Similarity List with Western Catholicism

[Barbkw]

A prospective convert on another post asked what it means for Eastern Catholic Churches to be in communion with Rome and I began wondering as well.

What are the commonalities the Western and Eastern Churches share within the Mass.

Now, I do know that in some traditions, when a baby is baptised, they are also receive 1st Eucharist and Confirmation at the same time.

Forgive me, if my questions are simplistic:

Do Eastern Churches / Western Churches (E/W) recite the same Creed?

Do we (E/W) each have a Liturgy of the Word and a Liturgy of the Eucharist at Mass?

Do we (E/W) follow the same Liturgical Year?

Do we (E/W) all teach Transubstantiation?

Do we (E/W) all use the Catechism of the Catholic Church?

Are our Sacraments identical in number?

Please add in your own detail and information that I haven’t considered.

Thank you in advance!

 

[Shiranui117]

The Creeds are different, with Eastern Catholicism more or less adhering strictly to the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, not including the Filioque. We also don’t say “God from God”.

We do both still have a Liturgy of the Word and a Liturgy of the Eucharist, but IDK if we use that strict terminology.

We do not follow the same liturgical year; there is no such thing as “Ordinary Time.” Our Lents begin on different days (Or, at least, Byzantines do; Clean Monday vs. Ash Wednesday) and we have a couple extra fasts (The Apostle’s Fast) as well as a bunch of things that simply aren’t there on the Latin calendar that would take entirely too long to list out in full.

We do all teach that the bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Christ, but we MAY not exactly use the Roman Catholic description. We certainly find not even the remotest objection to Transubstantiation, and we may even use it to describe the process of sanctification ourselves.

We all currently use the CCC, but from what I hear, some Eastern Catholic Churches are coming out with their own Catechisms (Ukrainian Greek-Catholic is doing this, last I heard) that explain things according to their own Eastern traditions, but Western and Eastern Catholic teachings do not conflict, but rather compliment each other.

We do all still have 7 Sacraments.

We still have the same episcopal structure, as far as Deacon, Priest, Bishop and Patriarch(Pope) are concerned. We also still have monks and nuns. We do include some “extra” ranks like Subdeacon, Metropolitan (likely roughly analagous to an Archbishop) and Archpriest (IDK the specifics on what this one’s like; someone can give better descriptions than my crude ones) We do have different devotions (chotki vs. rosary, icons vs. statues), but the fundamental principle behind the two examples just given is basically the same.

 

[ConstantineTG]

A prospective convert on another post asked what it means for Eastern Catholic Churches to be in communion with Rome and I began wondering as well.

What are the commonalities the Western and Eastern Churches share within the Mass.

Now, I do know that in some traditions, when a baby is baptised, they are also receive 1st Eucharist and Confirmation at the same time.

Forgive me, if my questions are simplistic:

Do Eastern Churches / Western Churches (E/W) recite the same Creed?

Depends by what you mean by “same”. We do not have the Filioque

Do we (E/W) each have a Liturgy of the Word and a Liturgy of the Eucharist at Mass?

Most still use the traditional names, “Liturgy of the Catechumens” and “Liturgy of the Faithful”

Do we (E/W) follow the same Liturgical Year?

No. Although there is some similarity with the EF Calendar. Lent for example starts Monday, not Wednesday. And the entire Holy Week is separate from Lent whereas in the West its just the Tridiuum that begins on Holy Thursday.

edit:
Advent is also 40 days, not 4 Sundays. So is the Christmas season which ends on Feb 2, the Feast of the Presentation at the Temple.

Do we (E/W) all teach Transubstantiation?

Not in the way its taught in the West. Essentially we believe in the same thing but its not explained in the same way.

Do we (E/W) all use the Catechism of the Catholic Church?

The Ukrainian Church is coming out with her own Catechism. I heard the Ukrainian version comes out in June, English afterwards but no definite date.

Are our Sacraments identical in number?

Of course. That is dogma.

Please add in your own detail and information that I haven’t considered.

Thank you in advance!

We don’t kneel on Sundays (ideally), we stand to receive Communion. We do not genuflect towards the tabernacle when we enter or exit the parish, we make a profound bow. Byzantines would cross right-to-left shoulder, and the fingers are positioned differently. The middle-index-thumb are together to signify the trinity, the pinky and ring tucked into the hand to signify Christ’s two natures.

 

[SalomeBintullah]

Do we (E/W) all use the Catechism of the Catholic Church?

The universal Catechism is just that–universal, but Eastern Catholic churches are encouraged to create their own catechisms that speak to their own unique situations. I’m considering the Ukrainian Church but they don’t have their own catechism yet, so I bought the “Light for Life” catechism series to study and see if I want to make the switch. I think the main Byzantine writers of that series were Melkite and Ruthenian, but I’m reading it anyway because it’s the closest thing I could find.

 

[Little_Boy_Lost]

It’s a good series. I didn’t think much of it at first glance, but since I’ve been reading through it. It does help to ground you in understanding the liturgical hours and the divine liturgy pretty well including the way byzantines view the sacraments and the mysteries of Christ’s Life.

 

[5Loaves]

Christos voskrese! Khristós Anésti! al-Masīḥ qām!

Do Eastern Churches / Western Churches (E/W) recite the same Creed? !

You seem to be English speaking so come Advent 2011 you will return to beginning the Creed as we and the rest of the Catholic Church does, with “I believe…”
In the East it’s called The Symbol of Faith. This is what we pray in my Church. It is sung, like the rest of the Liturgy.

Do we (E/W) each have a Liturgy of the Word and a Liturgy of the Eucharist at Mass?

2.1 Liturgy of Preparation
2.2 Liturgy of the Catechumens
2.3 Liturgy of the Faithful

The Liturgy of Preparation is done before more public part of the Divine Liturgy begins and is done out of view behind the iconostasis. Someone will be chanting the Hours while the Liturgy of Preparation is done. There is an interchange between the chanting of the Hours and the priest engaged in the Liturgy of Preparation. He periodically will respond, mainly after the 2 recitations of the Our Father.

For Russians the clergy commune with the curtain pulled so we do no see them communing except at Pascha.

Throughout the Church every Sunday is Pascha/Easter and celebrated with that joy. During Great Lent we do not celebrate the Divine Liturgy on other days because the Liturgy (“Mass”) is truly a joyful celebration and inconsistent with the strict fasting and devotions of Great Lent, a the season of repentance. We have Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts Wednesdays and Fridays in Great Lent, for the spiritual nourishment needed during this solemn time. When the Annunciation falls during Great Lent, as it did this year on Friday March 25, we have the Divine Liturgy of St. Basil (as we do throughout Lent) and fasting is forbidden-- ie we can eat fish and drink wine! We may not eat fish, dairy, eggs, meat however any day during Great Lent beginning with no meat after Meatfare Sunday, and no dairy and eggs after Cheesefare Sunday. Other Eastern Churches have different fasting practices, usually less strict.

Do we (E/W) follow the same Liturgical Year?

We have Twelve Great Feasts and four major Fasting periods.*
My parish is on the revised Julian Calendar so we celebrate Pascha on the Old Calendar. Some parishes are entirely on the Old Calendar. Some are entirely on the New Calendar, which the secular world follows, as does the Latin Church.

Different Churches have different Feast days for the Saints of their Churches. And the readings are specific to the Church. For example, the Melkites have different daily readings from us-- we follow the OCA readings.

Do we (E/W) all teach Transubstantiation?

We believe “… that after the consecration of the bread and of the wine, the bread is transmuted, transubstantiated, converted and transformed into the true Body Itself of the Lord…”
“When” consecration takes place during the Divine Liturgy is not defined.

(Holy Eucharist is under both species with the consecrated bread (leavened) present in the consecrated wine delivered into our mouths by the priest using a tiny gold spoon, Some Churches, Melkites for example, the priest intincts each individual piece of consecrated bread and places that into the communicants mouth.)

Do we (E/W) all use the Catechism of the Catholic Church?

When I took a class for catechists in the Latin Diocese of Oakland on the Holy Mysteries with Fr. Anthony, (Ruthenian) he said that the CCC is a Catechism for the Latin Church. I completely agree. It makes use of Eastern Sources but it is clearly a product of the approach of the Latin Church. I like the Living God: A Catechism for the Christian Faith - Volumes 1 & 2,
I also like the “Light for Life” series in three separate books: “The Mystery Believed”, “The Mystery Celebrated”, “the Mystery Lived”.

Please add in your own detail and information that I haven’t considered.

I always recommend the “Your Word From The Wise” interviews Catherine Alexander did with the monks of Holy Resurrection Romanian Catholic Monastery:
Eastern Catholic Theology Part 1 and Part 2 with Fr. Abbot Nicholas of Holy Resurrection Monastery
“Who are Eastern Catholics?” Part 1 and Part 2 with Fr. Maximos
*Fasting in the Byzantine Church Year with Fr. Moses
*Feasting in the Byzantine Church Year with Fr. Moses
Click on “… (more info)” to see the specific questions Catherine asks in each segment.

Also, St Elias Ukrainian Catholic Church in ON has an excellent site.

"12 Things I Wish I’d Known…First Visit to an Orthodox Church" by Khouria Frederica Mathewes-Green is often recommended.

Deacons in the ECCs have a very different role from that of the deacons in the Latin Church. We call both priests and deacons “Father”.

Thank you in advance!

You’re welcome. The best thing for learning about ECCs is to go visit one. Find-A-Parish

 

[5Loaves]

Father Thomas Loya’s Light of the East radio series also is very good. It is meant to expose to Catholics of the Latin Church and others to the teachings and praxis of Eastern Catholic Churches.

EWTN periodically runs an old but still excellent series of the same name Light of the East with Fr. Michael Sopoliga and Fr. Joseph Bertha, two wonderful Ruthenian priests. They tend to run the segments related to Lent and to Advent during those seasons, late at night.

“Light of the East” comes from the Apostolic Letter of Blessed John Paul II on the Eastern Churches Orientale Lumen,

 

[copperblade]

I don’t understand how groups in full communion can have different catechisms. How does that work?

 

[5Loaves]

I don’t understand how groups in full communion can have different catechisms. How does that work?

We share communion. We don’t for example have the same Code of Canon Law. We have an entirely different Liturgy, It is normal for our parish priests to be married men, and for our celibate priests to be monastics. We celebrate different feasts and in my Church we are on the Old Calendar for Pascha. We have a very different approach from the Latin Church coming from very different patrimonies which is clearly seen many places in the CCC.

You might find helpful the “Your Word From The Wise” interviews Catherine Alexander did with the monks of Holy Resurrection Romanian Catholic Monastery. They might give you some idea of some distinct differences between the Eastern Churches and the Latin Church.
Eastern Catholic Theology Part 1 and Part 2 with Fr. Abbot Nicholas of Holy Resurrection Monastery
“Who are Eastern Catholics?” Part 1 and Part 2 with Fr. Maximos
*Fasting in the Byzantine Church Year with Fr. Moses
*Feasting in the Byzantine Church Year with Fr. Moses
Click on “… (more info)” to see the specific questions Catherine asks in each segment.

I also think Fr Tom Loya has a great little snippet about East and West fundamental world views in a YouTube “Theology of the Body and Marriage Prep. Pt.1” Ignore the title and watch the Part 1 for that world view part.