Photian Schism
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What was the Photian Schism?
The Photian Schism was a 9th-century controversy between Eastern and Western Christianity precipitated by the Roman pope's opposition to Byzantine Emperor Michael III's appointment of St. Photius as patriarch of Constantinople.
The controversy also involved:
* Eastern and Western ecclesiastical jurisdictional rights in the Bulgarian church
* A doctrinal dispute over the Filioque clause that the Latin church had added to the Nicene CreedKey conflicts involved ecclesiastical supremacy, the liturgy, and clerical discipline, with the underlying issue of jurisdiction over converts in Bulgaria and the growing separation between the eastern and western Mediterranean worlds.
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When and where did the Photian Schism take place?
The Photian Schism was a 9th-century controversy (858-867 CE) between Eastern and Western Christianity. It began when the Roman pope opposed Byzantine Emperor Michael III's appointment of St. Photius as patriarch of Constantinople.
Key issues included ecclesiastical supremacy, liturgical practices, and clerical discipline, particularly jurisdiction over converts in Bulgaria. The conflict also involved a doctrinal dispute over the Filioque clause in the Nicene Creed, which the Western church had added.
The schism was effectively resolved when Rome, needing Byzantine military support, reluctantly recognized Photius as patriarch after Ignatius's death in 877.
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Who was Photius, and what role did he play in the schism?
Saint Photius was the patriarch of Constantinople in the 9th century who defended the traditions of his church against Rome. The Photian Schism began when Emperor Michael III appointed Photius, a lay scholar, as patriarch, which Pope Nicholas I opposed.
Key issues in the schism included ecclesiastical supremacy, the liturgy, clerical discipline, and jurisdiction over the Bulgarians. Photius accused the West of heresy for altering the creed with the Filioque clause, while Nicholas challenged Photius's appointment and Byzantine missions in Bulgaria. Although the schism was temporarily resolved, it highlighted the growing divide between Eastern and Western Christianity.
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What caused disagreements between the Eastern and Western churches during the Photian Schism?
The Photian Schism in the 9th century was a controversy between Eastern and Western Christianity caused by the Roman pope's opposition to Byzantine Emperor Michael III's appointment of St. Photius as patriarch of Constantinople.
Disagreements also involved ecclesiastical jurisdictional rights in the Bulgarian church and the Filioque clause, which the Latin church added to the Nicene Creed. Photius accused the West of heresy for altering the creed, while Pope Nicholas I challenged Photius's elevation, leading to mutual excommunications.
The key conflicts revolved around ecclesiastical supremacy, liturgy, clerical discipline, and jurisdiction over Bulgarian converts. Fundamentally, the dispute questioned Rome's monarchical power over all churches versus its role as the senior of five semi-independent patriarchates.
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How did the Photian Schism affect the relationship between the Pope in Rome and the Patriarch in Constantinople?
The Photian Schism in the 9th century significantly strained the relationship between the Pope in Rome and the Patriarch in Constantinople. The schism began with the Pope's opposition to Emperor Michael III's appointment of Photius as Patriarch of Constantinople, challenging the speed of his ascent through the hierarchy.
Key points of contention included ecclesiastical jurisdictional rights in Bulgaria and the Filioque clause added to the Nicene Creed by the Latin church. Photius questioned the West's alteration of the creed, while Pope Nicholas I attacked Greek practices in Bulgaria. Although the schism was temporarily resolved with Rome recognizing Photius, underlying issues of ecclesiastical supremacy and jurisdiction remained, symbolizing the growing divide between the Eastern and Western Mediterranean worlds.
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What were the long-term effects of the Photian Schism on Christianity?
The Photian Schism of the 9th century was a controversy between Eastern and Western Christianity involving ecclesiastical jurisdiction, the liturgy, clerical discipline, and the Filioque clause.
Lasting effects of the Photian Schism:
* Growing separation Centuries of growing separation occurred between the minds and institutions of the eastern and western Mediterranean worlds.
* Mutual distrust The mutual distrust shown in the time of Photius erupted again in the middle of the 11th century after papal enforcement of Latin customs upon Greeks in southern Italy.
* Formal condemnation From the time of Patriarch Photius (patriarch 858–867, 877–886), the Byzantines had formally condemned as heretical the Filioque clause.3 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Photian Schism, a 9th-century-ce controversy between Eastern and Western Christianity that was precipitated by the opposition of the Roman pope to the appointment by the Byzantine emperor Michael III of the lay scholar St. Photius to the patriarchate of Constantinople. The controversy also involved Eastern and Western ecclesiastical jurisdictional rights in the Bulgarian church, as well as a doctrinal dispute over the Filioque (“and from the Son”) clause that had been added to the Nicene Creed by the Latin church.
The end of iconoclasm in 843 left a legacy of faction. Ignatius, patriarch of Constantinople intermittently from 847 to 877, was exiled by the Byzantine government in 858. Michael III selected Photius, head of the imperial chancery, to replace him; Photius was elected patriarch and ordained within six days. Influenced by Ignatius’s supporters, Pope Nicholas I (reigned 858–867) challenged Photius’s elevation to the patriarchate, deploring as uncanonical the speed with which he had been advanced through the successive ranks of the hierarchy. The new patriarch, however, refused to bow.
Nicholas had long been angered by Byzantine missions among the Bulgars, whom he regarded as belonging to his sphere. When Nicholas wrote to the Bulgars attacking Greek practices, Photius replied by accusing the West of heretically altering the creed in saying that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and from the Son (Filioque). When Nicholas excommunicated Photius, the patriarch arranged a council, presided by Michael III, in 867 and declared Nicholas deposed. His position, however, was not strong enough for such impudence.
Shortly thereafter a new emperor, Basil the Macedonian (who murdered Michael on his bloody path to the throne), reinstated Ignatius. In 869 Nicholas’s successor, Adrian II (reigned 867–872), again condemned Photius—a stance confirmed at the Fourth Council of Constantinople. Adrian also sent legates to Constantinople to extort submission to papal supremacy from the Greeks. The Greeks resented the papal demands, and, when Ignatius died in 877, Photius quietly became patriarch again. Rome (at that moment needing Byzantine military support against Muslims in Sicily and southern Italy) reluctantly agreed to recognize Photius but on the condition of an apology and of the withdrawal of Greek missions to the Bulgars. Photius acknowledged Rome as the first see of Christendom, discreetly said nothing explicitly against the Filioque clause, and agreed to the provision that the Bulgars could be put under Roman jurisdiction provided that Greek missions were allowed to continue. The schism was thus effectively resolved.
The key conflicts between the two sees were matters of ecclesiastical supremacy, the liturgy, and clerical discipline; behind those sources of division lay the question of jurisdiction over the converts in Bulgaria. And behind that question may be found centuries of growing separation between the minds and institutions of the eastern and the western Mediterranean worlds, symbolized in the roles assumed by two among the major protagonists in the Photian Schism. Indeed, the main issue was whether Rome possessed monarchical power of jurisdiction over all churches (as Nicholas and Adrian assumed), or whether Rome was the senior of five semi-independent patriarchates (as Photius and the Greeks thought) and therefore could not canonically interfere with the internal affairs of another patriarchate.