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In the study of religion, orthopraxy is correct conduct, both ethical and liturgical, as opposed to faith or Divine grace. Orthopraxy is in contrast with orthodoxy, which emphasizes correct belief. The word is a neoclassical compound—ὀρθοπραξία () meaning 'right practice'.
While orthodoxy make use of codified beliefs in the form of and more narrowly centers on the strict adherence to prescribed rites or , orthopraxy is focused on Familialism, cultural integrity, the transmission of tradition, sacrifice, Ritual purity, ethical system, and the enforcement thereof.
In Hinduism, orthopraxy and ritualism are often interconnected. Judaism and Christianity are also considered both religions and orthopraxies, as they guide adherents in both practice and belief.David Biale, Not in the Heavens: The Tradition of Jewish Secular Thought, Princeton University Press, 2011, p.15
Taking this combination of "correct belief" and "correct action" a step further, prosperity theology, found in charismatic and Pentecostal traditions, teaches correct religious belief and behavior receives material reward and physical healing, in addition to being a necessary component for accepting God's Divine grace. Prosperity theology is a concept known as reciprocity when discussing traditional or ethnic religions such as that in Ancient Greece, but is limited to correct behavior over any one theological idea.
The applicability of biblical law in Christianity is disputed. Most Christians believe that some or all of the Ten Commandments are still binding or have been reinstituted in the law of Christ. A minority of Christians are Mitzvah and at the other extreme are antinomian and Christian anarchistic views.
Union with God, to which Christians hold that Jesus invited man, requires not just faith, but correct practice of faith. This idea is found in the Biblical canon (1 Corinthians 11:2, 2 Thessalonians 2:14) and the Church Fathers, and is linked with the term praxis in Byzantine theology and vocabulary. In the context of Orthodoxy, praxis is mentioned opposite theology, in the sense of 'theory and practice'. Rather, it is a word that means, globally, all that Orthodox do. Praxis is 'living Orthodoxy'.
Praxis is perhaps most strongly associated with worship. "Orthopraxis" is said to mean "right glory" or "right worship"; only correct (or proper) practice, particularly correct worship, is understood as establishing the fulness glory given to God. This is one of the primary purposes of liturgy (divine labor), the work of the people. Some Byzantine sources maintain that in the West, Christianity has been reduced "to intellectual, ethical or social categories," whereas right worship is fundamentally important in our relationship to God, forming the faithful into the Body of Christ and providing the path to "true religious education". A "symbiosis of worship and work" is considered to be inherent in Byzantine praxis.
In the case of Hinduism orthopraxy and ritualism are conflated. Emphasis on ritual vs. personal salvation ( moksha) was a major division in classical Hindu philosophy, epitomized by Purva Mimamsa vs. Uttara Mimamsa (Vedanta).
Ritual ( puja) continues to play a central role in contemporary Hinduism, but the enormous complexity of ancient ritual ( yajna) only survives in a tiny minority of Shrauta practitioners. Even Hindus who diligently practice a subset of prescribed rituals are called orthoprax, to contrast them with other Hindus who insist on the importance of correct belief or understanding. The correctness of one's interpretation of the scripture is then considered less important than following traditions. For example, Srinivasa Ramanujan was a well-known example of an orthoprax Hindu.
In terms of "proper conduct" and other ethical precepts within the Hindu framework, the core belief involves the divinity of each individual soul ( ). Each person harbors this "indwelling God (divinity)"; thus, conduct which unifies society and facilitates progress is emphasized. Self-centered existence is discouraged as a result of this jivatma concept. The Uttara Mimamsa philosophical school explicates this concept eloquently. Moreover, within the context of Uttara Mimamsa the role of puja (ritual) also involves bringing the individual jivatma closer to the Paramatma (the Transcendent Divinity or God). Individuals who have attained this merging then become the spiritual guides to the community. Later developments within the Hindu religious and philosophic tradition thus try to unify these concepts of ritual, proper conduct, and personal salvation instead of leaving them in mutually conflicting terms. The movement inspired by Pandurang Shastri Athavale termed Swadhyaya seems to be one manifestation of this syncretism. However, other movements within the contemporary Hindu scene are also moving towards this union of external activity and internal development.
Judaism attaches primary importance to the practice of the mitzvot, and that each act of daily life comply with the ethical and ritual teachings of the Torah. However, these gestures are intended to be motivated by the system of values and ethics of which they are a part, so that orthodoxy is not seen as simply a way of thinking according to established dogmas.
Moreover, Maimonides codifies his 13 principles of faith as a binding theological dogma, and according to Maimonides some laws of the Torah require the acceptance of certain basic beliefs, such as the first and second positive commandments in Maimonides' Sefer Hamitzvot, which mandate the belief in God and his indivisible unity, or the recitation of the Shema. Maimonides' codification of Halakha even contains a section entitled Yesodei HaTorah, which delineates the required beliefs of Judaism.
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