I don’t claim to be an expert on the Orthodox religion, and I understand that every sect has its extremes. But to me, this, to me, seems like a good reason to stay away from Orthodoxy. Like Catholicism, such a practice reeks of blasphemy—the veneration of men deemed “saints” by the Church.
Watch this bizarre ritual of a Russian Orthodox pouring water over the foot of a dead “saint” and blessing it. Then watch the people start to clamor over each other to get a taste of the water.
The ick factor should be enough to deter one from drinking such dirty water, but the fact that these such people don’t thirst for the true living waters of God’s word revealed in Christ demonstrates the vacuity of such dead faith. But that’s true of the vast majority of professing Christianity.
Why Public Trust in the Church Continues to Erode
For centuries, at least in the West, the church held an unparalleled position of trust and reverence. They were seen as the stewards of moral clarity in a world ever-increasing in cultural chaos. They were the shepherds who guided their flocks with conviction and...