Byzantine Catholic Church in America
Home What's New Calendar Directories News Forum

  
Links to Sister Churches

 

Back to Links
 Who are Our Sister Churches?

 

In 1963, Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras sent greetings to the newly enthroned Pope John XXIII.  In reporting this, the official newspaper of the Ecumenical Patriarchate spoke of new relations between "sister churches," anticipating language to be adopted in due course by the Churches themselves. Pope John Paul II, in Orientale Lumen (1995), wrote that: "[s]ince, in fact, we believe that the venerable and ancient tradition of the Eastern Churches is an integral part of the heritage of Christ's Church, the first need for Catholics is to be familiar with that tradition, so as to be nourished by it and to encourage the process of unity in the best way possible for each." Please note that these links concentrate on the Eastern Churches and that liked sites are not necessarily the official sites of these Churches, but are provided for the convenience of websurfers. For a more detailed explanation of the Eastern Christian Churches see CNEWA's pages by Fr. Ron Roberson.

| Catholic | Eastern Orthodox | Oriental Orthodox | Church of the East | Other |

 

 Catholic: 

 

All of the Catholic Churches, including the Byzantine Catholic Church, embrace full communion with the Church of Rome and its primate, Pope John Paul II, the successor of St. Peter, the first among the Apostles. Each Church listed in this section is a complete Church.  Regrettably, the other Churches listed on this page are not currently in full communion with us. The following Churches are organized alphabetically and concentrate on sites in North America.

 

Armenian Catholic Church:

 

Byzantine Catholic Churches:

 

United States:

Canada:

Outside North America:

 

Chaldean Catholic Churches:

  • Chaldean Catholic Eparchy of St. Thomas the Apostle (Michigan)

 

Coptic Catholic Churches:

 

Ge'ez Catholic Church (Ethiopian & Eritrean):

 

Maronite Catholic Church:

 

Roman Catholic Church:

 

Syriac Catholic Church:

 

Other:

 

"I am thinking of the Eastern Churches, as did many other Popes in the past, aware that the mandate to preserve the Church's unity and to seek Christian unity tirelessly wherever it was wounded was addressed to them. A particularly close link already binds us. We have almost everything in common; and above all, we have in common the true longing for unity." Pope John Paul II, in Orientale Lumen.      

 

The Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Churches separated from one another in 1054. There is an on-going dialogue, but full communion has not yet been reestablished. The Eastern Catholic Churches listed above reestablished full communion with the Church of Rome but retain their Orthodox patrimony.     

 

Autocephalous Churches:

 

Autonomous Churches:

 

 

The ancient Churches of the East (the Assyrian Church and those so-called "precalcedonian" because they did not accept the Christological formulation of the ecumenical council of Calcedonia 451), are, namely: the Coptic Church, the Ethiopian Church, the Syrian Church, the Armenian Church) there remained a Christological contention about how to understand the one person and the two natures, divine and human, of Jesus Christ. With the new relations established between the Catholic Church and these Churches, that contention has been solved. In several common declarations the Holy Father and the Patriarchs of those Churches have announced that today we profess together that Jesus Christ is true God and true man, one person in two natures. This clarification liberates us from a spirit of reticence and reciprocal suspicion which rendered hesitant all relations. This is an important event in ecumenical relations. Clarity in our profession of faith in Jesus Christ strengthens communion among Christians. (Taken from an article entitled "Jesus Christ, Lord of All Christians" in TERTIUM MILLENNIUM).     

 

 

"We do not forget the long night of suffering endured by your Eastern Syriac communities, which were scattered, persecuted and massacred down the centuries for professing the name of Christ." (John Paul II to the Delegation of the Assyrian Church of the East, 1994)

 

 Churches of "Irregular Status"

| Catholic | Eastern Orthodox | Oriental Orthodox | Church of the East | Other |

The listing of Churches is based upon that provided in Fr. Ron Roberson's The Eastern Christian Churches: A Brief Survey (Rome: Oriental Institute, 1995). Available through the USCCB Publishing Office, Washington DC. The texts of many the official dialogues (including the The North American Orthodox-Catholic Theological Consultation, The Joint Committee of Orthodox and Catholic Bishops, The Oriental Orthodox-Roman Catholic Consultation and other dialogues are available at the USCCB's page on Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs.
 

 We welcome your questions!

Do you have a question about Byzantine Catholic Christianity? Or are you aware of any sites that should be listed here? Send them to us at questions@byzcath.org.

Looking for a brief introduction to Eastern Catholics written by Roman Catholics for Roman Catholics? Pick up a copy of Eastern Catholics in the United States of America. Providing an overview of the four original Eastern Catholic traditions (Antiochian, Alexandrian, Byzantine, and Armenian), this book explores the similarities and differences between the Roman and Eastern Churches. Building on Pope John Paul II's apostolic letter, The Light of the East (Orientale Lumen), this publication is designed to promote a greater understanding of the experience of Eastern Catholics in this country. From the U.S. Bishops' Committee on the Relationship Between Eastern and Latin Catholic Churches.

All questions sent to us will receive an answer.  Questions that are general in nature may be posted on these pages but will be edited to ensure privacy. Please note that while ByzCath.org is an unofficial site, we strive to make sure that the information provided by this site is accurate and in accordance with the teachings of the Byzantine Catholic Church.

Last updated 09/21/2005

| Home |