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October 21, 2010
"I
am convinced that the fullness of Grace is only in Orthodoxy."
An Interview with Priest Maximos McIntyre
Priest Maximos McIntyre,
a convert to Orthodoxy, has been a cleric of the Eastern American
Diocese for almost a year and has recently
completed a screenplay entitled "Lords of Glory," a
story of Soviet persecution of Orthodox Christians in communist
Russia. In addition, Fr. Maximos is one of the most active missionary
priests in the diocese. Diocesan Media Office correspondent Reader
Peter Lukianov interviewed Fr. Maximos on questions involving the
experiences of conversion to Orthodoxy and Christian ministry in
America.
- Tell us a little about
yourself, Father. How did you come to know about Orthodoxy?
I was born in Worcester,
Massachusetts, in 1978. I’ve always lived in that particular area
and went to school about 50 miles away in Springfield, so
Massachusetts has always been home for me. I grew up Roman Catholic,
but when I was in my twenties and searching more for the Truth to
fulfill a calling I believed I had, I found the riches of Orthodoxy.
After being ordained in an Anglo-Catholic Church, after being
introduced to the early canons of the Church, the early Church
Councils, the Patristic Witness of the Early Fathers, I realized that
Christianity was not in its fullness in the West; it was truly
preserved undefiled in the Eastern Orthodox Church. It was at that
time that I knew that, despite being a priest, even if it meant coming
in as a layman, I had to pursue Orthodoxy. There was no doubt about
that.
- When were you baptized
into the Orthodox Church?
Four years ago. At first I
was actually received, and I knew from my readings of the Church
Fathers that I needed to be baptized. That was one of the problems
that I ran into with some of the various jurisdictions I was in
dialogue with: they wanted to recognize sacraments outside of the
Orthodox Church and I was unwilling to accept that, even though I
wasn’t Orthodox yet.
- Where were you baptized,
Father?
I was actually baptized,
chrismated, remarried, and ordained through the various orders in the
non-canonical movement but I realized that the fullness of Orthodoxy
had left this movement. These groups sometimes have good intentions,
but there is no doubt that the fullness of Orthodoxy is certainly in
the Russian Church. I’ve known that for quite a few years, and I am
just glad to be here.
- Why did you join the
Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, in particular?
About five years ago, I
entered into a little bit of dialogue with some of the ROCOR clergy.
From my research, I had no doubt that Orthodoxy was the Truth, and
that it was preserved especially in the Church Abroad. Metropolitan
Philaret and the other hierarchs are true confessors, who through
their lives inspired me to join the Church Abroad. I was officially
received in November 2009.
- Where do you serve,
Father?
I serve in Millbury,
Massachusetts. We have a small mission named in honor of Christ the
Savior, which performs outreach in the community. I am also a
volunteer nursing home chaplain and hospice volunteer, serving those
that are homebound. I also serve with Fr. Spyridon Schneider several
times a month in Ipswich, MA at the Church of St. John the Russian.
- What is your vision for
the future of the mission?
In Central Massachusetts,
whether it is a small mission or a large parish, I would like to have
something that is a beacon of Orthodoxy in that area, because there
are not a lot of Orthodox to begin with, and the Church Abroad does
not have much of a presence in that entire area. We are going to be a
witness and pray that God will have mercy on us and continue to bless
our efforts. We are small, but we have gained everything by coming to
the Church Abroad. If this is all it is, and this is all God wants me
to do, then so be it. It is His will. But I have no doubt that, if we
are loyal to the Church and to the Word of God, then we are going to
grow in leaps in the years ahead.
- What are some of the
challenges that you currently face in your missionary work?
In my experience, especially
in Massachusetts, most people are non-practicing Roman Catholics or
Protestants, and Orthodoxy is very foreign to them, whether it is the
simple things, like fasting or prostrations, or even the Jesus Prayer.
People believe more that the authority is just in the Scriptures
themselves, "Sola Scriptura,"
and want to mold the Church into this American ethos. So, a
traditional Church that is founded by Christ Himself is something
they’re not used to; they’re not used to the teachings and belief
that there is One Church and not many fragments. This is one of the
biggest things that I am finding, whether it is in the nursing home or
the street or out trying to evangelize: the people think that all
Christian confessions are the same, when Orthodoxy is obviously the
beacon of hope and faith, and trying to get them to understand that in
a few short moments when you are speaking with them is almost
impossible. I hope that the Holy Spirit will guide me, so that I can
say the right things and not turn them away.
- Many of us feel content in
our small parish families, so why is missionary work so important?
I think that it is a Divine
Commandment from the Savior himself to go out and to preach and to
baptize all nations. We don’t necessarily always have to go out to
all nations; we have to start right in our own neighborhoods, and I
think I realized that more than ever, since Orthodoxy is so foreign
even to people on my own street, in my own town. As priests we always
have to preach and live the Gospel and bring it to everyone we come
across. Obviously, our bishops tell us to do these things, and the
Fathers of the Church have always taught this. It is not something
that we keep to ourselves in Orthodoxy; it is something that we have
to spread to every single person on the planet. It is the only place
where we can guarantee that Salvation and the fullness of Grace
exists, and to deprive other people would be unchristian.
My wife and I came through
many struggles over nine years to be here at this point. If it
weren’t for the Grace of God, we might have given up; that is how
hard the road was. I don’t want other people to have to go through
that trouble; I want them to be exposed and to make the free-will
choice to accept or deny Christ, and I pray they will accept Him. I am
convinced that the fullness of Grace is only in Orthodoxy, and they
need to see that, and then it will be up to them to decide.
- America, as a Christian
country, is often a very difficult place to do missionary work. A lot
of parishes and people don’t seem to engage in missionary work
unless someone walks through the doors of the church. What is the best
way to go out, to reach people, and to get them interested in
Orthodoxy? What is the first step?
The first step is to live
it. If you live Orthodoxy and you are an example, of course you are
going to fail every single day, but they will know something is
different about you. Even praying before meals; I think it is so taboo
a thing to do, and you never see people in public doing it, but it is
a simple way for any of us to be representative and not be afraid to
show Christ in our nation. Simply wearing a cassock in public – a
lot of clergy are not comfortable doing that. It is not a uniform, it
shows who we are. It is amazing how missionary wearing the cassock and
the cross can be, to have people flock to you, asking funny questions
like, "Well, what are you?" And from there you start the
dialogue and say, "I am an Orthodox Christian." And they
will ask my name, and I’ll say, "Fr. Maximos McIntyre,"
and they will say, "That sounds Scottish or Irish, why aren’t
you Catholic?" And I explain, "I was growing up, but I saw
that something was missing," and go through Church history and
the asceticism of the Fathers, and how I realized that there is this
whole other aspect and that Christianity has preserved all these
things and that it is still there. People are usually intrigued by
that; they just assume that Orthodoxy is a Christian confession
without the Pope, and that’s not what it is. Orthodox is
a therapeutic strategy for the salvation of the soul; it is a science
to bring us to Salvation, not a system of weights and measures through
which we strive to die in a state of Grace. It is a lifelong struggle
and, God-willing, we will all obtain it.
Media Office of the Eastern American
Diocese
See
Also
October
21, 2010
"Lords
of Glory"
‒ A screenplay by a priest of the Eastern American Diocese makes
it to the voting stage of a film competition
