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Do I have to be re-baptized to become Orthodox?

The standard answer from the Russian Orthodox Church, of which I am a priest, has been that you need to be baptized. Why is that? Well, we do not believe that there are sacraments outside the Orthodox Church, because only a priest of the church can perform a sacrament. So, should you be baptized? Absolutely. Anecdotally, I meet people who were received by chrismation, which is acceptable, but I see a lot of times that people come back three or four years into their journey into Orthodoxy and say that they wish they were baptized. I would say, kind of anecdotally, maybe this isn't one hundred percent true, but no one regrets getting baptized. I have met a lot of people who regret just getting chrismated. So I would say the transformation that I see with people seems to be the most profound when they are baptized. Something definitely happens, and you can see the difference within them in a more profound way.

Edited from his answer on camera. The clip has the full thing.

Watch him answer it (01:19:22)

From “Priest Answers 101 Orthodox Questions

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