13 September 2012. A Proffered Definition of “Orthosphere”… a Useful Neologism if there ever was one

The grave of Karo Qakhedjian, one of the heroes of the Orthosphere… the “White Bear”, one of the courageous Armenian fighters in the Nagorno-Karabakh War (he was a battalion commander)… he was from Fresno CA USA (an illustration of one of my points below)

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Orthosphere: 

The countries where Orthodoxy is the majority religion, where it’s the major influence behind social life… e.g. Ethiopia, Russia, Greece, Armenia, Romania, Bulgaria, Eritrea, Serbia; or, where Orthodox have had a significant minority presence for centuries… e.g. Syria, Turkey, Egypt, Eastern Poland, Iran, Eastern Slovakia, Iraq, Kerala in India, Palestine, the Lebanon. It’s another name for the “Orthodox civilisational bloc” of Sergei Solovyov.

All other Orthodox are “in the diaspora”… that is, we’re “citizens of the Orthosphere resident elsewhere”. That is to say, there’s NO “American Orthodoxy”, there’s only several disunited and disparate Orthodox diasporas in this country (Russian, Greek, Serb, Syrian, Coptic, Ethiopian, Armenian, East Indian).

“Orthodox” is meant in a cultural sense… not in the sense of “who’s in communion with whom”. Interestingly enough, although there’s no communion between “Eastern” and “Oriental” Orthodox, there’s much confessional and cultural similarity, so much so that we make ONE discrete social bloc. In like manner, Uniates are NOT part of the Orthosphere… they’ve given in to and pander to the West. They’re Westerners with an “Orthodox” veneer. That is, there’s an “Orthosphere”, but there’s NO “Eastern Church” (especially, not one including Uniate traitors).

We are NOT Westerners, even if we live in the West. We ARE ORTHODOX… with ALL that term implies. Most importantly, we are AGAINST Western individualism in all its forms (especially, in the economic sphere, as it conflicts with Orthodox ideas of Social Justice), Orthodoxy teaches a godly communitarianism, and that’s that.

Barbara-Marie Drezhlo

Thursday 13 September 2012

Albany NY

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