For the past few years, I (Christian) have observed online discussions about how more and more evangelicals, especially young evangelical men, are becoming interested in Eastern Orthodoxy. At first, I dismissed that trend as another example of how social media algorithms have a way of connecting and amplifying isolated events, giving a false sense of a mass movement. However, my perspective suddenly shifted when, in three unrelated instances, young people at my local church came to me expressing either concern about or explicit interest in Eastern Orthodoxy and its claims.
Now, as I speak to pastors and ministry leaders across my city and online networks, I must concede that Eastern Orthodoxy does indeed represent a significant challenge to North American evangelicalism. Yet, this significant challenge is limited in scope. Allow me to explain.
A Limited But Significant Challenge
Unlike Islam, Eastern Orthodoxy is not associated with any major demographic shift. Unless something changes, we should not expect entire neighbourhoods in major cities across Canada to become Eastern Orthodox (EO) majority due to immigration and higher birth rates. We should likewise not expect Eastern Orthodoxy to catch the attention of the majority of people in our pews. Unlike agnosticism, nominalism, or theological liberalism, Eastern Orthodoxy has little to offer those seeking conformity with Canada’s still-prevailing secular culture or the path of least resistance in matters of faith.
However, the challenge of Eastern Orthodoxy is truly significant for certain kinds of Christians. First, there are those who are prone to believe and be worried by narratives about Western decadence, Protestant ahistoricity, or modern evangelicalism’s laxity. To these, Eastern Orthodoxy offers a clear, rigorous alternative. Second, for those who are intrigued by church history and the need for Christian continuity with the early church, yet are skeptical of sweeping, inflexible claims, Eastern Orthodoxy simultaneously promises the antiquity and continuity of Roman Catholicism without the most obvious dogmatic flaws (e.g. the Papacy). Lastly, for Christians who crave theological novelty and spiritual displays yet know they can’t do away with Jesus or the Bible, Eastern Orthodoxy represents something exciting and new without giving up the central aspects of Christianity.
Bringing these two considerations together, we arrive at the reality many evangelical church leaders, myself included, face: Eastern Orthodoxy often appeals to specific, theological-minded individuals in evangelical churches. Here’s the significance of the challenge: The same young evangelicals who you might expect to one day lead a bible study, who can see through the claims of Roman Catholicism, who are excited to dig into doctrine and church history, who want to confront and prophetically speak to the prevailing culture, are emerging as the demographic most likely to be drawn towards Eastern Orthodoxy. The danger is not that Eastern Orthodoxy will take over evangelical churches or communities; rather, the danger is that it will shake or poach some of our most theologically-minded young evangelicals with leadership potential.
How Did We Get Here?
To understand how and why many church leaders now find themselves confronted by church members interacting with Eastern Orthodoxy, we ought to consider two foundational questions: (1) How are these church members encountering Eastern Orthodoxy? (2) Why are some of them finding it compelling?
As one might expect, the answer to that first question is rather simple: social media. A recent New York Times article summarized this trend well: “[A] homegrown Orthodox Christianity is strikingly emergent. Many of the young Americans new to the pews have been introduced to Orthodoxy by hard-edge influencers on YouTube and other social media platforms. Critics call the enthusiastic young converts ‘Orthobros.’”
While the author is speaking in the American context, given the nature of the internet, her description aligns with what I and others have seen in Canada. Evangelicals, especially young men, are largely encountering Eastern Orthodoxy through social media influencers or in person from peers who have been converted by those same online voices. This point is critical to appreciate. In many, if not most, cases, the point of first contact with Eastern Orthodoxy is not through familial or cultural connections, campus ministries, or even the sermons or teachings of ordained EO clergy. Rather, the primary point of contact is typically EO laypeople who have built platforms on Instagram and YouTube as “internet apologists”. In the rare instances when those online voices are ordained EO clergy, they’re often clergy who lean into right-wing internet culture.
After recognizing where evangelicals encounter EO thought, many of the pieces fall into place, explaining why some find their claims so compelling. Here, it’s helpful to distinguish between two groups of young evangelicals.
On the one hand, there are those who are looking to be convinced. For example, if you are that young man specifically going online to consume content on the decline of Western civilization, the feminization of evangelical churches, and the need for transcendent authority and ancient wisdom, the rhetoric of EO influencers will already be right up your alley. Similarly, if you’re that young evangelical who is frustrated with or tired of evangelicalism’s familiarity and desires something “deeper,” Eastern Orthodoxy advertises itself as exactly that. For the young evangelical seeking something new and more, Eastern Orthodoxy seemingly offers both ancient practice and novel Eastern spirituality. Basically, many evangelicals find Eastern Orthodoxy compelling because it offers exactly what they’re looking for, whether rugged masculinity or a novel spirituality. In my experience, this group of evangelical-to-EO inquirers or converts are often unified by their lack of meaningful engagement with their local church and its leadership.
On the other hand, many evangelicals who later found Eastern Orthodoxy compelling did not first encounter it as someone eager to be convinced. In many cases, especially among young evangelicals who are active in their local church life, encountering Eastern Orthodoxy is not an intentional choice. Whether it was offered up by their social media algorithm or through a friend, many evangelicals who may encounter Eastern Orthodoxy have no personal desire to convert, but find themselves compelled (or, more accurately, overwhelmed) by its historical and theological claims. Why do these well-meaning evangelicals struggle with Eastern Orthodoxy?
Why Evangelicals Are Drawn To Orthodoxy
Without getting into specific claims, I have observed or heard of three realities that make Eastern Orthodoxy, especially as presented by social media influencers, hard for evangelicals to grapple with and promptly dismiss: the content, the presentation, and the social pressure.
The content: The bread and butter of EO apologetics online is a focus on its continuity with the early Church. If you’re an evangelical who is finding out for the first time that the early church spoke of its leadership in terms of priests and bishops, and that church fathers spoke of sacraments and councils, you may be in for a massive shock. The large chunk of EO content will be claiming that their church looks exactly like the early church. A well-meaning evangelical may then be left to wonder: If my evangelical church claims to follow apostolic teaching, why does it look so different from generations of Christian churches that followed right after the apostles themselves?
The presentation: As many have pointed out, reformational and evangelical Protestants have a plethora of high-quality responses to the above challenge, both old and new. Yet, well-meaning evangelicals are quite commonly led astray by EO presentations. First, when critiquing Protestantism, EO influencers tend to showcase and critique its weakest expressions, of which there is no shortage. If an evangelical doesn’t do their research, they’re liable to think Protestantism is indeed weak and without answer. Second, there’s the reality that EO presentations are selective and carefully crafted. I have interacted with more than one evangelical strongly considering Eastern Orthodoxy due to its traditional values and unity, who had no idea that an Eastern Orthodox archbishop baptized the children of a same-sex couple, causing major internal drama and scandal. Third, we ought to recognize that many EO social media influencers are themselves former evangelical Protestants. Not only are EO social media influencers especially motivated to win converts (this is quite literally their job), they also know exactly what buttons to press and how to press them to shake the faith of evangelicals.
The social pressure: This might be a surprise for many evangelicals to hear, but if you get all your religious news through Gen-Z social media, you would be inclined to believe that evangelicalism is on the verge of collapse while Eastern Orthodoxy is utterly ascendant. While the actual numbers show a different picture, EO social media is rife with triumphalism: blasting conversion stories, vicariously asserting EO growth, and constantly harping on the supposed inevitable decline of Protestantism. We should not dismiss the pressure this places on young evangelicals and the anxiety it might evoke, as they are simultaneously bombarded by historical and theological arguments they’ve hardly encountered before.
So, in light of Eastern Orthodoxy’s limited yet truly significant challenge, how can evangelicals respond? I’ll turn things over to Scott to unpack how evangelical pastors can prepare and present themselves as shepherds to evangelicals encountering and struggling with Eastern Orthodoxy.
Preparing For Conversations About Eastern Orthodoxy
A phrase often tossed around in evangelical circles says something like this, “I’m not concerned with what Augustine/Aquinas/Anselm taught; I’m concerned about the Bible.” Perhaps it’s an honest attempt to submit everything under the authority of Scripture. But mostly it comes across as a naive dismissal of church history, signalling to people in our churches considering Eastern Orthodoxy that their questions will be dismissed by us in the same way.
Trust is one of the most important elements of pastoral ministry (1 Tim 3:7). How do we build trust and signal that someone can come to us without being dismissed for questioning evangelical Protestantism?
Three Ways To Build Trust
First, we must know our own tradition. An accusation that too often rings true is that evangelicals are disconnected from and not theologically interested in church history before Martin Luther. By contrast, Eastern Orthodoxy claims ancient roots; a theological and ecclesiological continuity with the NT apostles. As a Baptist pastor, if I’m clueless about Baptist origins, it will be hard for someone in my church to trust me when I challenge EO historical claims. Realizing that even Baptists have held a high view of the sacraments eases the shock from someone’s first exposure to church history.
Second, we must become familiar with Eastern Orthodoxy. You don’t have to become an expert, but asking the right questions requires you to learn what the key issues are. For example, what is the dogmatic function of the Orthodox hymnody and liturgy? What is the official doctrine of Mary? How do icons function in the spiritual life of believers? How binding are the “anathemas” of Nicaea II against those who do not venerate icons today? Does the structure and nature of church authority in EO serve or stifle reform and renewal? Conversation around these key questions pushes us deeper than the vibes and vague desires for a more re-enchanted church experience.
Third, we should adorn our preaching with the church fathers. Preachers who handle the Bible well in preaching build trust. As the primary public ministry of the Word, it not only teaches and heralds the gospel, but publicly shows your church how you deal with specific issues and questions.
Preaching adorned with fitting illustrations, applications, and engagement with cultural and historical figures shows a care for rightly applying Scripture to the real questions and issues weighing on people in the pews. If you never reference the church fathers, besides Augustine, it may present an obstacle for the young man in your church who is overwhelmed by Eastern Orthodox YouTube apologists, reinforcing the claim that evangelicals are disconnected from the historical church. Conversing with the fathers in sermon preparation and engaging with them in preaching is good for you and your church.
For example, Advent sermons are a fitting time to address Mariology. At some point in a sermon, ask how Mary was deemed worthy to bear the Son of God. According to EO dogma, she was without sin and had lived in the holy of holies in the Temple from age three. While confronting this with the biblical text, you can also show how this kind of veneration for Mary is entirely foreign to the church fathers. Speaking of Jesus’s conception, Cyril of Jerusalem says, “Immaculate and undefiled was His generation: for where the Holy Spirit breathes, there all pollution is taken away” (Catechetical Lectures, 12.32). Mary is sanctified by the Holy Spirit for conceiving Christ. She is not chosen to be the “mother of God” because she is sinless.
A second question could be about Mary’s role in redemption. Here, a pastor can allude to the conception of Mary articulated by Gregory Palamas, as our representative who draws us to God “that He might remove the curse from among us” (Gregory Palamas, Homily 53, “On the Entry of the Theotokos into the Holy of Holies II”). If Mary does this, why do we need Jesus? This salvific agency is not just uncommon in the church fathers; it is utterly foreign. Even in the high Mariology of Irenaeus—who interprets Mary typologically as a recapitulation of Eve—he is careful not to conflate Mary’s role with Jesus’s. Mary’s historical and instrumental role in bringing the saviour into the world does not replace Jesus alone as the principal cause of salvation (see Irenaeus, Against Heresies, 3.22.3-4). Mary does not represent us before God. She is a passive recipient of grace who responds with faithful obedience. The correction for shallow views of Mary is not the veneration dogmatically required by Eastern Orthodoxy.
This kind of engagement with the fathers can build trust by signalling your awareness of the primary sources and that such questions are not out of bounds. A well-meaning believer wrestling with EO is more likely to trust their pastor if they know questions will not be brushed aside with an answer like, “We don’t need the fathers; we read the Bible.”
At the end of the day, the most important way to build trust and signal that you are approachable on these questions depends on your response when someone approaches you. In other words, be a pastor! The conversations you will have are with sheep needing guidance. Listen well so that you understand them and their concerns. Do not dismiss good questions, especially about worship and theology. Take them seriously and address them with thoughtful and biblical clarity, pointing them to people who have thoughtfully engaged with Eastern Orthodoxy and the church fathers.
Our desire is not to keep up the numbers in evangelical Protestant churches out of some kind of narrow and shallow pride, but to guard the gospel and shepherd people to trust in Christ alone (2 Tim. 1:13-14). Pastors should help people consider more than the vibes and get to the meat of the real disagreements between Protestantism and Eastern Orthodoxy.
What If I Don’t Have Answers?
My (Scott) first real exposure to the Orthodox church came on a church trip to Greece & Turkey. The trip was a guided tour of Paul’s missionary journeys and the seven churches in Revelation 2-3. Along with the excavation sites, the tour included a trip to a monastery in the mountains of Kalambaka. The site was breathtaking and left me speechless. What also left me speechless was the questions members of our group asked me later about Greek Orthodoxy. Sometimes you just don’t know. And to be honest, until then, understanding the Orthodox Church was not a pressing concern for me.
One consequence of the algorithmic nature of the internet is the sense it gives us that our most pressing issue is the most pressing issue. The bubble of our curiosity can limit our compassion for others who don’t know the “key podcasts” or who haven’t spent time considering the issues we struggle with. I mentioned Wes Huff’s appearance on the Joe Rogan podcast to someone after it happened, and was met with the innocent look of a clueless person. They had never heard of either of them. The reality is that most people have other concerns, such as a sick family member or a high-pressure vocation, leaving no room for podcasts on mystical worship and the filioque controversy.
We need to be patient and believe the best of each other. This cuts both ways. The person considering conversion need not blast their church family for not knowing the “clear issues with Protestantism.” And pastors, do not panic when someone is considering converting without wrestling through the significant theological problems. It is okay to say to someone, “That’s an interesting question, and I really don’t know. Why don’t we try to find a good resource together to help us think it through?” In 1 Thessalonians 5:14, Paul says, “And we exhort you, brothers and sisters: warn those who are idle, comfort the discouraged, help the weak, be patient with everyone.” There are different approaches to different types of people, but with everyone, he says, be patient.
Conclusion
This article has been an attempt from two brothers in ministry to help pastors consider why people in their churches are drawn to Eastern Orthodoxy. Evangelical pastors may be conversant with Roman Catholicism, Atheism, and Islam, but are caught somewhat off guard by the draw of Eastern Orthodoxy. By understanding why well-meaning evangelicals are drawn to Eastern Orthodoxy, how they encounter it, and how Protestants can respond to some of the key theological and ecclesiological claims of Orthodoxy, pastors are better equipped to navigate this challenge and shepherd the flock among them with wisdom and faithfulness to Christ.
