Journey Stories

It is a privilege to share our story with others; and, at the same time, it is daunting to reduce the events that have led us to Orthodoxy to a few words; but, we’ll try! By way of background, Patrick and I share a similar past. We were both raised Roman Catholic and attended 12 years of Catholic parochial school (he in Portland, OR; I in Santa Barbara, CA). We each have been married before; and, we each have three adult children (coincidentally, two girls and one boy). Also, we both have ... [Read more]

Looking back, I can see that the path that led me to Orthodoxy was one I started on when I was a child. My parents are wonderful, loving, Godfearing people, and they did everything within their power to raise me in a Christ-centered home and church family. I was raised United Methodist, and went to church with my family regularly while I lived with them in a small town outside of Corvallis. The church we attended since I was three-yearsold (and they still attend) followed a very traditional ... [Read more]

Despite a seven year enlistment in the Army, I have never been very good at getting in line; especially if the line isn’t moving. It is safe to say that I reject an overwhelming majority of ideas I hear. Sometimes that is based on the ideas themselves; sometimes it is based on who presents them. I suppose this is why I am so fortunate to have begun my journey to Orthodoxy in a somewhat anomalous community. God was very merciful to me in that regard. Growing up, I was not unfamiliar with ... [Read more]

Before the Glendi of 2011, the only exposure to the Orthodox Church I had had was from watching My Big Fat Greek Wedding. My mom had become Protestant in her teens, and my dad was raised Roman Catholic but converted to Protestantism in college. They had raised my three sisters and me in a strong Protestant home. We went to Cedar Mill Bible church every Sunday, my mom led a Bible study, and all of us daughters attended Protestant schools. My whole world was Protestant, and I had no idea there was ... [Read more]

Our journey to Orthodoxy began in Ethiopia long before we were born. Orthodoxy was passed on in our families (immediate and extended) from one generation to another for several decades, if not centuries. In fact, most of our friends, neighbors and classmates were also Orthodox Christians. History of Christianity in Ethiopia The earliest and best known reference to the introduction of Christianity in Ethiopia is in the New Testament (Acts 8:26-38) when Philip the Evangelist converted an ... [Read more]

My journey to Orthodoxy began when I was born to a Pentecostal family in Miami, Florida. I grew up faithfully attending fiery, revival-loving churches and believed that speaking in tongues and passing out in church were signs that you were in pretty good standing with God. But to my dismay, I couldn’t utter one word in the angelic languages, and I couldn’t bring myself to fake unconsciousness, even when everyone around me dropped like flies. So I accepted that I was a defective Pentecostal and ... [Read more]

I was born in Vancouver, Washington into a German/Irish family in 1943. When I was three-years-old, my father was inducted into the US Army. During his absence my mother began attending a small evangelical Quaker church. She faithfully took my older brother and me. Upon our father’s return this habit of regular church attendance was well-rooted and we continued to go as a family. My parents became pillars in the church and we attended nearly every service. Our lives were filled with church ... [Read more]

Here’s the scene: May 24, 1977 in Jamestown, New York at St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church. A priest prepares the church for a baptism. In just a few hours, another newly-illumined soul would join the ranks of the Orthodox by the denouncing of the devil, putting on of Christ, taking up the cross and receiving Holy Communion. She would be a small, four and half month old baby, bathed in oil and holy water and clothed in white garments. Her given name, as well as her baptismal name, is Sarah. So ... [Read more]

My wife, Jessie, and I became Orthodox Church on November 1, 2009. As we are about to celebrate the third anniversary of this wonderful event, it is a perfect time to reflect back on the journey that brought us here. This is not something either of us would have expected even up to a year before we first set foot in an Orthodox Church, but looking back it’s clear that God was guiding us home. When Jessie and I met in college, we hit it off right away because of our love of learning and our ... [Read more]