In reply to message #0
I find it very hard to interact when you post just links to pdf files. Here's the text of what you posted so I can reply to parts of it: The Homily of Bishop Odisho Oraham and the Resignation of Bishop Emmanuel
Yosip Fred Aprim
Jan 5, 2023 A December 2023 homily by Mar Odisho Oraham, Bishop of Scandinavia and
Germany of the Assyrian Church of the East, at St. Thomas Church,
Stockholm, Sweden, touches on how different the parishioners are
viewing the church leaders these days and the problems of Assyrian
church members leaving the Church to Evangelical churches. In his homily, Mar Odisho Oraham said, our people come to church
mainly on Christmas Day and on the Feast of Resurrection
(Easter). Where are our people? Throughout the world, our diocese and
our churches are emptying. Our people are going to the Evangelicals
and to other churches. Our people are going to those other churches
because they want to listen to the words of God, they want to
understand the love of Jesus Christ and seek Jesus' mercy. On the
other hand, we come to our churches and leave empty
... all we hear in our churches is donate, donate, donate, make
payments, pay, pay, pay. We will pay and we have paid, but with that
our people are leaving. Why? because, My people are destroyed from
lack of knowledge, Hosea is telling us, because the word of
God is missing in our churches, the hearing the sermon of Jesus Christ
is not there anymore as we continue pursuing traditions. Our people do
not look at us as they used to do. Today, our people
look at us and see us living in ostentation ( ), splendor, or seeking
fame. Our Jesus Christ, who is God and who owns heaven and earth could
have chosen to be born in a castle, but we know where he was born
his mother, Saint Mary, bigoted him where animals fed, yet, he
performed miracles.https://www.facebook.com/100067380729984/videos/1109883363276803/
Note:
Mar Odisho Oraham referred to a line from a Biblical verse that
states: "My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge. Because you
have rejected knowledge, I also reject you as my priests; because you
have ignored the law of your God, I also will ignore your children."
(Hosea 4:6) Simultaneously with Bishop Mar Odisho Oraham homily, Mar
Emmanuel Yosip, Bishop of the Assyrian Church of the East, Canada
Diocese, resigned unexpectedly. His Grace stated that his resignation
will be effective as of December 31, 2023. The bishop stated that his
resignation was for personal reasons. No one is suggesting a connection between the two events. However, the
courageous admittance by Bishop Mar Odisho of the presence of troubles
with the church must be appreciated. We cannot solve the church
problems by remaining silent rather by all working together to find
solutions that are suitable and appropriate at this junction of the
history of the church. Intimidating practices, smearing campaigns or
attacking members of the congregation or community who criticize the
church leaders must end. Criticism is often perceived as a negative
thing; However, criticism could also be the beginning of a positive
turnaround in the path of any troubled institution, including a
church, and a valuable mechanism for growth and improvement. We must admit that the churches of the Assyrians in the diaspora have
survived, because of one main reason and that is the new blood of
refugees and immigrants who have kept arriving to the West from the
early 1970s. As the population of Assyrians decreases in the homeland
and the new blood of arrival depletes, the church in the diaspora will
be lost for all practical purposes in perhaps two to three
generations. One final note, few observers believe that this resignation of the
clergy will spread to others. These observers believe that the new
Patriarch Mar Awa III will need to have his own group of bishops who
are willing to carry out his new vision for the future church.
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