Perspectief 2019-44

2019-44 Mor Polycarpus Augin Aydin PhD 11 3. Pluralism The Syriac Orthodox Church, to a large extent, is still an immigrant church. In the home- land, living in a dominant Muslim society and state as a millet, it was much easier to keep the faith and preserve one’s identity. However, in a pluralistic society such as that of Amer- ica and Europe, at times it is hard for the small, yet growing, Syriac community to maintain and preserve its faith and identity. This poses a real challenge for the parents and especially the leaders of the community. It is important not to repeat the same mistakes of the past; in this regard, one should learn from the success and achievements of other Orthodox communities in the Western countries. Fellowship and solidarity with other Orthodox com- munities as well as other Western Christians is integral for the preservation of the Orthodox faith while maintaining at best some Syriac identity. What matters and is more essential, however, is the Orthodox faith, and not so much the ethnic or national identity of oneself. 4. Secularism The word secular is defined differently by different people and may be viewed as some- thing positive or negative, largely depending on the culture, political state or background one comes from. For instance, a Christian who comes from a minority group in a dominant Muslim society, such as Turkey, or a dominant Hindu society, such as India, may view sec- ularism as something good and positive, because this state of affairs works for their benefit. In a secular country, due to a separation between state and religion, people, to a varying degree, are free to live their faith and express their religious convictions. On the other hand, for a Christian who comes from a traditional Orthodox country like Greece or Romania, secularism may be seen as something negative and in opposition to the Church. In the case of the Syriac community in North America and Western Europe, secularism has a more negative connotation than a positive one. While it is true that we should be grateful to God that we live in a country like America, where we are free to worship and maintain our faith in the way we want, nevertheless secularism poses for us a real challenge and difficulty. This is because secularism is removing the Church from being at the center of people’s life, leaving it to play a lesser role in the life of the community. Furthermore, this