Catechumen Class - St Philip Orthodox Church

2023 Classes Tuesdays at 7pm (https://us06web.zoom.us/j/9545844030)

Preliminary Class – Tuesday, May 2, 2023 – Introduction

Direct Links to Videos used

Fr Thomas Hopko – Advice for Beginners in Orthodox Christianity, Pt. 1
Fr Thomas Hopko – Advice for Beginners in Orthodox Christianity, Pt. 2
Fr Steophen Freeman – For Enquirers
Fr Stephen Freemen – Common Pitfalls

Class #1 – Tuesday, May 9, 2023 – The Creation

Class #2 – Tuesday, May 16, 2023 – The Savior

Class #3 – Tuesday, May 23, 2023 – The Holy Spirit

2022 Class audio below:

Class 1 covering the first Catechism (pages 43-51) (9/19)

A question that came up during class regarding St Cyprian of Carthage’s (3rd Century) statement regarding salvation. In Latin: “Salus extra Ecclesiam non est” which means: “outside the Church there is no salvation.” Fr Thomas Hopko once said the following:

But as the saying once said, “The true Church has sinners in it, and the false churches and the churches that are not completely and totally accurate and clear and true, they also have sinners in them. They also have saints, holy people, who, by the grace of God and by faith and grace and the Holy Spirit, live very holy lives. Here we would say it’s certainly a dogma of the Orthodox Church, that outside of the Orthodox Church the grace of God does act. The Holy Spirit blows where he wills, and there are righteous, holy people who are in other Christian churches, in no Christian churches. It’s all a great mystery here.

For more commentary on this topic, please see:

Outside the Church there is no Salvation

Salvation Outside the Church

How Should Orthodox Relate to Other Christians?