Eastern Christianity
At a meeting in Balamand, Lebanon in June 1993, the Joint International Commission for the Theological Dialogue between the Roman 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" (section 8 of the document); 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.
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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 the Pope and Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople. The most recent meeting was between Benedict XVI and Bartholomew I, who signed the Common Declaration. It states "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" [1]
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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 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 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 Macedonia, the influence of the Serbian Orthodox Church is minimal to non-existent. The vast majority of Orthodox 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] The children of these leaders left the East toward Western Europe, mainly Spain.[citation needed] 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] The Astacios have intermarried with native people of the Americas as well as with Spanish Jews (Sephardim) and Afro-Caribbeans.
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Liturgy
The Eastern churches (excepting the non-liturgical dissenting bodies) each belong to one of several liturgical families:
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See also
For other definitions and meaning for the word orthodox, see Orthodoxy.
- Syriac Christianity
- Christian meditation
- Divine Liturgy
- List of Eastern Christianity-related topics
- One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church
- Byzantine Empire
- Byzantine Discalced Carmelites
- History of Eastern Christianity
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Notes
- ^ See details for Major religious groups
- ^ Parry, Ken et al., editors. The Blackwell Dictionary of Eastern Christianity. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing, 2001, pp. 167-169. ISBN 0-631-18966-1
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External links
- Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia
- Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America
- Eastern Christian Churches
- Eastern Catholics Information concerning Christians of Eastern rites who are in communion with, and under the jurisdiction of, the Pope, the Bishop of Rome.
- A site advocating unity between Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Christians.
- Eastern Christian Bible Resources - contains Lamsa Bible and more
- Byzantine Chant Studies Page
- The Orthodox Christian Church in America
- The Greek Orthodox Church in Canada
- Syro Malankara Catholic Church, International Homepage-- Eastern Syrian Church in India
- Middle East Christians Portal - Gathering Middle East Christians
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