Brief History of Christianity: Division of the Church

Brief History of Christianity

Division of the Church

Founding
• Christianity has its root in Jewish messianism with the
belief that an “anointed” leader or “Messiah” will come
to resurrect the “Kingdom of God”
• Christians believe Jesus of Nazareth to be this Messiah
• According to the canonical Gospels, Jesus began
ministering shortly after his baptism by St John the
Baptist
• After his death, his twelve apostles and his seventy
disciples continued on his works of ministry with their
own sets of disciples
• Eventually, Christianity split off of Judaism as a
completely separate religion during the first century AD

Early Troubles
• Some of the earlier trouble started when the questions regarding „Gentile
converts‟ were raised resulting in the “circumcision controversy” where the
Jewish Christians thought they ought to follow the Mosaic Laws
• This resulted in the convening of the Apostolic Council of Jerusalem which
settled the dispute while addressing other issues as it is written in the Book:
Acts of the Apostles
• St Peter became the leader of the Jewish Christians while St Paul became
the leader of the Gentile Christians, a verdict laid out by St James the Just
• Eventually the Gentile Christians became the prominent group easily
overshadowing their Jewish counterparts after the death of the apostles
• At a later date, some of the Jewish Christians, the Ebionites in particular
who revered St James, were declared heretics for their unorthodox beliefs
regarding the nature of Christ as well as their rejection of St Paul‟s
apostolic authority and his epistles
• This would not end any disputes as many rival groups whether it was the
Judiazers or fellow Gentiles, rose to challenge orthodox Christianity

The “First” Heresy
• Around 144, a Bishop of Sinope named Marcion, developed a
„dualist system of belief‟ where he rejected the Jewish scriptures and
declared their God as the evil creator called „Demiurge‟, a lesser god
• He developed his own canon which excluded all of the Jewish
writings, a modified version of the Gospel of Luke and most of the
Letters by St Paul with some pseudepigraphs
• Consequently, he became first person to separate and differentiate
between the „Old Testament‟ and the „New Testament‟ of the Bible
• He was subsequently excommunicated by the Church leaders, with
the Church of Rome returning all of his donations
• Subsequently, his teachings eventually died out after his death
• This whole endeavour resulted in the expedited development and the
finalization of the Biblical canon, even though there are still
different opinions on what the canon ought to be

Further Theological Disputes
• Marcion was not the last to be declared a heretic, as several groups
emerged to challenge the Church “orthodoxy”, the most prominent groups
being known as the “Gnostics”
• They held Marcion‟s view of dualism as well as teaching that Christ taught
“Secret Knowledge” also known as “Gnosis” which was essential for
salvation
• They had their own set of Gospels, Letters and Apocalyptic literatures all
promoting their set of beliefs like the Jewish Christians before them
• However the most controversial issue would arise after almost two hundred
years after the time of Marcion when an Alexandrian presbyter named
Arius started a debate concerning the Christological nature of Christ
• This prompted the start of the „Ecumenical Councils‟ convened by the
Byzantine Roman Emperors to resolve the disputes
• Consequently, the controversies started by Arius would not end, but instead
initiate a string of different controversies due to the “over-corrections” by
over-zealous theologians resulting in new heretical ideas forming

First Seven Ecumenical Councils
• 1) First Council of Nicaea in 325
• 2) First Council of Constantinople in 381
• 3) Council of Ephesus in 431
– Second Council of Ephesus in 451
• 4) Council of Chalcedon in 451
• 5) Second Council of Constantinople in 553
• 6) Third Council of Constantinople in 680-681
– Council in Trullo in 692
– Synod in Hieria in 753
• 7) Second Council of Nicaea in 787
– Fourth Council of Constantinople in 869-870 & 879-880 to Second
Council of the Vatican in 1960

Nicaea I
• The first ecumenical council, convened by the Emperor Constantine I in
325 to settle the issue of the relation between the Son of God and God the
Father
• Arius claimed that the Son of God was a creation of the God the Father
therefore Jesus Christ was a perfect creation, but a lesser being than God
• The council ruled against Arius condemning his teachings, drawing up and
adopting the “Nicene Creed” establishing the “Trinity” as the orthodox
belief among mainstream Christians
• The aftermath of the council also resulted in Constantine commissioning
fifty Bibles for the Church of Constantinople in 331
• Subsequent councils were called which resulted in from reconciling
“Arianism” into “semi-Arianism” to supporting complete “Arianism”
• During these periods, the chief opponent of Arius, the Archbishop of
Alexandria, Athanasius, would end up being condemned and threatened
with death by both religious and secular authorities

Constantinople I
• The second ecumenical council convened by the Emperor
Theodosius I in 381, where the council reaffirmed the
Nicene Creed produced during the previous council, but
with slight alterations, also affirming the divinity of the
Holy Ghost
• The council once again condemned Arianism as well as:
“Apollinarism” which taught that Christ had no human
mind nor soul; “Macedonianism”, which denied the divinity
of the Holy Ghost; and “Sabellianism”, which said that the
Trinity were different “modes” of the same thing
• The council also elevated the status of the see of
Constantinople to be second only to the see of Rome, as it
was considered “New Rome” which would result in future
rivalry

Ephesus
• The third ecumenical council, convened by the Emperor Theodosius II in
431 to settle the issue of “Theotokos” or “Mother of God”
• The Archbishop of Constantinople, Nestorius opposed the use of such term
preferring “Christotokos” or “Mother of Christ” as well as arguing that
there were two completely separate persons in Christ known as
“dyophysitism”
• The council ruled against Nestorius, deposing him and proclaimed the
Virgin Mary as Theotokos
• This resulted in the first schism where the Churches outside of the Roman
Empire, in particular those in Persia who did not attend the council in the
first place, split from the rest of Christianity existing today as the “Assyrian
Church of the East” and the “Ancient Church of the East”
• Another important matter discussed was the issue of divine grace and
original sin where a monk named Pelagius argued that moral perfection
was attainable without divine intervention and that the life of Jesus Christ
was just to set a good example, making his sacrifice unnecessary

Nestorian Dyophysitism
Visual representation of the doctrine taught by Nestorius

Chalcedon
• The fourth ecumenical council, convened by the Emperor Marcian
in 451 which overturned and labelled a previous council of 448 as
the “Robber Council” then known as the Second Council of Ephesus
which was convened as an ecumenical council
• The council ruled against and condemned Eutyches‟ doctrine of
“monophysitism” which taught that Christ was not consubstantial
with humanity
• The council adopted the “Chalcedon Creed” where they accept the
“Hypostatic Union” of two natures of Christ
• This resulted in another schism where various Eastern
Churches, especially those of the Armenian, Copt, Ethiopian, and
Syrian churches who accepted the teachings of Eutyches, broke
communion with the Greeks and the Latins, arguing that the new
Creed was “Nestorian”. Today they exist as the “Oriental Orthodox
Church” calling themselves “miaphysites” or united nature

Eutychean Monophysitism
Visual representation of the doctrine taught by Eutyches

Constantinople II
• The fifth ecumenical council, convened by the Emperor Justinian I in 553
in an effort to reconcile with those who split during the previous council
• The council condemned what was called the “Three Chapters” considered
sympathetic to Nestorianism
• It also condemned Origen, a church father who taught that the Son of God
was subordinate to God the Father
• It was one of the first ecumenical councils to be initially condemned by the
Western Churches while being attended primarily by the delegates of the
Eastern Churches
• When the Pope of Rome eventually accepted the council, the Churches of
Milan, Aquileia, and Northern Italy broke communion with the Church of
Rome resulting in a schism until the 7th and 8th century respectively
• During this period, the Bishop of Aquileia took up the title
“Patriarch”, later being transferred to Grado and then Venice, where it is
now
• This was the start of the embitterment between the Western Church and the
Eastern Church with no reconciliation in sight

Constantinople III
• The sixth ecumenical council, convened by the Emperor Constantine IV in 680 and
ending in the subsequent year
• The council condemned “monothelitism” and “monoenergism”, popular doctrines
which taught that Christ only had one divine energy and will, while still affirming
that Christ had both human and divine natures; an attempted compromise between
the orthodox “hypostatic union” and the monophysites
• It is known that the Lebanese Christians known as “Maronites”, named after a
monk named St Maron, followed these doctrines, however they deny they that they
have ever broken communion with the Rome and as such accept this council
• Anyone who had ever supported these doctrines were condemned as heretics which
included then-sitting Patriarch of Antioch, Macarius, who was deposed, the
previous Pope of Rome, Honorius I, as well as the four previous Patriarchs of
Constantinople such as Sergius I
• A subsequent council in Trullo convened by the Emperor Justinian II in 692 known
as Quinisext Council meaning Fifth and Sixth, resulted in further embitterment
between the east and the west, when the Emperor tried to force Pope Sergius I of
Rome to sign the doctrines when he refused to accept it

Nicaea II
• The seventh ecumenical council, convened by the Emperor
Constantine VI and his mother, the Empress Irene, with the guidance
of the Pope of Rome, Hadrian I in 787 overruling the Synod of
Hieria convened by the Emperor Constantine V in 753
• The council condemned “iconoclasm” a practice of destroying
various images or “icons” of Jesus, Mary and the other Saints
• Despite the council‟s findings, the Eastern Churches with the
support of the Emperor, continued to practice iconoclasm until 843
• The Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne also tried to impose this on
the Western Churches, but it was stopped by Pope Hadrian I
• This is the last council which most of the Greek Churches as well as
the Georgian and the Slavic Churches, also known as the “Eastern
Orthodox Church” considers to be ecumenical

Great Schism
• During the 9th century, there was a contention on who the Ecumenical
Patriarch of Constantinople should be resulting a council being convened in
Constantinople
• Two councils were held in Constantinople with the West accepting only the
first while the East accepting only the second
• The issues between the West and the East had been bitter mostly because of
political, ecclesiastical, and theological differences and disputes
• Some of the prominent issues were; the “filioque” clause inserted in the
Nicene Creed, whether leavened or unleavened bread should be used in the
Eucharist, and the Pope of Rome‟s claim of universal jurisdiction
• Though complex, split between the West and the East is conveniently dated
as 1054 when Cardinal Humbert and the Papal Legates met with Cerularius
to deny him the office of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople and to
also insist Rome as the head and mother of the churches, which he denied
• This resulted in Cardinal Humbert to excommunicate Cerularius who in
turn excommunicated him and the legates

Further Complications
• Despite the mutual excommunications between the leaders of the
two churches, the relationships between adherents of the two
churches were generally friendly and as such the event of 1054 was
not considered significant
• It was during the Fourth Crusade, which was intended to reclaim the
Holy Lands, that things became really hostile between the two
• The Crusaders, which included the Venetians whom coveted
Byzantine territories, invaded and sacked Constantinople in 1204,
breaking up the Byzantine Empire against the explicit orders of
Pope Innocent III
• This contributed to the eventual conquest of the remnant of the
Roman Empire by the Islamic Turks
• Also, during the Northern Crusades by the Teutonic Knights, Pope
Gregory IX endorsed the attempted invasion of the various Russian
Republics which subscribed to the Orthodox faith in 1242

Another Great Schism
• Between the 14th and the 15th Century, there was a controversy in regards to who
should be the Pope of Rome with the issues being completely political
• Prior to this event, the Pope resided in Avignon, where due to the influence of the
French court, gained the reputation of corruption, estranging Western Christendom
• After the death of Pope Gregory XI, who moved the papacy back to Rome, the
Cardinals elected Urban VI as Pope in 1378, but soon regretted their decision due to
his paranoia and temper
• Because of this they decided to elect someone else, Clement VII as the Antipope in
Avignon on September 20th the same year, resulting in one of the greatest turmoil in
the Western Church
• Though there have been several Antipopes, this was the first time the same group
appointed both the Pope and Antipope
• This resulted in diplomatic crises and several wars in Europe, with different kings
supporting either Rome or Avignon
• Attempts to resolve the issue such as the Council of Pisa resulted in an election of a
third rival Pope, or Antipope in Pisa, and it was not until the Council of Constance
in 1414 as the sixteenth ecumenical council that the dispute was finally resolved

Attempted Reunion
• It was during the reign of Pope Gregory X and the Byzantine Emperor Michael VIII
Palaeologus that an end to the schism was attempted by convoking the Second
Council of Lyon as the fourteenth ecumenical council in 1245
• The council declared that Rome possessed supreme and full primacy and authority
over Universal Catholic Church
• Though the Emperor accepted the finding, the Eastern clergies did not and the
Emperor‟s son Andronicus II repudiated the reunion upon his ascension
• However, it was during the 15th Century a second attempt at reunion occurred and
was almost successful when the Emperor John VIII Palaelogus sought alliance from
the West due to the Turkish incursions
• With Pope Eugene IV, the Council of Basel-Ferrara-Florence was convoked as the
seventeenth ecumenical council
• All the Eastern Bishops agreed with the West on filioque, purgatory, and the
primacy of Rome, except for the Exarch Mark, Bishop of Ephesus who maintained
that Rome continued in heresy and schism.
• Though it seemed like a success, upon returning, they found that the majority of the
populace and civil authorities rejected the findings of the council and as such a true
reunion was never realized

Attempted Reformation
• The Avignon Papacy and the resulting Papal Schism had greatly tarnished the
reputation of the Church, especially the office of the Pope of Rome
• Much of this tarnished reputation can be attributed to the fact that European princes
used these crises as an excuse to wage wars as well as exploiting the poor
• At the University of Oxford during the 15th Century, a theologian called John
Wycliffe became one of the earliest dissident to the currently established church
• He challenged many practice such as the Papacy as well as monasticism while
advocating vernacular translation of the bible, he himself translating the Vulgate
into English
• His followers, the “Wycliffites” also known as the “Lollards”, were a rebellious
group who were anti-clerical and biblically-centered
• Jan Hus of the University of Prague, a Czech priest, was a proponent of Wycliffe‟s
teachings, preaching against indulgences and the crusades
• It was during the Council of Constance that the issues raised by Hus the Papal
schism were dealt with where despite the promise of safe passage, he was
imprisoned, put on trial, and executed by being burnt on the stake for heresy
• This would ignite the Hussite Wars resulting in the independence of Bohemia where
his followers still exist today under various denominations and names

Protestant Reformation
• The two Great Schisms would not be the last of its kind as issues within
Christendom would continue to develop, especially within the Western church also
known as the “Catholic Church”
• The Catholic Church had successfully suppressed any challenges to its doctrines
from the “Waldensians” of the 12th century to the Hussite Wars of the 15th
century, though with very limited success for the latter case in the Czech Lands
• The “Reformation” is thought to have started in 1517 when a German monk and
university professor, Martin Luther nailed his infamous “Ninety-Five Theses” to the
door of the Castle Church in opposition to what he perceived as false doctrines and
malpractices of the Church
• Some of the main issues were on; selling of indulgences, purgatory, devotion to
Mary mother of Jesus, intercession of the saints, and the authority of the Pope
• On 1520, Pope Leo X issued a rebuttal to some of the theses titled “Exsurge
Domine” which ordered the retraction of 41 his theses where he believed Luther
had erred, however instead of responding Luther burned it along with the volumes
of the Canon Law resulting in his excommunication in 1521
• Parallel movements occurred under Swiss theologian Ulrich Zwingli, who wrote the
“Sixty-Seven Conclusions” and a French theologian Jehan Cauvin, or John Calvin

Division within the Reformation
• Initially, the leaders of the reformation had very similar teachings, but not
completely identical
• Later, there were disputes and conflicts due to some differences between
Luther and Zwingli, after Zwingli‟s death, between Luther and Calvin
• The conflicting issue between the two parties was the matter of the
Eucharist where Luther said that it was the real presence of Christ, not too
dissimilar from the Catholic and Orthodox doctrine of “transubstantiation”,
while Zwingli said it was purely a matter of symbolism
• Some of the more radical followers of Zwingli would later form the
“Anabaptists” among others, famous for their doctrine of “credo-baptism”
also known as “believer‟s baptism” a radical idea even among the
Protestants in that and was strongly opposed by both Catholics and
“mainline” Protestants
• The magisterial reformers, who were supported by the state, would
establish the Lutheran and the Calvinist churches, the latter now existing as
the Reformed and Presbyterian churches, while the radical reformers, who
had no such support, would form the various Anabaptist groups

Radical Reformation
• Unlike the movements by Luther, Zwingli, and Calvin, or the “magisterial
reformers”, the radical reformers were not supported by the state they
resided in
• They originated in Switzerland initially as disciples of Zwingli, but due to
their perception of the Reformation being to conservative decided to split
from the movement
• This group known as the “Anabaptist”, due to their re-baptizing converts
and the rejection of infant baptism, were millenarian, expecting the end
times to be soon
• The group fractured into many groups and now exists as the;
“Amish”, “Brethrens” (Swiss and German), “Hutterites”, and
“Mennonites”
• They all have similarities in that they place absolute authority in the
Bible, reject of creeds and civil authorities, the practice of pacifism, with
some saying the conversion of Constantine was the start of the Great
Apostasy
• Due to these radical beliefs, they were relentlessly persecuted by the
authorities of both Catholic and Protestant states

The Counter-Reformation
• The Protestant Reformation brought into light a number of issues
within the Church especially among the clergy
• Pope Paul III convened the Council of Trent in 1543 to 1565 as the
nineteenth ecumenical council to address these issues as well
reforming the Church
• While it improved Church structure and discipline, it also repudiated
Protestantism and its doctrines
• This movement of “counter-reformation” was a reformation in itself
as well as a period of revivalism for the Catholic Church
• As such new orders were formed such as the “Society of Jesus” or
the “Jesuits” which worked in rural areas setting examples of this
new renewal
• An unfortunate side-effect of this period was the over-zealous laity
resulting in countless bloodshed by both Catholics and Protestants
alike regardless of being supported by the state or not

The Anglican Reformation
• The English king Henry VIII was a devout Catholic who attacked Luther‟s
teachings by writing the “Defence of the Seven Sacraments”, earning him
the title “Defender of the Faith” from Pope Leo X in1521
• Henry however, who at the time was married to Catherine of Aragon,
wanted to have his marriage annulled partly due to the lack of a male heir
and partly due to his attraction to the maid of honour Anne Boleyn
• When Henry asked Pope Clement VII in 1527, the Pope refused partly due
to a canonical impediment and partly due to his fear of the Holy Roman
Emperor Charles V who happened to be the nephew of Catherine
• In 1529, Henry summoned Parliament to deal with the annulment initiating
the Reformation within England resulting in the papacy being replaced by
the “Supreme Governor” an office held by the monarch
• Today the church is known as the “Episcopalian Church” or the “Anglican
Communion” with their own unique liturgy based on the Sarum Rite in the
form of the “Book of Common Prayer” co-authored by the Archbishop of
Canterbury, Thomas Cranmer in 1544

Reformation within Reformation
• Between the 16th and the 17th centuries, a Dutch theologian Jakob
Hermanszoon, or Jacobus Arminius, argued against Calvin‟s doctrine of
“unconditional election”
• He proposed that the elects were believers and as such it was conditional on
faith
• Though his views were challenged, he died before a synod could occur
• His followers, or the “Remonstrants”, crafted the “Five articles of
Remonstrance” in response to Holland‟s State General request as Arminius
had died at the time
• Due to this theological issues, the Synod of Dort was opened in 1619 which
it condemned Arminius and his followers as heretics resulting in their
persecution for the next twelve years, and the synod published the now
famous “Five points of Calvinism” colloquially known as “TULIP”
• Though the Remonstrants may exist as a small group today, their theology
have greatly impacted Protestantism with the “Arminianism vs Calvinism”
debate raging even today with the results still being inconclusive

Puritanism
• The Puritans were an English Reformation group known for its zeal
against Catholicism and its practices during the 16th and 17th
centuries
• They opposed the various practices, or the “via media” approach of
the Church of England, which made them more like Catholic than
Protestant and as such were called “Non-conformists” or
“Separatists”
• Like the Presbyterians of the Scottish Reformation, they were
largely influenced by Calvinism adopting Reformed theology
despite their criticism of Zwingli and Calvin
• In 1620, many Puritans left Europe for America on the Mayflower
as “Pilgrims” and established the Plymouth Colony
• The Baptists and the Congregationalists are the modern descendents
of the Puritan movement though with influences from the
Anabaptists and the Reformed churches respectively

Pietism
• Like the Puritan movement in England, there was a similar movement
within Lutheranism in continental Europe, Germany in particular, called
“Pietism”
• The Pietist movement started by Philipp Spener, sought to “restore” the life
of the Church by changing certain aspects
• Some of these changes included; having private meetings, involving the
laity, synchronizing the beliefs and practice, changing attitudes towards
heretics and infidels alike, giving more prominence towards devotional life
in theological trainings, and changing the style of preaching
• For all intents and purposes, it was a reformation within the reformation for
Lutherans as well as a period of revivalism
• Unlike the Puritans, the Pietists did not leave a descendent group and as
such eventually died out
• However, the teachings did make a huge impact on Christianity where it
influenced important thinkers such as John Wesley and Alexander
Mack, the latter founding the Schwarzenau Brethren movement

Spiritual Revivalism
• During the 18th century, John and Charles Wesley, and their friend George
Whitefield, started a movement within the Church of England
• The movement focused on the methodical approach to the bible studies as well as
their lives earning them the nickname “Methodists”
• They were known for open-air preaching and their enthusiastic sermons which was
largely viewed as unorthodox
• Though Wesley (John) was an ordained Anglican priest, many of the Methodists
were not and as such were persecuted for lay-preaching as well Wesley himself
breaking many regulations of the Church of England
• The whole Methodist movement eventually split in the early stage due to the
doctrinal differences between the founders, Wesley and Whitefield
• While Wesley was influenced by the Moravian Church in Bohemia, one of the
descendent group of the Hussites, and the teachings of Arminius, Whitefield was
influenced by Calvinism resulting in a strained relationship in an otherwise
amicable friendship though they eventually reconciled
• The followers of Wesley established the Methodist Church which exists
today, while the followers of Whitefield established the Calvinistic Methodists
which is now known as the Presbyterian Church of Wales

Primitive Restoration
• The “Restoration movement” or “Christian Primitivism”, was several
movements by various groups particularly in North America during the 19th
century that attempted to bring Christianity back to its “tradition roots”
• It sought to continue the movements of the reformation, but unlike them
they rejected the teachings of the 2nd to 3rd century Ante-Nicene fathers and
instead relied solely on the Bible
• Through the three periods known as the “Great Awakening” groups such as
the Separate Baptists, Church of Christ and Christian Disciples by Stone
and Campbell, Adventists and other Sabbatarians by Miller, and the
Plymouth Brethrens in Ireland, came to prominence
• During this period, anti-Trinitarian groups also came to prominence such as
the Bible Students or Jehovah‟s Witnesses, Christadelphians, and the Latter
Day Saints or Mormons, who were all strict biblical literalists and taught
that all other Christian denominations fell into apostasy and as such they
were the restorers to Christ‟s original and true teachings
• Other teachings of some of these reformation groups were the denial of an
eternal hell, but rather the utter and complete annihilation of the wicked

Charismatic Renewal
• The “Charismatic movement” was a renewal movement during the early 20th
century starting with the “Pentecostal movement” coming out of the “Holiness
movement” which itself came out of the “Methodist movement”
• The movement itself was a combination of both Revivalism and Restorationism
where it intended on bringing new life to the Christian life as well as bringing it
back to its roots
• Though mostly Trinitarian, a large minority calling themselves the “Apostolic
Church” also known as “Oneness Pentecostal” or “Jesus Name Only”, reject the
Trinitarian doctrine and instead adopted “Sabellianism” or “Modalism”
• The common characteristics of the Charismatic movement was the “gift of the Holy
Ghost” which was supposedly evident by “Glossolalia” or “Speaking in tongues”
• Though they were initially opposed by most denominations, in particular by the
Reformed and any “high churches”, they gradually became accepted by most
though opposition still exist
• Unlike the other movements, this movement was not exclusively Protestant as some
Catholic communities started practicing it and as such has been accepted as being
legitimate by Catholic authorities though with some reservation while the Eastern
Orthodox Church has been less enthusiastic than the Catholics

Summary of the Branching of Protestantism

Groups missing are: Evangelicals, Stone-Campbell Restorationists, and any non-
Trinitarians

Modern Catholic Schism
• In 1869, three centuries after the Council of Trent, Pope Pious IX convened the
First Council of the Vatican as the twentieth ecumenical council to deal with the
post-renaissance world, though the council was suspended indefinitely due to the
Napoleonic invasion of Italy
• While dealing with contemporary issues, the doctrine of papal infallibility was
officially defined, resulting in several dissenting bishops, mostly Dutch and
German, to break with the church of Rome
• These groups later sought communion with either the Protestants or the Eastern
Orthodox Church, where today they are collectively known as “Old Catholics” and
“Liberal Catholics”, the latter having split from the former
• In 1962, Pope John XXIII convened the Second Council of the Vatican as the
twenty-first ecumenical council in the hope of unity as well as defining the church
in the modern world
• The process of the council involved revising the liturgy by involving vernacular
languages instead of Latin, resulting in condemnation by some groups of bishops
• Though most have not completely severed ties with the church of Rome like the
“Traditional Catholics”, some have and established their own group where today
they are collectively known as “Independent Catholics”

Modern Orthodox Schism
• During the 1600s, the Greek and Russian church officials, including the
Patriarch of Moscow, Nikon, noticed discrepancies between the Greek and
Russian liturgical practices, concluding that the Russians must have
deviated from the original Greek
• Decision was made to reform the practice though it was met with
opposition, led by the Archpriest Avvakum Petrov, protesting against the
change without consulting the people who would be subjected
• These dissenters or “Old Believers” were heavily persecuted by the
Russian government until 1905, which still exist under various groups
• In 1923, a proposal was made in Constantinople to make some adjustments
to the Julian Calendar used by the Eastern Churches to have some
synchronization with the Gregorian Calendar used by the Western
Churches
• When the revision was made and established, it was met with opposition as
the decision was unilateral resulting in some rejecting the revision and
causing a major division with those who accepted the revision being known
as the “New Calendarist” and those who rejected it the “Old Calendarist”

Summary of Christianity
• With three major denomination branch, twelve
denominational families, and over 33,000 individual
denominations, Christianity is the most divided religion
• Though “denominationalism” says that there is one
Christian religion and that denominations are just
different names with no major doctrinal
differences, just by looking at the history one can
deduce that this is simply not true
• The apostolic churches such as the Catholic, Eastern
Orthodox, and the Oriental Orthodox Churches, claim
to be the one true church Christ himself has established
thus reject the claim made by denominationalists

Catholicism Today
• The Catholic Church is the largest branch and denomination of
Christianity with1.2 billion adherents
• The Church is led by the Pope of Rome, who has universal
jurisdiction over all Catholics
• The Church is divided into 23 particular or “sui juris” churches with
the Latin Rite of the Roman tradition being the largest and various
Eastern Rites of the
Byzantine, Antiochene, Alexandrian, Chaldean, and Armenian
traditions
• Furthermore, there are various groups that have separated from the
main Catholic Church while still maintaining to be Catholic
• These breakaway groups include; Apostolic Catholic
Church, Independent Catholic Church, and the Old Catholic Church
• The Anglican Church can also be counted as a group that have
separated from the main body while maintaining to be
Catholic, though some may disagree, particularly the “low
churches”

Orthodoxy Today
• The Eastern Orthodox Church is the second largest denomination of Christianity
with 230 million adherents
• The Church is led by the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople who is considered
“first among equals” with the other Bishops, acting as a figurehead
• The Church is almost exclusively of the Byzantine tradition split among ethnic
national churches, though non-Byzantine traditions exist for the small Western
Orthodox Churches
• The Oriental Orthodox Church are those who did not accept the Council of
Chalcedon, with 82 million adherents
• The Pope of Alexandria is the most senior Bishop, but does not have any
jurisdiction over any other Church except his own
• The Church is divided amongst the Alexandrian and the Antiochene traditions
• Like the Catholic Church, both Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches have
breakaway groups that maintain to be Orthodox, but are not in full communion with
any of the above
• These groups include; Old Believers, Malankara Mar Thoma Syrian Church, and
Malabar Independent Syrian Church

Protestantism Today
• The Protestants are the second largest branch of Christianity with
670 million adherents excluding the Anglicans who have 82 million
adherents which itself is divided into two movements due to dispute
• They also have the greatest division with a countless number of
denominations
• Within Protestantism, there are the Adventists, Baptists, Lutherans,
Methodists, Pentecostals, and Reformed groups with some groups
achieving union amongst each other forming the “United Churches”
• Protestantism is usually defined by the doctrines of the “Five Solas”
which are; sola scriptura, sola fide, sola gratia, solus Christus, and
soli Deo gloria
• Despite this, there are many disagreements between various
Protestant groups such as ecclesiology (Church structure) and
soteriology (salvation, i.e. Arminianism vs Calvinism) being chief
among them

Ecumenism
• Although the Christian religion continues to divide and split over
theological and social issues resulting in more groups, especially
cults, there has been movements for re-union
• This movement or “ecumenism” seeks to heal and unite the rift caused
between different Christian groups
• Within Protestantism, various organizations has been formed to seek unity
with world alliances, councils, and federations forming as well as inter-
denominational groups such as the World Council of Churches
• Concurrently, the apostolic churches have been initiating dialogues also
• The Catholic Church has in the past initiated dialogues with the Eastern
Churches in an attempt to heal the schism while also lifting
excommunication and now extending this to the various Protestant groups
• There are oppositions however, as some group feel that these dialogues will
result in compromising the truth therefore introducing heterodox doctrines
• Despite this, there is still hope that the Church Christ has founded will be
united and become one again as it was always intended

Overall Division of the Church

Appendix

Interesting Materials

Division of the Church of the East

Biblical Canon
• Unlike the New Testament, the contents of the Old Testament is a lot more
contentious with various groups in disagreement
• The various Protestants accept what the Jews accept on what is contained in the
Masoteric text with some grouping some of the extra books found in the
Septuagint, Peshitta, and the Vulgate texts in a section called “The Apocrypha”
• The Roman Rite accept the Masoteric text as well as some of the extra books found
in the Septuagint text
• Within the Byzantine Rite, the Greeks accept the Septuagint text accepting all the
books except one while the Georgians and the Slavs accept some additional books
found outside the Septuagint
• The Armenian Rite used to accept books that is considered a forgery
• The Antiochene and the Chaldean Rites accept the Peshitta text with books that are
not found in the Septuagint text while also lacking in the “Antilegomena” and the
“Catholic Epistles” for the New Testament books
• The Ethiopians of the Alexandrian Rite accept books that are not found in any other
canon, but rather a set of Amharic texts which they preserved from the Ge‟ez
texts, which also makes its canon significantly larger while the Copts have a similar
canon to the Latins of the Roman Rite

Biblical Canon
The Various Texts The Development

Christian Denominations by Size

Brief History of Christianity: Division of the Church