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The Orthodox and Catholic Churches, while both branches of Christianity, share fundamental beliefs, a common Creed, similar dogma, and identical sacraments. However, they also display unique characteristics, influenced by their respective cultural contexts, as well as disciplinary, theological, and liturgical differences. Learn about these distinctions here.
The Catholic Church, often referred to as the Roman Catholic Church, is one of the largest religious institutions on the planet. It is a community of believers who share a faith in Jesus Christ, recognized as the Son of God and the Savior of humanity. Founded by Jesus himself, the Church has been passed down from generation to generation through apostolic succession, which has been perpetuated uninterrupted since the time of the apostles.
The foundations of the Catholic Church are based on several key elements:
The Catholic Church is structured into dioceses, each under the authority of a bishop. The Pope, as Bishop of Rome and successor of Saint Peter, represents the visible head of the universal Church. The faithful are encouraged to live their faith through prayer, participation in the sacraments, charity toward others, and active engagement in the life of the Church.
The core beliefs of Catholics include:
The Catholic Church plays a significant role in society by defending human values, working for justice and peace, and providing spiritual support to its faithful. It is also involved in many charitable and social initiatives throughout the world.
The Orthodox Church, sometimes referred to as the Church of the Seven Councils, is a group of several autocephalous Eastern churches, such as the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople and the Russian Orthodox Church. Its dogmas were defined at the first seven ecumenical councils. The term "Orthodox" comes from the Greek, where "orthos" means "correct" and "doxa" means "belief" or "opinion". The Orthodox Church considers itself to be the unbroken continuation of the early Church founded by the apostles. It is recognized as the third largest Christian denomination, after Catholicism and Protestantism.
Its influence extends mainly to Eastern Europe, the Balkans, Russia, the Middle East and parts of Africa, while seeing a growing diaspora throughout the world. The organization of the Orthodox Church is distinguished by its collegial and conciliar structure, where important decisions are taken collectively by the bishops, without there being a single central authority like the Pope in the Catholic Church.
The Orthodox and Catholic Christian Churches developed in two distinct geographical and cultural areas. On one side, the Eastern Roman Empire, of Greek culture and presided over by Constantinople, and on the other, the Western Roman Empire, of Latin culture and ruled by Rome. In their beginnings, they formed a single Church. However, they separated after the schism of 1054 and the sack of Constantinople in 1204.
After the death of Jesus Christ, the apostles took charge of spreading his teachings, giving rise to new Christian communities that were organized around the major urban centers of the Roman Empire. In the fourth century, when Constantine chose Christianity as the state religion to unify his vast Empire, the need to establish the foundations of the nascent Church and to maintain the unity of faith of Christians became crucial. At the initiative of the emperors, seven ecumenical councils were convened, marking periods of intense doctrinal development. The fundamental dogmas of Christianity, as contained in the Creed, were defined in particular during the first four councils.
At the end of the 4th century, the Roman Empire was divided into two parts: the East, centered on Constantinople, and the West, centered on Rome. However, this division did not yet affect the ecclesiastical organization. The Christian Church remained united but was divided into five regional poles, known as the "Pentarchy": Rome, Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch and Jerusalem. Although Rome was recognized for its primacy of honor and moral authority, due to its foundation by the apostle Peter, its legal power remained limited.
There are two main reasons for the separation, or schism, of the Christian Church into two branches. The first is theological. Although both churches share a fundamental belief in the Trinity and the divinity of Jesus, as formulated in the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, the Church of Constantinople rejects the idea that the Holy Spirit proceeds "from the Father and the Son" (Filioque).In 589, a council of the Western Church added the Latin word filioque ("of the Son") to the Creed, a modification accepted by the Latin Church, but rejected by the Eastern Church. In the ninth century, Patriarch Photius maintained that "the Spirit proceeds from the Father alone."
The second reason lies in the desire of the Church of Rome to affirm papal infallibility and to impose itself as the sole authority over the entire Christian world, including bishops and patriarchs. This dynamic is part of the context of the Gregorian reform, beginning in the 11th century, which aimed to free the papacy from the temporal influences of the German Empire. In 1053, Pope Leo IX sent Cardinal Humbert to the Patriarch of Constantinople, Michael Cerularius, to convince him to submit to papal authority. The patriarch refused, and Humbert placed a sentence of excommunication on the altar of Hagia Sophia on July 15, 1054. In return, the patriarch excommunicated Humbert and his companions.
However, in reality, the schism had only a limited impact at that time. It was not until the Fourth Crusade of 1204 that the "divorce" was truly consummated. While the crusade aimed to reconquer the Holy Land from Muslim hands, the crusaders, in alliance with Venice, took Constantinople, desecrating churches and breaking icons. The sack of Constantinople created a deep rift between Eastern and Western Christians, despite the condemnation of this act by Pope Innocent III. For many Orthodox, this event was perceived as a betrayal.
Thus, the Christian world is divided between the Western Church, which calls itself "Roman Catholic" and considers itself the "universal" Church, and the Eastern "Orthodox" Church, which claims to be the guardian of "right teaching."
While the Catholic Church is headed by the Pope, who is recognized as the successor of Saint Peter and the supreme head of the Church on Earth, the Orthodox Church, presenting itself as apostolic, operates on a more collegial model. It is headed by several patriarchs (considered archbishops) and autonomous bishops, without there being a single figure comparable to the Pope. Decisions within the Orthodox Church are generally made by consensus or at councils.
Contrary to Catholic dogma, Orthodox priests, called "popes," are allowed to marry, but only before their ordination. Bishops, on the other hand, are required to remain celibate.
The divide between the two religions is also found in rites and liturgies.
The Orthodox Church adopts the Julian calendar, established by Julius Caesar in 45 BC, which is based on solar cycles. In contrast, the Catholic Church uses the Gregorian calendar, established by Pope Gregory XIII in the 16th century to address the discrepancy accumulated by the Julian calendar. Since the latter overestimates the length of the solar year, Easter is not celebrated simultaneously in both Churches.
The Orthodox primarily practice the Byzantine Rite, which is largely based on the more concise liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, but also on that of St. Basil of Caesarea, considered older and used during certain celebrations such as Christmas and the Sundays of Lent. This Byzantine liturgy developed from the worship practices of the early Church in Jerusalem, while incorporating Greek and Eastern traditions, notably Syriac and Palestinian.
Unlike the Roman liturgy, which is more sober and intellectual, the Byzantine tradition is seen as more complex and mystical. It is characterized by an intensive use of icons, which the faithful venerate as symbols, and masses are generally conducted in the vernacular, accompanied by a cappella chants and sung poetry, since musical instruments are prohibited. It is also common to burn incense in the church.
During the service, there is a more marked symbolic separation between the clergy, who are the only ones who can touch the Eucharistic altar, protected by the iconostasis, and the laity who remain standing. Indeed, the priest often turns towards the altar during key moments of the Mass, thus turning his back on the faithful. He faces east, the direction in which Christians await the return of Christ. Conversely, the Latin liturgy places more emphasis on the active participation of the faithful during the rites. Finally, during the Eucharist, the Orthodox use fermented bread, while Catholics prefer unleavened bread.
The rite of baptism also has notable differences. Catholics perform baptism by effusion, that is, by pouring water on the forehead of the baptized person. On the other hand, the Orthodox practice baptism by total immersion of the body, thus respecting the original tradition.
The distinction between the Catholic cross and the Orthodox cross lies mainly in their design and symbolism. The Catholic cross, often in Latin form, consists of a long vertical branch and a shorter horizontal branch. Its structure is symmetrical and refined. In Catholic churches, it is common to find crucifixes, which illustrate the cross where Jesus was crucified, thus symbolizing the sacrifice of Christ for the salvation of humanity.
In contrast, the Orthodox cross is characterized by three bars: a long vertical branch with two horizontal bars at the top and an oblique bar at the bottom, representing where Jesus' feet would have rested.
Another distinction between Orthodox and Catholics is the manner in which the sign of the cross is made. Orthodox Christians use the thumb, index finger, and middle finger of their right hand to trace the sign in this order: forehead, chest, right shoulder, and then left shoulder. Conversely, Catholics make the sign of the cross from left to right.
Although both churches honor the Virgin Mary as the Theotokos, or "Mother of God," they have two notable differences. The first concerns the Catholic dogma of the Immaculate Conception, proclaimed in 1854, which is not accepted by the Orthodox Church. For the Orthodox, Mary became pure after her birth. Although she lived without personal sin, she is not considered free from original sin from the moment of her conception.
The second point of disagreement concerns the elevation of the Virgin after her death. In the Catholic tradition, the Assumption of Mary, which is a dogma proclaimed in 1950, teaches that Mary ascended to heaven at the request of God at the end of her earthly life. In contrast, the Orthodox refer instead to the Dormition of the Virgin, affirming that Mary fell asleep in death, an event that has not been elevated to dogma.
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