Karen Howden
To my Orthodox Family,
My name is Karen Howden
and I am privileged to be part of this family.
In one's Christian walk you always know there is more. It seems one is always at the tip of the iceberg. Now remember how big an iceberg is under the water—we will never know or understand it all—we are always skirting around the tip. Oh, but what is amazing up there.
Walking into Saint George's on that first Sunday, almost two years ago, was an overwhelming experience. I was like a deer in headlights. Nothing was familiar to me. The quiet, the smell of the incense, the candles burning was all so foreign. Then when I walked into the sanctuary and saw the splash of colour and gold reflecting off the front of the church not to mention the blazing light of the chandelier, I was awe-struck. A little side note here—at the time my vision was so bad with cataracts that I couldn't see any detail on anything but now that I have had the surgery, the imagery is amazing, seeing what I couldn't see but now seeing all the detail and every time I am in church I see something new!
It was comforting to see the familiar faces of Brendan and Bryann in the narthex on our first Sunday. We had had opportunity to talk with Brendan the week or so before and we asked him about Saint George's. It was on his recommendation that we decided to attend a service. That Sunday I was so overwhelmed I don't think I heard a word. All I did was look around and watch. It was also reassuring to see the familiar faces of Jamie and Gerlie and enjoy the Agape meal with the four of them and get their perspective of Saint George's. Everyone else was so sincere and welcoming to us.
I have always believed in God for as long as I can remember. Didn't learn much at Sunday school except all the typical Bible stories. Christianity, in my view, was very dull. But out there was another side which seemed to have excitement and that was the occult. So l dabbled. I never lost my belief in God but what I was reading and learning was tantalizing and not dull. So why was Christianity so dull? I started to attend a Christian and Missionary Alliance Church, not because I wanted something, but because I wanted my daughter to go to Sunday school. It was there, in the protestant tradition, that I accepted Christ. It was over 40 years ago. The night I accepted Christ, God became very real. After that night it was never a doubt that there was something more, much more than the occult. It was real excitement, well I got excitement. I have read and studied and learned so much over the years yet I knew there had to be more.
Having come from a strictly protestant background I had many reservations. I had been brought up in "anti-Catholic" family which didn't help me be very open to Orthodoxy. I had many issues-icons, the sign of the cross, the saints and the veneration of Mary. These were all stumbling blocks to me. It took time and lots of questions at the catechumen classes to change my Christian views thanks to Father Cristian's teaching. These classes have given me a different perspective on many things I had been taught in the protestant tradition. There were many teachings that seemed off kilter but not having much foundation in the "ancient faith" I had no answers to many questions. I had read some "forbidden books", like Enoch, and according to Protestantism I was told to be careful about reading them because they were not in the canon. But now having read the extra books in the Orthodox Bible and others I can see where so much knowledge and wisdom has been
obfuscated from Protestants. As I said earlier, “yet I knew there was more". Well that is what I have found - more, with much "more" to come. I have overcome the obstacles I first faced when coming into Saint George’s - the icons, veneration of Mary and the Saints and crossing myself. I have since been baptized Orthodox and can now partake in the Body and Blood of Christ. It is no longer just a symbol but it is real and the greatest mystery. I truly appreciate and look forward to the classes that Father so unselfishly takes the time to feed his flock on Sunday afternoons. There is so much more to learn…so much more. And so I continue my journey….
- Karen Howden
