Orthodixie
Recently, the Antiochian Archdiocese’s Department of Missions and Evangelism announced a contest to write the best 30-second or less explanation of what the Orthodox Church is, essentially an Orthodox “elevator speech”.
I’d never heard of an “elevator speech” but the announcement went on to say that in the business world, an “elevator speech” is a very brief explanation of what one does for a living or what one’s company does or stands for. It is a speech, or pitch, useful when one has only a few seconds of someone else’s time and attention – such as an elevator ride.
Years ago, I was visiting someone in the hospital and was wearing my riassa (big black robe, big wide sleeves) and I was hurrying to catch an elevator before the door closed. In this elevator, unbeknownst to me, was four black ladies, hospital employees, on their way down the elevator; headed home at shift’s end. With my big black robe flowing behind me, I quickly rounded the corner in time to jam my hand into the closing doors — at which point the doors re-opened. I saw one of the ladies eyes enlarge to the size of golf balls as she grabbed her heart and screamed!
She then smiled and said, “Oh, thank you, Jesus … I thought you was the Grim Reaper come to take me!”
She didn’t ask me any questions about Orthodoxy as we all rode the elevator, but …
The Orthodixie Podcast on Ancient Faith Radio.
For more info on the contest, click HERE.
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