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The East West Schism in Chrisitan Church
Explain the causes of the Schism between the East and West Christian Churches.
Evaluate the impact of the Schism on the development of the Western Christian Church.
The East West Schism of 1054 occurred due to centuries of tensions between the Greek and Roman Church. The eventual split between the two denominations cannot be pinpointed to one specific event but a built up of hostility which occurred as a result of many small problems between the groups. In the period building up to the Schism certain individuals and events provided fuel for the development of arguments within the church. The Schism had a significant impact on the church and effected the respective development of the Roman Catholic or West church and the Eastern Orthodox or East Church.
The cause of the Schism varied significantly, doctrinal differences between the two denominations began to arise and cause conflict between the leaders of the church. The issue regarding the sacredness of saints arose within the church. The Greeks under Emperor Leo believed no reverence should be given to the saints and with this removed all images of saints from their churches. Rome objected to this behavior, which in turn caused arguments between Emperor Leo and the Bishop of Rome.
It was not only the issue of saints that plagued differences within the doctrinal teachings of the churches. The nature of Christ also caused divergence within the Church. The council of Ephesus in 41CE and the Council of Chalcedon in 415CE saw a dispute over the nature of Christ between the Greek and Roman groups. During this the Greek Church developed their own ecclesial structure in which they defined their own opinion of the divine and human nature of Christ. This caused uproar within the church and had a notable effect on the eventual Schism. The council of Chalcedon continued to be an issue of unrest within the church with numerous councils and individuals arguing over the doctrines created, this included the Second Council of Constantinople and Emperor Zeno.
Differences within the culture of the two groups had an effect on the nature of the Schism. The church had tried to adopt both the Roman and Greek culture into it's liturgies but found this impossible. Variations in the groups remained too important to be ignored. Language being one of these factors, the Greeks wanted to say mass in Greek where as the Roman's wanted to keep the mass in the traditional Latin. The Roman Church was not concerned with translating the bible into the local languages of the people unlike the church in the east. Within the Eastern Church icons had also been an important expression of faith, while the Western church believed that the Crucifix should be the only icon worshiped. The th Century saw the a real low point in relations between the East and West church with the iconoclasts of the Western church being overthrown, a new Emperor Michael had gained control and now the leader of this iconoclastic group Ignatius was replaced with Photius. The West had been suspicious at the way in which Photius had gained power within the church. When Ignatius refused to accept his punishment quietly Pope Nicholas I joined in the iconoclastic controversy and supported Ignatius. This resulted in tensions between the Pope and Emperor and saw the church dividing into groups depending on whom they chose too support.
The authority of the Pope and the intervention of the Emperor had a considerable effect on the Schism. The Pope or Bishop of Rome had always been the head of the Christian Church starting with the first Popes, Peter and Christ. Yet during the lead up to the Schism the East rejected the importance of the Pope and instead the Bishops became the leaders of the church and wanted to make Constantinople a important city within the church, trying to overthrow the power of Rome. Emperor Constantine (74 7CE) had a substantial role in the division of the church due to his interference In 1 Constantine had released the Edict of Milan which saw Christianity becoming a legal religion, after this he became more involved with the affairs of the church. After Constantine's involvement, Emperor Constane V (741-775) followed in the example of Constantine and became involved within the practices of the church. Constane V persuaded the split within the church, with 8 bishops siding with him. Those who refused to comply with his demands were persecuted against.
Liturgical reasons between the two groups were the most important factors that lead to the split within the churches. The Nicean Prayer, or the Filioque controversy largely effected the division within the church. In 5 the first Council of Nicea was called. At this council the divinity of Jesus was defined and a common creed, which characterized the beliefs of the church, was composed. (See appendix). Originally this creed did not include the line " We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, Who proceeds from the Father and the Son." this was included later by the Roman church. The introduction of this statement affirmed the Trinity and the divinity of Jesus, which had been previous denied by priest such as Arians. The Greeks, however, where appalled that the Roman church would include a statement not agreed on by representatives of both churches, as they believed that no alteration should be made without consent. The council of Nicean, while being started with the best intentions left the church bitterly split with the Western church proclaiming the Nicean creed and the Eastern Church flatly rejected the creed or removing the controversial statement.
Along with the Filioque controversy, the timing and celebration of Easter caused discord within the church. This was the earliest record of controversy and conflict within the two groups of the church. In the second century Easter was celebrated on the same day as the Jewish Passover, Rome however believed that it should be practiced the Sunday after this. Pope Anicetus and Polycarp agreed to disagree on the issue yet 0 years later Victor of Rome threatened to break all communication with the Bishops unless they abandoned their practices and conform to his wishes. This event has been identified as the beginning of the split within the church some 00 years before the actual Schism.
Included in the liturgical reasons for the Schism was the mass that was celebrated by the churches. The West church continued to celebrate there mass in Latin, which had been the custom for centuries, where the East wanted to rejoice in the language of the congregation. Along with this the type of Eucharist used by the church was debated. The Greek Church had been using leavened bread which the Roman church had been using unleavened bread. The original debate grew into a further problem when the churches began to argue over the actual point of consecration of the Holy Gifts, consequences of sin and the importance of making penance after death in purgatory. This saw both churches moving further apart and rejecting the others teachings.
The split finally occurred in 1054 with Cardinal Humbert excommunicated the Eastern Church on 16 July 1054. The church in Constantinople replied excommunicating the West. After the fourth crusade in 104 the Pope acknowledge the split within the church and it became official, the Christian church had official split into the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church.
The division with the church had a substantial effect on the development of the church in the West. It was the differences between the church and the practices that the Roman church valued that led to other developments within the Western Church. During the lead up to the Schism the Roman church had kept the traditional values and kept their conservative approach to the faith. After the split the Roman church did not change to suit the needs of the people, rather enforcing their beliefs on the congregation. During this time the Roman church had become corrupt with the sale of indulgences to those with money or those who participated within the crusades. It was due to these factors, the conservative approach and corruption that the western church faced further splits in the Reformation.
The Reformation occurred in 1517 and saw the Roman Catholic Church divide into further with several protestant groups. The split within the Western Church mimicked that between the East church and the Western church. The basic doctrinal disagreements that led to a division included arguments over the nature of God, place of faith, the role of the priest, the value of indulgences and the use of relics and icons. The majority of these had been previous seen within the Schism of 1054. Along with these new issues arose such as Idealism, due to the rise of Nationalism and the Renaissance, Weakness in the church and corruption made the Catholic Church less credible. Unlike the Schism however, individuals were responsible for the protestant religions. These included Martin Luther, John Calvin and King Henry VIII. Without the Schism of 1054 the reformation would not have been able to occur and the protestant religions would not have been born.
The Catholic Church remained a conservative sect in relation to the growth of the Eastern Orthodox Church and the new Protestant groups. The Schisms lead the way for developments such as the Council of Trent in 1545-156. The Council of Trent defined the doctrines of the Catholic faith, which had been left shaky after the Schism. It brought discipline into the church, reforms and in general left the door open for Vatican I and Vatican II which developed the church into the modern day church we see today. Without the Schism such reform could not have been possible within the Catholic Church.
The East West Schism was an important and significant development within the development of the Christian church and paved the way for the religious groups that are present today. The Schism was the result of years of mistrust and tensions between the Greek (Eastern) church and the Roman (Western) Church. Individuals and events that occurred from the second century to the eventual Schism had a vast effect on the Schism yet none can be pinpointed to be the exact cause of the Schism.
The Schism allowed for change within the Roman church, which had been primarily a conservative church. It allowed for councils such as Trent, Vatican I and Vatican II to take place and define the role and doctrines of the church along with the place and nature of Christ. Without the Schism the church could not have developed as it did and changes that have began to take place within the church today would not have been able to occur. This Schism while being a bitter event at the time led the way for the most important changes and reforms in the Christian and Catholic faith. Without this the church would not have had the influence on the world as it does.
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