Byzantium Eastern and Western Churches

Table of Contents

Introduction3

Thesis Statement3

Discussion3

The Byzantine Empire3

Byzantium in the Early Middle Ages4

The Great Western Schism5

The Great Eastern Schism5

Differences between the Church in the East and West7

Root Causes of the Schism between East And West8

Reasons for the Eastern Schism9

Effects of the Eastern Schism9

Attempts to Overcome the Schism of the Eastern10

Conclusion11

References12

Byzantium Eastern and Western Churches

Introduction

The Byzantine Empire, known as Eastern Roman Empire, was an empire located in the eastern Mediterranean. The Byzantine Empire was formed due to the division of the Christian church in to Western Roman Empire and an Eastern Roman Empire. The split of the Christian Church took place in 1054 as the Great Schism. Beside this, church in the Roman Catholic in west with centre in Rome was separated and the separation of Orthodox Church in the East with the centre in Constantinople.

Thesis Statement

“The Byzantium eastern and western churches split due to the difference between the western (often called the Catholic) and Eastern (Greek Orthodox) tradition.”

Discussion

The Byzantine Empire

The Byzantine Empire (also called, especially in reference to its initial stage, the Roman Empire in the East) was a medieval Christian empire of Greek culture whose capital was Constantinople or Byzantium (now Istanbul). The origins of the Byzantine Empire back to the final stage of the Roman Empire. Initially covered the entire eastern Mediterranean, but the time was undergoing major territorial reductions (Angold, 1997).

There is no general consensus as to the date of commencement of the Byzantine Empire. For some authors, the key date is the foundation of Constantinople in 330, while other scholars regard as the birth certificate of the Byzantine Empire the death of Theodosius I in 395, when the Roman Empire was permanently divided into two halves, East and West. Others think they can speak with ownership of the Byzantine Empire from the time he was deposed the last Western Roman emperor, Romulus Augustulus.

The disappearance of the Byzantine Empire came with the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks in 1453. However, the disappearance of state did not end Byzantine nationalist sentiments of the people, since the present inhabitants of Greece are considered heirs to the Byzantine tradition (Angold, 1997).

Byzantium in the Early Middle Ages

The division of the Roman Empire was made ??by Theodosius in 395. This was much deepened and so existing, the differences between eastern and western parts of the empire was especially in the fields of culture. The most tangible manifestation of these differences has been used in daily language (Treadgold, 1997). In contrast to the western part of the Empire where Latin reigned in the east used mainly Greek language. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, Constantinople considered himself a follower of the Roman tradition. There was a church which presents as a very strong position. In the sixth century patriarch of Constantinople assumed the title of Ecumenical Patriarch (or universal). This was causing confusion with the papacy.

The Great Western Schism

Great Western schism began in the events following the death of Pope Gregory XI in March ...