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[mommydama]

This is kind of an interesting way to illustrate some of the differences in the Orthodox Christian and the mainstream Protestant Christian understanding of salvation. Disclaimer: I am well aware that not all Protestant Christians believe or teach the same things about salvation. But the view depicted in this video IS the one I was taught growing up and I was a member of several churches with this view as an adult before becoming Orthodox. I am of the opinion that the majority of mainstream Protestant Churches teach this view. It is most often referred to as the "Substitutionary Atonement", I think.

Comments

[mairesue.livejournal.com]

I enjoyed watching that. Thanks for sharing it.

[pikefish.livejournal.com]

well, I have a lot more questions after seeing this. I was a little confused at the beginning because I thought he was describing mainstream Protestant Christian view and I was like- hey! that's what I was taught but then I realized that is what he was talking about. thanks for sharing!

[detroitfather.livejournal.com]

Interesting video. I think he was pretty fair with the Protestant view.

The thing is, I cannot find much, if anything, to disagree with in either view. What does this mean? It means three things, I think: (1) that you can find evidence for both of these views in Scripture and Tradition; (2) the views are not antithetical to each other, but emphasize differing aspects of God's history of saving sinners; and (3) that neither of these views is "comprehensive"; they are "models" of reality. Neither is the reality itself, but each view faithfully models some aspects of the way God presents Himself to us in Scripture.

[sominfun.livejournal.com]

I've watched this before and have had the same thoughts - only you've said it much more concisely than I ever have.

[detroitfather.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

[detroitfather.livejournal.com]

Clearly, from Scripture, both views are "true" ... or, rather, each captures aspects of the truth.

Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity ... (Habakkuk 1:13a)

The Protestant view right emphasizes the holiness of God, and His intolerance of sin. Many, many, many times in the Old Testament (for instance) God turns his back on Israel. I could quote a hundred passages.

But He also pursues them, chases them down as a husband would his unfaithful lover, in order to bring them back to Himself.

One single model, metaphor, analogy, or story can never capture every aspect of God or of Salvation History. It takes many. And this triumphalism of one metaphor over another is, frankly, very disturbing to me. It is the kind of thing that has given us a divided church.