Joshua Bennett
There are an estimated 1.3 billion Catholics in the world, making it the single largest denomination of Christianity. The Catholic Church is headed by the Pope, and its followers generally live in Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa, or the Asia-Pacific region. On the other hand, there are approximately 260 million Orthodox Christians worldwide, comprising 12% of the global Christian population. The Orthodox Church is divided into two major branches: Eastern Orthodoxy, with most adherents in Central and Eastern Europe, and Oriental Orthodoxy. While there are notable theological differences between the two denominations, Orthodox Christians and Catholics generally acknowledge common ground between their faiths.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of Catholics | 1.61 billion (estimated) |
| Number of Orthodox Christians | 260 million (estimated) |
| Percentage of Christians that are Orthodox | 12% |
| Geographical distribution of Catholics | 24% in Europe, 76% in Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa, or the Asia-Pacific region |
| Geographical distribution of Orthodox Christians | 77% in Europe, 13% in Ethiopia |
| Religious observance of Orthodox Christians in former Soviet republics | Low |
| Religious observance of Orthodox Christians in Ethiopia | High |
| Religious observance of Orthodox Christians in Europe outside the former Soviet Union | Low but higher than in former Soviet republics |
| Stance on married priests | Orthodox Christians allow married men to become priests, while the Catholic Church requires celibacy for priests |
| Stance on divorce | Orthodox Christians recognize divorce, while Catholicism does not |
| Stance on women's ordination | Both Orthodox Christians and Catholics support the prohibition on women's ordination |
| Perception of kinship between Orthodox and Catholic churches | Majority of Orthodox Christians and Catholics see the two traditions as having "a lot in common" |
| Support for reunification of Eastern Orthodox and Catholic churches | Varies across countries, with Catholics generally more supportive than Orthodox Christians |
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What You'll Learn
Eastern Orthodox vs Oriental Orthodox
Despite their similar names, the Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches are distinct branches of Christianity with several differences. The two denominations are not closely related historically, with the Oriental Orthodox Church splitting from the Roman Catholic Church in the 46th decade, and the Eastern Orthodox Church separating much later, in 1054 CE.
The two churches disagree on the nature of Jesus. The Oriental Orthodox believe in a single unified nature for Christ, considering him fully divine, with the human and the divine brought together. On the other hand, the Eastern Orthodox believe that Jesus was both fully divine and fully human simultaneously. This disagreement over Christ's nature led to a schism between the two churches in 451 CE, following the Council of Chalcedon, which attempted to resolve theological questions.
The Oriental Orthodox Churches are Eastern Christian churches adhering to Miaphysite Christology, recognising the validity of only the first three ecumenical councils. They include six autocephalous national churches: the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, the Syriac Orthodox Church, the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, the Eritrean Church, the Armenian Apostolic Church, and the Indian Orthodox Church. These churches are in full communion with each other but not with the Eastern Orthodox Church or any other churches.
While there are differences in rituals, saints, and feasts between the two denominations, they share some similarities. Both reject the primacy of the Pope, believe in autocephalous churches, and reject the Filioque, asserting that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father alone. Efforts to restore communion between the Eastern and Oriental Orthodox groups have been ongoing since the mid-20th century, and dialogue is also underway between Oriental Orthodoxy and the Catholic Church.
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Ordination of women
In terms of numbers, the Catholic Church is the largest Christian denomination, with an estimated 1.3 billion members. The Eastern Orthodox Church is the second largest single denomination, with 220 million members, or 80% of all Eastern Orthodox Christians worldwide.
The Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church have both traditionally only ordained men as bishops, priests, or deacons. However, the ordination of women remains a highly contested issue within both churches.
In the Catholic Church, the ordination of women is considered impossible, and the church teaches that it has no authority to confer priestly ordination on women. This belief is based on the idea that Jesus specifically chose only men as his apostles and that the priesthood is intimately associated with the Incarnate Word. The church also cites tradition and scripture as reasons for not ordaining women.
Some have argued that the presence of female saints and the feminine form of the word "bishop" in early church art indicates that women did have leadership roles in the early church. However, the Catholic Church maintains that the use of feminine titles was honorific rather than indicative of a leadership role.
The Eastern Orthodox Church follows a similar line of reasoning to the Catholic Church regarding the ordination of bishops and priests and does not allow women's ordination to those orders. However, the Orthodox Church has a history of ordaining deaconesses, which is considered a "lay" ministry. In 2004, the Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church of Greece voted to permit the appointment of monastic deaconesses, allowing women to minister and assist at the liturgy within their own monasteries.
Some advocates for women's ordination in the Orthodox Church argue that the essential icon of Christ is his humanness, not his maleness, and that God became man to show that both men and women could be saved and return to the divine image. They also point out that Christ did not ordain his apostles, and that the Holy Spirit, which has descended on both men and women, did so. While the Orthodox Church recognizes women saints as Equal-to-the-Apostles, it emphasizes that the priest represents the people to God rather than Christ to the people, which is more characteristic of Catholic theology.
While the Catholic Church maintains that it cannot ordain women, some believe that the consciousness of the Church may progress to the point where women's ordination is accepted. Similarly, while the Orthodox Church currently does not ordain women to the priesthood, some believe that it will someday, as the priesthood is a calling of the Holy Spirit, and women are called to the priesthood.
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Priest celibacy
Catholicism and Orthodox Christianity are two of the largest Christian denominations in the world, with an estimated 1.3 billion Catholics and 220 million Eastern Orthodox Christians worldwide. The two denominations have different approaches to priest celibacy.
The Catholic Church mandates priestly celibacy in the Latin Church, one of the 24 rites of the Catholic Church. The Latin Church requires that only unmarried men be ordained as priests and bishops. However, exceptions are sometimes made, especially for married male Lutheran, Anglican, and other Protestant clergy who convert to Catholicism. These exceptions indicate that priestly celibacy is not an unchangeable dogma but a disciplinary rule. The Catholic Church considers priestly celibacy a discipline rather than a doctrine, and it is not considered divinely ordained. The requirement was adopted in the Middle Ages to prevent clerics' children from inheriting church property and creating dynasties.
The Orthodox Church, including the Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches, generally prohibits the ordination of married men to the episcopate, and marriage after priestly ordination. However, in most Orthodox traditions, married men may be ordained as priests, but they cannot remarry if their wife dies, and celibacy is required for bishops. Priestly celibacy is held in great honour in the Eastern Churches, and many priests have freely chosen it for the sake of the Kingdom of God.
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Recognition of divorce
The Catholic Church has historically opposed the legalization of civil divorce in Catholic countries. Marriage is considered a sacrament, defined as 'insoluble' and instituted by God and Christ, indissoluble by a human act. Divorce, as it is known today, was generally allowed in Western Europe after the 10th century. However, the Catholic Church does not prohibit civil divorce, and Pope Francis published Amoris laetitia in 2016, which pertains to the reception of Holy Communion by the divorced and remarried.
The Eastern Orthodox Church does recognize that there are occasions when couples should separate, permitting remarriage in Church. The Church grants "ecclesiastical divorces" based on Christ's exception to his general prohibition of divorce. To obtain an ecclesiastical divorce, the divorced couple must appear before a local ecclesiastical court for evaluation and investigation. The Church permits up to three marriages for any Orthodox Christian, with subsequent marriages taking on a more subdued and penitential character. While the Orthodox Church deplores divorce and sees it as a tragic failure, it acknowledges that the spiritual well-being of Christians in broken marriages may justify divorce and the right to remarry.
Orthodox Canon Law considers marriage indissoluble, ending only through death or an event that revokes its ecclesiastical significance. Some Orthodox Church authorities suggest that instead of granting divorces, the Church should recognize civil divorces and issue "permissions to remarry," accompanied by pastoral counseling, investigation, and penance.
The process of petitioning for an ecclesiastical divorce in the Orthodox Church is considered an extension of the Sacrament of Holy Confession. It is meant to facilitate healing and reconciliation rather than condemnation. The priest and court members are reminded of the confidential and sensitive nature of this process, which should be treated as a pastoral and healing ministry.
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Holy Spirit's provenance
Christianity is the largest religious group in the world, with an estimated 2.3 to 2.6 billion adherents in 2020. The Catholic Church is the single largest denomination within Christianity, with Eastern Orthodox Christianity being the second largest single denomination.
The Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodox Christianity have many theological differences, one of the most important being their differing views on the procession of the Holy Spirit. Catholics believe that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son (Filioque), whereas the Orthodox believe that the Holy Spirit proceeds only from the Father. The original Nicene Creed, as ratified by the Second Ecumenical Council, states that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father, without mentioning the Son, and the Orthodox strictly adhere to the Creed as originally written. The addition of the word "Filioque" (meaning "and the Son" in Latin) was declared as official doctrine by the Catholic Church at the Second Council of Lyons. This change was made without the consent of an Ecumenical Council, which is seen as a violation of the Creed by the Orthodox.
The Catholic Church considers it acceptable to develop new doctrines over time, growing from the "seed" that existed in the early Church. However, the Orthodox Church strongly objects to this idea, asserting that new dogmas have been introduced by Rome over the years that did not exist in previous centuries, such as the immaculate conception and papal infallibility. The Orthodox believe that the supreme authority of the Church can only be held by a council of all the bishops, whereas Catholics believe that one bishop, the Pope, is the head of the Church and has universal jurisdiction.
In summary, the Catholic and Orthodox Churches have differing views on the procession of the Holy Spirit, with the Catholic Church taking a more developmental approach to doctrine, and the Orthodox Church strictly adhering to the original Nicene Creed and opposing the introduction of new dogmas.
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Frequently asked questions
The Catholic Church is the largest single denomination of Christianity, with an estimated 1.3 billion adherents worldwide. The Eastern Orthodox Church is the second-largest single denomination, with approximately 220 million adherents. Therefore, there are more Catholics than Orthodox Christians in the world.
Eastern Orthodox Christianity is the predominant religion in Russia, where roughly half of the world's Eastern Orthodox Christians live. It is also the majority religion in Ukraine, Romania, Belarus, Greece, Serbia, Bulgaria, Moldova, Georgia, North Macedonia, Cyprus, and Montenegro.
The Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church have a shared history, with the Great Schism of 1054 being the main division between the two. The Orthodox Church is highly liturgical, and its churches are adorned with icons, or pictures, of Jesus, the apostles, and other saints. The Orthodox Church also allows married men to become priests and recognizes divorce, whereas the Catholic Church generally requires celibacy for priests and does not recognize divorce.
