Hi guys hope you can help?

For anyone who is from the Orthodox or Catholic background currently or formally... I am confused between which one is the truth, I know only one can be the original church Christ started but I don't know which one. I lean more towards Catholicism but I fear that's only for the mere fact I am in the west and are far more familiar with Catholicism but then see the beauty and truth in Eastern Orthodoxy but as you probably guessed it, i find it difficult to imagine myself fully embracing eastern orthodoxy as it's quite ethnic based but I'm willing to push past this if it's truly the church that shares Jesus' message on earth correctly.

Any advice would be great, I'd appreciate it if was keep civil from those that aren't catholic and orthodox as I'm aware it's very controversial topic and also controversial to say there's only one true church but I believe truth isn't subjective so I will just leave it there. Thank you in advance and God bless

For anyone who is from the Orthodox or Catholic background currently or formally... I am confused between which one is the truth, I know only one can be the original church Christ started but I don't know which one. I lean more towards Catholicism but I fear that's only for the mere fact I am in the west and are far more familiar with Catholicism but then see the beauty and truth in Eastern Orthodoxy but as you probably guessed it, i find it difficult to imagine myself fully embracing eastern orthodoxy as it's quite ethnic based but I'm willing to push past this if it's truly the church that shares Jesus' message on earth correctly.

Any advice would be great, I'd appreciate it if was keep civil from those that aren't catholic and orthodox as I'm aware it's very controversial topic and also controversial to say there's only one true church but I believe truth isn't subjective so I will just leave it there. Thank you in advance and God bless

It's also nice to be part of a church which historically has not had any schisms since Jesus Christ......

Save "The Great Schism" in 1054 AD, yes

Thanks!!

~Deuteronomy (David)

Up here the orthodox churches have some impact on religious life near the Russian border. In Kirkenes, about 600 miles east of here, ten percent of the population is of Russian origin. It’s like in the Cold War. Espionage, betrayal and ordinary people being blackmailed into doing “favors” for different intelligence services.

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Funny thing about that timeline tree... Other churches have different denominations as the main branch.

Without getting into the details too much here, i completely understand the sentiment of "Victor writes history".
For example from an American historian POV, USA liberated Europe from Nazis and from a Russian historian POV, it was the Russians who liberated the Europe from Nazis.
So, who liberated Europe?
Nobody knows.

I am confused between which one is the truth,

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No, this is more a matter of a lot of different factions all claiming they are the victors.

That Orthodox Church is just one of many claiming it. If you go to a different church they also claim to be the main tree trunk. Shoot, there's a whole forest all claiming to be the same tree.

Actually what I'd like to see is one of those trees but the thickness of each branch, and how close to the center it is, is a reflection of membership count.

Of course for the catholic branches we'd have to determine whether it is ethical to count the people who only show up on Easter and Christmas.

I have been going to Orthodox churches since I was 15 years old.
I have a question for you: Do you want to be defined by a Church or by your Faith?
Because when someone asks me " Hey, do you believe in God?", i don't say "Yes, i believe in the Orthodox Church".
So i don't define myself over a church and i go and continue to go to different churches such as Catholic or Protestant.
God is everywhere including nature since nature is part of His Creation.
The reasons i go to an orthodox church is primarily based on ethnicity like you said and a lot of countries in the east and Mediterranean region (Greece is the first country leading) are part of East Orthodox Church. It's also nice to be part of a church which historically has not had any schisms since Jesus Christ so it's nice to have that feeling of being part of something that apostilles spread in the world in an unbroken chain.
But again that is not the reason why you should be in an Orthodox church because then you're defining yourself by history.
Just go to all Churches and feel the presence of God wherever and whenever your heart tells you to.

Neither.

Upon the Rock of the GOSPEL God builds His Church.

Hmm okay, thank you gave me some clarity and confirmed some things I had already thought. I do not want to say Eastern orthodoxy is ethnocentric because I think it's an unfair judgement to make but here in the West, it's presented as such and unfortunately for me as much as I wanted to feel the presence of God in an Orthodox church I didn't (I'm not saying they don't have the presence of God by the way) granted I've only attended one service but in contrast to when I attended a Catholic church and felt God right away it does say something I suppose. I was very disappointed in myself because all the time I see videos of people discovering Orthodoxy and attending their first Liturgy and feeling overwhelmed spiritually and I didn't feel that way, that doesn't mean I won't attend again though.

The only problem I have with church hopping is I've never received the sacrament of baptism and I feel called by Jesus to do so, so strongly but to do that I'd have to join a church and I don't want to simply be baptised by a church that teaches things that are almost heractial in nature. I hope that makes sense.