Hello Gabriel,
Those that have seperated themselves from the Chair of Peter have done so mainly beginning with issues concerning “authority”. The Orthodox have begin this protestant action before the reformers followed suit.
Thanks for sharing.
You should know as well as anyone that Orthodox protest nothing, and did not separate themselves from the church. The church at the time consisted of six major sovereign autocephalic churches, Rome being one, Cyprus another (in case you were wondering).
The history is clear. Two Cardinals, hastily acting while their Patriarch the bishop of Rome was dead, excommunicated themselves from the Patriarch of Constantinople and all who follow him. They acted in their Popes name although in fact he was dead, and the fact was already known in the east. These two men were part of the “Gregorian Reform” party in the church, and they sought to make the Papacy into a new thing.
Later Cardinal Frederic was elected Pope Steven, and he had a chance to rectify this illegal act, but he did nothing. He let it stand, and sealed the prospects of reconciliation in his time.
So please don’t try to pretend the Orthodox separated over authority. It was the Roman Catholic church and it’s own internal conflicts which caused the separation.
(Interestingly enough, according to the Canons, the patriarch of Constantinople was next in Primacy to the Patriarch at Rome, with the Papacy vacant even Romans would have to recognize Patriarch *Keroulários *the highest sitting Primate in the communion of Apostolic churches. Appeals over disputes, if any, would have to have been directed to Constantinople at the time.)
Just try to find any evidence that the eastern churches acted in concert, there is none. There is no theological point which caused the schism, nothing new introduced in the east which could have captured the hearts of all Patriarchs, Metropolitans and bishops of the church. There is not even any discussion of such a thing in the record…no disputes, no debates!
Nothing so dramatic and novel as a Luther or a Zwingli. Nothing so corrupt and abusive as a Medici Pope.
There is only this act of piracy on the parts of Cardinals Humbert and Frederic. With other sorry acts on the part of the west to follow.
One should note there are no old canons giving a Pope of Rome the many powers it claims today, and more telling, no new canons in the east after the schism to help the eastern churches “adjust” to it’s new arrangement without Roma “in charge”. There is nothing! The bishops of Rome never had universal jurisdiction, and never had the right to unilaterally proclaim dogma. Whatever this “Petrine Primacy” was supposed to mean for the church, it did not mean that.
Although there were never old canons delineating “Papal” authority, today the Roman Catholic church finds it necessary to pepper it’s code of Canons full of references to the “ultimate Authority”, the bishop of Rome. And these not authored by Councils, as might be expected, but written or rewritten by Curial departments under the bishop of Rome himself.
The church at Rome alienated them all, every ancient Apostolic church. Presumably with it’s own pride and ambition for power. A study of the politics of central Italy in the following centuries goes a long way to explaining why. That information is open to anyone for study.
The point I wish to make here is; Church community. The Orthodox church begins its community with the Bishop that unites its members in the Eucharist, thus opening itself to a local church community, thereby having multiple independent church’s with no one authority.
None but Christ Himself.
From this came the protestant reformation who subscribes to the “Word of God” which creates it own church community. Making each seperate church community itself having its own theological significance because of the “Word alone”.
The Protestant tendency to develop it’s own theological interpretations from scripture follow the western tendency to do so. Rome introduced theological novelties, and it’s offspring, the Protestant communities (founded almost entirely by Catholic priests trained in Roman Catholic schools, monasteries and seminaries) followed the same pattern.
To Orthodox, Protestantism and Roman Catholicism are two sides of the same coin. I mean no offense to either party, that’s just how it is understood.
Just a perspective; Peace be with you
Thanks and likewise.
Pax et Bonum,
Michael
