u/Fuzzy-Debate5914

Hey everyone,

So I’ve been thinking about visiting this Greek Orthodox church that’s about an hour away from me. I’ve never actually been to any church before in my life.

I actually tried to phone them beforehand just to ask a couple questions, but the number I found seems to be invalid. There doesn’t really seem to be a proper website either. The only thing I could find was some international Orthodox directory site that just lists churches around the world, but nothing specific about this one. So I’m kind of going in blind.

I don’t really know what to expect at all, especially since Orthodoxy seems quite distinct from like Western Christianity. I don’t want to go in and accidentally do something disrespectful or just look super lost or clumsy the whole time.

Also, I wanted to touch on another question too, are these kinds of ethnic parishes (like Greek Orthodox ones) generally open to converts, or even just outsiders who are curious?

I have always been quite anxious about this, so if anyone actively attends a Greek parish I would heavily appreciate any advice.

I just need to get this out because I genuinely feel so hopeless, and I don’t really know what I’m doing wrong anymore.

I’m a 2nd year university student, and I’ve been unemployed for almost a year and a half. I’ve been applying to pretty much anything I can realistically do, and I haven’t even gotten a single interview back. Not one. It’s starting to mess with my head a bit because I don’t understand what I’m missing or why I’m being overlooked completely.

I did have a previous job in retail (I will not name the store). However, I ended up leaving after I was physically assaulted by a customer at work. It really shook me up more than I expected and I’ve honestly been pretty traumatised by it since then. I thought I’d be able to just move on and jump back into work after it, but it hasn’t been that simple.

On top of that, I still don’t have my full driver’s licence. My dad is always busy and when he does have time, it just doesn’t really happen, so I’ve been kind of stuck there too.

At home things have been really tense because of the job situation. My parents are constantly frustrated and there’s a lot of yelling, and it’s been taking a real toll on me mentally. I’m trying my best to fix things, but it feels like I’m just falling behind no matter what I do.

Any advice is appreciated.