About Orthodoxy
The Orthodox church is the church of the New Testament and the faith that has been handed down through the holy apostles. The church is steeped in Holy Tradition and Asceticism which has helped enable the church to remain faithful to the true faith and remain unchanged by the changing world.
Each Orthodox Christian is called to continuous spiritual growth and to dive into the inner Kingdom that is within, to live the ascetical life, to learn more about themselves, and to better serve and love others. The Orthodox "phronema" or mindset is steeped in humility and service. As the late Patriarch Ignatius IV stated, "every Orthodox must have a monastic spirit."
Each Orthodox Christian is taught to work out their salvation without judging other individuals. While Orthodox Christians stand for what Christ has taught and do not conform to the changes of an increasingly secular world, we leave the business of judging others to God.
The following quote from St. John Climacus sums up the Orthodox experience of repentance: "To repent is not to look downwards at my own shortcomings, but upwards at God's love; it is not to look backward with self-reproach but forward with trustfulness; it is to see not what I have failed to be, but what by the grace of Christ I might yet become."