Canon law of the Eastern Orthodox Church

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The canon law of the Eastern Orthodox Church consists of the ecclesiastical regulations recognised by the authorities of the Eastern Orthodox Church, together with the discipline, study, and practice of Eastern Orthodox jurisprudence.^[1]

In the Eastern Orthodox Church, canon law is a behavioural standard that aims to apply dogma to practical situations in the daily life of Eastern Orthodox Christians.^[2] Unlike the canon law of the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox canon law is corrective rather than prescriptive, which means it is formulated in response to certain questions, challenges, or situations.

Eastern Orthodox canon law is the formalised part of the divine law,^[3] and ultimately aims to promote the "spiritual perfection" of church members.^[4]

The canon law of the Eastern Orthodox Church is uncodified; its corpus has never been organised or harmonised into a formal code of ecclesiastical law. Consequently, some canons of Eastern Orthodoxy contradict each other, such as those related to the reception of heretics in the Church and the validity of their sacraments.^[5]

^ Psarev, Andrei (2011). "Canon Law". In John Anthony McGuckin (ed.). The Encyclopedia of Eastern Orthodox Christianity. John Wiley & Sons. p. 98. ISBN 978-1-4051-8539-4.
^ Viscuso, Patrick (2007) [2006]. Orthodox canon law: a casebook for study (2nd ed.). Berkeley, Calif.: InterOrthodox Press. p. 3. ISBN 978-1-935317-16-6.
^ Vasile, Mihai (2017). "Introduction". Orthodox canon law reference book. Brookline, Massachusetts: Holy Cross Orthodox Press. p. 2. ISBN 978-1-935317-45-6. OCLC 856076162.
^ Cite error: The named reference :9 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Vasile, Mihai (2017). "Introduction". Orthodox canon law reference book. Brookline, Massachusetts: Holy Cross Orthodox Press. pp. 2, 8, 32. ISBN 978-1-935317-45-6. OCLC 856076162.