What are "Byzantine Catholics"?
Byzantine Catholics are Eastern Christians who have a unique and particular style of Christian living. The Byzantine Church has its roots in the Greek-speaking Churches founded by the Apostles and spread throughout Eastern Europe and the Middle East. It was established in North America in the late 18th century.
What makes the Byzantine Church distinct?
Byzantine Christianity is different from the usual forms of Western Christianity most people know about. As Eastern Christians, we strive to preserve the teachings of Christ and the Apostles as they communicated them to us in the first centuries of the Church. The way we worship, pray, think, and view the world is centered on the person of Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God, who came into the world to save sinners and to transform lives. You may be thinking that this sounds like every other church you know. How is the Byzantine Church truly different?
The answer is in how we see the purpose of our lives.
While Western Christianity's view of salvation focuses on the human person's need to be immediately cleansed of their guilt and sin, we focus on the transforming power of God in the very being of each Christian. We do not reduce salvation to a mere forgiveness of our sins, as great as that truth is, but believe that Christ has done MORE.
We believe that we are called "to become partakers of the divine nature" (2 Peter 1:4), not just to be "saved" from sin. We see ourselves as invited to live the very life of God, to become intimately related to God, to be united to Christ and to have the Holy Spirit dwell within us! It is for this reason that St. Paul teaches that we are not only witnesses to the glory of God through what Jesus has done for us, but that we "are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit" (2 Corinthians 3:18). This essential belief is called Theosis - becoming more united to God so as to share in His life and glory. This is only possible because "the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father" (John 1:14). Our Church Fathers, in the early centuries of the Church would come to express this through this phrase:
"God became man so that man might become God."
(St. Athanasius - 4th century)
Our style of worship in the Eastern Churches reflects this belief. We worship in the presence of the risen Christ among us in glory and joy. All of our senses take part in our worship to express this glory. We see icons, vestments, candles: we smell incense and perfumes; hear continuous singing and prayers; we taste blessed foods and use physical gestures such as bowing and crossing ourselves to express our wonder in the glory of God. We are not engaging in empty rituals or cheap theatrics, but celebrating the beauty of the Heavenly Kingdom among us through our worship experience.
Byzantine Catholics are Eastern Christians who have a unique and particular style of Christian living. The Byzantine Church has its roots in the Greek-speaking Churches founded by the Apostles and spread throughout Eastern Europe and the Middle East. It was established in North America in the late 18th century.
What makes the Byzantine Church distinct?
Byzantine Christianity is different from the usual forms of Western Christianity most people know about. As Eastern Christians, we strive to preserve the teachings of Christ and the Apostles as they communicated them to us in the first centuries of the Church. The way we worship, pray, think, and view the world is centered on the person of Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God, who came into the world to save sinners and to transform lives. You may be thinking that this sounds like every other church you know. How is the Byzantine Church truly different?
The answer is in how we see the purpose of our lives.
While Western Christianity's view of salvation focuses on the human person's need to be immediately cleansed of their guilt and sin, we focus on the transforming power of God in the very being of each Christian. We do not reduce salvation to a mere forgiveness of our sins, as great as that truth is, but believe that Christ has done MORE.
We believe that we are called "to become partakers of the divine nature" (2 Peter 1:4), not just to be "saved" from sin. We see ourselves as invited to live the very life of God, to become intimately related to God, to be united to Christ and to have the Holy Spirit dwell within us! It is for this reason that St. Paul teaches that we are not only witnesses to the glory of God through what Jesus has done for us, but that we "are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit" (2 Corinthians 3:18). This essential belief is called Theosis - becoming more united to God so as to share in His life and glory. This is only possible because "the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father" (John 1:14). Our Church Fathers, in the early centuries of the Church would come to express this through this phrase:
"God became man so that man might become God."
(St. Athanasius - 4th century)
Our style of worship in the Eastern Churches reflects this belief. We worship in the presence of the risen Christ among us in glory and joy. All of our senses take part in our worship to express this glory. We see icons, vestments, candles: we smell incense and perfumes; hear continuous singing and prayers; we taste blessed foods and use physical gestures such as bowing and crossing ourselves to express our wonder in the glory of God. We are not engaging in empty rituals or cheap theatrics, but celebrating the beauty of the Heavenly Kingdom among us through our worship experience.
Our Beliefs
We uphold the beliefs that the Church of Jesus Christ has held since its earliest days. By the fourth century, a number of false teachings about Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, and the Church had developed. In order to combat these false teachings (heresies) and clearly define the Truth, two Ecumenical Councils were held. The particular creed we use in our Divine Liturgy is the symbol of faith of the Council of Nicaea (AD 325), as later modified by the Council of Constantinople (AD 381). It is a three-fold affirmation of faith in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit:
I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible;
and in one Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, the only-begotten, born of the Father before all ages. Light from light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, one in essence with the Father; through whom all things were made. For us and for our salvation, he came down from heaven, and was incarnate from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and became man. He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered and was buried. He rose on the third day according to the scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father; and he is coming again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.
And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Creator of Life, who proceeds from the Father. Together with the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified; he spoke through the prophets. In one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. I profess one baptism for the remission of sins. I expect the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.
I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible;
and in one Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, the only-begotten, born of the Father before all ages. Light from light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, one in essence with the Father; through whom all things were made. For us and for our salvation, he came down from heaven, and was incarnate from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and became man. He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered and was buried. He rose on the third day according to the scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father; and he is coming again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.
And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Creator of Life, who proceeds from the Father. Together with the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified; he spoke through the prophets. In one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. I profess one baptism for the remission of sins. I expect the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.
If you would like to learn more about what it means to be a Byzantine Catholic Christian please don't hesitate to contact us and we would be glad to setup a time to hear your story. You are also welcome to join us for coffee in our fellowship hall after our Sunday morning service.
