Eastern Orthodox Church facts for kids

Russian Orthodox Deacon and Priest

The Eastern Orthodox Church, officially the Orthodox Catholic Church, or simply, the Orthodox Church, is a Christian church. Their type of Christianity is also called Orthodox Christianity or Orthodoxy. Their members are called Orthodox Christians, although there is another group of Churches called Oriental Orthodox that is not in communion with the Orthodox Church. There are about 300 million Orthodox Christians in the world. Most Orthodox Christians are found in Russia, Greece, Eastern Europe, and the Middle East, but there are Orthodox Christians everywhere in the world.

The Eastern Orthodox Church teaches that it is the Church started by Jesus Christ in his instructions to the apostles. It practises what it understands to be the original Christian faith and maintains the sacred tradition passed down from the apostles.

The worship service is known as the Divine Liturgy. The beliefs and rituals of the service are similar to the Eucharist in the Roman Catholic Church.

History

In 395, the Roman Empire was split into a western part, and an eastern part. The western part lasted to the 5th or 6th century, the exact dates are a point of debate. The eastern part, which is commonly called Byzantine Empire, lasted until the 15th century. The split of the Roman Empire also affected the church, which developed differently in both parts. In 1054, there was the East–West Schism. The western part developed what is now the Roman-Catholic Church, the eastern part is now called Eastern Orthodox Church. In the west, there is the Patriarch of Rome, who is commonly called the Pope. In the east, there is the Patriarch of Constantinople. Because of historical developments, many Eastern Orthodox churches also have a local Patriarch. In the west, the Pope is an absolute leader. The Patriarch of Constantinople is the "first among equals", his power is not absolute, as seen when meeting with other Patriarchs.

Important things to know about the Orthodox Churches

Orthodox believe in everything in the Nicene Creed:

I believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible.

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all ages.

Light of Light, true God of true God, begotten not created, of one essence with the Father through whom all things were made.

For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and became man.

He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, and he suffered and was buried.

On the third day he rose according to the Scriptures.

He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He will come again in glory to judge the living and dead. His kingdom will have no end.

And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Giver of life, who proceeds from the Father, who together with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who spoke through the prophets.

In One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church.

I acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.

I expect the resurrection of the dead.

And the life of the ages to come. Amen.

Church today

Distribution of Eastern Orthodoxy in the world by country

The many churches of the Orthodox Church are distinct in terms of administration and local culture, but for the most part exist in full communion with one another. Most of these churches are led by patriarchs. Most patriarchs recognise the Patriarch of Constantinople as their spiritual leader.

The following listing contains a selection of Eastern Orthodox Churches. Unless otherwise stated, they are in communion:

Mount Athos (a community of monasteries)
Albanian Orthodox Church
Antiochian Orthodox Church
Bulgarian Orthodox Church
Greek Orthodox Church
Greek Orthodox Church of Alexandria
Church of Mount Sinai (one monastery)
Russian Orthodox Church
Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia
Romanian Orthodox Church

In the 17th century a group of people split from the Eastern Orthodox Church, because they did not agree with some changes that were introduced. These people are known as Old Believers today. There are two big groups of Old Believers, and a few smaller ones. Old Believers are not in communion with the other Eastern Orthodox Churches.

Related pages

Images for kids

An icon of Saint John the Baptist, 14th century, Republic of Macedonia
The exterior of the Patriarchal Basilica of St. George, of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, located in the Fener (Fanari) district of Istanbul.
Oldest extant manuscript of the Nicene Creed, dated to the 5th Century
John of Damascus
A 17th-century Russian Orthodox icon of the Resurrection.
Our Lady of Tinos is the major Marian shrine in Greece
The Theotokos of Vladimir, one of the most venerated of Orthodox Christian icons of the Virgin Mary.
Last Judgment: 12th-century Byzantine mosaic from Torcello Cathedral.
Monastery of Saint John the Theologian in Patmos, where the Book of Revelation was written
David glorified by the women of Israel from the Paris Psalter, example of the Macedonian art (Byzantine) (sometimes called the Macedonian Renaissance)
Chanters singing on the kliros at the Church of St. George, Patriarchate of Constantinople.
An Orthodox priest in Jerusalem
Blessing of the waters and throwing cross; Theophany
The congregation lighting their candles from the new flame in Adelaide, at St. George Greek Orthodox Church, just as the priest has retrieved it from the altar. The picture is flash-illuminated; all electric lighting is off, and only the oil lamps in front of the Iconostasis remain lit.
Patriarch Kirill serves Holy Liturgy at Easter
Patriarch Daniel of Romania
Saint Catherine's Monastery (6th century), Sinai Peninsula , Egypt
The "Chi-Rho" symbol, Catacombs of San Callisto, Rome
"IX" (Jesus Christ) monogram from a 4th century sarcophagus from Constantinople
Easter eggs in front of altar, symbol of Resurrection.
Our Lady of St. Theodore (12th century), the protector of Kostroma and patron icon of the Romanov family, following the Byzantine "Tender Mercy" type.
Modern icon depicting Constantine XI Palaiologos, last emperor of the eastern Roman (Byzantine) empire
Iconostasis in the Cathedral of the Annunciation in the Moscow Kremlin.
An illustration of the traditional interior of an Orthodox church.
Interior of Agios Minas Cathedral, Heraklion
Shards of pottery vases on the street, after being thrown from the windows of nearby houses. A Holy Saturday tradition in Corfu.
An Orthodox baptism
Euharistic elements prepared for the Divine Liturgy
An icon of Holy Communion: "Receive the Body of Christ; taste the Fountain of Immortality."
The wedding of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia.
Clergy at All Saints' Antiochian Orthodox Church, Raleigh, United States (L to R): priest, two deacons, bishop.
An early Christian "Ichthys" (fish) inscription from ancient Ephesus
Icon depicting the Emperor Constantine and the bishops of the First Council of Nicaea (325) holding the Niceno–Constantinopolitan Creed of 381.
Hagia Sophia, the largest church in the world and patriarchal basilica of Constantinople for nearly a thousand years, later converted into a mosque, now a museum
The baptism of Princess Olga in Constantinople, a miniature from the Radzivill Chronicle
Latin Crusaders sacking the city of Constantinople, the capital of the Eastern Orthodox controlled Byzantine Empire, in 1204.
Russian Orthodox Church in Shanghai was converted into a washing machine factory.
The consecration of the Rt Rev. Reginald Heber Weller as an Anglican bishop at the Cathedral of St. Paul the Apostle in the Episcopal Diocese of Fond du Lac, with the Rt. Rev. Anthony Kozlowski of the Polish National Catholic Church and Saint Tikhon, then Bishop of the Aleutians and Alaska (along with his chaplains Fr. John Kochurov and Fr. Sebastian Dabovich) of the Russian Orthodox Church present
Pope Francis and Patriarch Bartholomew I in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem, 2014
The Pan-Orthodox Council, Kolymvari, Crete, Greece, June 2016
Patriarchate of Peć in Kosovo, the seat of the Serbian Orthodox Church from the 14th century when its status was upgraded into a patriarchate
Cathedral of Evangelismos, Alexandria
Romanian People's Salvation Cathedral (under construction) will be the seat of the Romanian Patriarch
Traditional Paschal procession by Russian Orthodox Old-Rite Church
The oldest known icon of Christ Pantocrator, encaustic on panel, Saint Catherine's Monastery, Sinai Peninsula
Emperor Constantine presents a representation of the city of Constantinople as tribute to an enthroned Mary and baby Jesus in this church mosaic. St Sophia, c. 1000).
Fresco of Basil the Great in the cathedral of Ohrid. The saint is shown consecrating the Gifts during the Divine Liturgy which bears his name.
Icon of Ss. Basil the Great (left) and John Chrysostom, ascribed authors of the two most frequently used Eastern Orthodox Divine Liturgies, c. 1150 (mosaic in the Palatine Chapel, Palermo).
Esphigmenou monastery, Mount Athos
Monasteries of Meteora, Greece
Trei Ierarhi Monastery, Romania
Krušedol Monastery, Serbia
Supraśl Orthodox Monastery
Our Lady of the Sign (Novgorod) icon (12th century), Cathedral of St. Sophia, Novgorod
Byzantine icon (13th) of Michael the Archangel, Saint Catherine's Monastery
St John the Theologian by Andreas Ritzos, example of Cretan School
St Theodore's miracle, a 17th-century Stroganov school icon
Svetitskhoveli Cathedral is one of the oldest Orthodox churches in Georgia (4th)
St George basilica, Madaba, Jordan (6th)
Hagios Demetrios, Thessaloniki (7th century)
Church of St John the Baptist, Kerch (8th)
Church of Christ Pantocrator, Nesebar (13th)
Salvatorkirche (Munich)
Church of Saint Sava, Belgrade, one of the world's largest Orthodox churches
Saint Isaac's Cathedral in the style of classicism, the largest Orthodox basilica and fourth largest in the world
Church of the Savior on Blood in Russian Revival style, Saint Petersburg
Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church, Vienna in Neobyzantine style
Saint Nicholas Princely Church, Iaşi
Saint George Greek Orthodox Cathedral, Beirut
St Mark mosaic, Nea Moni (11th century)
Frescoes at Hosios Loukas (11th)
Fresco by Onufri (16th) at the Holy Apostles church, Kastoria
Frescoes at Rila Monastery by Zahari and Dimitar Zograf