Orthodox Redneck☦️

If there are any Orthodox Farmers/Homesteaders/Ranchers who see this post please feel free tk reach out to me so we can network. Would enjoy having discussions pertaining to the initial development. Please feel free to share this post for further reach.

@NeaOpsis Ouch

@OrthoRedneck In a Muslim country 😂

Pearls next challenge should be at a Mosque. Same questions.

Pretty much every bit of this is my story. The exception being none of what I learned was able to keep me consistent. I spent countless hours on jail/prison bunks pouring over a strong's concordance, studying the KJB, NIV. ESB, etc. Anytime I tried to question the things I learned or their origins I got answers that were weak and insufficient or I was dismissed entirely.

"Twenty years ago, I met Christ in a jail cell. Some of my first real encounters with God happened behind bars. I had made a mess of my life I was involved in one of the most dangerous gangs in America, the Gangster Disciples and the Simon City Royals. My life was headed in a direction that ultimately leads many men and women to prison, addiction, violence, or the grave. Yet in the middle of that darkness, God reached into my life. One of the first books I ever read was Prison to Praise. It changed the way I viewed suffering, trials, and God’s presence in the midst of pain. From that point on, I became obsessed with learning about God. I read hundreds of Christian books. I listened to hundreds of sermons. I attended Bible studies. I consumed everything I could get my hands on. But as I’ve been journeying into Eastern Orthodoxy, a thought hit me the other day that I can’t shake. Out of the hundreds of books I read, almost every one was written through a denominational lens. One author taught Calvinism. Another taught Arminianism. One taught “faith alone” Another taught something different. One believed baptism was symbolic. Another believed it was essential. One taught eternal security. Another rejected it. Everyone claimed the Bible. Everyone quoted Scripture. Everyone believed they were right. What I didn’t realize at the time was that I wasn’t just learning Christianity I was learning hundreds of competing interpretations of Christianity. The more I read, the more voices filled my head. The more voices filled my head, the harder it became to know what Christianity actually was. Eventually I found myself asking a question that I should have asked years ago: If Christ established a Church, what did that Church believe before all these denominations existed? Not what a pastor in the 1500s believed. Not what a preacher on YouTube believes. Not what the latest bestselling author believes. What did the Christians closest to the Apostles believe? That question led me to Eastern Orthodoxy. And to be honest, part of me feels like I was never told the whole story. For twenty years I was taught to view Christianity through the lens of the Reformation. I was taught to distrust tradition, ignore the early Church, and believe that Christianity was essentially me, my Bible, and my interpretation. But the deeper I dug into history, the more I discovered that the early Christians didn’t think that way at all. I found a Church that existed before the New Testament was compiled. A Church filled with martyrs, saints, bishops, councils, sacraments, liturgy, and apostolic succession. A Church that has preserved the same faith through empires, persecutions, wars, and centuries of upheaval and martyrdom. This journey hasn’t made me love Jesus less. It’s made me love Him more. It hasn’t weakened my faith in Scripture. It’s shown me where Scripture came from. It hasn’t caused me to abandon Christianity. It’s caused me to discover its roots! I thank God for every person who helped lead me to Christ. I thank God for every lesson I learned along the way. But if I’m being completely honest, after twenty years of reading books about Christianity through denominational lenses, I finally started asking what the Christians who learned directly from the Apostles actually believed and taught. That question changed everything!" -- Jay, an Orthodox Christian

@WAmericanMale I haven't been given specific guidance regarding my online activities. This is why I'm trying to take a few steps back.

@OrthoRedneck Keep doing your thing and don't worry about haters or idiots online. If you're in the Truth and following the guidance of your spiritual father then don't worry about what people say.

Good grief maybe I should start putting a disclaimer on my post from now on. Something like... (These are personal views and opinions. I am a catechumen. I do not have the blessing of my priest to enter into apologetic discourse) Kyrie, eleison.

@WAmericanMale Indeed and I'm guilty of being chronically online. It's definitely contributed to my heedlessness.

@OrthoRedneck Right yeah I got you. Online isn't the church. In reality we all need to follow what our bishop or priest says. Its hard not to be zealous online because the online world is actively shaping the world's mind and that's a scary thing 😂

@MrsMagdaBeard So now im curious is it the AYCE chicken that exorcises the demons or is that something else entirely.

@OrthoRedneck Right??

Some of you need this.

@Food4Salvation @LowStudies Thank you for your kind words.

@LowStudies @OrthoRedneck I'm not sure what this means as I haven't researched Orthodoxy much, but I'm happy for your happiness brother. May you continue to show people the truth with kindness and recover many lost sheep for the Lord's flock.

@WAmericanMale I can understand thst to an extent but I don't feel that's not my place currently. If I feel attacked of course I'll defend myself but I'm not going out of my way to engage.

@OrthoRedneck The church needs young men with zeal. Many cradle Orthodox are comfortable and don't want any feathers ruffled. Spiritual warfare is real and intense and speaking Truth brings you very few friends.

@MrsMagdaBeard Truer words never spoken.

@OrthoRedneck Your best bet is to remove the cross and not make your account about orthodoxy. I stupidly did the same thing years ago when I was new to the faith and there is nothing edifying for an Orthodox Christian on Twitter.

@hill_marku47259 Not here to "cook" anyone.

@OrthoRedneck Anytime you cook somebody, they just go "shut up catechumen!" bc it's all they have

@CovenantReform2 @The_LFB The irony

@The_LFB @OrthoRedneck You don't follow the teachings of the early church. I have the actual teachings of the early church. All you have is desperate attempts to distract.

Protestantism taught me who Jesus is. Orthodoxy has shown me what was missing.

@Dusan_Bara Far from it tbh. Our property is heavily wooded and our jobs take us away from home for long periods. It'll come in time I'm sure.

@OrthoRedneck Oh man, I wish!! That’s incredible brother you’re already doing it then! Don’t stress yourself, let it happen organically at Gods timing. That’s incredible. I know you’ll be successful by the Grace of God.

Lord have Mercy on me. My apologies for getting folks riled up.

@MrsMagdaBeard Ya I try not to but it's hard when I feel like I'm being personally attacked. Being called all the typical slurs, idolater etc. and told I joined a cult.

@OrthoRedneck You're a catechumen. It's best that you don't give any opinions on the church for now.

@Dusan_Bara We jumped into 17 acres right before C-19. It's been a process to say the least still a lot of clearing to do.

@OrthoRedneck I wanted 4-5 to start, and an older house to fix up. Ended up going with an acre with like 1 year old house because of some factors. 200amp service, neighbours with land that can sever and sell to us, and space for the family to grow. Custom home builder built for his son

@CovenantReform2 @The_LFB

@OrthoRedneck @The_LFB You became an idolater because you chose to suppress the truth in your quest for unrighteousness (Romans 1:18ff). You choose to bow to idols and lie about being innocent "veneration of icons" because you didn't believe in Jesus but wanted to believe in a self-serving sect.

@CovenantReform2 @The_LFB You won't cite where it says anything specific about infant baptism because it isn’t in there simple as that. It also speaks about fasting and confession as practiced by the Orthodox. Are you committing to those practices as well?

@OrthoRedneck @The_LFB You don't follow the teachings of the early church. I have the actual teachings of the early church. All you have is desperate attempts to distract. You're lying about the Didache because you don't follow it either. It gives instructions for all baptisms.

The burden of proof lies with you sir, you're the one citing it. Your hubris and pride and the very reason I left protestantism. You're condemning and persecuting not only current Orthodox but all those who came before. I'm not seeking to suppress anything just pointing out the flaws in your talking points. As you claim you have the teachings but yet you refuse to follow them.

@OrthoRedneck @The_LFB Why don't you look it up yourself? Of course, as an idolater, you don't care what the truth is. You're seeking to suppress the truth in your quest for unrighteousness (Romans 1:18ff). That's why you go to an idolatrous sect that lies about history.

@CovenantReform2 @The_LFB Ok fdoes this mean you will be accepting their other teachings now as well. Will you be baptizing infants and not only participating in the Eucharist but accept the belief that it is is the literal Body and Blood of Christ?

@OrthoRedneck @The_LFB The issue is that *YOU* do not believe in the teachings of the church fathers who strictly prohibited icons. Only idolaters try to claim that Epiphanius wasn't opposed to icons. You're repeating the lies of your self-serving, idolatrous sect.

@Dusan_Bara I feel ya I need much prayer trying to get my farm growing into a profitable endeavor. Need a new home, capital, bussiness plan, etc etc. Would like to start with a couple acres at first and grow from there.

@OrthoRedneck Thanks brother. Working on our inground beds next. Currently trying to suffocate all the grass slowly to avoid tilling 🫡