Eastern Orthodoxy is a major Christian tradition made up of self-governing churches that share doctrine, sacraments, liturgy, and canonical communion. Orthodox Christians commonly refer to their communion as the Orthodox Church or Orthodox Catholic Church. There is no single bishop with universal jurisdiction comparable to the Roman Catholic pope.
Doctrine and the ecumenical councils
Eastern Orthodoxy confesses the Trinity, the full divinity and humanity of Jesus Christ, his death and resurrection, and the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed. The Orthodox Church recognizes seven ecumenical councils, from Nicaea in 325 to Nicaea II in 787, as authoritative expressions of the faith.
Scripture and Holy Tradition
The Bible is read within Holy Tradition, which includes the councils, liturgy, writings of church fathers, canon law, saints, and the continuing worshiping life of the Church. Orthodox biblical canons can differ in arrangement and content from common Protestant editions.
Divine Liturgy and sacraments
The Eucharistic service is called the Divine Liturgy. The liturgies associated with Saint John Chrysostom and Saint Basil are especially important. Orthodox churches commonly speak of seven sacraments or “holy mysteries”—Baptism, Chrismation, Eucharist, Confession, Marriage, Holy Orders, and Anointing—but Orthodox theology often treats the whole life of the Church as sacramental rather than limiting divine grace to a numbered list.
Icons
Icons of Christ, Mary, angels, and saints have an important place in Orthodox worship and private devotion. The Seventh Ecumenical Council defended the veneration of icons while distinguishing veneration from the worship due to God. Icons are connected with the Christian belief that the Son of God truly became visible in the Incarnation.
Theosis and spiritual life
Orthodox theology often describes salvation in terms of theosis, participation in the life of God by grace. Prayer, repentance, Eucharistic communion, fasting, almsgiving, scripture, and ascetic discipline are understood as parts of Christian transformation rather than techniques for earning salvation.
Church structure
Eastern Orthodoxy consists of autocephalous and autonomous churches led by bishops, metropolitans, archbishops, or patriarchs. The Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople holds a primacy of honor, but Orthodox churches do not understand that office as possessing universal jurisdiction equivalent to the Catholic papacy.
Eastern and Oriental Orthodoxy
Eastern Orthodoxy should not be confused with Oriental Orthodoxy. Oriental Orthodox churches, including the Coptic, Armenian Apostolic, Syriac Orthodox, Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo, Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo, and Malankara Orthodox Syrian churches, separated from the churches that accepted the Council of Chalcedon in 451.
The Great Schism and later history
Eastern and Western Christianity became increasingly separated through disputes involving authority, language, politics, liturgy, and theology. The events of 1054 are a conventional landmark rather than a single moment that created the division by itself. Later conflicts, including the Fourth Crusade, deepened the separation between Orthodox and Latin Christians.
Fasting, prayer, and monasticism
Orthodox spiritual life includes regular fasting seasons, daily prayer, confession, almsgiving, and participation in the Eucharist. The Jesus Prayer and monastic traditions associated with hesychasm are influential, but they do not replace ordinary parish worship or sacramental life.
Mary and the saints
Orthodox Christians venerate Mary as the Theotokos and honor the saints, relics, and icons. Veneration is distinguished from the worship offered to God. The Dormition of the Theotokos is one of the major feasts of the Orthodox calendar.
Calendar and local diversity
Orthodox churches share a common liturgical inheritance while differing in language, music, calendar use, administrative structure, and local custom. Some churches use the Revised Julian calendar for fixed feasts while others retain the older Julian calendar. These differences do not necessarily imply doctrinal separation.
