Annoying (Former) Evangelicals

Honestly, nothing is more annoying than a former Protestant who's turned either EO or RC. Having turned, they feel the need to harass all their friends and acquaintances with tear-jerking stories of "coming home" and having finally "reconciled myself to the One True Church." The archetype, of course, is Frankie Schaeffer. First, the guy can't shut up. Second, when he opens his mouth, it's always to be incredibly condescending to the poor fools who haven't yet joined the True Church. Third, Orthodoxy is way more diverse and nuanced than he presents it. Fourth, conscientious Orthodox Christians see way more problems in their own communion than Schaeffer will ever admit.

And that's pretty much how most of the converts are. I find that lifelong Catholic and Orthodox Christians tend to be quite tolerable, charitable, Christian folks who tend to be interested in very Christian sort of things like raising one's children in the faith, activities at the parish, social and political issues, the troubling news about some unfortunate strife at church headquarters, etc. Former Protestants are completely different. It seems that people born in the communions (or converted long enough ago to have internalized the identity) are far more likely to be conscious of diversities and current problems than new converts from Protestantism, who are just enchanted by the perfections of their new communions and appalled at the silliness of Protestantism.

The last thing is the blatant hypocrisy of criticizing Protestants for reappropriating things that were formerly jettisoned. Before it was, "You idiot Protestants don't recite the Creed! You deny the Church!" So we start reciting the Creed, and now it's "You idiot Protestants recite the Creed without joining us! You're just a bunch of consumers!" As a Reformed Christian who sees the salutary use of creeds and liturgies, but not praying to things or dead people, uncritical attitudes toward theologians of the Byzantine Empire, dogmatization of medieval myths and works-based paths of salvation, infallible guys in Italy, or the like, I find that criticism to be invalid. As Michael Spencer of the Boar's Head Tavern said, I'd prefer to stay where I am and deal with my own problems than take on yours.

So this final message is for EO and RC converts: You know how you are now convinced that your current communion is the One True Church That Christ Founded to the exclusion of all others, and would never leave it no matter what else happens? So equally are some of us convinced that the Reformation of the 16th century was a necessary restoration of divine doctrine and expunging of un-Christian practice, and because repudiating what the Reformation was about is a condition of joining your communion, we cannot in good conscience do this. We recognize some missteps we made then and since then, but at the core, we are thoroughly convinced in our own minds that the Reformation was necessary, good, and even vital. Please try to understand and respect that our conviction that we cannot join your communion is just as deep and fundamental as your own conviction that we must.