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The Orthodox Church is the depository and the vigilant guardian of the Christian truth. She constitutes the unbreakable continuity of the ancient Church, which was established by the God-Man Jesus Christ. She was propagated in the world by the Holy Apostles, was organized by the Great Fathers and she was protected and guarded by the Holy Spirit, and by the Local and Ecumenical Councils.
The Holy Scriptures and the Sacred Tradition are the source of doctrine for the Church (1 Tim. 3:15). The Holy Spirit is the guiding light and the authentic and infallible interpreter of the Sacred Tradition and the Holy Scriptures. Under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the Church expressed her faith in dogmas, which, in brief, are contained in the Symbol of Faith, or the Creed.
In matters of administration, the Church recognizes Jesus Christ as her only Head. She does not accept theories and claims with emphasis on monarchical primacies or apoly-tarchical powers. The Orthodox Church preserves the ancient synodical system according to which the Ecumenical Council is the Supreme Administrative Authority. That is, the grand total of the bishops of the Church, as the successors of the Apostles, have the totality of the ecclesiastical power by divine right. Each bishop exerts his own administrative authority in his own diocese. All the bishops, including Metropolitans, Exarchs, Archbishops and Patriarchs are equal among themselves. The Ecumenical Patriarch only honorarily is first among equals. |
