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QUESTION:
Is the Orthodox Church anti-Catholic?
ANSWER:
The Orthodox Church in America is not "anti-Catholic."
While Orthodoxy is not in communion with Roman Catholicism and Orthodoxy rejects the notion that Roman Catholicism is the "other half" of the Church, this, coupled with the fact that Orthodox doctrine rejects certain teachings unique to Roman Catholicism - papal supremacy and infallibility, the dogma of the Immaculate Conception, to name a few -- does not mean that the Orthodox Church is "anti-Catholic."
Orthodox Christianity sees itself as the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church established by Christ and handed down to us through the apostles and the unbroken Tradition of the People of God. While there may be some Orthodox Christians who might be looked upon as "anti-Catholic," this does not mean that Orthodoxy pursues an "anti-Catholic" or "anti-anything-else" approach as official policy.
It is the fervent prayer of the Orthodox Church that all people - Roman Catholic, unchurched, whatever - might some day be united to the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church of Christ. Until that becomes a reality, we continue to pray for unity while, at the same time, rejecting any notion that Orthodox Christianity is just one of many "branches" or "expressions" of Christianity. To believe this would be to reject our understanding of Orthodoxy as the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.
Published in January 2011.
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