05-02-2013, 02:43 AM
Akhi Ivan,
Don't take this the wrong way because I tremendously respect all churches, and I really love the people of the SOC, for they are the same blood and have always been our neighbors to the west.
But I will say it anyway, because it is not their fault: here it is: ready?
The SOC are more Greek than the Greeks. There. I said it. They are more Greek than Greek Yoghurt. I don't mean ethnically, but I mean culturally they are more Arabic, and are more ecclesiastically Greek. They have always been more easily assimilated than the more independent Assyrian/Chaldean Church.
Look at the names of their bishops, I mean the patristic names they take when they become ranked as bishop and above. Now compare that to the patristic names of the CoE bishops.
This is because they lived under the brutal oppression of the Byzantine Church because they lived in the Byzantine empire. It was a Greek empire with an official Greek church that brutalized every other church.
Contrast that with the CoE which did not have to deal with an official church in the Persian empire. They had to deal with pagans, who could care less about Christianity. They were the Zoroastrians. After Islam conquered Persia, then again there was no official church in our lands. And the Muslims couldn't care less about Christianity.
See, there were some benefits to living oppressed under pagans and Muslims, rather than living oppressed under an official Christianity.
On the one side (Byzantine), you lose your identity, but keep your head on. On the other side (Persian), you lose your head, but at least the survivors keep their identity.
When you are among Christians, you blend in and eventually assimilate (willingly, or not.) However, when you are among pagans and Muslims, you very much cling on to your own identity as ferociously as possible. There is no assimilation.
That's the explanation of the history of each side, SOC and COE. Both started out Aramaic, but the way they ended up in the end was dictated by ... others.
+Shamasha
Don't take this the wrong way because I tremendously respect all churches, and I really love the people of the SOC, for they are the same blood and have always been our neighbors to the west.
But I will say it anyway, because it is not their fault: here it is: ready?
The SOC are more Greek than the Greeks. There. I said it. They are more Greek than Greek Yoghurt. I don't mean ethnically, but I mean culturally they are more Arabic, and are more ecclesiastically Greek. They have always been more easily assimilated than the more independent Assyrian/Chaldean Church.
Look at the names of their bishops, I mean the patristic names they take when they become ranked as bishop and above. Now compare that to the patristic names of the CoE bishops.
This is because they lived under the brutal oppression of the Byzantine Church because they lived in the Byzantine empire. It was a Greek empire with an official Greek church that brutalized every other church.
Contrast that with the CoE which did not have to deal with an official church in the Persian empire. They had to deal with pagans, who could care less about Christianity. They were the Zoroastrians. After Islam conquered Persia, then again there was no official church in our lands. And the Muslims couldn't care less about Christianity.
See, there were some benefits to living oppressed under pagans and Muslims, rather than living oppressed under an official Christianity.
On the one side (Byzantine), you lose your identity, but keep your head on. On the other side (Persian), you lose your head, but at least the survivors keep their identity.
When you are among Christians, you blend in and eventually assimilate (willingly, or not.) However, when you are among pagans and Muslims, you very much cling on to your own identity as ferociously as possible. There is no assimilation.
That's the explanation of the history of each side, SOC and COE. Both started out Aramaic, but the way they ended up in the end was dictated by ... others.
+Shamasha