The Evangelical Orthodox
by James M. Kushiner
On various occasions in the past few months I have been asked if I have heard of the Evangelical Orthodox Church. I have been aware of their existence from about the time they formed in 1979; I brushed up against one of their bishops in 1980 while attending a conference of the Orthodox Church in America in Detroit as an unofficial observer. Since then, theirs has been a very interesting story.
Briefly, the Evangelical Orthodox Church (EOC) was formed by evangelicals from various backgrounds who in the mid-sixties began looking for an expression of Christian faith and worship which had deeper historical roots in the early Church. Through a prolonged period of study of the post-apostolic period and the ecumenical councils, they became convinced that the Eastern Orthodox Churches best preserved the tradition of the early Church in ecclesiology, theology, and worship. A gradual conversion took them from “low church” non-sacramental evangelicalism to a “high church” sacramental, liturgical faith. As the story has been reported, they felt compelled to enter into union with the orthodox churches and their bishops, whom they regarded as legitimate successors to the apostles and bishops of the early church. All that remained to do was to make a decision how and when to effect this union.
THIS ARTICLE ONLY AVAILABLE TO SUBSCRIBERS.
FOR QUICK ACCESS:
James M. Kushiner is the Director of Publications for The Fellowship of St. James and the former Executive Editor of Touchstone.
• Not a subscriber or wish to renew your subscription? Subscribe to Touchstone today for full online access. Over 30 years of publishing!
personal subscriptions
Purchase Print &
Online Subscription
Get six issues (one year) of Touchstone PLUS full online access including pdf downloads for only $39.95. That's only $3.34 per month!
Get a one-year full-access subscription to the Touchstone online archives including pdf downloads for only $19.95. That's only $1.66 per month!
gift subscriptions
GIVE Print &
Online Subscription
Give six issues (one year) of Touchstone PLUS full online access including pdf downloads for the reduced rate of $29.95. That's only $2.50 per month!
Transactions will be processed on a secure server.
bulk subscriptions
Order Touchstone subscriptions in bulk and save $10 per sub! Each subscription includes 6 issues of Touchstone plus full online access to touchstonemag.com—including archives, videos, and pdf downloads of recent issues for only $29.95 each! Great for churches or study groups.
kindle subscription
OR get a subscription to Touchstone to read on your Kindle for only $1.99 per month! (This option is KINDLE ONLY and does not include either print or online.)
Your subscription goes a long way to ensure that Touchstone is able to continue its mission of publishing quality Christian articles and commentary.
more on orthodox from the online archives
more from the online archives
30.6—Nov/Dec 2017
on C. S. Lewis, Brideshead Revisited & the Middle Things by Ben Reinhard
28.2—March/April 2015
Man, Woman & the Mystery of Christ
An Evangelical Protestant Perspective by Russell D. Moore
calling all readers
Please Donate
"There are magazines worth reading but few worth saving . . . Touchstone is just such a magazine."
—Alice von Hildebrand
"Here we do not concede one square millimeter of territory to falsehood, folly, contemporary sentimentality, or fashion. We speak the truth, and let God be our judge. . . . Touchstone is the one committedly Christian conservative journal."
—Anthony Esolen, Touchstone senior editor
