The Orthodox Christian finds himself in a paradoxical state. We are to live in the world but not of the world. It is therefore absolutely normal, even essential, that we experience alienation from the world in some sense. But this can also become a trap that the demons can use to ensnare us. For example, ideology is a specifically modern phenomenon in which the experience of alienation rises to the level of a social and political theory, to the extent that the only means of salvation becomes a total transformation of society through political and social control. It is grounded in the gnostic notion that God messed up when He created, but we can re-imagine ourselves as creators. By harnessing the power of science, we can take control of our lives and of history and build the perfect world, free of disease, poverty, injustice, even death. No alienation ever again.

All human beings experience the paradoxical nature of existence, whether you are a believer or not. The notion that we can escape or overcome our paradoxical state is just another gnostic dream, a nightmare even. That many, within the Orthodox Faith, are attracted to these gnostic ideas does not change this important fact: our existence is paradoxical in nature. We can try to overcome our true nature by adopting an ideology, or we can embrace the True Faith, which in turn both recognizes and embraces our paradoxical nature in its hymns and theology. Through the Orthodox Faith, we can learn how to live faithfully in our realm which is between this world and the next. https://orthodoxreflections.com/how-should-the-orthodox-christian-relate-to-the-world/