View source for The Great (East-West) Schism

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The '''Great (East-West) Schism''' of the tenth century was the first great formal breach between large groups of people professing to be Christians.

Over the centuries there had often been disagreements and tension between the Pope (the bishop of Rome) and the Patriarch of Constantinople, and in 1054 differences over points of doctrine and a dispute about the extent of papal authority led to a formal break and mutual [[excommunication]] between the Eastern Church and the Western Church. This break, known as the [[Great Schism]], is responsible for the existence of two of the principal [[denomination]]s or [[communion]]s within the Christian Church:

*the '''[[Orthodox Church]]''', also known as the '''[[Byzantine]] Church''', the '''[[Eastern Orthodox  Church]]''', and the '''[[Orthodox Catholic Church]]'''. (The [[Russian Orthodox Church]] and the [[Greek Orthodox Church]] are independent national churches within the Orthodox Church.)

*the '''[[Roman Catholic]] Church''' - the word 'catholic' comes from the Greek καθολικός (''katholikos''), and means 'universal'.

:::See also [[Great Schism]], for clarification of the term.

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