Understanding the Byzantine Empire: Culture, Religion, and the Great Schism
The Byzantine Empire, centered in Constantinople, played a pivotal role in the development of Christianity. Under Emperor Justinian, significant reforms occurred, but conflicts arose, notably the Great Schism of 1054, which divided Eastern Orthodoxy and Roman Catholicism. Religious icons sparked riots and disagreements, while the Pope and Patriarch clashed over authority. As the two traditions grew apart, missionary efforts introduced the Cyrillic alphabet to the Slavic peoples, allowing them to access Christian texts in their own languages, marking a crucial moment in religious history.
Understanding the Byzantine Empire: Culture, Religion, and the Great Schism
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Presentation Transcript
Warm-up • What is the Byzantine Empire? • What is the Capital of the Byzantine Empire? • What is Justinian most known for during his rule?
The Great Schism Ms. Altman
The Church Divides • During the Byzantine Empire, Christianity underwent a dramatic development. • The Empire had grown to such an extent again that communication throughout the empire was difficult. • Christianity had begun to develop differently in the Western and Eastern Roman Empires.
Eastern Christianity • In the East, Christianity had built its heritage on the works of early Church fathers, they would write and describe how monks and Christians should behave.
Social Hierarchy Problems • In the Catholic Church, the top of the Hierarchy is the ___________ • Next come Bishops, then Cardinals, then Priests and Monks. • A Patriarch in the leading Bishop. • All church officials are referred to as the Clergy • Even the Pope or a Patriarch has to bow to the Emperor, yet an Emperor has to listen to a Pope to receive salvation. • This conflict between the Emperors and Popes relationship will cause conflicts for the rest of time.
Problem #1 • In 730, Emperor Leo III banned the use of icons, religious images used by the Eastern Christians to aid their devotions. The emperor viewed the use of icons as idol worship. • People responded with riots and the clergy rebelled. • In the West, the pope became involved in this eastern dispute and supported the use of icons. • In 843 the use of Icons was restored to the eastern churches.
Problem #2 • Excommunication- banning someone from the Church and salvation • In 1054 matters became worse when the pope and the patriarch excommunicated each other in a dispute over religious doctrine. • Christianity officially split between the Roman Catholic Church in the West and the Orthodox Church in the East, this became known as the Great Schism.
Orthodox Christianity • Orthodox means, “correct in teaching”. • As the West and East grew apart, the two traditions competed for converts. • Missionaries in the East took their form of Christianity to the Slavs, groups that inhabited the forests north of the Black Sea. • But how do you make someone understand something when you don’t speak the same language?
Cyrillic Alphabet • Saint Methodius and Saint Cyril worked among the Slavs and invented an alphabet for the Slavic languages. • This Cyrillic Alphabet is the alphabet used to write Bibles for the Orthodox Church, this is the first time the Bible is written in another language other than __________. • With an alphabet, Slavs would be able to read the Bible in their own tongues.
