What are the main differences between the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches?

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Hi Erich,

Correct me…but this site you gave…I just opened it and it was saying the Roman Catholic Church is another protestant church started 800 years later?

If I read it right, I would not recommend such a site because it is not based on fact but more anti Catholic propaganda with no substance.

Again, don’t mean to offend…but did I read this site right???
 
God Bless You, Bishop!!!

Thank you for your explanation. I am starting to attend vespers at our local Greek Orthodox and introduced myself to the pastor. I personally in my heart and soul live the intention that we are one in the Lord…apostolic. How I pray for our reunification. It will need forgiveness as well.
 
KathleenGee said:
God Bless You, Bishop!!!

Thank you for your explanation. I am starting to attend vespers at our local Greek Orthodox and introduced myself to the pastor. I personally in my heart and soul live the intention that we are one in the Lord…apostolic. How I pray for our reunification. It will need forgiveness as well.
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A lot of forgiveness, amen. On both sides. And a lot of legal and theological work. Politics not enough in this case. But yes, it is possible.

Blessings,
+Gavrilo
 
KathleenGee said:
Hi Erich,

Correct me…but this site you gave…I just opened it and it was saying the Roman Catholic Church is another protestant church started 800 years later?
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You did not read it right 🙂

The “Introduction” section of that newsletter states, “Below is an exchange that I had with a woman who is Eastern Orthodox. … Anyway, below is her email, followed by my response, and then her follow up to that, which might surprise you.”

Her (Maria’s) email is the one that originally made the claim that the Catholic Church was a protestant church – a claim which was basically retracted in her follow-up email, when she wrote: “… I am glad that all of you at EWTN are giving sound teaching to people on the radio, and we Orthodox are your sister church and have much to learn from the Holy Roman Catholic Church. I ask your forgiveness …”
 
" is that that Anglican Church doesn’t really exist anymore - maybe in Africa (), a handful of people in Britain, US, Australia, Canada, etc. "

I think the above statement is likely correct although the Church in Africa’s theology is similar to the Older form of Anglicanism cited -of course there is an African twist to the liturgy with joyous hymns

My Priest told me that as a child the Church was closed for some renovations or such and they were told to go to the Orthodox Church and did-I doubt they received the consecrated host however
 
KathleenGee said:
Hi Erich,

Correct me…but this site you gave…I just opened it and it was saying the Roman Catholic Church is another protestant church started 800 years later?

If I read it right, I would not recommend such a site because it is not based on fact but more anti Catholic propaganda with no substance.

Again, don’t mean to offend…but did I read this site right???
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I can’t be sure but it’s quite possible that you read it right. Heck, if you did into our own history you will find Catholics who saw the Orthodox as “Protestants”.
 
Peter_J said:
I can’t be sure …
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Read the referenced link again. The only place the claim is made that Catholics are “Protestant” is in Maria’s original email (Maria being the person who wrote to the Bible Christian Society, and who’s email was answered in that particular newsletter).

The Bible Christian Society website is not at all an “anti Catholic propaganda [site] with no substance.” Lots of good stuff there!
 
Peter_J said:
I can’t be sure but it’s quite possible that you read it right. Heck, if you did into our own history you will find Catholics who saw the Orthodox as “Protestants”.
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Oops, “did” should have been “dig”.
 
Thanks Erich…I backed out as I am burned out dealing with alot of protestant sects who start attacking the Church…with no sense of history…

Yes…great…I wish you would comment to a new Orthodox poster here…his comments and attitude afflict me. I forgot those Crusades who sacked Constantinople were excommunicated…and my pastor told me that people who hold on to such injuries in his mind, I mean injuries going back hundreds of years, are fanatical.
 
Sometimes I wonder if it is God’s will - every time I get scandalized by fanatical illiterate anti-Catholicism from Protestants or Orthodox (or the former masquerading as the latter - a fascinating phenomenon in the US BTW) - I read Catholic comments that pretty much match it in spirit if not in illiteracy. (so…we are usually a tad better informed but as for charity on the ground…who knows) Sinners, all.

:o
 
I converted from Roman Catholicism to Orthodox Christianity after several years of study, prayer, more prayer, calls to Catholic Answers, free copies of apologetical material that were sent to me by Mr Tim Staples free of charge 🙂 , meetings with several Orthodox clergy,…and even more study. All I can tell you is that I have met sincere seekers of authentic Christianity on both sides of the Schism, and though I am personally utterly convinced that the Orthodox Church(yes I am aware of our differences regarding what constitutes ecclesial authenticity) is THE Church, I can not say I am convinced that God is absent from the Roman Catholic Church. I remain sceptical of Protestantism(s) grasp on anything, let alone a clear understanding of scripture and tradition.

My former sponsor during my entry into the Roman Catholic Church, who is still a vibrantly pious Catholic man, remains a good friend, and I also remain in contact and occasionally meet with the Rector of our RC Cathedral. He is a wonderful, holy man, and I love him dearly. I did not leave the Catholic Church bitterly, and there is much about the West I love. It all boiled down to a realistic, non idealized understanding of Church history, and a lack of belief in the innovative pronouncements of the Frankish Papacy onward through V2, among other things. Spiritually, I found less chaos in Orthodoxy, and more of a cautious view of what in Russian we call Prelest, or spiritual delusion. I was very put off by the non stop, outrageous and IMO scandalous “private revelations” that shall go unnamed due to board rules, and the Orthodox Saints and Elders warn constantly about the dangers of delusion. It was a breath of fresh air.

I also had a profound, noetic experience of God in an Orthodox Church, which was the catalyst for my deciding to become an Orthodox Christian.
All in all, I still admire many Roman Catholic Saints, and though I am very traditional, and not the biggest fan of the ecumenical movement, I remain hopeful that this divide, though painfully deep, will not be so dramatic in eternity.

Pray for guidance. Pray for truth. Pray for humility. Pray for love, and please pray for me.
 
Nice post…there is a portion of me who would like to also participate in the Greek Orthodox.

I would say Catholicism’s universalism brings us into the sphere of so many Catholics around the world, and the draw on systematic theology that expands on St. Paul’s recognition of the use of reason in acknowledging the presence of God in the Epistles to the Romans.

But I find the constant change very difficult and the stress on active evangelism, when my secular world I live in has too much activity and so little prayer and contemplation.

Also there is this question out there why do so many Roman Catholic men leave and so many Orthodox men stay…

I would think our reunion with the East would bring us into interior balance.

I don’t feel I have interior balance within my Latin Church, but would never leave it because so much of my faith is culturally defined as Roman Catholic.
 
KathleenGee said:
I would think our reunion with the East would bring us into interior balance.
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No question, I would love to reunite with my Orthodox brethren, but at this time there’s no way for me to do that which I’d find acceptable. I hold out a hope that the Melkite Initiative for dual communion with be accepted, but it’s a slim hope.
 
We have to keep praying.

I spoke with a former Orthodox --Bylerussian…spelling…and he had to admit there is more animosity on the Orthodox side…the touchiness…the Catholic Church accepts their sacraments but they do not ours.

Someone here I thought from Russia, made statements like Russia is the true Church and we know SS Peter and Paul founded the Church of Rome, that it makes me wonder that those who are so geographically far from the beginning of Christianity – like America as well…slip into concepts of our Church that do not reflect actual history. So it makes me wonder.

I also spoke with the Bolivian priest and have to ask him again…he may have misunderstood me, that he spoke of those who have only 2 sacraments…that sounds like Protestants…when we were speaking of the Orthodox. He was likewise interested in how they pray for us…so it sounds like more in a general way.

Last night I attended an emerging classical Catholic high school and spoke with one of the founders. His daughter married a Melkite and the liturgy was so beautiful.

This morning I attended the later Mass for families…and the drums…etc. did not appeal to me at all and takes away from the sacred.

I am hoping to start a book club on C Ratzinger’s “Spirit of the LIturgy”.

Our archbishop stated that he is the one through which our liturgy is celebrated and he hired someone after searching for a while.

I am praying so much we have better liturgies. And my adult faith group is seeing how the Roman Catholic Church got into too much philosophy…I mean…the Orthodox see our concept of purgatory as torture, our practice of confession rote, mechanical.

So I see a renewal of our sacrament of penance drawing on the gifts of the Orthodox.

I will also talk more with the local Orthodox Greek priest to learn more about how they celebrate confession.

But looking at this world…this is where I am coming from…how much suffering will we go through before we have one shepherd and one church. I see likewise many gifts at the pastoral level that are so needed in parishes that the Protestants have in their faith communities, so serving and life giving.

Let’s keep praying Peter…again…seeing the various posts…and people studying, I cannot help but think we come to different places…but if the different sources were more deeply studied by highly learned theologians…they could be worked out to be palatable and teachable to all.

We are members rather of ‘He Ekklesia Katolika’…the Universal Church…the name given it by St. Ignatius of Antioch on his way to martyrdom in 107 AD. This is where I truly am…in the universal church without divisions.
 
shayneswenson said:
All I can tell you is that I have met sincere seekers of authentic Christianity on both sides of the Schism, and though I am personally utterly convinced that the Orthodox Church(yes I am aware of our differences regarding what constitutes ecclesial authenticity) is THE Church, I can not say I am convinced that God is absent from the Roman Catholic Church. I remain sceptical of Protestantism(s) grasp on anything, let alone a clear understanding of scripture and tradition.
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I am curious, what do you think of eastern orthodox Catholic churches?
 
shayneswenson said:
I converted from Roman Catholicism to Orthodox Christianity after several years of study, prayer, more prayer, calls to Catholic Answers, free copies of apologetical material that were sent to me by Mr Tim Staples free of charge 🙂 , meetings with several Orthodox clergy,…and even more study. All I can tell you is that I have met sincere seekers of authentic Christianity on both sides of the Schism, and though I am personally utterly convinced that the Orthodox Church(yes I am aware of our differences regarding what constitutes ecclesial authenticity) is THE Church, I can not say I am convinced that God is absent from the Roman Catholic Church. I remain sceptical of Protestantism(s) grasp on anything, let alone a clear understanding of scripture and tradition.

My former sponsor during my entry into the Roman Catholic Church, who is still a vibrantly pious Catholic man, remains a good friend, and I also remain in contact and occasionally meet with the Rector of our RC Cathedral. He is a wonderful, holy man, and I love him dearly. I did not leave the Catholic Church bitterly, and there is much about the West I love. It all boiled down to a realistic, non idealized understanding of Church history, and a lack of belief in the innovative pronouncements of the Frankish Papacy onward through V2, among other things. Spiritually, I found less chaos in Orthodoxy, and more of a cautious view of what in Russian we call Prelest, or spiritual delusion. I was very put off by the non stop, outrageous and IMO scandalous “private revelations” that shall go unnamed due to board rules, and the Orthodox Saints and Elders warn constantly about the dangers of delusion. It was a breath of fresh air.

I also had a profound, noetic experience of God in an Orthodox Church, which was the catalyst for my deciding to become an Orthodox Christian.
All in all, I still admire many Roman Catholic Saints, and though I am very traditional, and not the biggest fan of the ecumenical movement, I remain hopeful that this divide, though painfully deep, will not be so dramatic in eternity.

Pray for guidance. Pray for truth. Pray for humility. Pray for love, and please pray for me.
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What is a noetic experience of God? Also, what were the innovative pronouncements of the Frankish papacy? I love church history. And yes, you’re correct about many in the RCC having an idealized view of Church History. More often than not, a lot of posts I see here on CAF have a very naive view of the history of the papacy and an unfair view of the Orthodox Church (how often do we see posters subscribing to the view that Orthodox Churches are just territorial ethnic churches?).
 
Peter_J said:
I’m guessing he thinks pretty highly of them. Otherwise, why join?
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He was pretty clear about leaving the Catholic Church and joining the Orthodox Church. I was asking about his feelings on the eastern Catholic churches (hence the small “o” orthodox).
 
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