List of Orthodox Internet communities
Contents
Blogs
Below is an incomplete list of sites that offer individual opinions and thoughts on Orthodoxy. Many of the following individuals have formed something of an intertextual community, and you are likely to find them linking to many other Orthodox sites or blogs, and many interesting non-Orthodox ones as well. However, keep in mind that the authors do not speak for the Church, and may have opinions different from the opinions of other Orthodox Christians.
Aggregators
- Greek Orthodox HQ at Greek-Orthodox
- Orthodoxy Community at LiveJournal
- St. Blog's Parish is a searchable aggregated syndication feed of Catholic and Orthodox blogs. Note: Mostly Catholic
New
- Greek Orthodox Community and Parish of Prophet Elias Norwood and Eastern Suburbs Inc. The blog for Greek Orthodox Community and Parish of Prophet Elias Norwood.
- Orthodox Kokomo The blog for St. Thomas the Apostle Orthodox Christian Church in Kokomo, IN. "Come and see!"
- Wonder Official blog of the Department of Youth, Young Adult, and Campus Ministries of the Orthodox Church in America. This blog is particularly geared for young adults and college students, and those who minister to them.
- Orthodoxy A place to discuss the history and faith of Orthodoxy around the world
Individual blogs
- Adventures with my Kids An Orthodox Christian mom blogging about adventures with her family and teaching her kids about their faith
- Arxontarikion Selected eastern orthodox christian material
- Musings from the Fourth Rome A site dedicated to collecting and posting news from the Orthodox Christian world and other relevant areas.
- Franciscan Mafia - A Protestant (Calvinist) Convert's journey towards Holy Eastern Orthodoxy, includes many quotes from the Fathers, articles on various Theological issues and more.
- Journey East - A Young Couple's Journey to Orthodoxy through a year of exploration (still in progress)
- Orthodox Michigan - A site about the history and presence of Orthodoxy in Michigan also posting news and information on upcoming events.
- Prudence True Prudence True - Orthodoxy: "The Art of Wisdom through Ancient Words." A cradle Orthodox Christian's perspective on the Orthodox faith. Features audio collection from Homilies of Fr. Jon Braun.
- Orthodoxos Logos - A Greek Orthodox blog with many christian orthodoxe radio recordings and other material.
- Akathistos- An Orthodox Blog focusing on mothering, women saints, green-living and being frugal
- All of Creation Rejoices - The musings of a ROCOR reader from Great Britain
- The Aurel Jivi Society - An Orthodox Blog for Theology Students Learning English for Academic Purposes
- Bigger than a Breadbox
- Bishop Seraphim (Sigrist) - Seraphim's LiveJournal
- Bishop Arseni of Joensuu (Church of Finland)- [1] Orthodox blog in Finnish
- Byzantine, TX - An Eastern Christian blog
- Pactum Serva - Orthodox blog on subjects ranging from Theology to Culture to Politics
- Devshirme by Fr. Gregory Christakos
- Dust and Ashes - "..but I have chosen you out of the world."
- East of Byzantium - Orthodox blog from China
- Everyday Blessings - Orthodox Christian Blog on maintaining and strengthening faith in a secular world, raising a family in the faith, Bible Study Reflections, Lives of the Saints, and more!
- Hellenic Reporter - Fighting the good fight for all freedoms, including freedom of religion.
- Fr. Matthew Thurman's blog
- Fr. Rauno Pietarinen's blog (Church of Finland) in Finnish
- Gladsome Light Dialogues A blog administered by Fr. Vasile Tudora featuring Orthodox theology applied to everyday life. "A journey through our faith as we live it every day"
- Glen Rose Farm - "Notes from a Hillside Farm; being Musings and Observations on Life, Letters, and our Most Holy Faith, by a Lawyer, Sheep-farmer, and Communicant of the Orthodox Church"
- Greek Orthodox Church of Bordeaux, France Official Blog of the Greek Orthodox Church and Hellenic Community of Bordeaux (in French). The Church is dedicated to "The Entry of the Most Holy Theotokos into the Temple" and belongs to the Ecumenical Patriarcate of Constantinople.
- Kevin Basil - "Decimation and Reconstruction"
- Ancient Church - The blog formerly known as Minor Clergy
- Lithurgy, Theology, and other topics by hieromonk professor PhD Petru Pruteanu, dean of the Pastoral Theological Faculty from Edinet Moldavia
- Milk & Honey Spiritual Food for Thought
- Morning Coffee
- Mother Kristoduli's blog (The Convent of Lintula, Church of Finland) in Finnish
- Occidentalis - Dedicated to the Western Rite.
- Orthodox Christian West - News blog for the Orthodox Western Rite.
- Orthodox Okie - a personal blog maintained by Oklahoma native ROCOR layman Aristibule Adams.
- Orthodixie - "Southern, Orthodox, Convert, Etc."
- Orth-o-matic - from Plamen Sivov, in Bulgarian language mainly
- OrthodoxyToday Blog - from Fr. Hans Jacobse
- Orthodox Way of Life Articles and information about how to live an Orthodox Christian life. The blog of the Saint George Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Greenville, SC.
- Paradosis - "A handing over, which is done by word of mouth or in writing, i.e. tradition by instruction, narrative, precept, etc."
- Paruchia - blog of ROCOR Western Rite texts and related material.
- Pensate Omnia (Weigh all Things) "Orthodox faith; language and literature; ideas in science, politics, history, art and poetry; whatever I find edifying or fun, these things I hope to write about and explore by posting thoughts, papers, links etc."
- Pleroma "Setting forth and defending the Apostolic Tradition"
- Ramblings of a Single Dad - "An adoptive single Orthodox father rambles on faith, fatherhood, family, and friends."
- Russian Orthodox Icons' Gallery - "This Blog is devoted to describing of hand-written Russian Orthodox icons from a Gallery, which is located in the heart of Old Riga, Latvia"
- Saint George Speaks "Articles from Saint George Greek Orthodox Cathedral Publications"
- Salt of the Earth "In Him We Live And Move and Have Our Being"
- Phil (SILOUAN) - "Why would a nice Protestant guy join the Orthodox Church?."
- Stephanos of Nikopolis - "Aphorisms and essays on moral philosophy, theology, Orthodox spiritual life, and New Testament commentary."
- St. Stephen's Musings by Karl Thienes - "Thoughts and reflections on Eastern Orthodox theology, various philosophical issues, and a variety of social/political events."
- Sunday to Sunday - "an online journal that chronicles my communion with Christ and His church."
- This is Life: Revolutions Around the Cruciform Axis - by Clifton Healy, an "Orthodox wannabe"
- Torrent of Consciousness - "It is what it is."
- Western Orthodoxy - "An Unofficial Blog Dedicated to the Western Rite within the Orthodox Church."
- A Catechumen's Walk - "My thoughts and meditations as I delve into the ancient paths of the Church"
- Saint-Materne Musing on the roots of Orthodox Belgium, 19 centuries Christian. (in French)
- "La Voile", "The Sail" online journal of a Belgian Orthodox study group (in French)
- anchorite.org A church tech blog
- www.frbishoy.com The official blog of Fr. Bishoy Andrawes, Priest of St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church of Washington, DC
- now and ever ..:in search of a john 3:8 hurricane:..
- Woman, Thou Art Awesome A blog devoted to the lives of Women Saints in the Orthodox Church
- Orthodox Christian Bible Studies Blog Discusses the development of online, interactive multimedia Bible study resources.
- Monasticism by Rev. Fr. Peter-Michael Preble of St. Michael’s Romanian Orthodox Church in Southbridge, MA
- The Burning Bush
- Antioch Abouna An Antiochian Orthodox priest writes from the UK
- Running The Race The musings of a recent evangelical convert to the Eastern Orthodox Church who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2008.
- WindowIntoHeaven Byzantine Iconography by the hand of Anna Edelman
- Nothing Hypothetical Orthodox Christian Poetry by David Dickens
- Hidden in Plain Sight: Ancient Faith in a Modern World A blog about faith and modern society from the vantage point of two young Orthodox Christians.
Fora
Internet fora are a place for discussion. They allow users to make a "post" about a topic and others to respond.
New
- Orthodox family and parenting discussion community A new forum dedicated to Orthodox families and parenting.
- DotCollective Forum A moderated forum for Orthodox Christian artists.
Active:
- Illumination Learning A hub for finding Orthodox Christian education resources and sharing them with each other
- Eastern Orthodox Christian Forum A moderated forum for non threatening Orthodox discussion.
- The Ancient Way - Eastern Orthodox, hosted by Christian Forums
- Monachos.net Discussion Community - Online study and discourse of Orthodoxy through patristic and monastic theological heritage.
- Byzantine Forum A new Forum about Orthodoxy and Greece (in Greek)
- Orthodox Forum - Teologie.NET A Orthodox Moldavian forum in Romanian language moderated by hieromonk professor PhD Petru Pruteanu, dean of the Pastoral Theological Faculty from Edinet Moldavia
- OrthodoxChristianity.net
- OrthodoxChristianChat.com
- St. Andrew House Discussion Forum, hosted by boardhost.com
- Chant Liturgique, a French language group of liturgical discussions, help, sharing & document exchange (Eastern rite only)
- Orthodoxy Bulgaria Orthodox forum in Bulgarian
- Romanian forum Orthodox forum in Romanian
- France forum Orthodox forum in French
- Ely Forum Orthodox forum in English, on Orthodox roots of the West, has also a (new) French forum
- Central Florida Orthodox Forum Orthodox Forum catering primarily to Orthodox Christians in the Central Florida area. Has a nice Q & A forum and other features that appeal to all Orthodox Christians
- Joy in Sorrow - An Orthodox resource and community site for those suffering from depression or going through hard times
- Ortodoksi.net Orthodox forum in Finnish (also in English, Swedich or German)
- New Orthodox all-inclusive forum in English linked to Ancient Faith Radio
Less-active:
- Eastern Orthodoxy, hosted by religiousforums.com
Inactive:
- Hesychasm forum forum in Russian is moderately active, forum in English is inactive
Electronic mailing lists
An electronic mailing lists allows list members to dialog via email. Sometimes the contents of these emails are archived for public view and other times they are not. List members generally have the option to receive the messages one-at-a-time or in a "daily digest" that includes all of the messages for a given time period.
- The Indiana list is one of the oldest and is known for its conservative leanings and feisty discussion.
- OCNet - The Orthodox Christian Network. Orthodox discussion forums available as mailing lists, BBS conferences, newsgroups etc.
Yahoo! Groups
In order to join many of these groups they require approval from a Yahoo! member who is the moderator of the group. Yahoo! membership, however, is not a requirement.
- Orthodox China - For discussion about issues related to Orthodoxy in China, translations of Orthodox texts into Chinese, and missionary work among Chinese people abroad.
- Orthodox Converts - For discussion between people who have converted to Orthodox Christianity or are interested in Orthodoxy. Cradle Orthodox and Clergy are invited to join to offer advice to those members who are young in the faith.
- Orthodox Forum
- Orthodox Jurisdictions
- Orthodox Readers - A list for tonsured readers, as well as for any one interested in Reader Services.
- Orthodox Re-Forum
- Orthodox Tradition
- Orthodox Without My Spouse - A support group for Orthodox Christians married to someone who isn't.
- Normal Orthodox
- Byzantine Chant - A group founded by the European musician Fr. Ivan Moody, primarily targeted at chanters practicing in churches using the Byzantine musical tradition. Discussion focuses on the technical aspects of the tones.
- Greek Orthodox Church Music - Discussion of musical issues as practiced in the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. This lists embraces four-part choral music as well as Byzantine chant.
- Typikon - A discussion list intended for all kinds of discussion and enquiries regarding the Typikon (its liturgical practice and music, and ramifications thereof) of the canonical Orthodox Church.
- Ustav - "Ustav" facilitates email discussion, questions, commentary and teaching concerning the traditional Orthodox Christian typicon and music. The Russian word "ustav" means typicon, and indicates that discussion will be slanted towards the Russian Orthodox typicon and music, as practiced in the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, but all other traditional usages may also be discussed.
- Western Rite Orthodoxy - "The congregations of the Western Rite Vicariate of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America proclaim the fullness of the Orthodox Faith while worshipping according to the historic Western Catholic Rites of Rome and England."
- Orthodox ROCOR - A group for members and friends of ROCOR.
- The Holy Bible Web Site Channel - This is a Coptic Orthodox discussion list with ecumenical vision and outreach (Main languages: English and Arabic).
- Celtic & Old English Saints - "Daily Lives of the first millennium Saints of Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Brittany, England, Cornwall, Isle of Man."
Clergy-only:
- Orthodox-Clergy - The Orthodox-Clergy email list is open to bishops, priests and deacons of all SCOBA jurisdictions, parishes of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, the Moscow Patriarchate and the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia.
- OCA-Clergy - This list is only open to priests and deacons of the Orthodox Church in America
- ROCOR Clergy - This list is open only to deacons, priests, and bishops of ROCOR.
Newsgroups
Newsgroups are usually found within the Usenet system and generally require newsreader software to interact with them. However, Google Groups provides a web interface.
- alt.religion.christian.east-orthodox, a high-traffic group known for its tabloid style, personal attacks, and fierce exchanges
- alt.religion.christian.greek-orthodox, a less active group than .east-orthodox, but tends to be more focused on Orthodox topics
- alt.religion.christian.russian-orthodox
- alt.religion.christian.ukrainian-orthodox
Social networks
There are sites for developing friendships with Orthodox Christians.
- GreekOrthodox.com - "GreekOrthodox.com is the web's premiere Greek website. It includes a community designed specifically for those who are Greek Orthodox. Join a group, send a Saint, or even keep your friends up to date with the integrated Twitter app."
- Orthodoxbiz.com - "Orthodox Biz is a business directory, business promotion, and business networking site for Orthodox business professionals. It offers an Orthodox business directory, classified ads, mini-sites, discussion forums, networking groups, Orthodox business blogging, Orthodox press releases from private businesses and Orthodox ministries, and Orthodox event listing."
- OrthodoxCircle.org - "OrthodoxCircle is a free online community portal designed for Orthodox Christians! It provides fun and easy to use tools for friends and family to stay connected with each other and their parishes, ministries and organizations. It's also a great way to make new friends with other Orthodox Christians around the world and to stay informed about events and news."
- OrthodoxFriends.com - This site has gone offline. Let me know if someone wants to revive this!
There are also some for just singles, but none for an Orthodox dating service, similar to eHarmony.com.
Instant messaging
There are several forms of instant messaging available to communicate with others online.
Internet Relay Chat (IRC)
- #orthodoxy on lplug.org
- #orthodoxwiki on freenode.net - see OrthodoxWiki:Chat
- #orthodox on undernet.org
- #orthodoxy on rus-net.org (chat mainly in Russian)
- #anastasis on rus-net.org (chat mainly in Russian)
Portals/directories
- Orthodox Christian Business Directory - Part of OrthodoXCircle
- dotcollective.com - "Orthodox Christian Artist Community Directory"
- Orthodoxbiz.com - "Orthodox Biz is a business directory, business promotion, and business networking site for Orthodox business professionals. It offers an Orthodox business directory, classified ads, mini-sites, discussion forums, networking groups, Orthodox business blogging, Orthodox press releases from private businesses and Orthodox ministries, and Orthodox event listing."
- Orthodox Christianity on the Web
- OrthodoxNet
- Orthodox Life Info Portal
- Ortodoksi.net Finnish Orthodox info portal
Fora
Electronic Mailing Lists
- Orthodox Groups at Yahoo!
- http://www.ocf.org/OrthodoxPage/resource/lists.html
- http://www.holy-trinity.org/lists.html