What is the similarities and differences between the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church?

Answer 1

Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholics separated from one another in 1054. There are very few theological differences. The main difference is that the Eastern Orthodox Churches (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11329a.htm) use the Byzantine Rite (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04312d.htm) and the Roman Catholic Church use the Roman or Latin Rite.

Pope John Paul II said of the Eastern Orthodox Churches in Orientale Lumen, "A particularly close link already binds us. We have almost everything in common." (see http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/apost_letters/documents/hf_jp-ii_apl_02051995_orientale-lumen_en.html)

With love in Christ.

Answer 2

There was only 1 church until about 400 AD. At that point some people wanted to change a few things, some did not, so they split. One became Catholics the other became Eastern Orthodox (now Russian orthodox, Greek Orthodox, etc.)
Some of the main reasons for the split, there was an argument whether the father, son, and holy ghosts were 1 entity or 3. The catholics wanted to change it to 3. The Orthodox side wanted to keep it to 1. Also, 1 commandment says not to worship false idols. The first church only had pictures and images of Jesus, saints, god, Mary, etc. The Catholics wanted to include statues in the church, the Orthodox considered these idols. You will not see any statues in the Orthodox church even today. Another difference is that the Catholics believe the wine and eucarest are considered symbols of the body and the blood of Christ. The Orthodox don't use a eucarest, they still use bread, and they believe the wind and bread actually becomes the body and blood of Christ before it is swallowed. There are many other differences. The Orthodox have not added or removed any saints since the onset. The Catholics change them at will.
The orthodox views itself as:
-The historical continuation of the original Christian community established by Jesus Christ and the Twelve Apostles, having maintained unbroken the link between its clergy and the Apostles by means of Apostolic Succession.
-The church which most effectively preserves the traditions of the early church.
-The church which most closely adheres to the canons of the first seven ecumenical councils held between the 4th and the 8th centuries.

Almost all of the other religions have branched off from the Catholics- Methodists, Lutheran, Babtists, etc.

Answer 3

The official break, sometimes referred to as the Great Schism, came in 1054, when Pope Leo IX excommunicated Michael Cerularius, the patriarch of Constantinople, and Cerularius anathematized (condemned) the pope in response. The two denominations, which had long been at odds over such doctrinal matters as whether the priesthood should be celibate, the nature of the Holy Spirit and the use of icons, were also politically and culturally divided, with the seat of the Orthodox church's authority resting in Constantinople while the Catholic church was based in Rome. Tension persists between the two churches even today, though attempts at reconciliation have been made, most notably in December of 1965, when Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras simultaneously repealed their churches' mutual excommunications. What you need to understand is that it was and is a religious power struggle. I go to both {I am Catholic, my wife is Orthodox} and I prefer the orthodox liturgy which is essentially the same as the Catholic Tridentine mass. It should be noted that an Orthodox priest may marry, as was God's plan for us.

Answer 4

The Roman Catholic Church or Catholic Church (see terminology below) is the Christian church in full communion with the Bishop of Rome, currently Pope Benedict XVI. It traces its origins to the original Christian community founded by Jesus Christ and led by the Twelve Apostles, in particular Saint Peter.[1]

The Catholic Church is by far the largest Christian church and the largest organized body of any world religion.[2] According to the Statistical Yearbook of the Church, the Catholic Church's worldwide recorded membership at the end of 2005 was 1,114,966,000, approximately one-sixth of the world's population.[3]

The worldwide Catholic Church is made up of one Western or Latin and 22 Eastern Catholic particular churches, all of which look to the Bishop of Rome, alone or along with the College of Bishops, as their highest authority on earth for matters of faith, morals and church governance.[4] It is divided into jurisdictional areas, usually on a territorial basis. The standard territorial unit, each of which is headed by a bishop, is called a diocese in the Latin church and an eparchy in the Eastern churches. At the end of 2006, the total number of all these jurisdictional areas (or "Sees") was 2,782.

The Eastern Orthodox Church is a Christian body that views itself as:

the historical continuation of the original Christian community established by Jesus Christ and the Twelve Apostles, having maintained unbroken the link between its clergy and the Apostles by means of Apostolic Succession.
the church which most effectively preserves the traditions of the early church.
the church which most closely adheres to the canons of the first seven ecumenical councils held between the 4th and the 8th centuries.
Within this article, the terms Greek Orthodox, Russian Orthodox, The Church, The Orthodox Church, and The Byzantine Church, all refer to a single entity, what is today commonly called the Eastern Orthodox Church, unless otherwise noted. Most members of the church simply think of themselves as Orthodox and consider "Eastern" as a prefix applied to them from outside the church.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Catholic_Church
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_Orthodox_Church

Answer 5

they are pretty much the same, except that the Orthodox have a Patriarch and the Catholic have the Pope