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→And above all these things put on LOVE, which is the bond of perfectness
:Third of all, I should inform you that throwing a litany of martyrs at me is not going to change my mind. I think that kind of emotionalism is extremely crass, and it is certainly no substitute for the Holy Spirit. --[[User:Matrona|Matrona]] 11:18, 3 November 2005 (CST)
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::Peace and Grace,
::This is your opinion, which I do fully respect. But let me also respectfully disagree with it. You will find some answers in these notes: [http://www.orthodoxwiki.org/Additional/Miscellaneous_Notes_%28Coptic_Interpretations_of_the_Fourth_Ecumenical_Council%29]
::If there is anything in common to acknowledge here, this would be the severe limitations of our natural languages (modern and ancient), especially when dealing with theological/Christological matters. See some interesting debates from the ''Summa Theologica'' at [http://www.newadvent.org/summa/401801.htm],[http://www.newadvent.org/summa/401803.htm]. If our natural languages were 100% efficient and effective to deal with such matters, you wouldn't have seen all these ongoing, centuries-long debates about the same topic. And at Chalcedon we all know that matters of language were overshadowed and complicated by Imperial politics and Church rivalries. LOVE definitely didn't prevail there, especially if you consider the bloody persecution of the Copts (not just their hierarchs) and other non-Chalcedonian Orthodox Christians that followed.
::We also have many martyrs who died for their Orthodox faith. This remains precious in God's eyes, even though we are now discovering that we were and are all sharing a common faith (perhaps not yet from your point of view). The Coptic Orthodox Church is also a Church supported with innumerable miracles and apparitions to this present day. But we know that "blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed". We are also perhaps the most persecuted of all Churches throughout the history of Christendom, but, as the Bible says, this is a privilege from God, a sign of His tremendous and very special love to us, and something to rejoice in (James 1:2).
::Perhaps it would be better if we (Copts) start our own '''CoptopediA''' (www.coptopedia.org?). The technology is cheap and readily available http://www.siteground.com/script_sales.htm?id=285 , though running such a project is not a trivial task and requires immense commitment. But what I enjoy most in this virtual place (OrthodoxWiki) are the prayerful feelings and spirit of brotherhood and unity (or at least sincere aspiration for it) that we do have in common, as Father John and Deacon Andrew have beautifully expressed it at [http://www.orthodoxwiki.org/Talk:Anti-Orthodox].
::Thank you for the tip regarding signatures. I simply didn't know about it. No hidden motives (agape love that should be the foundation of all dealings between mankind "is not easily provoked, ''thinketh no evil''"). Signing with my nickname won't add a lot. After all these are just nicknames with empty profile pages. --Arbible