Paleo Protestant Pudcast Why Eastern Orthodoxy? Why Now?
Dec 22, 2025
Jason Peters, an English professor who converted from Reformed Christianity to Eastern Orthodoxy, discusses liturgy, parish life, and why Orthodoxy appeals today. He describes calendar, feasts, fasting, and the church’s aesthetic power. Conversation covers who is converting, why many young men are drawn in, and the tension between theological motives and cultural appeal.
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Orthodoxy Satisfies Longing For Wonder
- Eastern Orthodoxy appeals by satisfying a longing for wonder and embracing theological reticence instead of explaining everything.
- Jason Peters found the church's willingness to leave some mysteries alone and its ironic space decisive in his conversion.
Friend's Pilgrimage Led To Monastic Life
- A friend of Jason's converted dramatically after visiting a high-Lutheran Ash Wednesday service and later joined monastic life on Mount Athos.
- That friend divested his possessions, got Jason's library in 1996, and moved permanently to Mount Athos.
Orthodoxy In America Is Jurisdictionally Fragmented
- North American Orthodoxy is fragmented across ethnic jurisdictions like Antiochian, Greek, Russian, and the OCA, with limited higher education infrastructure.
- Jason notes few Orthodox colleges or seminaries besides Holy Cross and St. Vladimir's and weak parochial schooling.