Lost our Church :-(

[smallgreencat]

I became Orthodox a few years ago and was going to a church, but then I had problems with a woman there (targeted nastiness) and the choir was taken over by someone very problematic and it all became too much, so I moved on. I started to attend a very small mission church, but unfortunately it has closed and now I have nowhere to go apart from driving around 70 miles each way to attend another one which only has services once a month.

I have no one to go to for confession or guidance. The priests that are around (very thin on the ground) are very busy working jobs and they have families. There is literally no one to talk to.

I love the EO Church and fully agree with their doctrines, but I'm feeling sad that I don't have a church to feel a part of. I have considered going back to the RC church, but I don't agree with all their doctrines or having a Pope. I also wish they didn't have the Novus Ordo or the changes they made to their liturgy. I don't feel that I could ever start taking Communion in one or that I'll ever leave Orthodoxy, but I just want to go to and sit quietly in a church and the RC churches are the only ones I could ever do that in.

Can anyone advise me on what to do? I can't return to my original church as it's too painful to be out of the choir and I can't face that woman as she freaks me out (difficult to explain).

Sorry to hear this, it sounds very difficult. Are there online services you could attend eg from the US? I found this list of online services, it’s mostly Greek Orthodox but there are some Russian ones too.

https://myocn.net/live-streaming-orthodox-church-services-around-the-world/

Yes, there is an online service from a UK Church that I could attend. It's livestreamed on fb.

smallgreencat remember we are all members of the Body of Christ. The Holy Spirit can be in any church that worships according to Jesus teachings and the Holy Bible.

I would suggest may be trying an Anglican church or Catholic if in the UK.

I go to an Anglican church as a non demontional Christian. I have received healing there from the Eucharist so it was blessed and so clearly the service was apporiate to Christ.
I don't know where you live, but somebody mentioned the US and may be try to an Episcopal church in the US as they are similar to Anglican in the UK.

I attend a Holy Communion service for 30 mins on Sunday morning. It is at 8am and it is quiet with no music. The service may mention the King, but I ignore it and it is not essential to uphold him anymore than anybody else. a family service is at 10am and they have music and a choir to.

The Pope I respect him, but pray to God directly. It is not necessary to view him anymore than a holy man.I don't disagree with anything and I am baptised a Catholic. I attend Catholic church's at times and had help there with these views to. Focus on the most important things, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and Christ teaching.

Also, I think there is an expectation to recieve the Eucharist once a year at least in your tradition. If you get it once a year you could watch online if it is was less of a burden for you.

Does the one you used to go have a weekday service that you could attend? Or a weekend one that doesn't have the choir?

@Justmerach Sorry to be pedantic and please don’t take offence, but as you get it incorrect every time on every thread please note that the word is denominational.

Thank you, noted.

And I have thought for a long time that just putting 'non-denom.' would be much easier for you.

I don’t want to take this thread over with this about spelling. I clicked back on this may be wondering if the original poster had worked out what to do. I must say I have thought just writing non demon, I think I will remember it now. With my spell checker it would let the misspelling pass and I couldn’t find the right spelling for it before. I know it now.

Hopefully the OP is closer to resolving their issues.

I think you mean 'non-denom', not 'non-demon', 🙏. I'm sure they are both true, though !

OP please know you have my prayers.
Losing your spiritual home and any form of church hurt is one of the most painful things a Christian can go through.

I am Orthodox married with a Catholic and currently do only online church ...

@Justmerach Catholics don’t pray to the pope. He is just successor to St Peter.

Thank you, I had my education in a Catholic school to 19 and we prayed directly to God the Father. Now it seems some people seem to think Catholics by and large don't pray directly to God and mainly to the Saints etc and it is not true. I can attend either or, but to avoid all this I call myself non denominational.

Catholics do pray to the saints as they intercede for us. But not everyone does. It’s personal choice. People have particular devotions to saints. And there is a patron saint of almost everything. St Anthony is particularly useful!

I think that non-Catholics get confused by the use of the word 'pray'. Catholics use it in the old sense of asking , especially for a favour - think of a Master of Ceremonies at a wedding saying 'Pray silence for the father of the bride', or an usher in a court of law saying something similar when the judge enters. Fun historical fact - there was the dog of an English King (I think one of the Georges) which had inscribed on his collar, 'I am my master's dog at Kew. Pray tell me, sir, whose dog are you?' (Kew was one of the Royal residences at the time).

It doesn't mean to worship, just to ask.

I don't know where this false perception has come from in the media that Catholics in the main don't pray directly to God. As I wrote when I was growing up in a Catholic school and church, we did pray to God directly. I didn't attend a rosary worship service at school, but I have done as an adult.

I have thought of a few Saints in heaven what they have been through to give me comfort if they have been through something similar. I don't think that I have prayed to them though and others do as they choose to. I pray to God but I have prayed and spoken to Mother Mary though a few times in my life to seek solace from her at times.

@Justmerach I have prayed and spoken to Mother Mary though a few times in my life to seek solace from her at times.

I think this statement alone is sufficient for people to think that some folk do not pray directly to God in the name of Jesus. So, is it really a 'false perception' as you assert in your first sentence?

Apologies to OP as this is not to topic of your thread. Regarding 'confession', mine are made directly to the Lord and any conviction of heart comes from Him and the Holy Spirit.

I wrote that I have prayed to Mary a few times in my life over a private matter, still mentioning about the Trinity. It was more to speak to her what a mother would know the pain of and I referred to the Father to. I have prayed to God in my usual daily prayer. The Catholic faith does allow people to turn Mary at times.

I was thinking may be this should be a new thread.

I haven't managed to resolve anything and I'm feeling very down. I was so desperate last week that I almost went to a RC mass just to be at a service. Ds, who knows about these things, says we're in the desert, which is not necessarily a bad place to be.

smallgreencat you could still go to your orthodox church perhaps or attend a different service there and just socalise less there. You go there for yourself and your faith and not anybody else. It sounds like your heart is may be steering you towards going to a RC church and you should handle this ok seeing as you wasn't ask to stop attending your former church and made that decision for yourself. Perhaps the Citizen advice could get something written formally about what you experienced and you could give it to priest.

I met someone recently and they told me that there Orthodox church is 2 hours long and Sunday sermons in Catholic church's are about 45 minutes on the weekend and 30 minutes in the weekday. The weekday service I attend from to time in a Catholic church have no choir. Neither did the recent Sunday worship I attended in a Catholic church either have a choir. I think some Catholic church's may have a choir service.

My church sermon at 8am on Sunday is 30 mins in an Anglican church with no music and about 1hrs 15 for the family service which has a choir and the Holy Communion is given. I put that here as you mentioned a choir before and I didn't know if you would still enjoy one.

No, the homily (aka 'sermon') has never been that long at any Catholic Mass I've attended! They are usually between 7 and 10 minutes at both weekday and Sunday Masses.

Yes, the homilies are only short at Catholic Masses. They are only supposed to be around 7 minutes long, but sometimes priests do go over.

I am referring to the entire service being in some Catholic church's about 45 mins long, not just the sermon. The word sermon must have been on my mind. One I visited in November a Catholic church in London was about that long on a Sunday.
I was told by somebody in person that the Orthodox church that they attend is about 2 hours long for the whole service.

Sorry I'm late to this but what area are you in? Do you want a replacement/recommendation?