FAQs

The Orthodox Church is the original Christian Church founded by Jesus and continued by his Apostles. It is the same Church described in the Bible as the Body of Christ and the Bride of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:27; Ephesians 5:23–25). Throughout its 2000-year history, Orthodox Christianity has remained faithful to the teachings and practices passed on from the Apostles and early Church Fathers (2 Thessalonians 2:15).

The Orthodox Church began in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2), and from there spread throughout the world. Today, with over 200 million members worldwide, the Orthodox Church thrives primarily in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and the United States.

The word Orthodox means both ‘right belief’ and ‘right glory’ and refers to the correctness and truth of the Orthodox Church’s faith and worship (John 4:23–24). The Orthodox faith is expressed most fully in the Bible—the God-inspired books of the Old and New Testaments. This same faith is expressed very succinctly by the Nicene Creed, composed by theologians who met at the first two (of seven) great Ecumenical Councils held in 325 and 381:

We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the only-begotten, begotten of the Father before all ages. Light of Light; true God of true God; begotten, not made; of one essence with the Father, by whom all things were made; who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven, and was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and became man. And He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered, and was buried. And the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again with glory to judge the living and the dead; whose Kingdom shall have no end.

And [we believe] in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Giver of Life, who proceeds from the Father; who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified; who spoke by the prophets.

[We believe] In one Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.

The Divine Liturgy (what Catholics often call the Mass) is the very heart of Orthodox life and faith. In it we receive Holy Communion which unites us with other Orthodox believers throughout the world. We are also united to the whole ‘communion of saints’ — all the departed martyrs, holy fathers and mothers of past ages — who join us and the hosts of angels in giving unceasing glory to God (Isaiah 6:3; Revelation 7:9–17). But most importantly, Holy Communion unites each of us to Jesus Christ, for he offers himself to us in his very Body and Blood (John 6:53–57). Orthodox parishes celebrate the Divine Liturgy every Sunday morning as well as on many feast days throughout the year.

Through constant prayer, through participation in the Church’s sacraments and the study of Holy Scripture, through serious struggle against our strong inclinations to sin and selfishness, and through gestures of loving self-sacrifice for others, we strive to enter more deeply into communion with the God who is Love (1 John 4:16). Union with God constitutes man’s only true and lasting happiness. It is this union and this happiness which Christ Jesus longs to give us, and the Church exists to make that happen.

Learn more about the Orthodox faith and life.

Service lengths vary depending on a variety of factors, but general estimates are:

• Great Vespers services (Saturday evenings at 6pm) are usually 45 minutes in length.
• Divine Liturgy (Sunday mornings at 10am) runs about 1.5 to 2 hours. We think that when you have participated in an Orthodox service you will feel like – as one visitor put it – “you have truly worshiped God!”

Please view our calendar for specific service times throughout the year.

Learn more about what to expect if you’ve never experienced Orthodox worship before.

Yes! Our community is made up of both lifelong (cradle-born) Orthodox Christians and those who have embraced the faith later in life (converts), and we come from a variety of racial, age, ethnic, and economic backgrounds. We are very comfortable with newcomers, inquirers, and visitors.

We can probably anticipate many of your questions about the Orthodox Christian faith. We’ve all been there! So don’t be afraid to ask questions about what we do and why. Our bookstore and lending library also have resources that can help answer a variety of questions. Subjects in our bookstore include Church history, theology, catechism, Orthodox spirituality, inspiration, prayer, the lives of the saints, and stories about others who have journeyed to the Orthodox faith. We even have children’s books!

We also have pamphlets which answer many common questions which are available for free in our narthex.

Learn more about visiting our parish.

No. While paging through your search results for Orthodox churches in Northwest Indiana, you will see a multiplicity of parishes: Greek, Romanian, Carpatho-Russian, Antiochian, Serbian, Orthodox Church in America (OCA), Ukrainian, Macedonian, and so on. Is Orthodoxy really so tribal? Do these divisions represent theological squabbles and schisms?

Not at all. All these Orthodox churches are one Church. The ethnic designation refers to what is called the parish’s “jurisdiction” and identifies which bishops hold authority there. The Orthodox Church is for everyone, regardless of ethnicity: this is shown by the presence in most Orthodox parishes of many converts from Western Christianity (Protestant or Catholic) or from non-Christian beliefs.

Protection of the Virgin Mary (PTVM) Orthodox Church is a parish of the Midwest Diocese of the Orthodox Church in America (OCA), in communion with the worldwide canonical Eastern Orthodox Churches. His Eminence, the Most Reverend Daniel, is our presiding bishop, and the head of our Church is His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon. Our parish priest and rector is Father Jacob. Learn more about our parish’s leaders.

The general rule for men and women is to dress appropriately, modestly and respectfully, because we stand before the living God. We wear everything from jeans to suits, long dresses to skirts, tee shirts to shirts with ties, dress shoes to sneakers. We ask, however, that you do not wear shorts, mini-skirts, tank tops, low-cut or strapless dresses (unless covered by a sweater, etc.). Some Orthodox women wear head coverings, but this is not required. Men are asked not to wear head coverings (baseball caps, etc.) in the Nave.

No. Each parent is responsible to take care of their child(ren).  We encourage children to be present in Church for the services. This participation is part of a child’s spiritual formation. If your baby or child gets fussy, talkative, or has a melt-down, feel free to step into the cry room—a quiet, enclosed space where little ones have more wiggle room but you can still see and hear the service. Nursing mothers may also use this space. Our bathrooms are equipped with changing stations for your convenience.

We do offer Church School following communion on Sunday mornings from September through May, for preschool through high school students. Parents are welcome to come with their child(ren).

The traditional posture for prayer and worship in the Orthodox Church is to stand before the King of the universe! In the Orthodox “old countries” there are typically no pews in the churches. Chairs or benches on the side walls are usually reserved for the elderly and infirm. At our parish, you are free to sit. However, it is appropriate to stand during the Gospel reading, the Little and Great Entrances, the distribution of Holy Communion, when the priest gives a blessing, and at the Dismissal. Just follow the congregation.

Learn more about what to expect if you’ve never experienced Orthodox worship before.

Lighting candles is an important part of Orthodox worship and piety. We light candles as we pray, making an offering to God accompany our prayers. Orthodox typically light candles when coming into the church, but there are times when candles should not be lit. Candles should not be lit during the Epistle or Gospel readings, during the Little Entrance, and during the sermon. By the way, you do not have to be an Orthodox Christian to light a candle and pray in an Orthodox church.

No. Orthodox priests may only serve the Holy Eucharist to baptized members in good standing of the canonical Orthodox Church, who have prepared to receive it (e.g., recently confessed, and fasted before partaking of the Holy Eucharist). This is the ancient tradition of the Holy Church for the 2,000 years of its history. The Orthodox Church understands the Holy Eucharist as a mystery of the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, not simply as a memorial, or merely in a spiritual sense, as many other non-Orthodox Christians do. Rather than trying to accommodate to often varying “interpretations” or revisions of this and other doctrines of the ancient faith, we simply ask that you respect the ancient, apostolic tradition.

Visitors who are not Orthodox Christians are kindly asked not to approach the chalice during Holy Communion. If you are unsure whether you are blessed to receive, please refrain from coming forward until you have spoken with Father Jacob.

Non-Orthodox visitors are welcome to join us in receiving the blessed bread at the veneration of the cross, at the end of the Divine Liturgy. This bread is not the Holy Eucharist.

Yes. The Eucharist is truly the body and blood of our Lord. But this can be apprehended only by spiritual sight, what the early Christians called the nous—the eyes of the soul. Without this spiritual insight, we could not understand the mystery of the Eucharist.

Close to seventy-five percent of an Orthodox service is congregational singing. Traditionally, Orthodox do not use instruments. Usually a choir leads the people in a capella harmony, with the level of congregational response varying from parish to parish. The style of music varies as well, from very traditional Byzantine-sounding chant in some parishes, to more Western-sounding four-part harmony in a Russian-tradition church, with lots of variation in between. The music is solemn, prayerful and intended to lead the faithful to worship the living God.

New visitors will find there are many new things to experience in a Holy Orthodox Church service. Feel free to go at your own pace, ask any questions you have, and know you are most welcome to “come and see.”

Our hymns and prayers change every day. Yes, there are some hymns we sing regularly, but each day different hymns are sung to celebrate a feast, the life of a saint or some other event in the life of the Church. Like most churches, we have a large and varied hymnbook, and some of the hymns and prayers are used more than others. But because the Orthodox liturgical tradition is so vast, full immersion in it provides an almost endless variety of exploration and possibility.

Orthodoxy holds fast to what it has received throughout its existence as something received from Christ through the Apostles. At its heart is the very life of the faith. The idea that the Church should fundamentally change its worship according to the tastes and culture of the world is foreign to us.

Yes. We live stream most services on Facebook.

If you’re able to do so, we strongly encourage you to attend in person.

Icons are in some sense our “family album”. In the same way that many people keep photo albums to help them remember people and events, we keep the icons to remind us of people and events. They adorn the walls of our worship spaces. Most Orthodox Christians also have an icon corner in their home.

Our worship is not merely mental—we use all our senses, sight, smell, sound, taste and touch. Incense wafting upwards symbolizes our prayer rising to God in heaven. The Scriptures always depict incense when they describe worship in Heaven (Isaiah 6:4; Revelation 8:3–5), and incense is mentioned in the worship of God on Earth well over 100 times in the Bible. The Prophet Malachi even predicted that incense would be characteristic of Christian worship (Malachi 1:11).

To clarify, fasting doesn’t mean giving up all food and water. Orthodox fasting practice, when followed strictly, means not partaking of any animal products (i.e., no meat, dairy, eggs, etc.), nor of olive oil or wine. Fasting is one of many tools that we use to bring our bodies “under subjection” as St. Paul said (1 Corinthians 9:27), so that we might be pure and holy. Jesus said that when He had gone, His followers would fast (Luke 5:35). Like the early Christians, we fast so that we may learn to control our appetite for all things that are not good and holy. It is not about earning salvation; it is a tool to help us work out our salvation with fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12), enabling us to train and strengthen our wills so that they can be turned toward Christ. Specifically, we fast each Wednesday to commemorate the day when Jesus was betrayed and each Friday to commemorate His death on the cross. In addition, we fast during the entire Lenten period and the entire Nativity (or Advent) period, as well as during other times during the year.

Learn more about fasting and fast-free seasons of the Church.

As the one who gave birth to God Himself in the flesh, we hold her in high reverence and respect. It only makes sense that we should love someone who literally held God inside her for nine months. She also shows us the way to become one with her divine Son—humility, love and obedience to Him. Why is she so important? Mary stands witness that Jesus Christ is fully human, even while being fully God. The early Christians made a point of inserting into the Nicene Creed (325 A.D.) the statement that Christ was “incarnate… of the Virgin Mary” to ensure there was no confusion on this matter.

As for prayers, we pray with Mary, and ask her to intercede on our behalf, as we do with all our saints. It’s no different than asking your own mother to pray for you. And in this case, we’re asking Jesus’ mother to pray for us.

In a word, no. However, we believe that Orthodoxy represents the fullness of the faith—that is, the most complete and accurate expression possible by man. God honors truthful belief and proper faith anywhere it is found. Then why become Orthodox? The fullness of the faith is found here, the fullness of the truth is found here, and the fullness of worship is found here. Simply put, why would you only want a sandwich when you could have an entire banquet?

Much of the content of Orthodox worship services consists of readings from the Scriptures, especially the Psalms. Readings from the Gospel occur at most services, along with regular readings from the Epistles. There are not now, nor have there ever been, any restrictions on the laity with regard to reading the Scriptures—they are, and always have been, encouraged to read them. As for Sola Scriptura (“Scripture Alone”), we believe that the Scriptures are the “canon”—the measuring stick—which must be applied to all doctrine, but it is not the only source of doctrine. In other words, not all doctrine is found in the Scriptures, but no Orthodox doctrine contradicts the Scriptures.

The Holy Apostle Paul praised early Christians for maintaining traditions and exhorted them to keep them, even ones that were communicated verbally but not written down in his letters:

• “Now I praise you, brethren, that you remember me in all things and keep the traditions just as I delivered them to you” (1 Corinthians 11:2).
• “Therefore, brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or our epistle” (2 Thessalonians 2:15).

The Orthodox Church actually produced the Bible. The Church also lived Christian life to the fullest for centuries before the canon of the New Testament was even recognizable (~367 A.D.). We maintain and uphold the traditions that were passed down by the Apostles—those written, spoken, and demonstrated. As such, the Bible is always understood within the life of the Church, not above or apart from it. The Bible is the Church’s book.

In addition to the resources on our website and in our bookstore and lending library, Father Jacob offers a monthly Catechism class on Saturday afternoon (before Great Vespers) for catechumens and those wanting to learn more about the Orthodox faith. There you can ask questions and explore or simply listen to whatever is being offered. There is no effort to argue or force understandings and “convert” visitors. Simply be open to learn.

We also have pamphlets which answer many common questions which are available for free in our narthex.

Feel free to contact us, talk to one of our faithful, or with Father Jacob after one of the services or during coffee hour following Sunday Divine Liturgy. If your need is of a pastoral nature, you can call the office or leave an email request to schedule an appointment to meet with Father Jacob.