Western, Orthodox, Charismatic — What?!

7 min readFeb 12, 2018

Oh, another “Cowboy Church.”…… Think again!

By Arizona Jim

When you put those three words together you’re liable to get any number of responses. Those three words in combination confuse a multitude of people. When you tell people that the church is Western in Culture, Orthodox in Liturgy and Charismatic in Worship, the look of confusion increases exponentially.

Western doesn’t mean “cowboy”

Many who see the banner on this new denomination’s website will assume that it’s a “Cowboy Church” because there are two cowboys pictured riding horses up a trail. There is also an old West lawman’s badge off on one corner indicating an interdenominational association of Deacons (spread throughout in the western united states) who are loosely affiliated with this new denomination. I say, “loosely,” because their whole reason for being in existence is to help their brother Deacons fulfill the Great Commission; but this is not a “Cowboy Church” as John Burnett of NPR writes in his article titled Cowboy Church: With Rodeo Arena, They ‘Do Church Different’.

The two cowboys in the picture are used merely to emphasize that the church is western in culture. Many of the congregation do ride horses, as do some of the clergy. It’s not uncommon to see members of the congregation openly armed in states where it is legal. In fact, I know of one deacon who regularly carries an old Remington single action in .45 Colt on his hip day in and day out. The church is also western in that the dress is more casual for both the congregation and the clergy. Instead of robes, cassocks, surplices, copes, miters and the like, (except on very special occasions like the start of Advent and Easter) you are more apt to find one of the deacons in a western style dress shirt with a pair of wranglers and boots. The priests still wear the typical backward collar with a colored stole (color depends on liturgical season). The bishops are very modest in their dress — choosing to wear the common black for priests instead of the more colorful attire they don for special occasions. Vestments are quite costly to purchase and maintain. This church would rather see the money going to help those that are in need — those such as the homeless, the hungry, the naked. (They take to heart Matthew 25:34–40.) It is also not uncommon to see clergy in beat up and dusty cowboy hats and boots in certain western states. They are working men after all

We love all of Gods Family,

cowboys included.

However, this is still not a Cowboy Church; and I’m not disparaging Cowboy Churches. I wouldn’t do that to my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ whose origins, which are not known by many in the popular culture, actually begin with the circuit riding preachers of the Baptist, Presbyterian and Methodist denominations of the 18th — and 19th centuries as told by John H Wigger in his article for Christian History Institute titled Holy, “Knock-’Em-Down” Preachers.

Orthodox in liturgy not in appearance

While the cowboy churches preach the gospel to their congregations on a level that the average cowboy, carpenter or all around blue collar fellow could understand, it is not the orthodox liturgy that you find in either the Catholic, the Anglican, Greek Russian, Eastern or Western Orthodox churches. Orthodox liturgy, for those who don’t know, are rites and rituals that go back hundreds to thousand of years, completely (or nearly completely) unchanged from the time of the Apostles until the present day. While most liturgical churches have opulent buildings and lavishly ornate interiors. You will find their bible studies in coffee shops and libraries with the day of the week rotating randomly. Their “Sunday meetings” as they are called maybe held in an American Legion/ VFW hall (about half of the church membership are veterans or current military) or may be held in a barn on someone’s ranch or farm, the open bay of a tire shop, or the covered picnic area of a local park. They have even been held in the basement of a city hall building.

When the weather is nice they are even held out doors.

Deaconess K.Swan scripture reading at Ealachan Ranch Easter Sunday 2014 used with permission.

The typical “Sunday morning” meetings often don’t’ start till noon or later most of the time concluding with a “potluck” meal. This is done to accommodate the members with small children, those who live a rural lifestyle whose mornings begin by having to feed and water animals before they travel down sometimes muddy roads(it takes awhile to get to town on those days) the elderly of the community who don’t move as fast as they used to, night shift workers and College students who may have “pulled an all-nighter” and anyone else who finds it hard to make it to church before noon on Sunday.

Orthodox doesn’t have to mean Stuffy and Boring!

What are they really about?

Some call them the “homeless church” “the soup kitchen church” the “prisoners church” and many others. They are all of these and yet not one title fits all by itself. Imagine if you will a cross between a Greek Orthodox “bells and smells” and a Pentecostal “fire and brimstone but God loves you so come to Jesus today” type of church. They minister to the homeless, the hungry, the sick and those behind bars (both with badges and with numbers on their chests). They are about spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ and helping their fellow man. They are not a cowboy church nor are they a “wear a suit and pass the loot” style of church. They have ordained clergy such as Deacons, Priests and Bishops. They also have appointed and commissioned deaconesses and female as well as male lay ministers assigned to various specific ministries (such as children, youth and prison ministries) throughout their area. They are Evangelistic, Progressively Traditional and Charismatic.

“Charismatic”: when you use this term, some people have visions of folks jumping over pews, rolling on the floor, speaking in unknown tongues with uplifting, lively music in the background — in other words, “Holy Rollers”- oh my!

HOWEVER

You won’t find any pews to jump over, as most of the congregations have folding chairs. Likewise, you won’t see anybody rolling on the floor, typically, unless they suffer from epilepsy. It is not uncommon for some of the members to have the gifts spoken of in the book of Acts during the time of Pentecost, but you won’t see it “willy-nilly, oh my goodness, silly” as you do in some other churches. You will hear lively and worshipful music. In fact, the same kind of music you would find in non-liturgical churches like the Pentecostal, Foursquare, Methodist, Church of God in Christ, etc. you will hear in a western orthodox charismatic church: everything from Sacred Steel and Jazz to Gospel Blue Grass or anything in between.