Keywords: 'Orthodox'
‘Orthodox’ (ORTH-uh-doks) can mean at least two different things. Pay attention to the context, so you don’t mix them up!
‘Orthodox’ (with a capital ‘O’) can be an adjective.
It means ‘related to the Orthodox Church’. For example:
St Basil’s Cathedral is an Orthodox Cathedral.
Christ Pantocrator is an Orthodox icon.
The Orthodox Church is one of the oldest Christian denominations.
At around 220 million members, it is one of the largest denominations in the world today.
Unlike Catholicism, the Orthodox Church has no single leader.
However, the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople (currently Bartholomew I) is ‘first among equals’.
Unlike the Pope, he cannot change Church teaching or overrule other bishops, but he still acts as a spiritual leader.
Despite its age and size, you are not required to know anything about the Orthodox Church for the exam.
N.B. This is true of the AQA Specification (2025: 11–12). If you use a different exam board, check their specification!
However, the Specification says you are ALLOWED to use their beliefs and practices to answer questions if you like.
‘orthodox’ (with a lower-case ‘o’) is an adjective.
It means ‘right’ or ‘correct’.
The ‘Orthodox Church’ call themselves ‘Orthodox’ because they claim to have preserved the true theology taught by the early Church.
However, you will sometimes hear Catholics and Protestants talk about ‘orthodoxy’ or ‘an orthodox belief/practice’.
By this they mean ‘correct beliefs’ or ‘the correct way of doing things’. For example:
Infant baptism is part of Catholic orthodoxy.
For most Baptist Christians, the Trinity is part of orthodox belief.
References:
AQA. 2025. ‘GCSE Religious Studies A’ <https://cdn.sanity.io/files/p28bar15/green/ab272d86486eb6b391a2c33de9072a5031e0f584.pdf?_gl=1*1az4jlv*_gcl_au*MTg5MTYzMDk2Mi4xNzg4MjY0NzQ3> accessed 12 September 2026.
