The Similarities And Differences Between Eastern And Western Churches

When spouses fight, they, more often than not, are fighting for the same outcome, but they do not realize this because they are trying to get there in two different ways. In many cases of this, it takes a while for the two sides to understand each other, but when they do, they are always welcoming to the other party. In many ways, the Eastern and Western Churches of the 1050s resemble this. They fought for the same outcome in two different ways; the traditional members of the Greek Orthodox Church were against the new ideas of the Roman Catholic Churches. Though they split claiming to be too different, the Greek Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church are very similar to one another in doctrine.
The churches became dissatisfied after
In the Orthodox churches, they tended to lean towards speculative and mystical aspects of faith, while the Catholic churches stuck to moral, legal, and practical traditions of the church (Flinn). Nonetheless, the churches are still centered on practices of the Bible and God’s commandments. This simply defines the differences of how the two churches worship differently. Though the Catholics stick to practical traditions of the Church and the Greek Orthodox people worship in a way that captures the mysterious aspects of God, they still worship the same God and His wondrous deeds. Another difference is that the Eastern Churches were focused on the old patriarchates of the Old Testament; Western Churches, like the Roman Catholic Church, focused more on the ruling of bishops (Flinn). However, once again, the main focus is similar. The Greek Orthodox people believe in traditional ruling originating in the Old Testament whereas Roman Catholics prefer the ruling of apostolic
In 1965, when the original excommunication of Pope and Patriarch was lifted, Pope Paul VI apologized greatly for the damage the Catholic Church caused, and declared the churches to be too similar to be apart. He said in his apology, “Together [the Catholic and Orthodox Churches] share the apostolic faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior; we have in common the apostolic heritage and the sacramental bond of Baptism; and therefore we are all members of God's family, called to serve the one Lord and to proclaim his Gospel to the world” (“Apology”). He highlights the main beliefs of both Churches and shows how they are the same. As a modern Greek Orthodox Church website says, “[We, the Greek Orthodox Church,] are connected to the Roman Catholic Church through the episcopacy and our common Faith as professed in the Nicene Creed” (“Similarities”). The two churches are now linked through their rulers, the bishops, and by what they profess to