. So, we eat God and by God's grace and mercy become gods. (Although, not in the Mormon sense.)
To attempt to clarify Namees point, we DO partake of the Divine Nature (as St. Peter says in his epistle as well), however, it would seem to me that Holy Communion relates to the energies, not the essence of God. I could be wrong.
Sure! But when I read your post the image of savages crouched around their prey and protecting it from predators came to my mind. And it struck me so strange that I quickly responded to your post. I must have been hungry at the time. Yes, in liturgy the priest says, \"Take eat.\" My imagination got away from me and I replied too soon. Please forgive me.
But I do tire of the way some members on OxC refer to non-Orthodox as pitiful and in denial of a genuine relationship with God. Many who converted came to Orthodoxy because of a lack in their previous faiths. That is understandable because what else would make them change. Certainly it wasn’t the ethnic food. But can\'t we, who receive love from a merciful God, also show mercy? Can we honestly say who God does and does not love? We don’t know God well enough if we think He only loves the Orthodox. What perfect parent loves one child more than another? And also, can we understand someone’s heart to say whether they love God or not? We can see in their actions where they are confused or have no fruits... but we don’t know if they love God and if they are in so much pain that their best is enough for Him. How much love does God need? The beautiful thing is that God doesn’t need our love. He doesn’t need our prayers. He would be the same, just sad. And we don’t have to protect Him from any enemy. He’s a Big God and can take care of Himself.
So when we speak of other faiths let us be more respectful of God’s children, regardless of how they understand Him. It would make us more in His image and closer to understanding who He is.
