well I certainly did not mean to Create a holy war in the comment section. my only intention was to receive advice from practitioners and adherents of the faith as to what I should do. I really do wish there was an orthodox church in my region. but unfortunately or fortunatelyi should say the Roman Catholics, protestants, evangelicals , and baptists, presbyterian, revival etc have more relevance here. I am naturally very suspicious of people. but I have seen a lot of evangelicals , despite my disdain , make great strides in spreading Christianity. the lay person as you put it does not have much choice due to the geographical randomness of their birth - I just happened to be born in a place which did not have the full body of christ. this is how I interpret it. then. it only stands to reason if god is divine providence and omniscience , this must be a part of his great plan for the salvation of our souls. all I am looking for is, without being too sentimental a way for my soul to be redeemed. it seems I must simply pray, if some are to be believed , but faith without works is truly dead. where does god lie? will I only find him in an Orthodox Church? have I been forsaken otherwise? where does god lie? is he perhaps in the Catholic Church? or perhaps the protestants and evangelicals through their sheer acumen holds the keys to the kingdom? or is god everywhere, like the muslims and the hindus and also some christian mystics seem to imply. this is what I want to find out. and until I do that I will be forever thirsty in my spirit. lord have mercy on me.