HC/HC Conference: “Speaking to Secular America”

by Father John Jillions

As widely reported, Hellenic College/Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology, Brookline, MA, hosted a conference titled “Speaking to Secular America: How the Church is Reaching Out to the Non-Religious in Our Society” October 28-30, 2015.  Sponsored by HC/HC’s Missions Institute of Orthodox Christianity, the conference was held in conjunction with the inauguration of HC/HC’s 21st President, the Very Rev. Christopher T. Metropulos, D.Min.

I had the privilege of attending the three-day conference.  A number of excellent speakers addressed various aspects of this critical topic, including His Eminence, Archbishop Demetrios of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, and the Orthodox Church in America’s Archpriest Stephen Freeman, Rector of Saint Anne Church, Oak Ridge, TN and author of the “Glory to God for All Things” blog and the book, Everywhere Present: Christianity in a One-Story Universe, and Priest John Parker, Rector of Holy Ascension Church, Charleston, SC and Chair of the OCA’s Department of Evangelization.

Below is a brief summary of the conference highlights.

The conference opened with Priest Luke Veronis posing the basic question: “Are we proclaiming the Gospel in a way our society can see and understand it?”

Archbishop Demetrios said that Patriarch Bartholomew and Pope Francis are of one mind in labeling the three major issues facing the world today: poverty, violence and the future of our youth.  But he said that before speaking to the world, the Church “insiders” need to hear the Gospel message.  “Outsiders are often more ready than we think.  Our people are the problem, because of their lack of commitment and engagement,” he observed.  Instead of being preoccupied with the eternal, our churches are often dominated by earthly cares, which is the definition of “secular.”  But this is just the latest in a series of serious fundamental challenges that have faced the Church throughout its history, as it wrestled with paganism, other religions and then its own internal debates about Christ.

Today, Archbishop Demetrios noted, the questions are of a different kind.

  • Is there a God of any description?
  • Did Jesus even exist?
  • Is there a place for religion in society and public life?

This, he stressed, is no cause for despair, since there are many non-religious people who are spiritual seekers.  He contrasted the “hard secularists,” for whom theology is a “thought crime,” with the more prevalent “soft secularists,” who see all views as acceptable and worthy of exploration.  Orthodox Christianity may well benefit from this latter trend.

Although secularism is taking its own 21st century forms, the roots of the Latin term “secular” are found in the Greek New Testament terms “aeon” and “kosmos,” which have both positive and negative usages.  “Secularism” as we understand it today can be equated with “worldliness,” which he defined as “a witting or unwitting commitment to the ruler of this world.”  The paradox of modern secularism is that it imposes conformity and reduces individuality.  The Orthodox Christian response to this is to offer instead a healthy individuality, where the unique personhood of everyone is acknowledged “just as we pronounce every name at the chalice.”  Archbishop Demetrios said we should look at this as an opportunity.  Even now the Lord is opening a door:  “Behold, I open a door and no one can shut it” [Revelation 3:8].

Dr. Andrew Walsh spoke about the demographics of secularism in America.  Recent studies have shown that faith as such remains fairly constant.  What has dropped dramatically, especially among the younger generation, is institutional affiliation.  [The Pew Survey found that between 2007 and 2014, this segment went up 6.7% of the population, from 16.1% to 22.8%.. There was a simultaneous decline of 7.8% in the Christian population.]  People are less comfortable identifying with their family church identity.  “Denominational names have no resonance in our culture.” Only 53% of those raised as Orthodox Christians still identify with the Orthodox Church.  Of these, half are unaffiliated and half are moving or have moved to other affiliations.  Yet even here, the news isn’t all bad.  Those who describe themselves as belonging to no religion—the “nones”—can be further divided into atheists (still a very small percentage of population), agnostics (a slightly larger group and growing) and those who describe their religion as “nothing in particular.”  This is the group that has exploded in recent years.  Drilling down further into this latter segment there are two subdivisions: those for whom religion is not important, and a large group for whom religion is important.  These are the “spiritual but not religious” who may pray and may be “vaguely Protestant.”

He went on to note that, in general, American religious history has been fairly stable over time, with the population divided into 1/3 active, 1/3 so-so (the biggest shifts are within this group) , and 1/3 not involved.  By way of comparison, in the 1790s, church attendance was about 10%, while today it’s around 24%.  Statistical studies of Orthodox Christians reveal that “most Orthodox are comfortable in the American culture, meaning they are not religiously zealous, and believe that one doesn’t have to agree doctrinally or morally with everything to be Orthodox.”  For example, 60% of Orthodox Christians believe that abortion should be legal in all cases.  Thus, “we are a conflicted Church.”

Still, the secular emphasis on personal choice is an opportunity for the Orthodox, and is helping to fuel interest and conversions to Orthodoxy, which 50 years ago would have been viewed as an “exotic” religion.  This last point was a constant theme in Priest Theodore Dorrance’s presentation on reaching out to the non-religious, based on his experience starting a Greek Orthodox mission community from scratch in Portland, Oregon.  “The movement away from one’s own historical religious roots is an opportunity for the Orthodox to expose the seekers to something new, exotic and life-changing,” he stated.  “This is opening a door for us.”  But reaching these seekers requires a new mindset on the part of the Orthodox.  “These seekers have had enough of pseudo-Christianity and ‘bad witness.’  They find Christianity wanting.  ‘Words alone are not enough.’”

Father Theodore said two aspects of this new Orthodox mindset are essential.

  1. To accept Orthodoxy, newcomers must reject all pseudo-Christianities that they have been exposed to.
  2. We cannot offer them watered-down Orthodoxy.  They need the best expression of the Orthodox Christian tradition.

This new mindset, he added, also requires a willingness to “let anybody in.”  This means imitating the self-emptying of Christ, for “love does not seek its own” [1 Corinthians 13:4].

Archpriest Stephen Freeman expanded on this in his talk on “The God You Don’t Believe In: Conversations with a Secular World.”  He made the point that most secularists have rejected a God Whom we as Orthodox likewise would reject.  The first step to reaching these seekers is simply to be human, and to help them recover the meaning of being human.  Human authenticity is what people desire, and it is found in the best expressions of Orthodox Christianity.  Father Stephen recalled the deep impression Alexander Solzhenitsyn made on him in 1974 as an authentic human being who had lived the Cross.  “Secular America is hungry for the message of the Cross,” he said, and this is the message that recognizes the reality of suffering and its transcendence.  “Be a human for others.  Be a person of the Cross.  With kindness and gentleness we must help people come to the Cross, to give up their life in order to find it.  There they will find life.”

Dr. John Mark Reynolds approached the conference theme from the perspective of an academic philosopher who has spent much of his career dialoguing and debating with atheists (see his book, Against All Gods).  This included a stint as the religion blogger for The Washington Post.  He said the best approach is “to keep cool and never attack.”  Most useful is the argument from beauty.  “Even Richard Dawkins goes to evensong at his college chapel.”

He continued by stating that, in his experience, there are three types of atheists.  The first are those who are disappointed they can’t believe.  These are decent people who could be called “Christians without Christ,” and who might be reached by holy lives and goodness rather than words.  The second type are academic atheists, analytical philosophers—“and you won’t encounter many of those in your day-to-day life.”  The vast majority of modern atheists in America are in the third category: “internet atheists” or “folk atheists” who, Dr. Reynolds observed, “have never met a reasonable Christian.”  We as Christians are part of the problem.  “We have abandoned preaching both the truth of Christianity and why it is true,” he added.  “There is a strong anti-intellectualism in American Christianity that is hostile to learning and expertise.  “The more American the Church becomes the more you will experience people who reject your authority if you interfere with their fun.  Real experience is not valued as much as ‘my experience.’”

Dr. Philip Mamalakis spoke on “Raising Children Who will Hold on to Faith in a Secular Age,” sharing his experience as a Holy Cross Professor of Pastoral Pheology, a psychotherapist and a father of seven children.  Above all, we are to convey to our children—and to all we serve—“that they know they are loved by God and by us and are called to share that love with others.  This is real self-esteem.”  Our approach has little to do with fear.  “We can’t reach out to secular America in fear, just as we can’t parent in fear,” he stated.  “No matter how ‘bad’ the world is, the One Who is in us is stronger.  Go forth as the light.  The best defense is a good offense: go out in love and courage.”  Dr. Mamalakis cited Sister Magdalene of the Monastery of Saint John the Baptist in England, who emphasizes that parents have only a supporting role in leading our children to faith.  “Divine grace transmits faith; we just prepare the ground.  Like growing a plant, we foster the right environment, but God gives the growth.”  And if as parents we feel we’ve missed the boat in being effective Christian parents, then even into old age, it’s never too late to repent.  “The joy of repentance is that we can always return.”  Indeed, how we go through old age, sickness and death can be the most powerful parental example we may give our adult children.  They need to see us repent when we fail.  “If you want to raise saints, become a saint.  Be the person you want your children to become.”

Father John Parker spoke about reaching out to the “nones” and “dones,” and began by recounting a number of personal stories of such people in his own neighborhood.  Many have turned their back on religious life “because they failed to find the love and support they expected to find in their churches,” he observed.  “They left because they’ve been brow-beaten by Christians and Christianity.”  They found judgmental church people when they were looking for an authentic and welcoming community.  They found churches that only understand morality in terms of drugs and sexuality and disregard systemic issues like poverty.  “They are tired of bureaucratic church organizations.  And they want to come to their own conclusions through dialogue and struggle.”

Father John continued by noting that there is no immediate solution, and reaching out to them on a personal level may take a great deal of time.  We have to address our own apathy, reluctance and “failure” to achieve quick success.  Are our churches willing to be “for them?”  Are we open and prepared for them?  Can we say, “we’ve been waiting for you?”  Can we go beyond that and say, “we’ve been seeking to find you?”

Father John concluded by offering a number of hopeful suggestions for sowing seeds among the nones and dones.

  • See the world as your parish.  All the nones and dones in your neighborhood are “your people.”
  • Recognize that they will be there at your festivals, baptisms, funerals and weddings.
  • Encourage parishioners to have house blessings and invite their neighbors for dinner.
  • Give “talks on tap” at local pubs.
  • Write newspaper essays and stories.
  • Visit jails and hospitals.
  • Open the church doors to 12-step groups.
  • Train people who aren’t afraid and can welcome the nones and dones.

He suggested that our attitude ought to be like that expressed in the worlds of Emma Lazarus on the Statue of Liberty: “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore.  Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me.  I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

“Let’s look for some sinners.  Let’s go out to them,” concluded Father John, “for ‘The Lord stands at the door and knocks’” [Revelation 3:20].