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Church And Faith Essentials
Church History
Inherent East-West Differences
West: Tertullian (160-225)
• Location: Carthage (Tunis)
• Language: Latin (Rome)
• Occupation: Lawyer
• Challenged pagan culture
with Christian realities
• Logical “formulas” for the
faith (e.g. Trinity) to end all
debate
• Practical: reason towards
action
East: Clement (150-215)
• Alexandria (Egypt)
• Greek (Middle Eastern)
• Philosopher
• Find truth within culture as
an aid to the faith
• Meditate on truths and use
formulas to stimulate
discussion re ult. realities
• Speculative: Reason
towards truth
Inherent East-West Differences
West-Latin-Rome
• Practical: decide, finalize
once and for all
• Influence of Roman law and
justice on theology
• Trinity: unity of Godhead
• Crucifixion: Christ=victim
East-Greek-Constantinople
• Speculative: explore, move
towards
• Theology seen in context of
worship and the liturgy
• Trinity: three-ness of
persons
• Christ=Victor
Historical Events that widen the
differences
• 4th Century: Constantine moves seat of empire from Rome to
Constantinople. Thus a strong Greek influence develops in
the East for centuries.
• 7th Century: Islam takes control of North Africa. Thus
communication/contact on Mediterranean Sea nations is
difficult
• West/Rome under Charlemagne (800) looks northward for
help from Barbarian Tribes to revive Roman Empire
• East/Constantinople being encroached by Turks/Islam; East
feels Western indifference to their needs.
Theological Differences Widening The Division
Filioque Controversy
In 589 the Third Council of Toledo inserted the filioque clause
into the Nicene Creed
..And we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and giver of Life, who
proceeds from the Father “and the Son…”
West insists on legitimacy of Double Procession
East insists on traditional/historic Single Procession
-West is violating the spirit and letter of Nicea
- West is acting unilaterally, without eastern consent
-Western urge to logically equalize relationships
within godhead short-circuits the Spirit’s full personality
and role
Theological and Ecclesiastical Differences:
Papal Supremacy
• Eastern patriarchs (Alexandria, Constantinople, Antioch, Jerusalem)
granted a “first among equals” status to the bishop of Rome.
• Orthodox churches later organized in other regions (Bulgaria,
Romania, Serbia, Russia) were auto-cephalic/self-heade. They
also grant this “first among equals” to Rome.
• Rome begins to act as though it can settle issues of doctrine
or practice autonomously, apart from joint church councils
• This leads to eastern misgivings, increasing antagonism, and
distrust
Gradual Decline of East-West
relationships
West
• Double Procession
• Increasingly autocratic
East
• Hierarchical view of bishop
of Rome
• Theology is dominated by
clerics/hierarchy
• Insists on celibate clergy
• Collegial view of the five
Patriarchs/bishops
• Laity able to make strong
contributions
• Single Procession
• Cooperative relationship via
Councils
• Clergy free to marry
• Feels ignored, disrespected,
and increasingly resentful
The Schism
Prelude
• HRE Henry III crowned in 1046 in Rome.
• Papacy is in decline, enmeshed local political
quarrels
• HRE Henry tries to get a “good pope” in from
Germany. Three times. First 2 die. Leo IX
• Pope Leo IX works with Henry on major reforms
– Simony (sale of church offices)
– Enforcing ideal of celibacy
– Restitution of the dignity of the Papacy
The Schism
Treaty Entanglements
• Then Pope Leo IX sets his sight on the East
• Relationship has been in decline for several centuries:
disengagement and estrangement
• HRE Henry III, Pope Leo IX, Byzantine Emperor Constantine IX enter
negotiations in common cause against the invading Norman Knights
who are threatening properties related to all three.
• Conditions (politics) of the treaty have a domino effect
– Pope Leo IX wants to regain authority over Greek churches in Italy
– In exchange, Eastern patriarch Michael Cerularius, wants control over
taking over Latin Churches in Constantinople. He demands they observe
Greek rites
– When Latin churches of Constantinople refuse, Mike shuts the Latin
churches down
The Actual Schism of 1054
Papal Legation
A roman legation is sent to Constantinople.
Leo dies in Rome; Upon their arrival, Cerelius rejects Humbert’s “offensive”
papal letter (written by Humbert, not pope)
All Hell breaks loose. Mutual excommunications and disrespect.
Attempts at Reconciliation
• 1274, (225 years later) reunion council in Lyon,
France.
– Agree on church practice and the creed
– Agreement is rejected by the Orthodox in the East
once their delegates return
Attempts at Reconciliation
• 1438-9 (380 years later)a reunion council
Florence, Italy
• Eastern Emperor and Eastern patriarch attend
• All but one member of eastern delegation
agreed to a formula for healing the schism
• Once again, overwhelming resistance arose
within local eastern churches
Attempts at Reconciliation
• Eastern Emporer Constantine XI supported reconciliation until
his death.
• In 1453, Turks attack Constantinople. Crisis brought all
Christians in city together. Held a united worship service of
Orthodox and Catholics in the Hagia Sophia.
• Constantine dies in battle, and the Turks win the day, turning
the Hagia Sophia into a mosque.
• With his death, the Byzantine Empire dies, and so does any
hope of reconciliation
Sealing the Schism
The Crusades
• Begun in 1095 by Pope Urban II
• Eastern Emperor Alexis I appeals to Pope Urban II for
help holding back Muslim Turks
• Pope Urban II sees a Crusade as a way of
1). Relieving pressures on the home-front of
competing european lords and escalating feudal violence.
2 ). Uniting warring Knights to rescue Christianity and
sacred sites taken by Muslims (mercenary/paid army)
3). Providing assistance to the alienated East, which
could improve relationships
Sealing the Schism
The Crusades
• Tragedy/alienation only results of crusades
• First Crusade: Jerusalem (1099)
– Military slaughter of Muslims, Jews, Arab
Christians
– Little concern for Christian ideals/artifacts by
mercenary soldiers of the west.
– Western army stops en route to Constantinople;
Alexius does all he can to get rid of harassing
army=nuisance, distruptive.
Sealing the Schism
The Crusades
• Fourth Crusade (1202-4), Constantinople
– Army only concerned with plunder and power (Venetian,
French, Flemish soldiers)
– Sacked Constantinople, destroyed city
– Sheer Barbarism: documented rape, murder, pillage
– 12 centuries-worth of treasures of eastern church are
destroyed (artifacts, art, architecture, etc.)
Schism is now “complete, irremediable, and final”
Generational memories of bitternss/betrayal linger
Russia becomes repository of
Orthodoxy
• Fall of Constantinople, spread of Islam through
Mediterranean, leads to a spread and preservation of
Eastern Orthodoxy to the north, in Rus
• Prince Vladimir succeeds to the crown of Kiev (Kyivan
Rus) in 980.
• At that time, Russian religion was a combination of
animism, plurality of gods, reverence for material objects
• Vladimir is offered the sister of the Byzantine Emperor as
a bride if he coverts to Eastern Orthodox faith.
• Vladimir converts!!
Russia and Orthodoxy
• Vladimir’s conversion appears to be sincere, but he also uses
it politically as a means of unifying his people
– Vladimir has all citizens of Kiev baptized in the Dnieper river
– Vladimir imports icons, priests, liturgical vessels from Byzantium
– He grants tithing to the church, but assigns the church some public
duties
Russia and Orthodoxy
• Russian Orthodoxy takes several centuries to move out from urban centers
to countryside. Becomes deeply rooted in countryside/small towns
• Characteristics
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Close church-state relationship
Center of an active faith found in liturgy, prayer
Monastic devotion as opposed to doctrine
Icons heavily utilized to aid faith and worship
Stress on the incarnation, material, visible (icons)
Kenosis: emptying oneself; ascetic spirituality, mystical over reason
Monastic life is central: emphasis on poverty although the church
became a massive landowner/farming by serfs.
– Clergy is not celibate, though Monks are.
Russia and Orthodoxy
• Russia becomes the repository of Orthodoxy as Islam spread
into the Mediterranean
• Yet Russia historically is geographically and therefore
culturally isolated
– No natural ports (always striving for North Atlantic or Mediterrainean
access
– Great geographical distance to European nations from Russian plain
– Naturally suspicious of anything non-Russian
– No renaissance, no reformation, no scientific revolution, no
enlightenment, no commercialism.
– This resulted in an isolated, often “suspicious of anything new” church
and culture
– Church today is strikingly similar to 1054