Home, sweet home! Otherwise known as "the other side of catholicity"

My last post, like a few before it, was about the great benefit of catholicity in the Church.  The idea that when we travel (or, God forbid, move) we pretty much know what to expect in whatever Orthodox Church we end up visiting.

Having said that, after two weeks away from our home parish, it was awfully nice to be back.  Catholicity is wonderful, but home is home.  I've mentioned before how our parish "smells like a Church."  We had visitors to our parish today, and one of them walked into the narthex and the first thing he said was "it smells good in here!"

Yes, yes it does.

Familiarity is an interesting thing.  Everything about this parish was foreign to us when we arrived for the first visit over a year ago.  And yet, then and now, it felt like home.  Orthodoxy has been wonderful to us, and I don't mean this at all to suggest other parishes would not suffice.  In fact, if pushed to the wall, I could suggest several areas I actually prefer the piety and practice of other parishes I've visited, though they would be few (getting rid of the pews would be my first suggestion -- Lent was nice without them).  But at the end of the day, this one is home and likely always will be.  We cannot imagine being anywhere else. 

Orthodoxy is one big family, and without a doubt the relation is visible in other parishes we visit.  But they are still distant cousins and step-siblings.  It's nice to be back home with the immediate family again.  We missed y'all.