Catholic Dictionary

Find accurate definitions of over 5,000 Catholic terms and phrases (including abbreviations). Based on Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.

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UNIAT CHURCHES

Eastern Christians who profess the same doctrines as the rest of the Roman Catholic Church. Their rites and discipline, however, vary greatly from those of the Latin Rite. Their liturgies originated in Antioch, Alexandria, and Byzantium, and they usually have a married clergy. Nearly all Non-Uniat churches possess corresponding Uniat groups who have re-acknowledged their allegiance to the Pope. the expression "Uniat," though found in theological literature, is seldom used by Eastern Catholics. They feel that it implies something less than complete allegiance to the Holy See.