Orthodoxy's Quiet U.S. Conversion Wave

A compact, readable handbook (Michael Shanbour’s Know the Faith) is helping reduce ignorance about Eastern Orthodoxy among Americans and thereby lowering the hurdle to conversion. The book frames core Orthodox commitments (theology as the fruit of prayer, continuity with the Fathers) and compares them to Catholic and Protestant positions, making Orthodoxy more intelligible to seekers. — If more Americans convert or view Orthodoxy as a distinct cultural alternative, it could shift local religious ecosystems, influence moral vocabularies, and re‑shape how religion enters public debates about tradition, authority, and social order.