The division/cause of the Greek Orthodox split from the Roman Catholic Church is most commonly known as the East- West Schism or the Great Schism of 1054. This split was a direct result of differing views on the theology of Christ and his teachings, alongside geographical issues. The main causes of the fallout were the opinions of many Church figures.
Firstly, the first real conflict between the denominations came in the year 800. This is where Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne, the King of France as the Holy Emperor. This decision from the Byzantine point of view was a direct slap in the face for their emperor and empire. The Byzantine Empire argued that they had upheld the faith even through the hardest times that included persecution and barbaric invasion of the East, and therefore earnt the right to have their Eastern emperor crowned as the Holy emperor of the land. This was the footstone for redundancy of the Western empire by the Eastern empire and eventually relations between the two deteriorated until they eventually fell out and formally split in 1054. The Eastern Church became known as the Greek Orthodox Church and the Western Church remained as Roman Catholic.
The Schism was based on four main ideas: geographical location of the empires, ignorance between both empires, different theologies of both empires and the figureheads representing each empire. Firstly, the geographical locations of the empires led to both expressing different cultural beliefs and traditions. The Eastern Church consisted of Asia Minor, the Middle East and North Africa who had differing cultures and beliefs from Western Europe and North\ West empires of the Mediterranean Sea. The Eastern cultures had traditions which were much more festival like, with feast days of major Saints and important dates resulting in traditional ceremonies. However, unlike the East, the Western Church tended to celebrate much more Latin traditions of the past that were maintained over the years.
Firstly, the first real conflict between the denominations came in the year 800. This is where Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne, the King of France as the Holy Emperor. This decision from the Byzantine point of view was a direct slap in the face for their emperor and empire. The Byzantine Empire argued that they had upheld the faith even through the hardest times that included persecution and barbaric invasion of the East, and therefore earnt the right to have their Eastern emperor crowned as the Holy emperor of the land. This was the footstone for redundancy of the Western empire by the Eastern empire and eventually relations between the two deteriorated until they eventually fell out and formally split in 1054. The Eastern Church became known as the Greek Orthodox Church and the Western Church remained as Roman Catholic.
The Schism was based on four main ideas: geographical location of the empires, ignorance between both empires, different theologies of both empires and the figureheads representing each empire. Firstly, the geographical locations of the empires led to both expressing different cultural beliefs and traditions. The Eastern Church consisted of Asia Minor, the Middle East and North Africa who had differing cultures and beliefs from Western Europe and North\ West empires of the Mediterranean Sea. The Eastern cultures had traditions which were much more festival like, with feast days of major Saints and important dates resulting in traditional ceremonies. However, unlike the East, the Western Church tended to celebrate much more Latin traditions of the past that were maintained over the years.
The East West Schism Diagram
Furthermore, both empires ignored each other. The Byzantine Church knew and upheld less and less Latin language and traditions, along with the Western empire not be able to read Greek letters and denying Greek traditions of the church. The churches denial of each other led to the East using leavened bread in the Divine Liturgy, whereas the West used unleavened bread to symbolise Christ. This ignorance of each other led to this united Church/empire slowly crack and eventually fall to two.
Although one church, both empires had different theologies on the teachings of Christ. The major difference that both empires had was that each perceived Jesus differently. The West were more practical and put emphasis on Christ’s human form, whereas the Eastern Church emphasized Jesus’s divinity. However different in perspective, both Churches believed that Jesus was fully divine and human.
In conclusion, like every reformation, it was left to the political heads of the time to finalise the decision of the split. The Eastern Church was represented by the patriarch of Constantinople and Michael Celarius and the Western Church by Pope Leo IX. They all came to the agreement that the churches couldn’t unite their beliefs and ideals as one again and rather they should split as two major Christian denominations.
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