Orthodox Churches (those that use the word
"Orthodox" in the name) belong mainly to two groups,
Eastern Orthodoxy and
Oriental Orthodoxy. Apart from these two
groups, some other quite unconnected Churches in the West also call
themselves Orthodox. An example is the
Celtic Orthodox Church.
Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox
The division between these two families of Churches occurred in 451
over the definition by the
Council
of Chalcedon that
Jesus exists "in two
natures", one human and one divine, and that "both natures concur
in one person and in one reality [hypostasis]. They are not divided
or cut into two persons, but are together the one and only and
only-begotten
Word, God, the Lord Jesus
Christ." The Council thus declared that Christ is one person in two
natures "of one substance with the Father according to his
divinity, of one substance with us according to his humanity ... in
two natures without confusion, without change, without division,
without separation."
The Churches that accept the Council's definition are known as
Chalcedonian Churches, and those that reject it as non-Chalcedonian
or pre-Chalcedonian. The Chalcedonian Churches in the East are
known collectively as the Eastern Orthodox Church. (The
Roman Catholic Church in the West is
also a Chalcedonian Church, since it accepts that Council's
definition, which was largely based on a document of
Pope Leo I.) Those that reject the Council form
what is known as Oriental Orthodoxy.
Dialogues aimed at achieving
full
communion between the Eastern and the Oriental Orthodox are in
progress, with the hope of overcoming the
schism that still divides them. These
dialogues have led to a large measure of agreement, but not yet to
full normal communion.
Apart from the use by the few parishes of
Western Rite Orthodoxy of adapted or
specially composed liturgies based on
Latin liturgical rites, all the
Churches that form the Eastern Orthodox Church use the
Byzantine Rite liturgy, celebrating it in different languages. The
Oriental Orthodox Churches, on the contrary, use a great variety of
liturgies.
Some Churches of the Eastern Orthodox tradition are not in
communion with the general body, usually because of disputes about
the use of the
Julian calendar, but
in some cases because of political problems. There is one such case
also in Oriental Orthodoxy, namely that of the
Malabar Independent Syrian
Church, in India.
165 px
Eastern Orthodoxy
- Eastern Orthodox Churches (not in communion)
Oriental Orthodoxy
- Oriental Orthodox Church (not in communion)
Others
Some small churches in the West use the word "Orthodox" in their
titles but are quite distinct from these two families of churches.
Examples are the
Celtic Orthodox
Church,
the Western Orthodox Church in America, and those
mentioned in
this account.
References
See also
External links
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