After the reign of Emperor Constantine, two distinct Christian churches developed in the Roman Empire - one in the eastern part of the empire and one in the west. As time went by, these two churches became more culturally and religiously different, and they eventually became permanently divided. In this topic, you will examine the background to the major conflicts that caused a schism within Christianity, and the creation of two churches: The Roman Catholic Church and the Greek Orthodox Church.

Essential Questions

• What caused the schism in Christianity?
• What were the key elements of Byzantine Christianity, and how did it compare with Roman Catholicism?

 

Warm-Up

Have you ever been part of a conflict that started out as a small disagreement between two people and expanded to become a large disagreement between groups of people? Were there small events along the way that helped escalate the situation? Was there a point at which the situation could have been completely resolved?

Post your responses to these questions in the discussion area. Then, return to the topic discussion several times over the next few days to read your coursemates' posts. Reply to at least two of them, making sure to ask questions and encourage further conversation.