There should be a test somewhere

In whatever enterprise, lest it be so perverse as to prevent discourse, people want to discuss their interests with others. For my part I'd love to have discussions with people about the faith - that particular faith of the Eastern Christian.

The problem is that places like Orthodox Circle exclude me, byzcath.org forums depress me, and Catholic Answers enrages me. If I email Orthodox Circle for access as the Eastern equivalent of an Anglo-Catholic, the Orthodox (understandably I think) won't give me as a Ruthenian access no matter how much I wish to discuss Eastern thought with them. Five minutes of reading byzcath.org forums will make even the most stalwart believer shake his head in dismay. Sooo much whining and bickering... I am reminded of a comment made recently that whenever there is no outward pressure on a group it will fight amongst itself. Catholic Answers is a nightmare all its own.

There is an Eastern section on Catholic Answers. Is it a place where people interested in the Eastern lung can ask questions about the faith or seek guidance? I wish it were so. Instead it's about 80% of either Orthodox parachuting in to snipe or Latin Catholics trying to pigeon-hole Eastern Catholics into quirky ethnics. Who really discusses without an agenda whether Peter went to Rome or just Antioch, the nature of papal infallibility, whether Peter is really buried in Rome, etc. etc.

I hope for a forum that requires a test and acquiescence to rules of conduct before membership. Should you choose to be rude or to speak on something already agreed to in a joint statement of faith solely to prove your primacy-via-affiliation you would be thrown out without ceremony.