I anticipate greater holiness and a more personal union with my God. There is unspeakable mystery there, and I need to learn to be satisfied with not knowing everything.
I grew up Protestant, in the Salvationist tradition. I'm still heavily influenced by their emphasis on Social Justice, but I find that the core of my doctrine is more easily identifiable with that of the Eastern/Oriental Orthodox. I'm currently with the Salvation Army
Hmm, that's very interesting. Any Eastern Orthodox in specific?
I don't know that I've ever met anyone who believed real presence in the eucharist. So you to it's the real deal and not a metaphor?
Most of Christendom does. I don't know the specifics, but what I do know is that it's holy. Early Church writers held strongly to it, and you can find it in all of the ancient churches today-- never mind that the Eucharist as "symbolic" only arose during the 16th century. That's evidence enough for me.
That's really very interesting. To clarify then, you believe when you take communion that it's actually Christ's flesh and blood? I don't mean to sound rude if I do come off that way. I'm just very interested.
I'm extremely fascinated by this. So you don't believe that the early church had any flawed views? I mean, if you look at the pharisees, they definitely had some misinterpretations about what the Bible meant.
The Pharisees weren't Christian; the Apostles spent time with Jesus (y'know, God). If I can't trust the early church to be right on these matters, I can trust no one. I don't know if the early church was flawed or not, but I have to trust that the Holy Spirit led them.
I commend you and am very impressed by your diligence. Keep it up and I hope you have a very happy life!