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Post by OrthodoxBrit on Feb 19, 2013 12:42:37 GMT 2
Hi all,
In the last few months I have turned down several requests from close friends to be Godparents to their future Children as I see it as wrong to be the person responsible for their religious growth whilst theie parents insist they are raised in another tradition.
Today, I planned to write a short piece on this and noticed that in the US the Bishops from RCC and EO allow Orthodox to be Godparent for Catholics as long as they achnowledge the validity of the Priest.
This was interesting, as Orthodox do recognise the Validity of Latin Sacraments (It is why we have closed communion) so that aspect is OK, but can an Orthodox Christian honestly be Godparent and help a Child's spiritual development in a Church which teaches the Immaculate Conception or Papal Supremacy? Or does it constitute a lie to raise your Godparent outside of Orthodoxy?
What do people think?
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Post by admin on Feb 19, 2013 19:45:42 GMT 2
Well, in Romania these cases are extremely rare, so my opinion cannot be based on practice, but on theory; but if I were you, I wouldn't accept this.
I know that the Orthodox grandparents have the duty to initiate their godsons in the Orthodox faith, not in wanderings (aireseis).
And if I were a spiritual father, I'd also say no. Either they choose another grandparent (of their own religion / confession), or the godsons are to be raised as Orthodox.
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Post by OrthodoxBrit on Feb 20, 2013 2:34:01 GMT 2
Thanks Andrei,
Your views here are the same as mine. I feel I would be lying to myself if I supported it.
Why do you suppose they allow for this in the US?
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Post by admin on Feb 21, 2013 20:47:16 GMT 2
Sorry, but I don't have enough knowledge of the issue in the US.
Maybe there's a certain agreement between the Church jurisdictions there...
Anyway, maybe an American could tell you more on this. ;-)
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Post by OrthodoxBrit on Feb 21, 2013 22:13:05 GMT 2
Let's hope one actually responds on here.
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Post by Vlad on Feb 24, 2013 20:26:29 GMT 2
I think that inter-Church Godparents is simply a result of the attitude people take towards the role. It's seen as an honourary title, and nothing more.
In reality, a godparent has many responsibilities surrounding their role, and upon those terms I see no possibility for a Roman Catholic being the godparent of an Orthodox child and vice-versa, since they are tasked with guiding them in their own faith.
In Ukraine, most people who do this are Orthodox, so in a way I'm in the same boat as Andrei. I'd love to hear from someone who has encountered such a situation.
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Post by OrthodoxBrit on Feb 25, 2013 1:02:55 GMT 2
On that note, the Orthodox Church in Azerbaijan made it a requirement to take an examination to become a Godparent, so that the person is shown to have the correct values and beliefs to raise a child.
I thought it was brilliant but it caused a massive argument on my Facebook...
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Post by Vlad on Feb 25, 2013 1:27:01 GMT 2
The only real issue with that is the fact that it will be hard to find a Godparent. That honour is usually awarded to a very close friend, and it would probably be really difficult to find someone in that type of circle that would actually care enough to do something like that.
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Post by OrthodoxBrit on Feb 25, 2013 1:33:07 GMT 2
I suppose that is a key issue, their definition of Godparent. Also, whether they are a member of the local Church community.
I know from my closest friends that none of them would have the ability to be a decent Godparent to my Children as none of my closest friends ever attend the Liturgy unless it is an important event. It does make me wonder of the sort of Character that is required of a Godparent.
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