Moderator: Mark Templet
I am interested in some suggestions about drawing traditional Hispanic Catholics to Orthodoxy. Our area has become very Hispanic in the last 10 years. Mexicans are the primary Spanish speaking people in our area.
I am particulary interested in Suggestions from people from Spanish Speaking countries, Like Father Siluan.
How do you approach these people with the message of traditional Orthodoxy? The Roman Catholic Church seems very jealous of its parishioners....
Thanks in advance
-James
All Saints of America Orthodox Mission, Located in Dequeen Arkansas. The Mission strives to provide a welcoming community, in a quiet country setting, where individual members can work out their salvation and serve as a witness to the Orthodox Faith.
http://www.allsaintsofamerica.com/
First of all my people are very close to the Mother of God, i suggest you start holding an Akathist to the mother of God and invite them to come and part take of the blessing that it is to Hymn to the Mother of God, and not just light candles and bring her flowers as we are acustomed too(in the latin church)...but my family is scared because they think the Orthodox church is like a Jewish place and against God...they need to be allowed to come attend and see for thereself the Love and Truth that the Orthodox church has... so if you have a good and sizeable Icon of the mother of God, that would be goo-if not, then its time to get one and she will Bring them in one by one...
Oh most Holy Theotokos Have mercy on us and Save us all...
First, and Last, and Always
in CHRIST
I would suggest The Icon "It is Truely Meet" a most beautiful detail and a written Icon that speaks for itself and connected to such miracles and antiquity and it wont scare a latin Church person attendee, please remember it isnt the latin church they are connected too , its God and the mother of God and the Saints that they are connected too, you show them that, which is our ORthodox church and they wont want to leave...
First, and Last, and Always
in CHRIST
Thanks Spiridon. These sound like good suggestions.....
All Saints of America Orthodox Mission, Located in Dequeen Arkansas. The Mission strives to provide a welcoming community, in a quiet country setting, where individual members can work out their salvation and serve as a witness to the Orthodox Faith.
http://www.allsaintsofamerica.com/
Argentina is a very different country to Mexico, the Mexicans are much more pius that the Argentineans, the idiosincracy in Argentina is less religious and more European and lay, consequently here the Roman Catholic Church is more and more small and it only maintains a political power, most of the Roman Catholics are it "socially" but they don't practice their religion actively, then they are baptized and they marry as a social event but the churches on Sundays are more and more empty.
As you could see, this way there are not many Traditionalist Roman Catholics here and it is worse because it is much worse to try with disinterested people for the religion than with mistaken but religious people as it is the case of Mexico.
In the case of Mexican people, I believe that the Orthodoxy could be very successful among them, because people traditionalist Roman Catholic should be enough tired of the Roman Catholic modernism and we should take advantage of the things that we have in common to attract to us as Spiridon said and as Staretz Silouan of the Mount Athos recommended to a Bishop that preached among the Roman Catholic. only saying that they were mistaken, but Staretz Silouan told him "Do they believe in the All-Holly Mother of God and the Saints?, on here you should begin"
