ARTICLE
from the
Encyclopædia Britannica
Eastern Orthodoxy, official name Orthodox Catholic Church,
one of the three major doctrinal and jurisdictional groups of Christianity. It is characterized by its continuity with the apostolic church, its liturgy, and its territorial churches. Its adherents live mainly in the Balkans, the Middle East, and former Soviet countries.
Articles from Britannica encyclopedias for elementary and high school students.
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Eastern Orthodox Churches - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11)
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Eastern Orthodoxy is one of the main branches of Christianity. Eastern Orthodoxy consists of a group of churches, most of which are associated with a particular country. The patriarch, or leader, of Constantinople (present-day Istanbul, Turkey) is the general representative of Eastern Orthodoxy. But each church is independent and selects its own head. There are more than 200 million Orthodox Christians in all. Most of them live in Greece, Russia, Ukraine, the Balkans, and the Middle East.
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Eastern Orthodox churches - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up)
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In the year 1054 a major split occurred in Christianity. The churches in Western Europe, under the authority of the pope at Rome, separated from the churches in the Eastern Roman (or Byzantine) Empire, under the authority of the patriarch (bishop) of Constantinople. The churches of the Eastern Empire have come to be known by the collective term Eastern Orthodoxy. The word orthodoxy simply means "correct teaching," or "right belief." The official designation is actually Orthodox Catholic Church to set it off from the Roman Catholic church. (See also Eastern rite churches.)
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