Wednesday, May 1, 2019

Upcoming Review of Fr. Josiah Trenham's Lecture Series "The Good Wife"

Fr. Josiah Trenham

Back in 2014, when I was an eager and naive inquirer into Orthodox Christianity, I listened to Fr. Josiah Trenham's lecture series "The Good Wife." His words shaped my conception of my new faith and my proper role as an Orthodox wife. I took his teachings to heart and sincerely tried to implement them.

I didn't know at the time that Fr. Josiah is arguably the most reactionary voice in American Orthodoxy. I now realize that his views are more extreme than those of the vast majority of Orthodox Christians I have known. Yet, Fr. Josiah's podcast "Arena" is featured on Ancient Faith, the most popular English-language Orthodox media outlet. He also founded Patristic Nectar Publishing and is a prolific author. I have seen his books sitting on the shelves of my parish library.

In other words, Fr. Josiah is not an obscure, fringe voice. If he were, I wouldn't bother to address his views. But despite his extreme positions, he is mainstream and highly influential among American Orthodox Christians. As such, his work merits scrutiny and critique.

When I was a wide-eyed catechumen, I didn't think I had the authority to dismiss the teachings of an Orthodox priest. "The Good Wife" shocked and disturbed me the first time I listened to it, but I convinced myself that my reaction was due to my own prideful nature, which had to be conquered if I was to become a Good Wife. It's difficult to convey the damage this did to my marriage and my faith, damage which I am still working to repair.

For an Orthodox Christian, criticizing a priest is tricky. Our faith teaches us that a priest is an icon of Christ, and as such demands respect. We aren't required to take the word of any one priest as doctrine, but rigorous critique may be perceived as bordering on blasphemy. If we take issue with the teachings of a priest, we are to expected to respond meekly or not at all.

Well, I'm not going to do that. I don't have much status to lose within the Church at this point, and that gives me some freedom that well-behaved Orthodox Christians don't have. I want other Orthodox Christians to see clearly the extreme (and, I will argue, un-Orthodox) ideology that Fr. Josiah propagates, so that they can approach his work with skepticism. Towards that end, I will be writing a multi-part review of his lecture series "The Good Wife."

I have a very small blog with few if any readers. I don't know if my words can make a difference, but words are the only tool I have. If enough Orthodox Christians speak out against Fr. Josiah, maybe we could pressure mainstream outlets like Ancient Faith to stop giving him a platform. He could be relegated to the fringe where he belongs. Hey, I can dream.

The full series of "The Good Wife" is available for pay through Patristic Nectar Publishing, except for Part 1 which you can listen to for free. Part 1 is also available through Ancient Faith Radio, which is where I first heard it. In my reviews, I will summarize the content of his lectures for the benefit of those who can't or won't pay to hear them, and I will include extensive quotations.

Stay tuned.

11 comments:

  1. Someone posted your most recent post on Reddit, which is how I found your blog. I am a very new catechumen who came to know Fr Trenham's teachings via his YouTube channel. Really appreciate reading your thoughts as a more experienced Orthodox Christian, since I am increasingly troubled by the tone of his messages. Thanks for sharing!

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  2. We cite your important testimony in our "The Good Wife" According to Father Josiah Trenham: Does Metropolitan Joseph Approve? at www.orthodoxyindialogue.com. Please contact us at the email address on our Contact Us page.

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  3. Sin separates most people so far from REAL Truth...that they are scandalized when they actually come into contact with it. Your story is just another example. Repent.

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    1. Focus on your own repentance rather than yapping your mouth at someone to repent.

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    2. Again, no criticism allowed in Orthodoxy.

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  4. Fr. Trenham is in no way "reactionary" or "extreme", he represents faithfully the Orthodox Tradition. I understand that many aspects of it can be very challenging, they certainly are for me as well, but no one ever said following Christ would be easy. Do not try to change the tradition if it's not something you can't or do not want to follow. It doesn't mean you have to act exactly according to it, all of us fail every day in some aspects, but the goal is to strive for theosis through humble repentance.

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  5. Did you write the review? I see this post (obviously) but can’t find the reviews.

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    1. I only reviewed Part 1, "The Good Wife as the Help-Mate", here: https://joyofdirtydishes.blogspot.com/2019/05/review-good-wife-as-help-mate-good-wife.html

      After that I kind of forgot about this blog, and I only realized much later that some people had actually read and commented on that post.

      (Sorry for my slow response. Reading comments makes me anxious so I tend to avoid them.)

      Thanks for reading!

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  6. I would love to see the rest of this series. Perhaps you could disable commenting as I completely understand why it makes you anxious to read them.

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