Finding Authentic Christian Worship: A Journey Through History, Tradition, and Faith

The search for authentic Christian worship often begins with a simple but profound question: “Is this how the apostles worshipped?”

In this special Cloud of Witnesses (https://www.patreon.com/c/CloudofWitnesses) mini-episode, our guest hosts, Ben and Ashley Langlois—Ben known online as Orthodox Luigi—invite us into their personal journey of wrestling with that very question. As a husband-and-wife team, their perspectives bring a unique richness to the conversation: Ben shares from his theological study and exploration of history, while Ashley offers a heartfelt and distinctly feminine perspective on what it means to seek beauty, meaning, and belonging within the Body of Christ.

Raised in contemporary Protestant settings, they began to sense subtle but growing tensions during worship: as guitars played, lights dimmed, and emotions ran high, they couldn’t shake the feeling that something essential was missing. Were coffee shops, branded merchandise, and high-energy worship experiences truly what Christ intended for His Church?

This questioning sparked a spiritual journey that led them through seven different churches, eventually settling for online services when no physical community seemed to reflect the fullness they longed for. Along the way, family connections played an important role. Brothers who were exploring Catholic and Orthodox traditions introduced Ben and Ashley to writings from the Church Fathers and early Christian practices that challenged many modern assumptions.

Some discoveries were unexpected—like learning that Luther, Calvin, and Zwingli, leaders of the Protestant Reformation, all practiced infant baptism, a tradition many evangelical churches have set aside. For Ashley, these realizations opened new questions about how faith traditions shape the spiritual life of families and the formative role of women in the Church.

Their journey eventually brought them to a Presbyterian congregation that offered what they call “pseudo-tradition”—wooden pews, touches of liturgy, and references to early writers. Yet, as Ashley shares, there was still a lingering sense of longing: the beauty was there, but the roots felt incomplete. Exploring historically grounded Protestant traditions like Anglicanism and Lutheranism only deepened this tension, as they often discovered a paradox—churches with the richest liturgical practices frequently embraced the most progressive theology, raising concerns about spiritual and doctrinal stability.

Through prayer, study, and reflection, Ben and Ashley’s path eventually led them to Eastern Orthodoxy, where they encountered a faith deeply rooted in apostolic succession, ancient liturgies, and a vision of salvation as a lifelong journey of transformation in Christ. Ashley speaks to how Orthodoxy’s reverence, beauty, and communal worship resonated with her desire for a faith that engages not just the mind, but the heart and the senses—inviting the whole person into relationship with God.

This is more than a story about leaving one church for another—it’s about the deeper longing many Christians feel today: to encounter something enduring, rooted, and unchanging in a rapidly shifting world.

Entire uncut, unedited conversation between Ben and Ashley available now on our Patreon!

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When Evangelical Zeal Meets Ancient Christianity: A Conversation Between Friends

What happens when two long-time friends—one a passionate evangelical content creator, the other a devout Eastern Orthodox Christian—sit down inside a church filled with ancient icons to talk about faith, history, and what it means to follow Jesus? In this compelling and heartfelt dialogue, David Latting and Ben Langlois (Orthodox Luigi) offer something rare: a conversation marked by both conviction and deep mutual respect.

Though they come from very different traditions, David and Ben’s friendship sets the tone for an honest, disarming exchange. David opens up about his spiritual journey—how intense theological debates with Muslims drove him to investigate church history, and how walking through ancient cathedrals awakened a hunger for something deeper than modern formulas. In a moment of raw vulnerability, he describes being moved to tears during an Orthodox liturgy, even while remaining rooted in his Protestant community. “I want to break that wall,” he says, referring to the misconceptions that often prevent evangelicals from seriously engaging with Orthodoxy.

Ben responds not with defensiveness, but with clarity and grace. He explains Orthodox Christianity’s understanding of apostolic succession, the theological meaning of icons as “windows into heaven,” and how salvation is seen not as a one-time event, but a lifelong process of becoming more like Christ. His insights are never presented as a challenge to Protestant faith, but as an invitation to consider the historical richness of the early Church.

Together, David and Ben reflect on the hunger many Christians feel today for worship that is Christ-centered, reverent, and historically rooted. They share a mutual concern about the rise of personality-driven church culture and discuss how liturgical structure and ancient rhythms offer spiritual depth that many young believers are longing for.

What makes this conversation so meaningful isn’t just the exchange of ideas—it’s the way both men keep Jesus at the center. They demonstrate how friendship, humility, and shared love for the gospel can bridge even deep theological divides.

Whether you’re Protestant, Orthodox, or simply curious about the richness of Christian tradition, this conversation invites you to reflect more deeply on your own faith journey. Could exploring the ancient paths of the Church help you walk more closely with Christ?

Find an Orthodox Church near you today. Visit https://www.antiochian.org/home

Questions about Orthodoxy? Please check out our friends at Ghost of Byzantium Discord server: https://discord.gg/JDJDQw6tdh

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What Happens When Believers Take Different Paths Toward Jesus?

What happens when one follower of Christ finds deep joy and purpose in a vibrant Protestant church, while another discovers a sense of awe and sacred history in the ancient traditions of Orthodoxy? This honest and heartfelt conversation between David Latting, a well-known evangelical influencer, and Ben Langlois—better known online as Orthodox Luigi—dives into that very tension: the pull between contentment in our current spiritual homes and a yearning to connect with the roots of the early Church.

At the heart of their dialogue is a question that touches many believers seeking a deeper faith: How important is historical continuity in the Church? Ben shares how reading early Christian writers like Augustine sparked new questions. He was struck by their emphasis on apostolic succession—the idea that spiritual authority was passed down directly from the apostles through the laying on of hands, much like Moses passed leadership to Joshua (Deuteronomy 34:9). For him, it raised a challenging thought: “I can trace my spiritual lineage back to the apostles—can you?”

When the topic turns to things like honoring saints or relics, Ben offers the Orthodox perspective—something that may sound unfamiliar to many Protestants. But it's rooted in Scripture. “God is not the God of the dead, but of the living,” Jesus says in Matthew 22:32. The early Christians believed that those who had gone before us in the faith are not gone, but alive in Christ and part of the great cloud of witnesses (Hebrews 12:1). Far from replacing Jesus, this practice is about recognizing the work He has done in others and inviting their prayers—just like we might ask a faithful friend to pray for us today.

One of the most surprising parts of their conversation is the contrast between church structures. David points out how the health of many Protestant churches often rises or falls with their pastors. In response, Ben explains that in Orthodoxy, the focus is less on the charisma of the leader and more on the unchanging faith handed down through generations. “Even if the priest is struggling,” he says, “it’s still the same Church, the same gospel, the same worship.” That continuity brings peace to those looking for something that doesn’t shift with trends or personalities.

Whether you’re deeply rooted in your church tradition, exploring new ideas, or just hungry to know Jesus more fully, this conversation invites you into a bigger story—one that spans centuries, cultures, and denominations. It doesn’t tell you where you must go, but gently asks: What might God be inviting you to explore? And how could learning more about the early Church strengthen your own walk with Christ?

Visit Cloud of Witnesses Radio: https://cloudofwitnessesradio.com/

Questions about Orthodoxy? Please check out our friends at Ghost of Byzantium Discord server: https://discord.gg/JDJDQw6tdh

Please prayerfully consider supporting Cloud of Witnesses Radio: https://www.patreon.com/c/CloudofWitnesses

Find Cloud of Witnesses Radio on Instagram, X.com, Facebook, and TikTok.

Please leave a comment with your thoughts!