Eastern Orthodox (Chalcedonian) overview (Jesus Christ, priests, ritual, tradition, beliefs)

[michel]

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 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.

Spiritually, the Orthodox Church considers Jesus Christ to be the head of the church, and the church to be his body. It is believed that the Grace of God is directly passed down to Orthodox bishops and clergy through the laying on of hands—a practice started by the apostles, and that this unbroken historical and physical link is an essential element of the true church.

Each bishop has a territory (see) over which he governs. His main duty is to make sure the traditions and practices of the Church remain inviolate. Bishops are equal in authority and cannot interfere in each others' territory. Administratively, these bishops and their territories are organized into various autocephalous groups or (synod)s of bishops who gather together at least twice a year to discuss the state of affairs within their respective sees. While bishops and their autocephalous synods have the ability to administer guidance in individual cases, their actions do not usually set precedents that affect the entire church.

There have been, however, a number of times when heretical ideas arose to challenge the Orthodox faith and it was necessary to convene a general or "Great" council of all available bishops. There were seven such councils between the 4th and the 8th century. These councils did not create the doctrines of the church but rather compared the new ideas to the traditional beliefs of the Church. Ideas that were not supported by the traditions of the church were deemed heresy and expunged from the church. The ecumenical councils followed a democratic form with each bishop having one vote. Though present and allowed to speak before the council, members of the Imperial Roman/Byzantine court, abbots, priests, monks and laymen were not allowed to vote.

The bishop of the old Roman capitol, the Pope, though not present at all of the councils was considered to be president of the council and thus called “First Among Equals”. One of the decisions made by the second council and supported by later councils was that the bishop of Constantinople, since Constantinople was the New Rome, should be given the honor of second in rank. Later, because of the split with Rome, the honor of presiding over these general councils was transferred to the Patriarch of Constantinople who was also given the title, "First Among Equals", reflecting both his administrative leadership and his spiritual equality. He is not, however, considered to be the head or leader of the church. (See also History of the Eastern Orthodox Church and Eastern Orthodox Church organization.)

Chalcedonian refers to churches and theologians which accept the definition given at the Council of Chalcedon (451 a.d.) of how the divine and human relate in the person of Jesus Christ. While most modern Christian churches are Chalcedonian, in the 5th - 8th centuries of the common era the ascendancy of Chalcedonian Christology was not always certain. Many Armenians were also Chalcedonians [1], especially in the region of Cappadocia and Trebizond inside the Byzantine Empire, who engaged in polemics against the Armenian church. [2]

The Chalcedonian understanding of how the divine and human relate in the person of Jesus is that the two natures (divine and human) are united in one person (Christ). This view, known as the hypostatic union, became the official theological understanding after it was endorsed by the Council of Chalcedon.

Wikipedia.