Welcome to Saints Peter and Paul Russian Orthodox Church
website. Saints Peter and Paul is located in Scranton
Pennsylvania. We are under the jurisdiction of the Moscow
Patriarchate and the part of the Atlantic States Deanery.
Please contact us with any comments or questions. Thank you
for visiting Saints Peter and Paul Russian Orthodox Church.
website. Saints Peter and Paul is located in Scranton
Pennsylvania. We are under the jurisdiction of the Moscow
Patriarchate and the part of the Atlantic States Deanery.
Please contact us with any comments or questions. Thank you
for visiting Saints Peter and Paul Russian Orthodox Church.
 |  |  |  |  |  |
| Saints Peter and Paul Russian Orthodox Church Website: January 2012 Sponsored by: James and Maryann Capwell For the Heath and Salvation of: John and Barbara Togher |
The Orthodox Church is the church founded by our Lord Jesus Christ and through which
He continues to bestow His blessings and grace upon mankind. ‘Orthodoxy’ means ‘right
belief’ or ‘correct glory’–-the Orthodox Church has faithfully preserved those traditions and
teachings handed down from Jesus Christ to His Apostles to their successors from
generation to generation. This care for the traditions of our fathers is motivated by love and
fidelity to the truth and Divine origin of our faith.
He continues to bestow His blessings and grace upon mankind. ‘Orthodoxy’ means ‘right
belief’ or ‘correct glory’–-the Orthodox Church has faithfully preserved those traditions and
teachings handed down from Jesus Christ to His Apostles to their successors from
generation to generation. This care for the traditions of our fathers is motivated by love and
fidelity to the truth and Divine origin of our faith.
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View our Online Photo Albums
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| Saints Peter and Paul Russian Orthodox Church A Parish of the Moscow Patriarchate Archpriest Basil Micek, Pastor 1897-2012 115 years |
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The word orthodox, from Greek orthos ("right", "true", "straight") + doxa ("opinion" or "belief", related to dokein, "to
think"), is generally used to mean the adherence to accepted norms, more specifically to creeds, especially in religion.
In the narrow sense the term means "conforming to the Christian faith as represented in the creeds of the early
Church". The Orthodox Churches in Slavic-language countries (Russia, Serbia, Bulgaria, etc.) use a word derived from
Old Church Slavonic, Правосла́виѥ (pravosláviye) to mean Orthodoxy. The word derives from the
Slavonic roots "право" (právo, true, right) and "славить" (slávit, to praise, to glorify), in effect meaning
"the right way to praise God".
"The Orthodox Church is evangelical, but not Protestant. It’s orthodox, but not Jewish. It’s catholic, but not Roman.
It isn’t non-denominational – it’s pre-denominational. It has believed, taught, preserved, defended and died for the
Faith of the Apostles since the day of Pentecost 2000 years ago."
The Orthodox Church uses the original form of the Nicene Creed created at the First Council of Constantinople in
381, in contrast to the Roman Catholic church, which uses the Nicene creed with the addition of the phrase 'and the
Son' (see Filioque clause). This change is one of many causes for the Great Schism formalized in 1054 by simultaneous
proclamations of "Anathema" from the leadership of the Orthodox Churches in the East and the Bishop of Rome
(Pope) in the West. This emphasis on the use of the original "creed" is shared today by all Orthodox Christians.
What unites the Orthodox is theology. All members of the Church profess the same beliefs regardless of race or
nationality. In practice and traditions, however, there are variations in style depending on country of origin or local
custom or both. These local customs are referred to as differences in typica and are accepted by church leaders since
they are not perceived to conflict theologically with basic Orthodox teachings.
Thus many Orthodox Churches adopt a national title (e.g. Albanian Orthodox, Bulgarian Orthodox, Georgian
Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, Russian Orthodox, Macedonian Orthodox, Montenegrin Orthodox, Romanian Orthodox,
Serbian Orthodox, Ukrainian Orthodox etc.) and this title serves to distinguish which language, which bishops, and
which of the typica is followed by that particular congregation.
Members of the Church are fully united in faith and the Sacred Mysteries with all Orthodox congregations, regardless
of nationality. Differences in praxis (practice) tend to be slight; they involve such things as the order in which a
particular set of hymns are sung or what time a particular service is performed. In general, an Orthodox Christian
could travel the globe and feel familiar with the services even if he or she did not know the language in which they
were celebrated.
The permanent criteria of church structure for the Orthodox Church today, outside the New Testament writings, are
found in the canons of the first seven ecumenical councils; the canons of several local or provincial councils, whose
authority was recognized by the whole church; the so-called Apostolic Canons and the "canons of the Fathers" or
selected extracts from prominent church leaders having canonical importance.
The Orthodox Church considers Jesus Christ to be the head of the Church and the Church to be His body. Thus,
despite widely held popular belief outside the Orthodox cultures, there is not one bishop at the head of the Orthodox
Church; references to the Patriarch of Constantinople as a leader equivalent or comparable to a pope in the Roman
Catholic Church are mistaken. It is believed that authority and the grace of God is directly passed down to Orthodox
bishops and clergy through the laying on of hands—a practice started by the apostles, and that this unbroken historical
and physical link is an essential element of the true church (Acts 8:17, 1 Tim 4:14, Heb 6:2). However, the church
asserts that Apostolic Succession also requires Apostolic Faith, and bishops without Apostolic Faith, who are in heresy,
forfeit their claim to Apostolic Succession.
think"), is generally used to mean the adherence to accepted norms, more specifically to creeds, especially in religion.
In the narrow sense the term means "conforming to the Christian faith as represented in the creeds of the early
Church". The Orthodox Churches in Slavic-language countries (Russia, Serbia, Bulgaria, etc.) use a word derived from
Old Church Slavonic, Правосла́виѥ (pravosláviye) to mean Orthodoxy. The word derives from the
Slavonic roots "право" (právo, true, right) and "славить" (slávit, to praise, to glorify), in effect meaning
"the right way to praise God".
"The Orthodox Church is evangelical, but not Protestant. It’s orthodox, but not Jewish. It’s catholic, but not Roman.
It isn’t non-denominational – it’s pre-denominational. It has believed, taught, preserved, defended and died for the
Faith of the Apostles since the day of Pentecost 2000 years ago."
The Orthodox Church uses the original form of the Nicene Creed created at the First Council of Constantinople in
381, in contrast to the Roman Catholic church, which uses the Nicene creed with the addition of the phrase 'and the
Son' (see Filioque clause). This change is one of many causes for the Great Schism formalized in 1054 by simultaneous
proclamations of "Anathema" from the leadership of the Orthodox Churches in the East and the Bishop of Rome
(Pope) in the West. This emphasis on the use of the original "creed" is shared today by all Orthodox Christians.
What unites the Orthodox is theology. All members of the Church profess the same beliefs regardless of race or
nationality. In practice and traditions, however, there are variations in style depending on country of origin or local
custom or both. These local customs are referred to as differences in typica and are accepted by church leaders since
they are not perceived to conflict theologically with basic Orthodox teachings.
Thus many Orthodox Churches adopt a national title (e.g. Albanian Orthodox, Bulgarian Orthodox, Georgian
Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, Russian Orthodox, Macedonian Orthodox, Montenegrin Orthodox, Romanian Orthodox,
Serbian Orthodox, Ukrainian Orthodox etc.) and this title serves to distinguish which language, which bishops, and
which of the typica is followed by that particular congregation.
Members of the Church are fully united in faith and the Sacred Mysteries with all Orthodox congregations, regardless
of nationality. Differences in praxis (practice) tend to be slight; they involve such things as the order in which a
particular set of hymns are sung or what time a particular service is performed. In general, an Orthodox Christian
could travel the globe and feel familiar with the services even if he or she did not know the language in which they
were celebrated.
The permanent criteria of church structure for the Orthodox Church today, outside the New Testament writings, are
found in the canons of the first seven ecumenical councils; the canons of several local or provincial councils, whose
authority was recognized by the whole church; the so-called Apostolic Canons and the "canons of the Fathers" or
selected extracts from prominent church leaders having canonical importance.
The Orthodox Church considers Jesus Christ to be the head of the Church and the Church to be His body. Thus,
despite widely held popular belief outside the Orthodox cultures, there is not one bishop at the head of the Orthodox
Church; references to the Patriarch of Constantinople as a leader equivalent or comparable to a pope in the Roman
Catholic Church are mistaken. It is believed that authority and the grace of God is directly passed down to Orthodox
bishops and clergy through the laying on of hands—a practice started by the apostles, and that this unbroken historical
and physical link is an essential element of the true church (Acts 8:17, 1 Tim 4:14, Heb 6:2). However, the church
asserts that Apostolic Succession also requires Apostolic Faith, and bishops without Apostolic Faith, who are in heresy,
forfeit their claim to Apostolic Succession.
