STUDIES OF RELIGION PRELIMINARY COURSEDEPTH STUDY 2: CHRISTIANITY

THE GREAT SCHISM

IMPORTANT DEFINITIONS

Celibacy Remaining unmarried and refraining from sexual relationships. Required of priests in the Roman Catholic Church.

Creed The body of belief accepted by a religious tradition.

Icon A sacred image of Jesus, Mary and the saints used to help Christians in their worship.

Ritual Traditional religious actions which celebrate a group’s beliefs and through which the group worships God.

Schism A break in Christian unity when a group breaks away from the main group of Christianity.

In 1054 the Christian Church officially split into two. The Church of the West, today known as the Roman Catholic Church (or Catholic with a capital “C”) was based in Rome with the Pope as the Head. The Church of the East, today known as the Orthodox Church was based in Constantinople with the Patriarch as the Head. This split is commonly called the Great Divide or the Great Schism. The Great Schism was caused by the different positions taken by the Western and Eastern Churches on these issues:

The inclusion of the filioque phrase.

Papal authority.

The relationship between rituals and doctrine.

Clerical celibacy.

The relationship between the two Churches were also worsened due to an unfortunate misunderstanding regarding the use of religious icons (painted or written images).

Use the information supplied on the next few pages to complete the table below, which summarises the different positions taken by the two Churches.

31

Students learn about the origins and history of Christianity – The diversity and change in the historical development of Christianity and the

development of various sub-groups until the present:– division between East and West: causes and consequences.

The Issue The Position of the Western Church The Position of the Eastern Church

Inclusion of the filioque phrase

Papal authority

Relationship between rituals and doctrine

Clerical celibacy

The Filioque Phrase

Study the Nicene Creed of the Western Church and that of the Eastern Church. Which phrase is included in the Nicene Creed of the Western Church but not included in the Nicene Creed of the Eastern Church?

This phrase is known as the filioque phrase. The Eastern Church did not approve of the filioque phrase being included in the Creed.

The Western Creed The Eastern Creed

32

We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, Seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from True God, begotten not made, of one Being with the Father.

Through him all things were made.

For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven; by the power of the Holy Spirit he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary, and was made man.

For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son. With the Father and the Son he is worshipped and glorified. He has spoken through the prophets.

We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.

We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.

We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, Seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from True God, begotten not made, of one Being with the Father.

Through him all things were made.

For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven; by the power of the Holy Spirit he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary, and was made man.

For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father. With the Father and the Son he is worshipped and glorified. He has spoken through the prophets.

We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.

We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.

33

To understand how the issue of icons affected the relationship between the Eastern and Western Churches, study the material on page 36, then answer the questions below.

1. What is iconoclasm?

2. Who introduced iconoclasm?

3. How did the Western Church react to this?

4. How long did iconoclasm last in the Eastern Church?

34

5. Describe the misunderstanding that arose between the Eastern and Western Churches regarding iconoclasm.

6. How did this misunderstanding affect the relationship between the two Churches?

35

Events of 1054 CE Leading up to the Great Schism

On page 37 is listed a series of event that occurred in 1054 CE leading up to the Great Schism. Use the source material on page 6 to rewrite these event in the correct chronological order.

1. The meetings failed.

2. The Patriarch excommunicated the Pope and his followers.

36

3. The Pope declared that liturgies were to be celebrated in Latin.

4. Cardinal Humbert travelled to Constantinople to resolve differences.

5. There was an angry exchange of letters between the Pope and the Patriarch.

6. The Patriarch criticised some practices in the Western Church.

7. The Pope excommunicated the Patriarch and his followers.

References

Bartlett, T. (2000). New studies of religion: preliminary course depth study 2: Christianity.

37

Board of Studies. (1999). Stage 6 syllabus: studies of religion. Sydney: Board of Studies New South Wales.

Courtie, B., & Johnson, M. (1990). Christianity explored. Oxford: Lion Publishing plc.

Crawford, M. (1991). Decay and renewal (Vol. 3). Newtown: E. J. Dwyer.

Crotty, R. (2000). Christianity. In D. Parnham (Ed.), Exploring religion (2nd ed., pp. 53-94). South Melbourne: Oxford University Press.

Lovat, T., & McGrath, J. (Eds.). (1999). New studies in religion. Katoomba: Social Science Press.

Morrissey, J., Mudge, P., Taylor, A., Bailey, G., Gregor, H., McGillion, C., O'Reilly, P., Magee, P., & Mills, L. (2001). Living religion (2nd ed.). Sydney: Longman.

© Emmaus Publications (2003). Every effort has been made to trace and acknowledge all materials used. This material may be photocopied for educational use only.

38