If I were asked to name the one thing that I believe has most hampered the spread of the gospel and blunted the spiritual life of the faithful, I would easily say orthodoxy. The drive to have correct opinions about God (which is what orthodoxy means), and to corral other men into agreement, has been detrimental to the world. Jesus said if we love him we will obey him. Yet most men express their devotion through idle theorizing. They call themselves faithful because they read their Bible, attend church, or partake in the eucharist, all while the hungry remain unfed and the poor lie naked.
The fruit of orthodoxy is schism. Nearly every split within the church has its origin in disagreements on matters too high and too broad for any of us to understand. How can any finite creature speak accurately about an infinite God? Yet we try—and we divide ourselves, and we lose our unity over nothing. And this split among us mirrors the split between the orthodox man and God. The man who gives primary importance to his opinions must necessarily give obedience to Jesus secondary importance. Thus his opinions are an idol. They stand between him and God. And like all idols they cut him off from Life itself, pulling him deeper and deeper into spiritual death.
The first Christians had no notion of orthodoxy. Their aim was to live as Christ did, to follow his commands. To them Christianity was a lifestyle, a manner of living that foreshadowed in the present what life would be like in the future. This was why Chrisitanity was originally called ‘The Way’. It was a path to be walked in obedience to Christ, not a philosophy. These Christians helped the poor, humbled themselves, rejected earthly possessions and status; they gave freely and expected nothing in return; they repaid evil with kindness—and they died for their good works.
Such a Christianity is far more powerful than the watered-down version we currently have. Satan’s greatest triumph may not have been turning us away from God, but trapping us in endless conjecture. It neuters us. We bear no fruit. We cannot change ourselves or the world when we do not act.
To return to this purer Christianity all we must do is drop orthodoxy. We must discard our own opinions (and other peoples’) about God, and simply do what Jesus said. And if we are to have any opinion at all, it will come through the work of our hands. Right action, orthopraxy, is what we should strive for, and let God take care of the rest..
Here are some other benefits to orthopraxy:
- Orthopraxy simplifies evangelism. Our testimony will be the lives we live, the good we do, our works. We no longer need to convince people of anything. We no longer need to correct their errors. Our example will convince and correct. Outsiders will judge us by our fruit. And then they will make the decision to follow Christ or not. No more arguments or dissension. No more fear. No more threats of hell. Just the image of a life lived for Christ before them.
- Orthodoxy would clarify who the Church really is. Only those who obeyed Christ could be called Christians–and that would be easy for all to see. Currently, anyone who claims to have the right opinions can say he is a member of the Church. But men lie, and often words do not match actions. This is why we see evil men in the so-called Church claiming to follow Christ. We define the Church in the wrong way. Orthopraxy solves this problem because actions don’t lie. The test will be what you do, not what you say. Doctrines and dogmas will no longer matter. Works matter. Those who obey Christ will be the Church. And both believer and unbeliever will clearly see who the Church is.
- Orthopraxy makes for a better world. Imagine if all the energy spent studying and debating and arguing were turned to helping others. Imagine if feeding the hungry or caring for the orphan were a sacrament. Imagine if Church were ladling soup at the shelter or giving money to the panhandler. It would make for a lot better world. We would have a lot less poverty and injustice, and I would imagine a lot more people eager to follow Christ.
- Orthopraxy does a better job at turning evil men good. At the moment any man can claim to be a Christian. All he has to do is have the right opinions. The Pharisees were the same. But on orthopraxy the evil man, if he wants to appear righteous, must do good. And in doing good he thus becomes good. You cannot be evil and do good. Satan’s kingdom cannot be divided against itself. But, suppose I am wrong, and the evil man can successful feign humility and practice good works yet keep his evil heart, then at least, in trying to ape the Christian life (even if he has done so for all the wrong reasons), he has helped others in the process, which is more than happens now with the so-called righteous under orthodoxy.
For nearly two millennia we have lost sight of what being a Christian means. We have turned Christianity into a philosophy instead of a way of living. All we must do is obey Christ. The work of our hands will prove our faith.
“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I go to the Father.” — John 14:12
