[From The Church Next Door: Local Christians Face America’s New Religious Diversity, draft manuscript by Dr. Paul D. Numrich. Please do not quote or cite without author’s permission.]

Chapter 10: Looking Back, Looking Ahead, and Looking into the Eyes of Others: The Orthodox Christian Experience

[figure approx. here: photo of Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras]

The Orthodox Christian presence in the United States dates back to 18^th-century Alaska and increased significantly with the influx of Russian, Greek, and other ethnic Orthodox groups during the heyday of classical American immigration in the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries. Even so, Orthodox Christianity’s contributions to American religious life have been largely ignored, as evidenced by the title of Will Herberg’s acclaimed work in the 1950s, Protestant-Catholic-Jew. Scholar Charles Moskos recently observed that Orthodox Christianity’s “persistent efforts to be recognized as the ‘fourth faith’ of the United States” have not succeeded.

The Orthodox Christian experience illuminates the topic at hand in important ways. As one of our interviewees, The Very Rev. Archimandrite Demetri Kantzavelos, Chancellor of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Chicago, pointed out in our first conversation with him, western Christians in the United States think the issue of inter-religious relations is something new, but many eastern Christians have lived as minorities in the Old World for centuries. The lessons they have learned about religious diversity deserve a hearing by all Christians.

Where shall we begin in giving a brief overview of Orthodox Christian history and inter-religious relations? Orthodox Christians themselves begin with the beginning of the Christian Church at the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles at Pentecost. When the Emperor Constantine, in the early 4^th century, established Christianity as the official religion of the Roman Empire and Byzantium (renamed Constantinople) as its capital, eastern Christianity embarked upon a different evolutionary trajectory in worship, doctrine, authority, and polity than western Christianity centered in Rome. The two eventually split in the Middle Ages for both religious and non-religious reasons, the sack of Constantinople by western Crusaders in 1204 marking the culmination of the schism.

The geographical spread of Islam, beginning in the 7^th century, affected Orthodox Christianity more immediately than western Christianity. Islamic rule was established in the Middle East, Asia Minor (Constantinople fell in 1453), and parts of southern Europe. Christian communities were legally protected by their Islamic rulers in deference to their religious status as “People of the Book” (along with Jews), but they were accorded second-class social and political status. Even so, Orthodox Christianity fared relatively well under Islam according to some measures. As Orthodox historian Timothy Ware writes, “The [Muslims] in the fifteenth century were far more tolerant towards Christianity than western Christians were towards one another during the Reformation and the seventeenth century.” (Recall, also, the sack of Orthodox Constantinople by western Crusaders in the 13^th century.)

Orthodox communities continue to this day in predominantly Muslim lands, for instance in and around the Holy Land. The Patriarchate of Constantinople, which enjoys a special prestige among the various autocephalous (self-governing) Orthodox Churches, is still located in Istanbul, Turkey, ancient Constantinople. The accompanying sidebar shows Orthodox Christianity’s geographical and cultural spread today.

The autocephalous (self-governing) Churches of Orthodox Christianity:

The four ancient Patriarchates:

W Church of Constantinople, seat of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Orthodoxy

W Church of Alexandria

W Church of Antioch

W Church of Jerusalem

The other autocephalous Churches:

W Church of Russia

W Church of Georgia

W Church of Serbia

W Church of Romania

W Church of Bulgaria

W Church of Cyprus

W Church of Greece

W Church of Albania

W Church of Poland

W Church of Czech Lands and Slovakia

W Orthodox Church in America

[www.oca.org/pages/orth_chri/Orthodox-Churches]

When it comes to inter-religious relations, Orthodox Christianity draws from its past yet also looks beyond it to see what that experience may offer for the future, as intimated by noted Orthodox scholar, Fr. Alexander Schmemann, who came to America in the early 1900s: “The true orthodox way of thought has always been historical, has always included the past, but has never been enslaved by it.”

This sentiment was echoed by Fr. Elias Bouboutsis, a Greek Orthodox scholar and faculty member at DePaul University in Chicago. The Orthodox past has generated “very strong emotional ties,” Fr. Elias explained, “some of which are healthy, some of which are toxic—like nationalism, which is the primary toxin in the Orthodox community today.” Such nationalistic Orthodoxy has contributed to numerous inter-religious and inter-ethnic conflicts (it is difficult to separate “religion” and “ethnicity” in these contexts), like those between Orthodox Greeks and Muslim Turks or between Orthodox Serbs and Muslim Bosnians.

Fr. Elias has both Orthodox Christian and Muslim students who show little patience with the hatreds of the past. When they study their intersecting histories, these students, who are active in their respective local parishes and mosques, ask, “Why do my parents hate so much?” From such questions, Fr. Elias concludes, “I think things are getting much better. I think this generation is just tired of it and doesn’t want it any more.”

When we asked him to summarize his own views about the Orthodox Christian approach to other religions, Fr. Elias offered the notion of “reclaiming our history and disarming our history at the same time.” So often in Orthodox history, the issue has been one of survival as a minority group, but he sees a promising movement “from survival to discovery.” Encounters that began in conflict carry the potential for redemptive mutual understanding. Like the relationship between Greeks and Turks, whose respective cultures are “mirror images of the Aegean,” as Fr. Elias put it. These two groups are entering into a period of redemptive discovery now in their homelands, as well as in Chicago.

Fr. Elias was referring to dialogues between the two local communities that began in conflict on the pages of the Chicago Tribune. Fr. Demetri Kantzavelos of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Chicago (mentioned at the outset of this chapter) wrote a letter to the editor in March of 2003 criticizing a story on ABC-TV’s “Good Morning America” program. The story featured the culture and history of Istanbul as a backdrop to American efforts to use Turkey as a base of operations for the invasion of neighboring Iraq.

“They completely ignored the Orthodox history,” Fr. Demetri explained to us. “They completely forgot to mention that it was called Constantinople when it was founded. They didn’t say who founded it. They didn’t even mention the [Orthodox] ecumenical base structure that was there. It was the equivalent of going to Rome and not mentioning the Vatican.” For Orthodox Christians worldwide who consider the area that is modern Turkey their ancestral ethnic and/or religious homeland, the program was “offensive,” Fr. Demetri wrote in his letter to the Tribune. In effect, “Good Morning America” had “dismiss[ed] the sensitivities of millions of people here and abroad by repeating politically revised history.”

A week later, the Tribune published a response to Fr. Demetri written by Mr. Mehmet Celebi, President of the local Turkish American Cultural Alliance and Vice-President of the Midwest branch of the Assembly of Turkish American Associations. “Kantzavelos is still living in a dream that the Greek Empire will once again rise,” wrote Mr. Celebi. He continued: “Nobody in Turkey today denies the existence of the greatness of the civilizations that once existed in what is Turkey today. . . . Turkey has been and is a country comprising many cultures, ethnic groups and religions. Contrary to Kantzavelos’ claim, it was the great tolerance and understanding of different religions and cultures that allowed the [Muslim] Ottoman Empire to prosper and rule over 40 different ethnic groups for 700 years.” Mr. Celebi concluded his letter with some advice for Fr. Demetri and other religious leaders: “With all due respect, I urge Kantzavelos to stick to the teaching of religion and tolerance and discourage hatred and division. America and the world can only survive with the promotion of tolerance, understanding and peace. And the religious leaders of the world have a great role to play, especially in these critical times.”

Mr. Celebi shared with us some of his motivations for writing this response to Fr. Demetri’s letter. “Greeks have been here [in the US] for at least 150 years. . . . So they grew up part of the system. We have very prominent Greek Americans—senators, congressmen, judges, etc., etc., a vice-presidential candidate, a presidential candidate. And our [Turkish-American] aspiration has always been for us to reach a level playing field, so we can become ourselves.”

On his part, Fr. Demetri was taken aback by Mr. Celebi’s letter. He immediately called Rev. Stanley Davis, Jr., Executive Director of the Chicago and Northern Illinois Region of the National Conference for Community and Justice (formerly the National Conference of Christians and Jews), saying, “Stan, you have to find this man. I have to meet with him. He totally misunderstood me.” It took a few months, but Rev. Davis finally put them in touch with each other.

“This was a good opportunity when Fr. Demetri contacted me,” Mr. Celebi told us. “I said I was always open to this kind of dialogue, and I would love the opportunity to sit down and speak with him and any other way we can improve things. . . . . We hit it off pretty good, actually. Since then we’ve become very good friends—I can always call him and he calls me.”

Fr. Demetri recalled that initial phone conversation. “I started by saying that I’d like to talk about what we can do as communities to get past this in our history, to see if we can get together. I wanted to talk about the letters. He said, ‘I want to talk about the letters.’ . . . So then a series of meetings happened and we became great friends. And now we’re doing all sorts of work together to try to build bridges of understanding between our communities, because historically we’ve been at odds.” That has been the pattern of inter-religious relations in Chicago, according to Fr. Demetri: “an event, or something triggers a response, and we begin relations. It’s always issue oriented.”

An important example of bridge building of understanding between the Greek and Turkish communities of Chicago took place at the 2003 Dialog Dinner. This annual event, sponsored by Niagara Educational Services, an organization inspired by the life and work of Turkish philosopher and spiritual teacher, M. Fethullah Gulen, doubled as both an inter-religious gathering and a Muslim Iftar dinner, the daily breaking of the fast during the sacred month of Ramadan. Fr. Demetri, the first Greek Orthodox speaker ever invited to this event, apologized to the other faith traditions represented in the audience for his intention to address the historic Greek-Turkish relationship: “the Greek Orthodox and Turkish Muslim communities share a unique past; hence, I focus this evening on the complex, and, at times, painful history that Orthodox Christianity and Islam, Greece and Turkey have suffered and shared.”

Fr. Demetri continued: “I, a Greek Orthodox priest, one born in the United States, whose spiritual ties are to that great city on the shores of the Bosphorus [Istanbul/Constantinople], stand before a primarily Turkish audience, an honored guest at a table laden with the true food of human being—of human existence: understanding, mutual respect and hope.” Reflecting on their interwoven past as Orthodox Christian Greeks and Muslim Turks, Fr. Demetri suggested that “What we did not understand was that we were suffering together. In retrospect (and likely into the future), our shared history contains hope for our shared destiny.” Their proximity in America offered both communities a promising opportunity. “Time and the tides of numerous historical fortunes have brought us to this moment. We find ourselves here this evening in the United States. And we are together at this moment in ways that could have only occurred because of this culture’s strengths. Imagine what this gathering might mean to our ancestors if they were to see our presence here this evening! Turks and Greeks together, sharing freedom, sharing a meal, sharing most importantly, hope for a still better future.”

The Orthodox community in Chicago has been active for many years in both ecumenical Christian and inter-religious circles. The Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Chicago has taken the lead in this, for instance working closely with the National Conference for Community and Justice, the Council of Religious Leaders of Metropolitan Chicago, the American Jewish Committee, and the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago, in addition to supplying a host committee for the 1993 Parliament of the World’s Religions (see the Introduction). In the tense atmosphere immediately following the events of September 11, 2001, the Greek Orthodox Metropolis collaborated with the local Sikh and Muslim communities in preparing a training video on airport security for the Chicago Police Department. Such efforts are rooted in deeply held values of Orthodox Christianity.

Statement from the Orthodox Christian community of Chicago:

The world community of Orthodox Churches (numbering over 250,000,000) has been an active participant in the ecumenical movement since its beginnings. Their leaders have for decades demonstrated a deep commitment to dialogues of truth and love, valuing respect, honesty, and cooperation among the followers of all religions. Embracing the ethos of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, the Orthodox seek to grow in understanding of different faith traditions as a first step toward fulfilling Christ’s own prayer, “That they may all be one.” (John 17:21)

[2006 InterFaith Calendar, published by the National Conference for Community and Justice of Chicago and Greater Illinois]

In his address at the 2003 Dialog Dinner, Fr. Demetri said, “My friends, tonight we have an opportunity to look at each other in a unique and intense way, and seeing one another in truth and love, we may yet see ourselves in the other.” He went on to quote a favorite phrase of Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras, who held the honored throne of the Patriarchate of Constantinople from 1948 to 1972, a tireless proponent of Christian ecumenical and inter-religious dialogue and harmony: “Come let us look into one another’s eyes.” Fr. Demetri elaborated with a lesson on the Greek language: “We know that we exist as people—the word I want to use is ‘persons.’ We know that we are persons because of other persons.” The Greek roots of the word “person” include the word for side or face. “So, a person is a person when he or she comes face-to-face with another person.” The same holds for peoples, that is, collective persons. When they encounter each other face-to-face, looking into one another’s eyes, they can discover their full humanity together.

“There’s an ancient authenticity that we proclaim, based on church values and history,” Fr. Demetri said of Orthodox Christianity. “It sounds so fresh and new—and so modern, which I think is great. But it’s also timeless.”

For More Information

Will Herberg’s acclaimed, though flawed, portrait of the mid-20^th century American religious landscape is entitled Protestant-Catholic-Jew: An Essay in American Religious Sociology (Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1955). In a footnote, Herberg logs the lament of Orthodox Christians that they are the forgotten Fourth Great Faith of America. On this, see Charles C. Moskos, Jr., “The Greek Orthodox Church in America,” in Reading Greek America: Studies in the Experience of Greeks in the United States, ed. Spyros D. Orfanos (New York: Pella Publishing Co., 2002).

A “History of the Orthodox Church,” by Aristeides Papadakis, is available on the Web site of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, www.goarch.org/en/ourfaith/articles/article7053.asp. Also available on this Web site is the article, “An Orthodox Reflection on Truth & Tolerance,” by Rev. Dr. George C. Papademetriou, www.goarch.org/en/ourfaith/articles/article8075.asp. Comprehensive scholarly books on Orthodox Christianity include Timothy Ware, The Orthodox Church (New York: Penguin Books, 1980), Kallistos Ware, The Orthodox Way (Crestwood, NY: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 1995), and Jaroslav Pelikan, The Spirit of Eastern Christendom (600-1700) (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1977).

The Orthodox Church in America represents Russian, Romanian, Albanian, and Bulgarian Orthodox churches in the United States (P.O. Box 675, Syosset, NY 11791-0675, phone 516-922-0550, email info@oca.org, Web site www.oca.org). The Web site for the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America is www.goarch.org; the contact information for the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Chicago, where Fr. Demetri Kantzavelos serves as Chancellor, is 40 East Burton Place, Chicago, IL 60610-1697, phone 312-337-4130.

A transcript of the address given by Fr. Demetri Kantzavelos at the 2003 Dialog Dinner is available on the Web site of Zaman Online: First Turkish Paper on the Internet, www.zaman.com/?bl=showcase&alt=&hn=4511. Fr. Demetri supplied us with a printed copy of the address. For information about M. Fethullah Gulen, the Turkish philosopher and spiritual teacher cited by Fr. Demetri in his talk, go to www.fethullahgulen.org. The contact information for the Turkish American Cultural Alliance, where Mr. Mehmet Celebi serves as President, is P.O. Box 5533, Chicago, IL 60680, phone 773-725-3655, email info@tacaonline.org, Web site www.tacaonline.org.

The contact information for the National Conference for Community and Justice is 475 Park Avenue S., 19^th floor, New York, NY 10016, phone 212-545-1300, Web site www.nccj.org. The Chicago and Northern Illinois Region of the NCCJ can be reached at 27 E. Monroe Street, Suite 400, Chicago, IL 60603, phone 312-236-9272 or 800-311-9823, email chicago@nccj.org, Web site www.nccj-chicago.org.

For Discussion

1. In his address at the Dialog Dinner, Fr. Demetri Kantzavelos, Chancellor of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Chicago, quoted these words from Turkish philosopher and spiritual teacher, M. Fethullah Gulen: “Negative feelings and attributes often defeat people, pulling them under their domination to such an extent that even the religions that guide people to goodness and kindness are abused, as well as the feelings and attributes that are sources of absolute good.” Discuss the role of the religions in both combating and contributing to the “negative feelings and attributes” that often defeat individuals and groups.
2. In his address, Fr. Demetri spoke directly to the Greek Orthodox and Turkish Muslim communities in Chicago. Reflect on his words: “We find ourselves here this evening in the United States. And we are together at this moment in ways that could have only occurred because of this culture’s strengths. Imagine what this gathering might mean to our ancestors if they were to see our presence here this evening!” What strengths are found in American culture that can help to overcome historical tensions among ethnic and religious groups?
3. If you are not an Orthodox Christian, what did you know about Orthodox Christianity before reading this chapter? Summarize Orthodoxy’s perspectives on non-Christian religions that other Christians might fruitfully consider. Peruse the Orthodox Web sites listed under “For More Information” above for examples of the “ancient authenticity that we proclaim, based on church values and history,” as Fr. Demetri put it. In what ways might Orthodoxy sound fresh, new, modern, and yet timeless?
4. One of our interviewees complained about Christian groups that do not recognize the validity of Orthodox Christianity. “They do not even consider us Christians,” he told us. “We’re pagans, we’re some weird thing, and we don’t count in their calculus. There’s an Orthodox Church of Iraq that’s 2000 years old, and they’re sending people over there to evangelize them.” Discuss the ways in which Christians define the boundaries of the Christian faith, thus defining non-Christian “others.” Where do you draw the boundaries, and how do you approach the “others” outside those boundaries?
5. Recall the Orthodox Christian delegation’s withdrawal from the 1993 Parliament of the World’s Religions in protest over the presence of groups “which profess no belief in God or a supreme being” and “certain quasi-religious groups with which Orthodox Christians share no common ground” (see Introduction). Discuss that decision in light of this chapter.

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