I am an Orthodox Christian by choice rather than by birth. In my case this means I'm Orthodox because I believe it to be the fullest expression of Christian faith. This means I also believe that deviation from this fullness is, plain and simple, heretical. So how then do I approach fellow Christians who are not Orthodox?
What is the disposition of my heart in conversation with non-Orthodox believers, people I respect, love and trust whom I believe are adhering to one or more heretical ideas about God, His Incarnation, our salvation in Him?
As I type this I wonder what would happen if I were to meditate on how poorly I have lived out what I profess. What if I were to think on these things in my heart before having that conversation where I am challenging a brother or sister to consider whether the Orthodox Church might have it right on a particular point. What if I were to repent of my failure to live out the point in question?
What if I began with the sure and certain knowledge that I am a heretic of the heart, and begged God to forgive and cleanse the weeping sores of my wickedness?
What if I removed the mote? And in removing the mote I saw that the mote's shadow, coming from my own eye, was a large part (not all, but a large part) of the beam I thought I saw lodged in someone else's eye?
What would that be like?
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