Orsini. See Bexedict XIII ; Uusins.
Ortega (St.), Juau de, a Spanish architect, flour- ished during the 11th century. According to IMiliza, he was tlie son of Vela Velasquez, and a native of Fon- tana d'Ortunno, iiear Burgos. He is said to have made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, and to have erected at Montesdosa a church, a monastery, and a hospital, still existing.
Ortega, Rayniundo, a Spanish theologian noted for his antiquarian labors, was born at Beja in the 9th century. Nothing further is known of his personal his- tory. His work, I)e Aniiquitatibus Lusitanice, which is reputed to have been written about 878, is a valuable treatise, and will perpetuate the memory of this scholar. He died towards the close of the 9th century. — Hoefer, Nouv. Biog. Generale, s. v.
Orthodox (opSoOoSoc, from 6p^6c, right, and S6^a, an opinion) are those whose doctrine is right — whose religious opinion is in accordance with an assumed or generally prevalent standard. This last is with Roman Catholics the dogmas of their Church, with Protestants it is the Bible. The doctrines which are generally con- sidered as orthodox among us are such as were general- ly professed at the time of the Reformation, viz. the fall of man, regeneration, atonement, repentance, justifi- cation bj' free grace, etc. The national standard of orthodoxy is not the same in all countries ; for those opinions and observances which are received bv the majority of any nation, or are patronized by the ruling power, are recognised as the standard faith; hence the Greek Cburch is orthodox in Russia; the Roman Cath- olic in Spain, Portugal, France, etc. ; the Anglican Church in England ; the Presbyterian in Scotland ; but in Ireland, while the religion of the majority is Roman Catholic, the state Church is on the Anglican model; so that it is a disputed point which set of religious opin- ions and customs should be acknowledged as orthodox. Again, in Upper Canada the orthodox faith is the Prot- estant Episcopal ; while in Lower Canada the establish- ed religion, which is also the opinion of the majority, is Roman Catholic. In New England the term is em- ployed to distinguish those Congregational churches which hold the evangelical creed from the Unitarian and Universalist churches. See Outhodoxy.
Some have thought that, in order to keep error out of the Church, there should be some human form as a standard of orthodoxy, wherein certain disputed doc- trines shall be expressed in determinate phrases di- rectly levelled against such errors as shall prevail from time to time, requiring those especially who are to be public teachers in the Church to subscribe or virtually to declare their assent to such formularies. But, as Dr. Doddridge observes, 1. Had this been requisite, it is probable that tiie Scriptures would have given us some such formularies as these, or some directions as to the manner in which they should be drawn up, proposed, and received. 2. It is impossible that weak and pas- sionate men, who have perhaps been heated in the very controversy thus decitled, shoidd express themselves with greater propriety than the apostles did. 3. It is plain, in fact, that this practice has been the cause of great contention in the Christian Church, and such for- mularies have been the grand engine of dividing it, in proportion to the degree in which they have been mul- tiplied and urged. 4. This is laying a great temptation in the way of such as desire to undertake the office of teachers in the Church, and will be most likely to deter and afflict those who have the greatest tenderness of conscience, and therefore (being equal in other respects) best deserve encouragement, 5. It is not likely to an- swer the end proposed, viz. the preservation of uniformity of opinion : since persons of little integrity may satisfy their consciences in subscribing what they do not at all believe as articles of peace, or in putting the most un- natural sense on the words. And whereas, in answer to all these inconveniences, it is pleaded that such forms are necessary to keep the Church from heresy, and it is better there should be some hypocrites under such forms of orthodoxy than that a freedom of debate and opinion should be allowed to all teachers; the answer is plain, that when any one begins to preach doctrines wliich appear to those who attend upon him dangerous and subversive of Christianity, it will be time enough to pro- ceed to such animadversion as the nature of his error in their apprehension will require, and liis relation to ihem
ORTHODOXY
460
ORTHODOXY
will admit. These remarks however are not applicable to the use of simple confessions or declarations of faith, the object of which is to ascertain and promote Chris- tian fellowship. The design of these is of course only to state the sense in which we interpret and understand the Word of God. Thus, e. g., the Evangelical A lliance (q. V.) has adopted an orthodox standard for common confession of its raemljers. See Doddridge, Lectures, iect. 174 ; Watts, OrthodoTtj and Charity United ; Fuller, Works; Robert Hall, Works; Duncan and Miller, On the Utility of Creeds ; Donaldson, Christian Orthodoxy (Lond. 1857, 8vo), especially ch. v. See Establish- 3IENT ; Subscription.
Orthodoxy and Hetekodoxv, The use of these two wortls implies the possession of a standard of truth, so that what agrees with it is right, and what dis- agrees with it is wrong. In the general domain of truth, where there are no positive stipulations, and in philosophy, this distinction cannot be made. Yet as Christianity started with the consciousness of possess- ing the truth, it was from the first led to establish prin- ciples— though less clearly defined than they were af- terwards. Indeed we find heresy mentioned already in the N. T., as a departure from the absolute truth in re- ligious doctrines and religious life. Christ came into the world to disclose the truth, as >) bobg Kai t) a\)]Btia Kai i) ^w)7 (John xiv, 6) ; every one who is of the truth hears his voice (John xviii, 37). Hence any one who follows his teachings is opborofiCJv tuv Xoyov r/)c aX»;- ^eiag (2 Tim. ii, 15), and the true doctrine is cnroaToXiKt) op^OTOi-ua (Euseb. Church History, iv, 3), little different from what was later designated as op^oSoKia. (G. Major, De roc. 6p5r. signif. Vit. 1545). Thus there arose in the apostolical times a kuvujv Tijg dXtj^siag, a regula veri- tatis; every departure from it was soon stamped as heresy, and afterwards more correctly called tr(poSot,la, by which we are to understand only ovk op^oirocuv Tcpbq T))v dXijS^Eiav tov tiiayytXlov (Gal. ii, 14 ; comp. 2 Cor. xi, 2 sq.), SiSax>i v^ i'Htig ifxd^tTt (Rom. xvi, 17) ? He who teaches differently, tTtpoSiCacFKaXn Kai firi irpoa'tpxiTai vyiaivovai XoyoiQ to~iq tov Kvpiov rifi. 'I. Xp. Kai Ty Kar evakl3ttav SiOacTKaXiqt (1 Tim. vi, 3).