“What was the Great Schism?”……Answer: The Great Schism is the title given to the rift that formed in the Church in the eleventh century A.D. This separation led to the “Roman Catholic” Church, hereby known as the Western Church, and the “Greek Catholic” or “Greek Orthodox Church,” hereby known as the Eastern Church.……In order to best understand what happened, we need to examine history and the context in which that history occurred. The Church from the fourth century onwards had 5 patriarchs or heads, and each one governed a jurisdictional area or patriarchate. The patriarchates were located in the west in Rome, which spoke Latin, and in the east in Antioch, Alexandria, Jerusalem, and Byzantium, which all spoke Greek.……Wanting to create a new Christian empire, and due to the degree of paganism in Rome, the Emperor Constantine decided to move the capital of the Empire to Byzantium (which was later renamed Constantinople after him). Around this time, and shortly after this move, the barbaric “Germanic” tribes began invading across Europe. This invasion had the effect of plunging Europe into what is known as the “Dark Ages.” “What were the Dark Ages?”……Answer: The "Dark Ages" are commonly considered to be the early part of the period known as the Middle Ages. Often the term Dark Ages refers to the initial five hundred years following the fall of Rome in 476. It is thought of as beginning around 450 AD and continuing till 1000 AD. During this time period Rome and other cities deteriorated because of the invasions of barbarians from northern and central Europe. Since there was no longer an imperial authority with the power to protect the citizens of the cities, the urban population declined sharply during this period of history. Another consequence of the lack of a strong central power was the development of the feudal system especially from 900-1150 AD. During this feudal age, most parishes had rural populations and towns tended to be smaller less numerous. Castles and walled towns were guarded by the feudal lord's armies that provided security and safety to the peasants and townspeople from the invading barbarians. One of the consequences of the feudal system was the decline in church structures because of feudalistic pressures and control that was put upon them.……It was during this time that a new religious movement called monasticism developed. After the establishment of the Benedictine order at Monte Cassino in 529 AD, monasticism spread quickly throughout the medieval church and the monastery replaced the functions of the early church and became a link between the classical city and medieval city. The withdrawal of the church from cities to monasteries caused the church to be oriented more inwardly than outwardly. While sometimes the church is blamed for the spiritual darkness of the Dark Ages, in many ways it was the only light, no matter how dim, that shone in the darkness of surrounding barbarism and heathenism. During this time it was the priests and the monks that saved from the ruins of the Roman Empire the treasures of classical literature-along with the Holy Scriptures and patristic writings-and preserved them for the future. Certainly while the light that shone was more from ecclesiastical tradition and not always the clear light found in the Word of God, nevertheless it was light in the dark days of that time and it continued until the Reformation brought the true full light of Christ back to the world. Yet even throughout this spiritually dark time Christ had His witnesses in all ages and countries. The combination of economic and political turmoil, geographical distances, and linguistic differences, created a rift that caused the eventual estrangement of West from East.……Given these factors it is not surprising that very few western theologians spoke Greek, and instead wrote and spoke primarily in Latin. They did not have access to, nor could they read, the writings of the eastern theologians. As such, most of the western theology was based on a few key Latin theologians, whereas the East had numerous Greek theologians, and did not have to focus on any particular theologian’s teaching.……The flexibility of the Greek language (there was approximately ten times the vocabulary than Latin), allowed for more expressive and deeper writings. The decline of literacy in the west led to the clergy being the primary teaching authority. This is contrasted with the east where general education and more universities created a literate populace, and thus more lay theologians who played an active role in the church.……The growing list of differences between East and West simply exacerbated the tensions. One of the most striking differences was that as new people were evangelized in the west, they had to use Latin as their liturgical and ecclesiastical language, while looking to Rome for leadership. On the other hand, missionaries from the east translated the Bible into the language of the people. When the new churches in the East became mature, they became self-governing and administratively independent from their mother church. In the West, Rome began to require all clergy to be celibate; whereas in the East they retained married clergy.……So, while the "filioque controversy" was the cause of the "Great Schism," with the eastern and western bishops excommunicating each other, it was in fact only the breaking point. “What is the filioque clause / filioque controversy?”……Answer: The filioque clause was, and still is, a controversy in the church in relation to the Holy Spirit. The question is, "from whom did the Holy Spirit proceed, the Father, or the Father and the Son?" The word filioque means "and son" in Latin. It is referred to as the "filioque clause" because the phrase "and son" was added to the Nicene Creed, indicating that the Holy Spirit proceeded from the Father "and Son." There was so much contention over this issue that it eventually led to the split between the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches in A. D. 1054. The two churches are still not in agreement on the filioque clause.……John 14:26 tells us, "But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name…" John 15:26 tells us, "When the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father, He will testify about me." See also John 14:16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you foreverand Philippians 1:19. for I know that through your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliveranceThese Scriptures seem to indicate that the Spirit is sent out by both the Father and the Son. The essential matter in the filioque clause is a desire to protect the deity of the Holy Spirit. The Bible clearly teaches that the Holy Spirit is God Acts 5:3-4. Then Peter said, "Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land? 4 Didn't it belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, wasn't the money at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing? You have not lied to men but to God."Those who oppose the filioque clause object because they believe the Holy Spirit proceeding from the Father and the Son makes the Holy Spirit "subservient" to the Father and Son. Those who uphold the filioque clause believe that the Holy Spirit proceeding from both the Father and the Son does not impact the Spirit being equally God with the Father and the Son.……The filioque clause controversy likely involves an aspect of God’s person that we will never be able to fully grasp. God, who is an infinite being, is ultimately incomprehensible to our finite human minds. The Holy Spirit is God, and He was sent by God as Jesus Christ’s "replacement" here on earth. The question of whether the Holy Spirit was sent by the Father, or by the Father and the Son, likely cannot be decisively answered, nor does it absolutely need to be. The filioque clause will perhaps have to remain a controversy. Differences, disagreements, and distance had been laying the foundation for the Great Schism for centuries. The Great Schism was essentially the "forerunner" of the Protestant Reformation, with a refusal to accept the unbiblical concept of the supremacy of Rome at its core.