Meaning Matters: ‘Orthodoxy’ and Other Misunderstood Terms – Fordham Now

Speaking at Fordham, a scholar of Orthodox Christianity decried the sound-bite understanding of religious issues fostered by the internet—and called for a closer focus on the true meaning of some basic terms in order to have better conversations and overcome church divisions.
Mistakes about basic terms like “orthodoxy” can hinder understanding and “obscure our common Christian vision,” said the speaker, Sister Vassa Larin, an Orthodox Christian nun and professor of practical theology at the Kyiv Orthodox Theological Academy.
The most common definition of orthodoxy—that it refers to “right” opinions, teachings, or worship—is misleading, she said, noting that faith-education programs can be flawed and theologians doubted. “So many things can go wrong with your faith-related opinions,” she said. 
Sister Larin is considered one of the leading female intellectuals of Orthodox Christianity and maintains a robust online presence through her educational newsletter and podcast on religious topics. She delivered the Economos Orthodoxy in American Lecture, “Reclaiming ‘Orthodoxy’: Clarifying Our Ecclesial Vocabulary,” at Fordham on Oct. 29. The annual lecture is sponsored by Fordham’s Orthodox Christian Studies Center.
She began by noting the limitations of internet-acquired information versus education. “Being informed on certain issues in our day, in the information age, creates for many the delusion of being educated in them,” she said. 
“Many of us might take in lots of words on this or that issue without taking pause to learn the background of these words, their context, and their implications, “ she said. “Our opportunity of any growth, my friends, can be stunted when our words lose their life-creating meaning.” 
She offered examples of “life-creating” meanings for the word “orthodoxy” to counter the isolating sense that “we’re right about everything, that we don’t have anything to learn, essentially.”
One root meaning of the word is “to straighten … to make correct,” she said (noting the similarity to “orthodontist”). “When we’re in anxiety, when we’ve been discouraged, when we’ve suffered rejection, loss, or whatever … how is it that our Lord helps us to straighten out?” she said.
The second half of “orthodoxy” also carries a possible meaning of “to suppose” or “to expect,” suggesting that even as we manage our expectations, “we have to have hope,” she said.  
Sister Larin spoke about another term, “canonical,” saying it often comes up in discussions about who broke what rule. “It gets very confusing, and we hear very little about the faith in all of this,” she said.
The basis of canonicity, she said, is not “the letter of any law or rule … but the embodiment of this primary canon, Jesus Christ, the Word of God, in our lives, that together make up the life of our church.”
In introducing Sister Larin, the Orthodox Christian Studies Center’s co-director, George Demacopoulos, Ph.D., praised her deep faith, sense of humor, and fearlessness in speaking out. “For English-speaking audiences, there is probably no other figure from the Russian Orthodox family of churches who has been more critical of the [Russian invasion of Ukraine],” he said.
The event followed closely upon the visit to Fordham by the global leader of Orthodox Christianity, His All-Holiness Bartholomew, Archbishop of Constantinople-New Rome and Ecumenical Patriarch, who urged support for the center and for its current effort to establish a physical home in support of its mission. 
Chris Gosier is research news director for Fordham Now. He can be reached at (646) 312-8267 or [email protected].
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