This article is about the religion, doctrine and tradition of the Eastern Orthodox Church. For the institution and history of the largest church associated with Eastern Orthodoxy, seeEastern Orthodox Church.
The spread of Eastern Orthodoxy began in theeastern area of theMediterranean Basin withinByzantineGreek culture.[1] Its communities share an understanding, teaching and offices of great similarity, with a strong sense of seeing each other as parts of one Church. Adherents of Eastern Orthodox Christianity punctuate their year according to theliturgical calendar of their church. Eastern Orthodoxy holds that theHoly Spirit proceeds from theFather and rejects theFilioque clause ("andthe Son") added to theNicene Creed by theLatin Church, on the grounds that nocouncil was called for the addition.[5]
Eastern Orthodox Christians believe in theTrinity, three distinct, divine persons (hypostases), without overlap ormodality among Them, Who each fully share in one divineessence (ousia, Greek: οὐσία)—uncreated, immaterial, andeternal.[6] These three persons are typically distinguished by their relation to each other. TheFather is eternal, neither begotten nor proceeding from any, theSon is eternal and begotten of the Father, and theHoly Spirit is eternal and proceeds from the Father.[7] Eastern Orthodox doctrine regarding the Trinity is summarised in the Greek edition of theNicene Creed, which notably does not affirm theFilioque.[8]
Eastern Orthodox Christians believe in amonotheisticconception of God (God is only one), which is bothtranscendent (wholly independent of, and removed from, the material universe) andimmanent (involved in the material universe).[7] In discussing God's relationship to His creation, Eastern Orthodox theologydistinguishes between God's eternal essence, which is totally transcendent, and Hisuncreated energies, which is how He reaches humanity.[7] The God who is transcendent and the God who touches mankind are one and the same.[7] That is, these energies are not something that proceed from God or that God produces, but rather they are God himself: distinct, yet inseparable from God's inner being.[9] This view is often calledPalamism.
In understanding the Trinity as "one God in three persons", "three persons" is not to be emphasised more than "one God", and vice versa. While the three persons are distinct, they are united in one divine essence, and Their oneness is expressed in community and action so completely that They cannot be considered separately. For example, Their salvation of mankind is an activity engaged in common: "Christ became man by the good will of the Father and by the cooperation of the Holy Spirit. Christ sends the Holy Spirit who proceeds from the Father, and the Holy Spirit forms Christ in our hearts, and thus God the Father is glorified." Their "communion of essence" is "indivisible". Trinitarian terminology—essence, hypostasis, etc.—are used "philosophically", "to answer the ideas of the heretics", and "to place the terms where they separate error and truth".[10]
When Eastern Orthodox Christians refer to "fallen nature", they do not mean that human nature has become evil in itself. Human nature is still formed in the image of God; humans are still God's creation, and God has never created anything evil, but fallen nature remains open to evil intents and actions. It is sometimes said among the Eastern Orthodox that humans are "inclined to sin"; that is, people find some sinful things attractive. It is the nature of temptation to make sinful things seem the more attractive, and it is the fallen nature of humans that seeks or succumbs to the attraction. Eastern Orthodox Christians reject theAugustinian position that the descendants of Adam and Eve are actually guilty of theoriginal sin of their ancestors.[11]
The Eastern Orthodox Church understands the death and resurrection of Jesus to be real historical events, as described in the gospels of theNew Testament.[12][13]
Church teaching is that Eastern Orthodox Christians, through baptism, enter a new life of salvation through repentance whose purpose is to share in the life of God through the work of the Holy Spirit. The Eastern Orthodox Christian life is a spiritual pilgrimage in which each person, through theimitation of Christ andhesychasm,[14] cultivates the practice of unceasing prayer. Each life occurs within the life of the church as a member of thebody of Christ.[15] It is then through the fire of God's love in the action of the Holy Spirit that each member becomes more holy, more wholly unified with Christ, starting in this life and continuing in the next.[16][17] The church teaches that everyone, being born in God's image, is called totheosis, fulfillment of the image in likeness to God. God the creator, having divinity by nature, offers each person participation in divinity by cooperatively accepting His gift of grace. This is not to be mistaken as participating in the essence of God but rather participating in His energies. This would mean that we do not become "divine", we still remain human but become "gods" by grace, or in other words "icons of the living God" as many call it.[18]
The Eastern Orthodox Church, in understanding itself to be theBody of Christ, and similarly in understanding the Christian life to lead to the unification in Christ of all members of his body, views the church as embracing all Christ's members, those now living on earth, and also all those through the ages who have passed on to the heavenly life. The church includes the Christian saints from all times, and also judges, prophets and righteous Jews of the first covenant, Adam and Eve, even the angels and heavenly hosts.[19] In Eastern Orthodox services, the earthly members together with the heavenly members worship God as one community in Christ, in a union that transcends time and space and joins heaven to earth. This unity of the Church is sometimes called thecommunion of the saints.[20]
Pre-eminent among the saints is theVirgin Mary (commonly referred to asTheotokos orBogorodica: "Mother of God"). InEastern Orthodox theology, the Mother of God is the fulfillment of the Old Testament archetypes revealed in theArk of the Covenant (because she carried the New Covenant in the person of Christ) and theburning bush that appeared beforeMoses (symbolising the Mother of God's carrying of God without being consumed).[21]
The Eastern Orthodox believe that Christ, from the moment of his conception, was both fully God and fully human. Mary is thus called theTheotokos orBogorodica as an affirmation of the divinity of the one to whom she gave birth. It is also believed that her virginity was not compromised in conceiving God-incarnate, that she was not harmed and that she remained forever a virgin. Scriptural references to "brothers" of Christ are interpreted as kin. Due to her unique place in salvation history according to Eastern Orthodox teaching, Mary is honoured above all other saints in this religion and especially venerated for the great work that God accomplished through her.[22]
The Eastern Orthodox Church regards the bodies of all saints as holy because of their participation in prescribed rituals calledholy mysteries. Physical items connected with saints are also regarded as holy, through their participation in the earthly works of those saints. According to Eastern Orthodox church teaching and tradition, God himself bears witness to this holiness of saints'relics through the many miracles connected with them that have been reported throughout history since biblical times, often including healing from disease and injury.[23]
Eastern Orthodox Christians believe that when a person dies the soul is temporarily separated from the body. Though it may linger for a short period on Earth, it is ultimately escorted either to paradise (Abraham's bosom) or the darkness ofHades, following theTemporary Judgment. Orthodox do not accept the doctrine ofPurgatory, which is held by Catholicism. The soul's experience of either of these states is only a "foretaste"—being experienced only by the soul—until theFinal Judgment, when the soul and body will be reunited.[24][25]
The Eastern Orthodox believe that the state of the soul in Hades can be affected by the love and prayers of the righteous up until the Last Judgment.[26] For this reason the Church offers a specialprayer for the dead on the third day, ninth day, fortieth day, and the one-year anniversary after the death of an Eastern Orthodox Christian. There are also several days throughout the year that are set aside for general commemoration of the departed, sometimes including nonbelievers. These days usually fall on a Saturday, since it was on a Saturday that Christ lay in theTomb.[25]
The Eastern Orthodox believe that after the Final Judgment:
The official Bible of the Eastern Orthodox Church contains theSeptuagint text of theOld Testament, with theBook of Daniel given in the translation byTheodotion. ThePatriarchal Text is used for theNew Testament.[27][28] Orthodox Christians hold that the Bible is a verbal icon of Christ, as proclaimed by the7th ecumenical council.[29] They refer to the Bible asholy scripture, meaning writings containing the foundational truths of the Christian faith as revealed by Christ and theHoly Spirit to its divinely inspired human authors. Holy scripture forms the primary and authoritative written witness ofholy tradition and is essential as the basis for all Orthodox teaching and belief.[30]
Once established as holy scripture, there has never been any question that the Eastern Orthodox Church holds the full list[which?] of books to be venerable and beneficial for reading and study,[31] even though it informally holds some books in higher esteem than others, the four gospels highest of all. Of the subgroups significant enough to be named, the "Anagignoskomena" (ἀναγιγνωσκόμενα, "things that are read") comprises ten of the Old Testament books rejected in theProtestant canon,[a] but deemed by the Eastern Orthodox worthy to be read in worship services, even though they carry a lesser esteem than the 39 books of theHebrew canon.[32] The lowest tier contains the remaining books not accepted by either Protestants or Catholics, among them,Psalm 151. Though it is a psalm, and is in the book of psalms, it is not classified as being within the Psalter (the first 150 psalms).[33]
Eastern Orthodoxy does not subscribe to the doctrine ofsola scriptura. Rather, Eastern Orthodoxy teaches that its church has defined what Scripture is, and therefore, its church also interprets the meanings of Scripture.[34]
Scriptures are understood by Eastern Orthodox interpretation to contain historical fact, poetry, idiom, metaphor, simile, moral fable, parable, prophecy andwisdom literature, and each bears its own consideration in its interpretation. While divinely inspired, the text still consists of words in human languages, arranged in humanly recognisable forms. The Eastern Orthodox Church does not oppose honest critical and historical study of the Bible.[35]
In Eastern Orthodoxy, "that faith which has been believed everywhere, always, and by all", the faith taught by Jesus to the apostles, given life by theHoly Spirit atPentecost, and passed down to future generations without additions and without subtractions, is known asholy tradition.[36][37] Holy tradition does not change in the Eastern Orthodox Church because it encompasses those things that do not change: the nature of the one God in Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the history of God's interactions with his peoples, the Law as given to the Israelites, all Christ's teaching as given to the disciples and Jews and recorded in scripture, including the parables, the prophecies, the miracles, and his own example to humanity in his extreme humility. It encompasses also the worship of the church, which grew out of the worship of the synagogue and temple and was extended by Christ at the last supper, and the relationship between God and his people which that worship expresses, which is also evidenced between Christ and his disciples. It includes the authority that Christ bestowed on his disciples when he made them apostles.[38]
Holy tradition is firm, even unyielding, but not rigid or legalistic; instead, it lives and breathes within the church.[39] For example, the New Testament was entirely written by the early church (mostly the apostles). The whole Bible was accepted as scripture by means of holy tradition practised within the early church. The writing and acceptance took five centuries, by which time the holy scriptures themselves had become in their entirety a part of holy tradition.[40] But holy tradition did not change, because "that faith which has been believed everywhere, always, and by all" remained consistent, without additions, and without subtractions. The historical development of the Divine Liturgy and other worship services and devotional practices of the church provide a similar example of extension and growth "without change".[41]
Besides these, holy tradition includes the doctrinal definitions and statements of faith of the seven ecumenical councils, including theNicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, and some later local councils, patristic writings,canon law, and icons. Not all portions of holy tradition are held to be equally strong. Some—the holy scriptures foremost, certain aspects of worship, especially in the Divine Liturgy, the doctrines of the ecumenical councils, the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed—possess a verified authority that endures forever, irrevocably. However, with local councils and patristic writings, the church applies a selective judgement. Some councils and writers have occasionally fallen into error, and some contradict each other.[35]
In other cases, opinions differ, no consensus is forthcoming, and all are free to choose. With agreement among the Church Fathers, though, the authority of interpretation grows, and full patristic consensus is very strong. With canon law (which tends to be highly rigorous and very strict, especially with clergy) an unalterable validity also does not apply, since canons deal with living on earth, where conditions are always changing and each case is subject to almost infinite variation from the next.[35]
By tradition, the Eastern Orthodox Church, when faced with issues that are larger than a single bishop can resolve, holds a local council. The bishops convene (as St. Paul called the Corinthians to do) to seek themind of the church.[42] A council's declarations or edicts then reflect its consensus (if one can be found). An ecumenical council is only called for issues of such importance, difficulty or pervasiveness that smaller councils are insufficient to address them. Ecumenical councils' declarations and canons carry binding weight by virtue of their representation across the whole church, by which the mind of the church can be readily seen. However, not all issues are so difficult as to require an ecumenical council to resolve. Some doctrines or decisions, not defined in a formal statement or proclaimed officially, nevertheless are held by the church unshakably and unanimously without internal disturbance, and these, also reflecting the mind of the church, are just as firmly irrevocable as a formal declaration of an ecumenical council. Lack of formality does not imply lack of authority within holy tradition.[35]
As the church increased in size through the centuries, the logistic dynamics of operating such large entities shifted: patriarchs, metropolitans, archimandrites, abbots and abbesses, all rose up to cover certain points of administration.[43]
Lesser cycles also run in tandem with the annual ones. A weekly cycle of days prescribes a specific focus for each day in addition to others that may be observed:[44]
Each day of the Weekly Cycle is dedicated to certain special memorials. Sunday is dedicated toChrist's Resurrection; Monday honors the holy bodiless powers (angels, archangels, etc.); Tuesday is dedicated to the prophets and especially the greatest of the prophets,St. John the Forerunner and Baptist of the Lord; Wednesday is consecrated to the Cross and recalls Judas' betrayal; Thursday honors the holy apostles and hierarchs, especiallySt. Nicholas, Bishop of Myra in Lycia; Friday is also consecrated to the Cross and recalls the day of the Crucifixion; Saturday is dedicated to All Saints, especially theMother of God, and to the memory of all those who have departed this life in the hope of resurrection and eternal life.
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The main service offered in the Church is theDivine Liturgy. Most parishes offer this service on Sunday mornings and on major feast days, though it can be offered almost any day of the year.[45] Additional services includeOrthros andVespers; prayer services in the morning and evening, respectively. The celebration of the feasts are distinguished according to their various degrees of solemnity. The great feasts are celebrated with an All Night Vigil. Lesser feasts will have a vigil according to the feast's custom.[46]
Church service books are used in divine services, like the Gospel, the Epistle, and the Psalter. These books, often calleddivine service books were composed in accordance with the scriptures and traditions of the Church Fathers and teachers of the Orthodox Church. During fasting, in the middle of the week Holy Communion is given at all church services, without removing the characteristics of Orthodox Lent.[46]
Chanting is not considered "music" by Orthodox Christians, but rather sacred melody and prayer, in Orthodox Theology. AnOrthodox Divine Service is chanted in their entirely by the clergy, the choir, and the congregation from the start of the service to the end.[47] Early Christian forms of chanting began with ancient Judaic traditions of chanting the Psalms, which priests have now declared with the hymns in the Book of Psalms. As the Church grew, so did persecution, and many new forms of hymns began to appear.[48]
Liturgies contain the reading and chanting of prayers, headed by a bishop or priest.[46] Many various forms of liturgies include different forms of chanting services (for example, theLiturgy of St. Basil the Great has chanting of longer duration and the priest privately reads his prayers at the alter). For the composition of religious chant, theOctoechos, an eight-tone (mode) system, analogous to theGregorian modes in the West, and to other ancient Christian musical systems, is used.Byzantine music ismicrotonal.
Byzantine chants are associated with the Eastern Roman Empire's period (AD 330 to 1453) and developed form Jewish and Syrian traditions in the early-Christian Church. This continued to evolve throughout the 16th century. However, many mistake it for Greek Christianity in the east, but is unrelated to the ancient Greek period.[47]
Northern Slavs, however, have used simpler tonal systems evolved through the sundry local types ofZnamenny chant; todayWestern music, often withfour-part harmony, and the "tones" are simply sets of melodies. Russian liturgical chants (including some Ukrainian and Balkan churches) evolved from the Kievan Rus people in AD 988. Byzantine melodies adapted to the patterns of theOld Church Slavonic language. In the 14th century, Russian elements began to be used in the church. By the 16th century, Russian chants had many links to the Byzantine style.[47]
There are numerous versions and styles that are traditional and acceptable and these vary a great deal between cultures.[49]
All bishops are monks; if a man who is not a monk is elected a bishop, he must be tonsured a monk before he may be consecrated. Customarily, also, a man must either be a monk or be married to be ordained.
Aspects of theiconography borrow from the pre-ChristianRoman andHellenistic art.Henry Chadwick wrote, "In this instinct there was a measure of truth. The representations of Christ as the Almighty Lord on his judgment throne owed something to pictures of Zeus. Portraits of the Mother of God were not wholly independent of a pagan past of venerated mother-goddesses. In the popular mind the saints had come to fill a role that had been played by heroes and deities."[50]
Icons can be found adorning the walls of churches and often cover the inside structure completely.[51] Most Eastern Orthodox homes have an area set aside for family prayer, usually an eastern facing wall, where are hung many icons. Icons have been part of Orthodox Christianity since the beginning of the church.[52]
Aniconostasis, also called thetemplon, is a wall oficons and religious paintings, separating thenave from thesanctuary in achurch.Iconostasis also refers to a portable icon stand that can be placed anywhere within a church. The modern iconostasis evolved from theByzantinetemplon in the 11th century. The evolution of the iconostasis probably owes a great deal to 14th-centuryHesychastmysticism and the wood-carving genius of theRussian Orthodox Church.
On the Russian Orthodox cross, the small top crossbar represents the sign thatPontius Pilate nailed above Christ's head. It often is inscribed with an acronym, "INRI",Latin:Iesus Nazarenus, Rex Iudaeorum for "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews" or "INBI",Koine Greek: Ἰησοῦς ὁ Ναζωραῖος ὁ βασιλεύς τῶν Ἰουδαίων for "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews".[53]
Other crosses associated with the Eastern Orthodox Church are the more traditional single-bar crosses, budded designs, theGreek cross, theLatin cross, theJerusalem cross (cross pattée),Celtic crosses, and others.[b] A common symbolism of the slanted foot stool is the foot-rest points up, toward Heaven, on Christ's right hand-side, and downward, to Hades, on Christ's left. "Between two thieves Thy Cross did prove to be a balance of righteousness: wherefore one of them was dragged down to Hades by the weight of his blasphemy[the balance points downward], whereas the other was lightened of his transgressions unto the comprehension of theology[the balance points upward]. O Christ God, glory to Thee."[54]
Those things which in the West are often termedsacraments orsacramentals are known among the Eastern Orthodox as the "sacred mysteries". While the Catholic Church numbers seven sacraments, and many Protestant groups list two (baptism and the Eucharist) or even none, the Eastern Orthodox do not limit the number. However, for the sake of convenience,catechisms often speak of the seven great mysteries. Among these areHoly Communion (the most direct connection),baptism,Chrismation,confession,unction,matrimony, andordination. But the term also properly applies to other sacred actions such as monastictonsure or the blessing ofholy water, and involves fasting, almsgiving, or an act as simple as lighting a candle, burning incense, praying or asking God's blessing on food.[56]
Baptism is the mystery which transforms the old and sinful person into a new and pure one; the old life, the sins, any mistakes made are gone and a clean slate is given. Through baptism a person is united to theBody of Christ by becoming a member of the Eastern Orthodox Church. During the service,water is blessed. The catechumen is fully immersed in the water three times in the name of the Trinity. This is considered to be a death of the "old man" by participation in the crucifixion and burial of Christ, and a rebirth into new life in Christ by participation in his resurrection.[57]
Chrismation (sometimes calledconfirmation) is the mystery by which a baptised person is granted the gift of theHoly Spirit through anointing with HolyChrism.[59][60] It is normally given immediately after baptism as part of the same service, but is also used to receive lapsed members of the Eastern Orthodox Church.[61] As baptism is a person's participation in the death and resurrection of Christ, so Chrismation is a person's participation in the coming of the Holy Spirit atPentecost.[62]
As soon as possible after chrismation one receives the Eucharist regardless of age.[62]
Anointing with chrism substitutes for the laying-on of hands described in theNew Testament.[63]
Eucharistic elements prepared for the Divine Liturgy
Communion is given only to baptised and chrismated Eastern Orthodox Christians who have prepared by fasting, prayer and confession. The priest administers the gifts, believed to be the Body and Blood of Christ, with a spoon, called a "cochlear", directly into the recipient's mouth from the chalice.[64] From baptism young infants and children are carried to the chalice to receive holy communion.[62]
There are many different practices regarding how often Eastern Orthodox Christians should go to confession. Some Patriarchates advise confession before each reception ofHoly Communion, others advise confessing during each of the four fasting periods (Great Lent,Nativity Fast,Apostles' Fast andDormition Fast), and there are many additional variants.[65]
From the Orthodox perspective, marriage is one of the holy mysteries or sacraments. As well as in many other Christian traditions, for example in Catholicism, it serves to unite a woman and a man in eternal union and love before God, with the purpose of following Christ and his Gospel and raising up a faithful, holy family through their holy union.[66][67] The church understands marriage to be the union of one man and one woman, and certain Orthodox leaders have spoken out strongly in opposition to the civil institution ofsame-sex marriage.[68][69]
Jesus said that "when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven" (Mk 12:25). For the Orthodox Christian this passage should not be understood to imply that Christian marriage will not remain a reality in the Kingdom, but points to the fact that relations will not be "fleshy", but "spiritual".[70] Love between wife and husband, as an icon of relationship between Christ and Church, is eternal.[70]
The church does recognise that there are rare occasions when it is better that couples do separate, but there is no official recognition of civil divorces. For the Eastern Orthodox, to say that marriage is indissoluble means that it should not be broken, the violation of such a union, perceived as holy, being an offense resulting from either adultery or the prolonged absence of one of the partners. Thus, permitting remarriage is an act of compassion of the church towards sinful man.[71]
Widowed priests anddeacons may not remarry and it is common for such members of the clergy to retire to a monastery (seeclerical celibacy). This is also true of widowed wives of clergy, who do not remarry and become nuns when their children are grown. Only men are allowed to receiveholy orders, althoughdeaconesses historically had both liturgical and pastoral functions within the church.[72]
^McAuliffe, Garrett (2008).Culturally Alert Counseling: A Comprehensive Introduction.SAGE Publishing. p. 532.ISBN978-1-4129-1006-4.About one-third of the world's population is considered Christian and can be divided into three main branches: (1) Roman Catholicism (the largest coherent group, representing over one billion baptized members); (2) Orthodox Christianity (including Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy); and (3) Protestantism (comprising many denominations and schools of thought, including Anglicanism, Reformed, Presbyterianism, Lutheranism, Methodism, Evangelicalism, and Pentecostalism).
^Mirola, William; Monahan, Susanne C. (2016).Religion Matters: What Sociology Teaches Us About Religion In Our World.London andNew York City:Routledge.ISBN978-1-317-34451-3.Orthodox Churches represent one of the three major branches of Christianity, along with Roman Catholicism and Protestantism.
^Richters, Katja.The Post-Soviet Russian Orthodox Church: Politics, Culture and Greater Russia (2014)
^Fr. Lawrence Farley (11 July 2012)."The Filioque Clause".Orthodox Church in America.Archived from the original on 26 October 2015. Retrieved8 March 2022.
^Fitzgerald, Fr. Thomas (2014)."Spirituality". Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.Archived from the original on 29 March 2014. Retrieved15 May 2014.
^Gregory of Nyssa (1978).The life of Moses. Transl., introduction and notes by Abraham J. Malherbe and Everett Ferguson; preface by John Meyendorff. New York: Paulist Press. p. 59.ISBN978-0-8091-2112-0. Retrieved4 October 2013.
^"The Five Cycles".Orthodox Worship. The Diocese of Eastern Pennsylvania, Orthodox Church in America.Archived from the original on 13 July 2015. Retrieved24 June 2015.
^"First Time Visitors".Saint Katherine Greek Orthodox Church. Retrieved26 November 2024.
^There is no official census of religion in Russia, and estimates are based on surveys only. In August 2012,ARENAArchived 12 June 2018 at theWayback Machine determined that about 48% of Russians are Christians (including Orthodox, Catholic, Protestant, and non-denominational), which is slightly less than an absolute 50%+ majority. However, later that year theLevada CenterArchived 31 December 2012 at theWayback Machine determined that 76% of Russians are Christians, and in June 2013 thePublic Opinion FoundationArchived 15 April 2020 at theWayback Machine determined that 65% of Russians are Christians. These findings are in line withPewArchived 4 October 2018 at theWayback Machine's 2010 survey, which determined that 73.6% of Russians are Christians, withVTSIOMArchived 29 September 2020 at theWayback Machine's 2010 survey (~77% Christian), and withIpsos MORIArchived 17 January 2013 at theWayback Machine's 2011 survey (69%).
^"Israel",The World Factbook, Central Intelligence Agency, 2 September 2022,archived from the original on 13 September 2021, retrieved17 September 2022
Diamond, Larry Jay; Plattner, Marc F.; Costopoulos, Philip J., eds. (2005),World Religions and Democracy, Johns Hopkins University and the National Endowment for Democracy,ISBN978-0-8018-8080-3,OCLC58807255
Fortescue, Adrian (1908),The Orthodox Eastern Church (2nd ed.), London: Catholic Truth Society / University of Virginia (published 11 December 2008), retrieved2 June 2014
Harakas, Stanley S. (1 May 1987),The Orthodox Church: 455 Questions and Answers, Light & Life Publishing Company, Minneapolis, MN,ISBN978-0-937032-56-5
^The ROCsevered full communion with the Ecumenical Patriarchate in 2018, and later severed full communion with theprimates of the Church of Greece, the Patriarchate of Alexandria, and the Church of Cyprus in 2020.
^abcdefghAutocephaly or autonomy is not universally recognized.
^UOC-MP was moved to formally cut ties with the ROC as of May 27th 2022.
^Semi-autonomous part of theRussian Orthodox Church whose autonomy is not universally recognized.
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