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'{{Other uses|Church of the East}} {{Eastern Christianity}} '''Eastern Christianity''' comprises the [[Christianity|Christian]] traditions and churches that developed in the [[Balkans]], [[Eastern Europe]], [[Asia Minor]], the [[Middle East]], [[Horn of Africa]], [[India]] and parts of the [[Far East]] over several centuries of religious antiquity. The term is generally used in [[Western Christianity]] to describe all Christian traditions that did not develop in [[Western Europe]]. As such the term does not describe any single communion or common religious tradition and in fact some "Eastern" churches have more in common historically and theologically with "Western" Christianity than with one another. The terms "Eastern" and "Western" in this regard originated with divisions in the church mirroring the cultural divide between the [[Hellenistic civilization|Hellenistic east]] and [[Latin Europe|Latinate west]] and the political divide between the weak [[Western Roman Empire|Western]] and strong [[Eastern Roman Empire|Eastern Roman empire]]s. Because the most powerful church in the East was what has become known as the [[Eastern Orthodox church]], the term "Orthodox" is often used in a similarly loose fashion as "Eastern", although strictly speaking most churches consider themselves part of an [[orthodoxy|Orthodox]] and [[Catholic]] [[communion (Christian)|communion]]. ==Families of churches== Eastern Christians do not have shared religious traditions but many of these groups have shared cultural traditions. Christianity divided itself in the East during its early centuries both within and outside of the Roman Empire in disputes about [[christology]] and fundamental theology, as well as national divisions (Roman, Persian, etc.). It would be many centuries later that Western Christianity fully split from these traditions as its own communion. Today there are four main branches or families of Eastern Christianity, each of which has distinct [[theology]] and [[dogma]]. * the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]] * the [[Oriental Orthodox Churches]] * the [[Nestorian]] * the [[Eastern Catholic Churches]] In many Eastern churches, some parish priests administer the sacrament of [[chrismation]] to infants after [[baptism]], and priests are allowed to marry before ordination. While all the [[Eastern Catholic Churches]] recognize the authority of the Pope, some of them who having originally been part of the [[Orthodox Church]] or [[Oriental Orthodox Church]] closely follow the traditions of Orthodoxy or Oriental Orthodoxy, including the tradition of allowing married men to become priests. The Eastern churches' differences from [[Western Christianity]] have as much, if not more, to do with [[culture]], [[language]], and [[politics]], as [[Roman Catholic–Eastern Orthodox theological differences|theology]]. For the non-Catholic Eastern churches, a definitive date for the commencement of [[Schism (religion)|schism]] cannot usually be given (see [[East-West Schism]]). The [[Church of the East]] declared independence from the churches of the [[Roman Empire]] at its general council in 424, which was before the [[First Council of Ephesus|Council of Ephesus]] in 431, and so had nothing to do with the theology declared at that Council. [[Oriental Orthodoxy]] separated after the [[Council of Chalcedon]] in 451. Since the time of the historian [[Edward Gibbon]], the split between the Church of Rome and the Orthodox Church has been conveniently dated to 1054,though the reality is more complex. This split is sometimes referred to as the ''Great Schism'', but now more usually referred to as the [[East-West Schism]]. This final schism reflected a larger cultural and political division which had developed in Europe and southwest Asia during the [[Middle Ages]] and coincided with [[Western Europe]]'s re-emergence from the collapse of the [[Western Roman Empire]]. ==Eastern Orthodox Churches== [[Image:Christ Hagia Sofia.jpg|thumb|Christ Pantocrator, detail of the Deesis mosaic in [[Hagia Sophia]] - [[Constantinople]] ([[Istanbul]]) 12th century ]] {{Main|History of the Eastern Orthodox Church}} The [[Orthodox Church]] is a Christian body whose adherents are largely based in Russia, Greece, Eastern Europe and the Middle East, with a growing presence in the western world. Most Orthodox Christians accept the [[First seven Ecumenical Councils]]. Orthodox Christianity identifies itself as the original Christian church (see [[early centers of Christianity]]) founded by Christ and the Apostles, and traces its lineage back to the [[early church]] through the process of [[Apostolic Succession]] and unchanged theology and practice. Orthodox distinctives (shared with some of the Eastern Catholic Churches) include the [[Divine Liturgy]], Mysteries or Sacraments, and an emphasis on the preservation of Tradition, which it holds to be Apostolic in nature. Orthodox Churches are also distinctive in that they are organized into self-governing jurisdictions along national, ethnic, and/or linguistic lines. Orthodoxy is thus made up of 15 or 16 [[nation]]al autocephalous bodies. Smaller churches are [[Wiktionary:autonomy|autonomous]] and each have a mother church that is autocephalous. The [[Orthodox Church]] includes the following churches: *[[Autocephaly|Autocephalous]] Churches ** [[Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople|The Church of Constantinople]] ** [[Greek Church of Alexandria|The Greek Church of Alexandria]] ** [[Antiochian Orthodox Church|The Church of Antioch]] ** [[Orthodox Church of Jerusalem|The Church of Jerusalem]] ** [[Russian Orthodox Church|Russian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)]] ** [[Church of Greece|The Church of Greece]] ** [[Georgian Orthodox and Apostolic Church|The Church of Georgia]] ** [[Serbian Orthodox Church|The Church of Serbia]] ** [[Romanian Orthodox Church|The Church of Romania]] ** [[Bulgarian Orthodox Church|The Church of Bulgaria]] ** [[Cypriot Orthodox Church|The Church of Cyprus]] ** [[Albanian Orthodox Church|The Church of Albania]] ** [[Polish Orthodox Church|The Church of Poland]] ** [[Czech and Slovak Orthodox Church|The Church of Slovakia and the Czech Lands]] ** [[Orthodox Church in America|The Orthodox Church in America]] *[[Autocephaly|Autonomous]] Churches ** [[Saint Catherine's Monastery, Mount Sinai|The Church of Sinai (Jerusalem Patriarchate)]] ** [[Finnish Orthodox Church|The Orthodox Church of Finland (Ecumenical Patriarchate)]] ** [[Estonian Apostolic Orthodox Church|The Church of Estonia (Ecumenical Patriarchate)]] ** [[Japanese Orthodox Church|The Church of Japan (Moscow Patriarchate)]] ** [[Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)|The Church of Ukraine (Moscow Patriarchate)]] ** [[Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia]] - Formerly claimed autocephaly, but unification with Russian Orthodox Church achieved on May 17, 2007 *Exceptional churches generally considered to be orthodox in beliefs but otherwise not in communion with all of the above churches. ** [[Ukrainian Orthodox Church - Kyiv Patriarchate|The Church of Ukraine (Kyiv Patriarchate)]] ** [[Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church|The Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church]] ** [[Macedonian Orthodox Church – Ohrid Archbishopric]] ** [[Orthodox Church in Italy]] Most Orthodox are united in communion with each other, though unlike the Roman Catholic Church, this is a looser connection rather than a top-down [[hierarchy]] (see [[primus inter pares]]). It may also be noted that the [[Roman Catholic Church|Church of Rome]] was once in communion with the Orthodox Church, but the two were split after the [[East-West Schism]] and thus it is no longer in communion with the Orthodox Church. It is estimated that there are approximately 240 million Orthodox Christians in the world.<ref>See details for [[Major religious groups]]</ref> Today, many adherents shun the term "Eastern" as denying the church's universal character. They refer to Eastern Orthodoxy simply as the ''Orthodox Church''. ==Oriental Orthodox Churches== [[Oriental Orthodoxy]] refers to the churches of Eastern Christian tradition that keep the faith of the first three [[Ecumenical Council]]s of the undivided Church: the [[First Council of Nicaea]] (AD 325), the [[First Council of Constantinople]] (381) and the [[First Council of Ephesus|Council of Ephesus]] (431), and rejected the [[dogmatic definition]]s of the [[Council of Chalcedon]] (451). Hence, these churches are also called ''Old Oriental Churches''. Oriental Orthodoxy developed in reaction to Chalcedon on the eastern limit of the [[Byzantine Empire]] and in [[Egypt]] and [[Syria]]. In those locations, there are now also Orthodox Patriarchs, but the rivalry between the two has largely vanished in the centuries since schism. The following Oriental Orthodox churches are [[Autocephaly|autocephalous]] and in [[full communion]]: * [[Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Church]] * [[Syriac Orthodox Church]] **[[Jacobite Syrian Church]] * [[Indian Orthodox Church]] * [[Coptic Orthodox Church]] **[[British Orthodox Church]] **[[French Coptic Orthodox Church]] * [[Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church]] * [[Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church]] ==Church of the East== {{Main|Church of the East|Nestorianism}} Historically, the [[Church of the East]] was the widest reaching branch of Eastern Christianity, at its height spreading from its heartland in [[Persia]]n ruled [[Mesopotamia]] to the [[Mediterranean]], [[India]], and [[China]]. Originally the church of [[Sassanid Empire|Sassanid Persia]], the Church of the East declared itself independent of other churches in 424 and over the next century became affiliated with [[Nestorianism]], a [[Christology|Christological]] doctrine advanced by [[Nestorius]], [[Patriarch of Constantinople]] from 428 to 431, which had been declared heretical in the [[Roman Empire]]. Thereafter it was often known as the Nestorian Church in the West. Surviving a period of persecution within Persia, the Church of the East flourished under the caliphate and branched out, establishing dioceses throughout Asia. After a period of expansion under the [[Mongol Empire]], the church went into decline through the 14th century, and was eventually confined largely to its heartland in what is now [[Iraq]], northeastern [[Syria]],southeastern [[Turkey]], northwestern [[Iran]] and to the [[Malabar Coast]] of India. In the 16th century dynastic struggles sent the church into schism, resulting in the formation of two rival churches. Two modern churches developed from the schism, the [[Chaldean Church]], which entered into communion with Rome as an [[Eastern Catholic Church]], and the [[Assyrian Church of the East]],the followers of these two churches are almost exclusively ethnic [[Assyrian people|Assyrians]]. In India, the local Church of the East community, known as the [[Saint Thomas Christians]], experienced its own rifts as a result of [[Portugal|Portuguese]] influence. ===Assyrian Church of the East=== {{Main|Church of the East|Assyrian Church of the East}} The [[Assyrian Church of the East]] emerged from the historical [[Church of the East]], which was centered in [[Mesopotamia]]/[[Assyria]], then part of the [[Persia]]n Empire and spread widely throughout Asia. The modern Assyrian Church of the East emerged in the 16th century following a split with the [[Chaldean Church]], which later entered into communion with Rome as an [[Eastern Catholic Church]]. The Church of the East was associated with the doctrine of [[Nestorianism]], advanced by [[Nestorius]], [[Patriarch of Constantinople]] from 428 – 431, which emphasized the disunion between the human and divine natures of [[Jesus]]. Nestorius and his doctrine were condemned at the [[First Council of Ephesus]] in 431, leading to the [[Nestorian Schism]] in which churches supporting Nestorius split from the rest of Christianity. Many followers relocated to Persia and became affiliated with the local Christian community there; this adopted an increasingly Nestorian theology and was thereafter often known as the Nestorian Church. As such, the Church of the East accepts only the first two [[Ecumenical Council]]s of the undivided Church — the [[First Council of Nicaea]] and the [[First Council of Constantinople]] — as defining its faith tradition, and rapidly took a different course from other Eastern Christians. The Church of the East spread widely through Persia and into [[Asia]], being introduced to [[India]] by the 6th century and to the [[Christianity among the Mongols|Mongols]] and [[Christianity in China|China]] in the 7th century. It experienced periodic expansion until the 14th century, when the church was nearly destroyed by the collapse of the [[Mongol Empire]] and the conquests of [[Timur]]. By the 16th century it was largely confined to [[Iraq]], northeast [[Syria]], southeast [[Turkey]], northwest [[Iran]] and the [[Malabar Coast]] of India ([[Kerala]]). The split of the 15th century, which saw the emergence of separate Assyrian and Chaldean Churches, left only the former as an independent sect. Further splits into the 20th century further affected the history of the Assyrian Church of the East. ==Eastern Catholic Churches== {{Main|Eastern Catholic Churches}} [[File:Kanjirappally Bishop Mathew Arackal at Tomb of Varghese Payapilly Palakkappilly.jpg|thumb|An Eastern Catholic Bishop of the [[Syro-Malabar|Syro-Malabar Church]] holding the Mar Thoma Cross which symbolizes the heritage and identity of the [[Saint Thomas Christians]] of [[Christianity in India|India]]]] The twenty-two Eastern Catholic churches are all in [[Communion (Christian)|communion]] with the [[Holy See]] at the Vatican, but are rooted in the theological and liturgical traditions of Eastern Christianity. Many of these churches were originally part of one of the above families and so are closely related to them by way of ethos and [[Liturgy|liturgical practice]]. As in the other Eastern churches, married men may become [[priest]]s, and parish priests administer the [[sacrament|mystery]] of [[confirmation]] to newborn infants immediately after [[baptism]], via the rite of [[chrismation]]; the infants are then administered [[Eucharist|Holy Communion]]. Other Christians of Kerala, who were originally of the same East-Syrian tradition, passed instead to the West-Syrian tradition and now form part of [[Oriental Orthodoxy]] (some from the Oriental Orthodox in India united with the Catholic Church in 1930 and became the [[Syro-Malankara Catholic Church]]). The [[Maronite Church]] also claims never to have been separated from Rome, and has no counterpart [[Orthodox Church]] out of [[Communion (Christian)|communion]] with the Pope. It is therefore inaccurate to refer to it as a "Uniate" Church. The [[Italo-Albanian Catholic Church]] has also never been out of communion with Rome, but, unlike the Maronite Church, it resembles [[Orthodox Church]]'s [[Byzantine Rite|liturgical rite]]. ===Rejection of uniatism=== At a meeting in [[Balamand]], [[Lebanon]] in June 1993, the Joint International Commission for the Theological Dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church declared that these initiatives that "led to the union of certain communities with the See of Rome and brought with them, as a consequence, the breaking of communion with their Mother Churches of the East … took place not without the interference of extra-ecclesial interests";<ref>section 8 of the [http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/ecumenism/balamand_txt.aspx document]</ref> and that what has been called "[[uniatism]]" "can no longer be accepted either as a method to be followed nor as a model of the unity our Churches are seeking" (section 12). At the same time, the Commission stated: * 3) Concerning the Eastern Catholic Churches, it is clear that they, as part of the Catholic Communion, have the right to exist and to act in response to the spiritual needs of their faithful. * 16) The Oriental Catholic Churches who have desired to re-establish full communion with the See of Rome and have remained faithful to it, have the rights and obligations which are connected with this communion. * 22) Pastoral activity in the Catholic Church, Latin as well as Oriental, no longer aims at having the faithful of one Church pass over to the other; that is to say, it no longer aims at proselytizing among the Orthodox. It aims at answering the spiritual needs of its own faithful and it has no desire for expansion at the expense of the Orthodox Church. Within these perspectives, so that there will be no longer place for mistrust and suspicion, it is necessary that there be reciprocal exchanges of information about various pastoral projects and that thus cooperation between bishops and all those with responsibilities in our Churches, can be set in motion and develop. ==Saint Thomas Christians== {{Main|Saint Thomas Christians}} The [[Saint Thomas Christians]] are an ancient body of Christians on the southwest coast of [[India]] who trace their origins to the evangelical activity of [[Thomas the Apostle]] in the 1st century.<ref name="AFM">A.E. Medlycott, ''India and The Apostle Thomas'', pp.1-71, 213-97; M.R. James, ''Apocryphal New Testament'', pp.364-436; Eusebius, ''History'', chapter 4:30; J.N. Farquhar, ''The Apostle Thomas in North India'', chapter 4:30; V.A. Smith, ''Early History of India'', p.235; L.W. Brown, ''The Indian Christians of St. Thomas'', p.49-59</ref> By the 5th century the Saint Thomas Christians were part of the [[Church of the East]], or Nestorian Church. Until the middle of the 17th century and the arrival of the Portuguese, the Thomas Christians were all one in faith and rite. Thereafter, divisions arose among them, and consequently they are today of several different rites. ==Catholic–Orthodox ecumenism== Ecumenical dialogue over the past 43 years since [[Paul VI]]'s meeting with the Orthodox Patriarch [[Athenagoras I]] has awoken the nearly 1000-year hopes for Christian unity. Since the lifting of excommunications during the Paul VI and Athenagoras I meeting in Jerusalem there have been other significant meetings between Popes and Ecumenical Patriarchs of Constantinople. The most recent meeting was between Benedict XVI and Bartholomew I, who signed the ''Common Declaration''. It states that "We give thanks to the Author of all that is good, who allows us once again, in prayer and in dialogue, to express the joy we feel as brothers and to renew ''our commitment to move towards '''full communion'''''".[http://www.ecupatriarchate.org/] ==Dissenting movements== In addition to these four mainstream branches, there are a number of much smaller groups which, like [[Protestants]], originated from disputes with the dominant tradition of their original areas, but are usually not referred to as Protestants because they lack historical ties to the [[Protestant Reformation|Reformation]], and usually lack a classically Protestant theology. Most of these are either part of the more traditional [[Old Believer]] movement, which arose from a [[Schism (religion)|schism]] within Russian Orthodoxy, or the more radical "[[Spiritual Christianity]]" movement. The latter includes a number of diverse "low-church" groups, from the Bible-centered [[Molokans]] to the anarchic [[Doukhobors]] to the self-mutilating [[Skoptsy]]. None of these groups are in communion with the mainstream churches listed above, aside from a few [[Old Believer]] parishes in communion with the [[Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia]]. There are national dissidents, where ethnic groups want their own nation-church like with the [[Macedonian Orthodox Church]] and [[Montenegrin Orthodox Church]]; both domiciles of the [[Serbian Orthodox Church]]. However, it should be noted that in [[Republic of Macedonia|Macedonia]], the influence of the [[Serbian Orthodox Church]] is minimal, due to Macedonia's efforts to create an autocephalous Macedonian primacy in the Orthodox Church. The vast majority of Orthodox [[Macedonians (ethnic group)|ethnic Macedonians]] view the Serbian Orthodox Church as hostile to Macedonian history, national interests, and self-determination. A little known movement of "reformers" in the Greek Orthodox Church traces its history to the 18th century. The leaders of this "schism" within the Orthodox Christian churches were called by a Greek word meaning 'unstable' (''[[astateos]]'').{{Citation needed|date=April 2007}} The children of these leaders left the East toward Western Europe, mainly Spain.{{Citation needed|date=April 2007}} In Ibero America these families are known by the derivative name 'Astacios' or 'Astacio.' One of their descendants was one of the first converts to the Pentecostal movement in 1916, Petra Astacio, of Montellano (Ponce, Puerto Rico).{{Citation needed|date=April 2007}} The Astacios have intermarried with native people of the Americas as well as with Spanish Jews (Sephardim) and Afro-Caribbeans. ==Immigration trends== The basic trend among Eastern Christians in the 20th-century was immigration from the near east to the West. One thousand years ago Christians were the majority population in today's Turkey, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine and Egypt. In 1914 they numbered 25% of the population in the Ottoman Empire. Christians in the beginning of the 21st century constitute a mere 6–7 percent of this region’s inhabitants: less than 1% in Turkey, 3% in Iraq. 12% in Syria, 39% in Lebanon, 6% in Jordan, 2.5% in Israel/Palestine and 15–20% in Egypt. == Liturgy == The Eastern churches (excepting the non-liturgical dissenting bodies) each belong to one of several liturgical families: * [[Alexandrian Rite]] * [[Antiochene Rite]] * [[Armenian Rite]] * [[Byzantine Rite]] * [[East Syrian Rite]] * [[West Syrian Rite]] == See also == {{Portal|Eastern Christianity}} For other definitions and meaning for the word ''orthodox'', see ''[[Orthodoxy]]''. * [[Byzantine Empire]] * [[East-West Schism]] * [[Christian meditation]] * [[Divine Liturgy]] * [[Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America]] * [[Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia]] * [[History of Eastern Christianity]] * [[List of Eastern Christianity-related topics]] * [[One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church]] * [[Orthodox Church in America]] * [[Syriac Christianity]] ==Notes== {{Reflist}} ==Further reading== * {{Cite book|editor=Angold, Michael|title=The Cambridge History of Christianity|volume=Volume 5, Eastern Christianity|year=2006|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-81113-2}} * Julius Assfalg (ed.), Kleines Wörterbuch des christlichen Orients , Wiesbaden 1975 *{{cite book|last=Jenkins|first=Philip|title=The Lost History Of Christianity|year=2008|publisher=HarperCollins|location=New York|isbn=978-0-06-147281-7}} ==External links== {{External links|date=May 2010}} * [http://www.cnewa.org/ecc-bodypg-us.aspx?eccpageID=3&IndexView=toc Eastern Christian Churches] * [http://www.melkite.org/eastern.htm Eastern Catholics] Information concerning Christians of Eastern rites who are in communion with, and under the jurisdiction of, the [[Pope]], the Bishop of Rome. * [http://www.orthodoxunity.org/ A site advocating unity between Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Christians.] * [http://www.aramaicpeshitta.com/ Eastern Christian Bible Resources - contains Lamsa Bible and more] * [http://web.archive.org/web/20070709011102/http://chant.theologian.org/ Byzantine Chant Studies Page] * [http://www.gocanada.org/ The Greek Orthodox Church in Canada] * [http://JonathansCorner.com/ Christos Jonathan Hayward, Eastern Orthodox author and theologian] * [http://www.malankara.org.in/ Syro Malankara Catholic Church, International Homepage]-- Eastern Syrian Church in India * [http://pa.photoshelter.com/c/enricomartino/gallery/Middle-East-Christian-Churches-The-Living-Stones/G0000Iz3AUSXebjE/ Reportage on Eastern Churches, by [[Enrico Martino]]] * [http://commons.orthodoxwiki.org/Main_Page OrthodoxWiki] * [http://www.westsrbdio.org/prolog/prolog.htm/ Prologue from Ohrid - (Saints of the Orthodox Church)] * [http://orthodoxchurchfathers.com/ Orthodox Church Fathers] {{Christianityfooter}} [[Category:Eastern Orthodoxy]] [[Category:Eastern Catholicism]] [[Category:Eastern Christianity| ]] [[Category:Oriental Orthodoxy]] [[Category:Christian terms]] [[ar:مسيحية شرقية]] [[bg:Източнохристиянски църкви]] [[br:Kristeniezh ar Reter]] [[ca:Cristianisme oriental]] [[cs:Východní křesťanství]] [[de:Christlicher Orient]] [[es:Iglesias orientales]] [[eo:Orienta Kristanismo]] [[fr:Christianisme oriental]] [[ko:동방 기독교]] [[ia:Brancas oriental del Christianitate]] [[it:Oriente cristiano]] [[la:Ecclesiae Orientales]] [[hu:Keleti keresztény egyházak]] [[ml:പൗരസ്ത്യ ക്രിസ്തുമതം]] [[nl:Oosters christendom]] [[ja:東方教会]] [[pl:Kościoły wschodnie]] [[pt:Cristianismo oriental]] [[ru:Восточное христианство]] [[simple:Eastern Christianity]] [[sr:Источно хришћанство]] [[sh:Источно хришћанство]] [[fi:Idän kristilliset kirkot]] [[sv:Östlig kristendom]] [[th:ศาสนาคริสต์ตะวันออก]] [[uk:Східне християнство]] [[vi:Kitô giáo Đông phương]] [[zh:東方基督教]] ἅἍᾎ≠≤'