Starting an Orthodox Prayer Group

 

Are you interested in Orthodoxy?

You are not alone. Each year the number of Western Christians finding a secure, stable and transforming life in Orthodoxy is growing. The British Orthodox Church is made up almost entirely of converts from a wide range of Christian backgrounds, other religions and no faith at all. We have all come together to find the fulness of the Christian life in Orthodoxy.

We are very glad that you have taken the time to visit our website and we hope that these resources will help you understand a little more of what Orthodoxy is all about, experience something of our spiritual life, and even discover how you can be a part of real Christianity for yourself.

Orthodoxy has so much to offer the modern world. It has a stability of faith and doctrine that rejects our preoccupation with the immediate. Orthodoxy does not change its moral base to reflect the mores of those around us, rather it demands that we ourselves be transformed day by day. So the practice of any form of homosexuality, or indeed the practice of heterosexuality outside marriage, is not condoned. There is no agitation for the ordination of women. The Bible remains the central pillar of Church teaching, and the traditional doctrines about Christ are vigorously defended. Our life in the Church has the aim of transforming us, we do not seek to make the Church merely reflect our own spiritual mediocrity.

If you have any questions then please make sure you ask them. We will do our very best to support your spiritual pilgrimage as best we can.

 

If you are interested enough in Orthodox Christianity to want to start moving towards becoming Orthodox then the journey begins with prayer. It will probably not be an easy journey because the enemy of our souls will constantly seek to put obstacles in your way.

Friends and family may misunderstand your motives for seeking Orthodoxy. Relationships with others may suffer. You may be considered slightly eccentric, or even disloyal.

So you need prayer. You need to be praying about your journey and you need to share your burden with others so that they can pray for you and with you. If you register an interest in receiving instruction with the British Orthodox Church you can be assured that we will be praying for you. Most of us have come to Orthodoxy from other Christian backgrounds and we experience that gratefulness for all we received in those various Christian groups, as well as the desire for something more that has led us to Orthodoxy and the British Orthodox Church.

Whether you are a lonely traveller at the moment, and know no-one else who has shown an interest in Orthodoxy, or whether you have a family and some friends who might be interested, then prayer is the necessary beginning.

If you have even just a couple of other people who might be interested in Orthodoxy then try to start an Orthodox Prayer Group. Praying Orthodox Prayers is an important step in starting to become Orthodox. The prayers that Orthodox Christians pray day by day have been the foundation of 1600 years or more of solid spiritual growth for untold millions of faithful believers.

Perhaps you could choose an evening a week, or each fortnight, or once a month, when you meet with others to pray the ancient daily prayers of the Orthodox Church. The British Orthodox Church can provide you with resources to start such a group. The tradition of prayer belongs to us all, whether Orthodox, Anglican, Roman Catholic, Methodist, Evangelical, indeed whatever our Christian background. We can all join in prayer and benefit from an increase in our devotion.

Nevertheless to pray Orthodox prayers is to start a slow process of learning to become Orthodox. The prayers are filled with an Orthodox attitude to God, the saints, to life and to sin.

If you can pray with others then you have the potential nucleus of a community which could become Orthodox together. if you are alone then allow us to pray with you and for you. But in all circumstances prayer is the beginning of this exciting journey.

A prayer group can develop into a study group. A single enquirer praying can become someone under instruction. But without prayer there is the danger that only our head is being engaged with Orthodox Christianity.

Why not use the form on the Enquirer Resources page to request either a book of prayers or our Starting a Prayer Group pack.

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