Schism in Christianity

For other uses, see Schism (disambiguation).

In Christianity, a schism occurs when a single religious body divides and becomes two separate religious bodies. The split can be violent or nonviolent but results in at least one of the two newly created bodies considering itself distinct from the other.

In the early Christian church, the formation of a distinction between the concepts of "heresy" and "schism" began. In ecclesiastical usage, the term "heresy" refers to a serious confrontation based on disagreements over fundamental issues of faith or morality, while the term "schism" usually means a lesser form of disunity caused by organizational or less important ideological differences. Heresy is rejection of a doctrine that a Church considered to be essential. Schism is a rejection of communion with the authorities of a Church.

Definition

In Christian theology, the concept of the unity of the Church was developed by the Apostles, Holy Fathers and apologists. The greatest contribution to the doctrine of church unity was made by the apostles Peter and Paul, Ignatius of Antioch, Irenaeus of Lyons, Cyprian of Carthage, Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian, John Chrysostom, and John of Damascus. Christian ecclesiology insists on the statement that unity and the Church are synonymous, as John Chrysostom wrote: "the name of the Church is not one of separation but of unity and harmony".

Canon 751 of the Latin Church's 1983 Code of Canon Law, promulgated by Pope John Paul II in 1983, defines schism as the following: "schism is the refusal of submission to the Supreme Pontiff or of communion with the members of the Church subject to him". This definition is reused in the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

List of Christian schisms

Major denominational families in Christianity:

Western Christianity

Eastern Christianity

Protestantism

Anabaptism

Anglicanism

Lutheranism

Reformed

(Latin Church)

Catholic Church

(Eastern Catholic Churches)

Eastern Orthodox Church

Oriental Orthodox Churches

Church of the East

Schism (1552)

Assyrian Church of the East

Ancient Church of the East

Protestant Reformation

(16th century)

Great Schism (1054)

Nestorian Schism (431)

Chalcedonian Schism (451)

Early Christianity

Great Church

(Full communion)

(Not shown are ante-Nicene, nontrinitarian, and restorationist denominations.)

Early Christian schisms

See also: Proto-orthodox Christianity, Great Church, and Diversity in early Christian theology

Christological spectrum within the Great Church after the Council of Nicea

Since the early days of Christianity, many disputes have arisen between members of the Church.

The following instances of denominations are considered as schisms of Early Christianity by the current mainstream Christian denominations. Many of the earliest schisms originated from the differing views of the Trinity.

Name of schism	Original location of schism	Start date	Schism resolved	Original Church body	Resulting Church bodies or schismatic bodies	Notes
Marcionian schism	Roma, Italia, Roman Empire	0144 c. 144	c. 10th century	Great Church	Marcionites	According to Tertullian and other writers of early proto-orthodox Christianity, the movement known as Marcionism began with the teachings and excommunication of Marcion of Sinope around 144. Marcion arrived in Rome c. 139–140, soon after the Bar Kokhba revolt, and is said to have contributed 200,000 sestertius to the church, using his personal wealth to fund an ecclesiastical organization. He was influenced by Gnosticism and taught that the teachings of Christ is incompatible with the actions of the God of the Old Testament. By the reign of emperor Commodus (180–192), Marcionism was divided into various opinions with various leaders; among whom was Apelles, whom Rhodo describes as "priding himself on his manner of life and his age, acknowledges one principle, but says that the prophecies are from an opposing principle, being led to this view by the responses of a maiden by name Philumene, who was possessed by a demon". However, "others, among whom were Potitus and Basilicus, held to two principles, as did Marcion himself. Others consider that there are not only two, but three natures. Of these, Syneros was the leader and chief.” In the early 3rd century, a splinter group of Marcionites was established by Prepon the Syrian, who claimed the existence of an intermediate spiritual entity between the good and evil gods.
Montanian schism	Ardabau, Mysia, Provincia Asia, Roman Empire	0157 c. 157	c. 9th century		Montanists	The schism started after the excommunication of Montanus, along with Prisca and Maximilla, who taught that the Holy Spirit enables new prophecies after Jesus Christ.
Sabellian schism	Roma, Italia, Roman Empire	220	–		Sabellians Patripassians	The schism started after Pope Callixtus I excommunicated Sabellius, who taught that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are different modes or aspects of one God, rather than three distinct persons in God Himself.
Monarchian schism	Antiochia, Provincia Syria, Roman Empire	269	–		Monarchians Adoptionists Modalistic Monarchians	Monarchianism first developed in the 2nd century, but only after Patriarch of Antioch Paul of Samosata was condemned by Synods of Antioch in 269 was it declared as heretical.
Donatian schism	Carthago, Provincia Africa Proconsularis, Roman Empire	313	c. 7th century		Donatists	The schism started when a commission appointed by Pope Miltiades condemned the Donatists, who denied the validity of sacraments administered by priests and bishops who had been traditores under the Diocletianic persecution.
Arian controversy	Nicaea, Provincia Asia, Roman Empire	July 325	c. 7th century		Arians	It began in 318 as a dispute between Pope Alexander I of Alexandria and a priest in his diocese named Arius, both Christian theologians from Alexandria.
Quartodeciman schism	Roman Empire		–		Quartodecimans	The Quartodeciman controversy in the Church was the question of whether to celebrate Easter on Sunday (the first day of the week), or at the time of sacrifice of the Passover lamb. According to Eusebius, in the last decade of the 2nd century a number of synods were convened to deal with the controversy, ruling unanimously that the celebration of Easter should be observed and be exclusively on Sunday. These synods were held in Palestine, Pontus and Osroene in the east, and in Rome and Gaul in the west. It is not known how long the Nisan 14 practice lasted. The church historian Socrates of Constantinople knew of quartodecimans who were deprived of their churches by John Chrysostom, and harassed in unspecified ways by Nestorius, both bishops of Constantinople. This indicates that the Nisan 14 practice, or a practice that was called by the same name, lingered into the 4th century.
Luciferian schism	Roman Empire	362	–		Luciferians	Lucifer of Cagliari might have been excommunicated, as is hinted in the writings of Ambrose of Milan and Augustine of Hippo, as well as Jerome, who refers to his followers as Luciferians.
Pneumatomachian controversy	Roman Empire	30 July 381	–		Pneumatomachians Semi-Arians	In 381, the First Council of Constantinople was called in an attempt to deal with the binitarians, who were mainly Semi-Arians at that time. However, when the Trinity was officially defined, the offended binitarians (Pneumatomachi and Semi-Arians) walked out.
Apollinarian schism	Constantinopolis, Provincia Europae, Dioecesis Thraciae, Praefectura praetorio Orientis, Eastern Roman Empire	30 July 381	late 4th century		Apollinarians	Apollinarism or Apollinarianism is a Christological position proposed by Apollinaris, bishop of Laodicea in Syria, that argues that Jesus had not a human body and sensitive soul, but a divine mind and body, the Divine Logos taking the place of the latter. It was deemed heretical by the First Council of Constantinople, and after Theodosius I ratified the conciliar canons, it virtually died out within the following decades.
Nestorian schism of 431	Ephesus, Provincia Asia, Dioecesis Asiana, Praefectura praetorio Orientis, Eastern Roman Empire	September 431	–		Nestorians	Eastern Roman Emperor Theodosius II convoked the Council of Ephesus, which became two rival councils, each led by patriarchs Cyril I of Alexandria and John I of Antioch, resulting in two sets of canons. The emperor finally ratified the canons of Cyril's party in September 431.
Chalcedonian schism	Chalcedon, Provincia Bithynia, Dioecesis Pontica, Praefectura praetorio Orientis, Eastern Roman Empire	451	–		Monophysites Miaphysites
Acacian schism	Eastern Roman Empire	484	519		Acacians	Between 498 and c. 505, there had been a Papal schism between Laurentius, who was elected by the Byzantine party, and Symmachus.
Nestorian schism of 486	Vēh-Ardašīr, Māḥozā, Asōristān, Kušt-i Xwarārān, Sasanian Empire	February 486	–		Church of the East	After the Council of Ephesus, churches aligned with Nestorius, centred on the School of Edessa, were separated from the rest of the Christian Church. Anathemised in the Roman Empire, they relocated to the Sasanian Empire, where they were welcomed by the Persian Christians, who had already declared independence from Constantinople in 424 in an attempt to cast off accusations of foreign allegiance. The Church of the East herself accepted the teaching of the first two ecumenical councils but ignored the 431 Council and those that followed, seeing them as concerning only the patriarchates of the Roman Empire, all of which were for it "Western Christianity."
Schism of the Three Chapters	Aquileia, Italia, Eastern Roman Empire	553	581 (Milan) 606 (Grado) 698 (Aquileia)		Patriarchate of Aquileia, dioceses in Liguria, Aemilia, Milan, and the Istrian peninsula	Part of the larger Three-Chapter Controversy.
Armenian schism of 555	Dvin, Armin, Sasanian Empire	555	–		Armenian Apostolic Church	Armenian Catholicosate of Dvin withdrew communion with the Chalcedonians but also adopted moderate form of the Aphthartodocetae (Julianism) or Phantasiasm by condemning "books on the corruption" (of the body of Christ), thus also standing outside of the Miaphysite Churches. In 726, during the Council of Manzikert John of Odzun established communion with the Syriac Orthodox Church, condemned Aphthartodocetae, and canonized Severus for the Armenians.
Coptic-Syriac schism of 586	Alexandria, Aegyptus, Eastern Roman Empire	586	616	Miaphysites	Coptic Orthodox Church Syriac Orthodox Church	It started with Pope Damian of Alexandria's dialogue with Patriarch Peter of Antioch, in which Damian accused his colleague of tritheism and was in turn accused of Sabellianism. Although Damian pulled support for his understanding of the Trinity from the Bible and the teachings of early Church Fathers, he was never able to persuade Peter and, as a result, he ordered that Peter's name not be mentioned in the Divine Liturgy while Peter remained alive. The schism between the Alexandrian and Antiochene churches lasted for almost a decade after Damian's death.
Armenian schism of 607	Dvin, Armin, Sasanian Empire	607	–	Armenian Apostolic Church	Georgian Orthodox Church	During the Third Council of Dvin, the Armenian Church condemned both the Chalcedonian Definition and Monophysitism. This Council mended the internal schism within the Armenian Church and established the formal split between the Armenian and Georgian Churches, who decided to join with Constantinople in upholding the Chalcedonian Definition.
Monothelite schism	Eastern Roman Empire	638	16 September 681	Great Church	Monothelites Monoenergists	The schism began with publication of the Ecthesis in 638, and was solidified by publication of Typos of Constans in 648. It was eventually resolved in the Sixth Ecumenical Council in Constantinople (681).
Maronite schism	Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch	16 September 681	1182 c. 1182 (with the Catholic Church)		Maronite Church	The Maronites kept their Monothelitist doctrine after the Third Council of Constantinople and elected their own patriarch shortly after. It reunited with the Catholic Church during the Crusades with the mediation by Latin Patriarch Aimery of Limoges.

Medieval schisms

Name of schism	Original location of schism	Start date	Schism resolved	Original Church body	Resulting Church bodies or Schismatic bodies	Notes
First Byzantine Iconoclasm	Kōnstăntīnoúpolĭs, Théma Thrāíkēs, Eastern Roman Empire	0726 c. 726	13 October 787	Great Church	Iconoclasts	The schism was resolved by the Second Council of Nicaea.
Second Byzantine Iconoclasm	Kōnstăntīnoúpolĭs, Théma Thrāíkēs, Eastern Roman Empire	815	4 March 843		Iconoclasts	The schism was triggered in 815 by Emperor Leo V's convocation of the Council of Constantinople. It was later overturned one final time by another Council of Constantinople, in 843.
Cathar movement	–	1147	–	Catholic Church	Cathars	–
Waldensian movement	–	1215	–		Waldensians	–
Bosnian movement	–	1252	–	Catholic Church Eastern Orthodox Church	Bosnian Church	–
Bohemian Reformation	Praha, Čechy, České království, Holy Roman Empire	18 October 1412	–	Catholic Church	Hussites	Before Jan Hus left Prague, he decided to take a step which gave a new dimension to his endeavors. He no longer put his trust in an indecisive King, a hostile Pope or an ineffective Council. On 18 October 1412, he appealed to Jesus Christ as the supreme judge. By appealing directly to the highest Christian authority, Christ himself, he bypassed the laws and structures of the medieval Church. For the Bohemian Reformation, this step was as significant as the 95 theses nailed to the door of the Wittenberg church by Martin Luther in 1517.

Breaks of communion

These are schisms involving most of the clergy to defect from a regional basis.

Medieval schism

Name of schism	Original location of schism	Start date	Schism resolved	Original Church body	Resulting Church bodies or schismatic bodies	Notes
Photian schism	Hagia Sophia, Kōnstăntīnoúpolĭs, Théma Thrāíkēs, Eastern Roman Empire	863	867	Great Church	Catholic Church Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
East–West Schism	Hagia Sophia, Kōnstăntīnoúpolĭs, Théma Thrāíkēs, Eastern Roman Empire	16 July 1054	–		Catholic Church Eastern Orthodox Church	The first action that led to a formal schism occurred in 1053 when Patriarch Michael I Cerularius of Constantinople ordered the closure of all Latin churches in Constantinople. In 1054, the legates of Pope Leo IX travelled to Constantinople to deny Cerularius the title of "ecumenical patriarch" and insist that he recognize the pope's claim to be the head of all of the churches, and to seek help from the Byzantine emperor, Constantine IX Monomachos, in view of the Norman conquest of southern Italy, and to respond to Leo of Ohrid's attacks on the use of unleavened bread and other Western customs, attacks that had the support of Cerularius. When the leader of the legation, Cardinal Humbert of Silva Candida, learned that Cerularius had refused to accept the demand, he excommunicated him on 16 July, and in response Cerularius excommunicated all the legates in a synod on 20 July. The validity of the Western legates' act is doubtful because Pope Leo IX had died and Ecumenical Patriarch Michael I Cerularius' excommunication only applied to the legates personally. At the time of the excommunications, many contemporary historians, including Byzantine chroniclers, did not consider the event significant. Relations continued as usual. There were pre-modern endeavors to end the schism, such as during the Second Council of Lyon (29 June 1274) and Council of Florence (6 June 1439), but both formally ended in repudiations in Council of Constantinople (1285) and Synod of Constantinople (1484), respectively. On 7 December 1965, Pope Paul VI and Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras I nullified the anathemas of 1054. The efforts of successive Ecumenical Patriarchs towards reconciliation with the Catholic Church, insofar, have often been the target of sharp internal criticism.
Bulgarian schism of 1185	Tarnovo, Second Bulgarian Empire	1185 c. 1185	1235	Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople	Archbishopric of Tarnovo	The Bulgarian church joined the Catholic Church in 1204.
Bulgarian schism of 1235	Second Bulgarian Empire	1235	–	Catholic Church	Tarnovo Patriarchate	Bulgaria returned to the Eastern Orthodox Church as an autocephalous church.
Serbian schism	Skopje, Kingdom/Empire of Serbia	16 April 1346	1375	Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople	Serbian Patriarchate of Peć
Moscow–Constantinople schism of 1467	Moskva, Grand Principality of Moscow	1467 c. 1467	1560		Metropolis of Moscow and all Rus'	It started de facto in 15 December 1448 when Jonah of Moscow was elected as the metropolitan of Kyiv and all Rus', then headquartered in Moscow, without the consent of the patriarch of Constantinople. His title was then changed unilaterally to metropolitan of Moscow and all Rus'. It became de jure schism when Dionysius I of Constantinople demanded that all the hierarchs of Muscovy submit to Gregory the Bulgarian, who was recognized by both Rome and Constantinople as the metropolitan of Kyiv, but was rejected by Ivan III of Russia who declared a complete rupture of relations with Constantinople. Relations were gradually restored and in 1560, the Patriarch of Constantinople considered the metropolitan of Moscow to be his exarch.

Early Modern Period

Name of schism	Original location of schism	Start date	Schism resolved	Original Church body	Resulting Church bodies or schismatic bodies	Notes
Ruthenian Schism of 1596	St. Nicholas Church, Brest, Brest Litovsk Voivodeship, Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth	9 October 1596	–	Eastern Orthodox Church	Ruthenian Uniate Church
Ethiopian schism of 1622	Ethiopian Empire	March 1622	14 June 1632	Coptic Orthodox Church	Latin Patriarchate of Ethiopia	Emperor Susenyos I converted to Catholicism. The newly appointed patriarch Afonso Mendes, however, rejected the validity of the Ethiopian sacraments and rebaptism and reordination and tried to impose an adopted variant of the Roman Rite.
Ethiopian schism of 1632	Ethiopian Empire	14 June 1632	–	Catholic Church	Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church	Susenyos declared freedom of religion for both Latin Catholics and Oriental Orthodox and then resigned for his son Fasilides, who immediately restored the Tewahedo Church with the consecration abuna by the Coptic pope.
Ruthenian Schism of 1646	Zakarpattia, Kingdom of Hungary	1646	–	Eastern Orthodox Church	Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church	Union of Uzhhorod was signed by 63 Ruthenian presbyters led by Vasyl Tarasovych and Petro Parfenii, forming Greek Catholic Eparchy of Mukachevo out from jurisdiction of Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople into communion with Papacy as Uniate.
Coonan Cross Oath	Mattancherry, Kingdom of Cochin	3 January 1653	31 January 1663 (majority)	Catholic Church	Malabar Church	With the Oath, the Saint Thomas Christians renounced the full communion with Rome leading to a schism. The majority returned in 1663 under Palliveettil Chandy. Some factions of the Puthankoottukar also reunited with Rome later on.
Settlement of 1690	Parliament House, Edinburgh, Kingdom of Scotland	7 June 1690	–	Church of England	Church of Scotland	The act abolished the episcopate in the Scottish church. The Scottish Episcopal Church became the new Scottish member of the Anglican Communion.
Romanian Schism of 1698	Gyulafehérvár, Principality of Transylvania, Kingdom of Hungary, Habsburg monarchy	7 October 1698	–	Eastern Orthodox Church	Romanian Greek Catholic Church	The church was forcefully fused into Romanian Orthodox Church in 1948 and was legalized again in 1989.

18th and 19th centuries

Name of schism	Original location of schism	Start date	Schism resolved	Original Church body	Resulting Church bodies or schismatic bodies	Notes
Anglican-Episcopal schism	Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States of America	27 September 1785	1789	Church of England	Episcopal Church	After Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence on 4 July 1776, several states passed laws making prayers for the king and British Parliament acts of treason. The Episcopal Church was then organized in 1785, and communion with the Church of England was formally restored in 1789.
Greek schism	Kingdom of Greece	25 July 1833	29 June 1850	Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople	Church of Greece
Bulgarian schism	Ḳosṭanṭīnīye, Sancak-i Ḳosṭanṭīnīye, Eyālet-i Rūm-ėli, Ottoman Empire	30 September 1872	22 February 1945		Bulgarian Exarchate	On 23 May 1872, Anthim I declared the autocephaly of the Bulgarian Exarchate. The patriarchs of Constantinople, Alexandria, and Antioch later declared the exarchate schismatic and declared its adherents excommunicated. The schism was later lifted in 1945.

20th centuries

Name of schism	Original location of schism	Start date	Schism resolved	Original Church body	Resulting Church bodies or schismatic bodies	Notes
UAOC schism of 1919	Ukrainian People's Republic	1 January 1919	27 November 1937	Russian Orthodox Church	Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (1919–1937)	Most of the clergy fell victim to the Great Purge.
AOCC schism of 1927	Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States of America	2 February 1927	1933 c. 1933 (majority)		American Orthodox Catholic Church	Some continuing churches exist as of 2026.
BAOC schism of 1927	Minsk, Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics	9 August 1927	1939 c. 1939		Belarusian Autocephalous Orthodox Church	Most of the clergy fell victim to the Great Purge.
Russian schism of 1927	Palace of the Patriarchate, Sremski Karlovci, Južnobački okrug, Srem Oblast, Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes	5 September 1927	17 May 2007		Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia
UAOC schism of 1942	Pinsk, Wolhynien und Podolien, Reichskommissariat Ukraine	8 February 1942	12 March 1995		Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (1942—1944)	Mostly exists in exile since 1944. Despite its current name, Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church in Diaspora, became an autonomous branch of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople in 1995.
Croatian schism of 1942	Independent State of Croatia	4 April 1942	8 May 1945	Serbian Orthodox Church	Croatian Orthodox Church
BAOC schism of 1942	Minsk, Generalbezirk Weißruthenien, Reichskommissariat Ostland	30 August 1942	–	Russian Orthodox Church	Belarusian Autocephalous Orthodox Church	Mostly exists in exile since 1944.
Macedonian schism of 1967	Ohrid, Socialist Republic of Macedonia, Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia	19 July 1967	16 May 2022	Serbian Orthodox Church	Macedonian Orthodox Church	The church reunited for a interim period and was officially granted autocephaly on 5 June 2022.
UAOC schism of 1989	Ukraine	22 October 1989	15 December 2018	Russian Orthodox Church	Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church	Their merger into the Orthodox Church of Ukraine caused the Moscow–Constantinople schism of 2018.
UOC-KP schism of 1992	Ukraine	11 June 1992			Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Kyiv Patriarchate
MOC schism of 1993	Cetinje, Republic of Montenegro, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia	31 October 1993	–	Serbian Orthodox Church	Montenegrin Orthodox Church
Moscow–Constantinople schism of 1996	Danilov Monastery, Danílovskiy rayon, Yuzhny administrativny okrug, Gorod federal'nogo znacheniya Moskva, Russian Federation	23 February 1996	16 May 1996	Eastern Orthodox Church	Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople Russian Orthodox Church	It began on 23 February 1996 when the Russian Orthodox Church severed full communion with the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, and ended on 16 May 1996 when the Russian Orthodox Church and the Ecumenical Patriarchate reached an agreement.

21th centuries

Name of schism	Original location of schism	Start date	Schism resolved	Original Church body	Resulting Church bodies or schismatic bodies	Notes
PNCC schism of 2003		2003	–	Union of Utrecht (Old Catholic)	Polish National Catholic Church
Abkhazian schism	Abkhazia, Georgia	15 September 2009	–	Georgian Orthodox Church	Abkhazian Orthodox Church	Effectively in schism since the War in Abkhazia but only declared de jure autocephaly in 2009.
Presbyterian schism of 2018	Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom	9 June 2018	–	Church of Scotland	Presbyterian Church in Ireland	The Presbyterian Church in Ireland voted to loosen its ties to the Church of Scotland over same-sex marriage.
Moscow–Constantinople schism of 2018	Danilov Monastery, Danílovskiy rayon, Yuzhny administrativny okrug, Gorod federal'nogo znacheniya Moskva, Russian Federation	15 October 2018	–	Eastern Orthodox Church	Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople Russian Orthodox Church	Includes other schisms in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Ukraine.
Tigrayan schism	Tigray Region, Ethiopia	7 May 2021	–	Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church	Tigrayan Orthodox Tewahedo Church
Abune Mathias–Abune Sawiros schism	Oromia Region, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia	22 January 2023	16 February 2023		Orthodox Tewahedo Church of Oromia and Nations and Nationalities
Anglican schism of 2025	Kigali, Republic of Rwanda	16 October 2025	–	Anglican Communion	Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans	Part of Anglican realignment.

Disputed leadership elections

See also: Diocesan feud and Antipope

Name of schism	Original location of schism	Start date	Schism resolved	Original Church body	Resulting Church bodies or Schismatic bodies	Notes
Hippolytian(?) schism	Roma, Italia, Roman Empire	20 December 217	28 September 235	Diocese of Rome
Novatian schism	Roma, Italia, Roman Empire	251	8th century		Novatianists	The schism started after Novatian was consecrated bishop by three bishops of Italy and declared himself to be the true Pope in opposition to Pope Cornelius. He held that lapsed Christians, who had not maintained their confession of faith under persecution, may not be received again into communion with the church.
Meletian schism	Antiochia, Provincia Syria, Dioecesis Orientis, Praefectura praetorio Orientis, Roman Empire	361	415	Patriarchate of Antioch	Meletians Eustathians	The schism originated when Patriarch Meletius of Antioch was opposed by those faithful to the memory of Patriarch Eustathius of Antioch due to the unclarity of his theological position.
Wibertine schism	Brixen, Prince-Bishopric of Brixen, Holy Roman Empire	15 June 1080	22 April 1121	Catholic Church	Gregory VII line Clement III line	During the Investiture Controversy, Emperor Henry IV organised a synod to declare Pope Gregory VII deposed in 1080 and appointed Antipope Clement III in 1084. His son Henry V continued to appoint antipopes until 1121. The controversy was resolved between 1122 and 1123.
Double papal election of 1130	Church of San Marco, Roma, Papal States	14 February 1130	29 May 1138		Innocent II line Anacletus II line	Anacletus II died in 25 January 1138 and was succeeded by Victor IV until his submission to Innocent II on 29 May 1138.
Double papal election of 1159	Old St. Peter's Basilica, Roma, Papal States	7 September 1159	January 1180		Alexander III line Victor IV line	Victor IV died in 20 April 1164 and was succeeded by Paschal III, and then Callixtus III until the latter's submission to Alexander III on 29 August 1178. On 29 September 1179, Innocent III was elected, who eventually was captured by forces loyal to Alexander III and spent his remaining days in the abbey of La Trinità della Cava.
Epirote schism	Arta, Empire of Thessalonica	1227 c. 1227	1233 c. 1233	Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople	Archbishopric of Ohrid	It is related to the Struggle for Constantinople (1204–1261). Demetrius of Ohrid did not recognise the Ecumenical Patriarch in the Empire of Nicaea and saw the creation of the Eparchy of Žiča as illegitimate. The conflict escalated when crowned Theodore of Epirus emperor in c. 1225. The schism officially started when the Nicene patriarch rejected the demands of the Council of Arta in 1227. Under Theodore's son Manuel Doukas, a synod resolved the schism.
Arsenite Schism	Kōnstăntīnoúpolĭs, Théma Thrāíkēs, Eastern Roman Empire	28 December 1266	1315		Arsenius I's supporters Joseph I's supporters	After Michael VIII Palaiologos captured Constantinople, he blinded his young co-emperor John IV Doukas Laskaris, for which Patriarch Arsenius excommunicated him, even refusing to lift it after his deposition from the patriarchate. On 28 December 1266, Joseph I was elected patriarch and promptly absolved the emperor, and their supporters went into dispute over it. This situation lasted until 1315, when a reconciliation was pronounced by the patriarch Nephon I of Constantinople.
Syriac Orthodox schism of 1292	Gawikat, Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia	November 1292	1445	Syriac Orthodox Church	Michael II line (Gawikat) Ignatius Constantine line (Malīṭīná)	Following the death of the patriarch Philoxenus I Nemrud in July 1292, Ignatius Constantine was consecrated on November 1292 in Melitene. On the same month, Michael II was also consecrated in Gawikat. In 1293, the two claimants to the Syriac patriarchate of Antioch were joined by Ignatius bar Wahib in Mardin. In c. 1360 the patriarchate in Melitene lapsed, and then in 1444–1445, Ignatius Behnam Hadloyo of the Mardin line was also recognized as the legitimate patriarch by hierarchs of the Gawikat line.
Papal schism of 1328	Old St. Peter's Basilica, Roma, Papal States	12 May 1328	25 July 1330	Catholic Church	John XXII line Nicholas V line	Nicholas V was appointed by Louis IV becoming the first antipope installed by an emperor against a well established pope in almost two centuries.
Syriac Orthodox schism of 1364	Monastery of Saint Jacob, Salaḥ, Ṭūr ʿAḇdīn, Emirate of Hasankeyf	1364	1840	Syriac Orthodox Church	Ignatius Ismail line (Mardīn) Ignatius Saba I line (Salaḥ)	This schism established the lineage of Syriac Orthodox Patriarchs of Tur Abdin until 1839–1840.
Western Schism	Fondi, Contea di Fondi, Kingdom of Naples	20 September 1378	11 November 1417	Catholic Church	Urban VI line Clement VII line	Pope Gregory XI, the last Avignon pope, decided to return to Rome on 17 January 1377, then he died in the Vatican palace on 27 March 1378.. The Romans put into operation a plan to use intimidation and violence (impressio et metus) to ensure the election of a Roman pope after 70 years in Avignon. On 8 April 1378, the cardinals elected Bartolomeo Prignano, as Pope Urban VI. The majority of the cardinal-electors quickly regretted their decision and removed themselves to Anagni. Meeting at Fondi, thirteen cardinals elected Count Robert of Geneva as Pope Clement VII on 20 September 1378. The dissident cardinals argued that the election of Urban VI was invalid because it had been out of fear of the rioting Roman crowds. Later the two papal lines were joined by a third, when on 5 June 1409, the Council of Pisa attempted to depose both the Roman and Avignon pontifical claimants, but proceeded to inflame the problem even further by electing Petros Philargos as Alexander V. It was eventually resolved in the Council of Constance and the election of Oddone Colonna as Pope Martin V. However, two Avignonian cardinals acted as Antipope Benedict XIV known as the "hidden pope" up to c. 1437.
Papal schism of 1439	Basel, Fürstbistum Basel, Holy Roman Empire	5 November 1439	7 April 1449		Eugene IV line Felix V line	–
Georgian schism	Kingdom of Imereti	1470 c. 1470	1545 c. 1545	Georgian Orthodox Church	Catholicate of Abkhazia	The communion was restored in a joint synod in 1540s.
Assyrian schism of 1552	Musul, Sancak-i Musul, Eyālet-i Baġdād, Ottoman Empire	1552	–	Church of the East	Shemon VII Ishoyahb line Shimun VIII Yohannan Sulaqa line
Syriac Orthodox schism of 1662	Ḥaleb, Sancak-i Ḥaleb, Eyālet-i Ḥaleb, Ottoman Empire	1662	–	Syriac Patriarchate of Antioch	Ignatius Andrew Akijan line Ignatius Abdulmasih I line
Assyrian schism of 1669	Amid, Sancak-i Hamid, Eyālet-i Diyār-i Bekr, Ottoman Empire	1670 c. 1670	–	Church of the East	Joseph I line	He was consecrated as bishop of Amid and converted to Eastern Catholicism leading to his defrocking by Eliya IX of the Shemon line. He was recognised as patriarch in 1677 c. 1677 by Ottoman authorities before getting Papal backing to become head of the Chaldean Catholic Church replacing the Shimun line.
Melkite schism of 1673	Ḳosṭanṭīnīye, Sancak-i Ḳosṭanṭīnīye, Eyālet-i Rūm-ėli, Ottoman Empire	1673	1682	Melkite Patriarchate of Antioch	Cyril V Zaim line Neophytos of Chios line
Melkite schism of 1685	Ḳosṭanṭīnīye, Sancak-i Ḳosṭanṭīnīye, Eyālet-i Rūm-ėli, Ottoman Empire	5 July 1685	October 1694		Cyril V Zaim line Athanasius III Dabbas line
Melkite schism of 1724	Ḳosṭanṭīnīye, Sancak-i Ḳosṭanṭīnīye, Eyālet-i Rūm-ėli, Ottoman Empire	8 October 1724	–		Melkite Catholic Patriarchate of Antioch Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch	On 24 September 1724, Cyril VI Tanas was elected patriarch of Antioch and sought communion with Rome. Patriarch Jeremias III of Constantinople declared the election invalid and appointed Sylvester of Antioch, whom he consecrated on 8 October, forming parallel successions. The papacy moved with great caution, and only recognized Cyril VI in 1730.
Ultrajectine schism of 1724	Amsterdam, Graafschap Holland, Dutch Republic	15 October 1724	–	Catholic Church (Archdiocese of Utrecht)	Jansenist Church of Holland	Dominique Marie Varlet consecrated Cornelius van Steenoven as archbishop of Utrecht on 15 October 1724 without papal mandate. Pope Benedict XIII formally declared the consecration "illicit and execrable" and censured Varlet on 21 February 1725. After the restoration of Roman Catholic hierarchy in 1853, the Ultrajectine church renamed itself Old Catholic.
Assyrian schism of 1780	Musul, Sancak-i Musul, Eyālet-i Baġdād, Ottoman Empire	1780 c. 1780	1804	Church of the East	Eliya XII line Yohannan VIII Hormizd line	Yohannan outlived his cousin Eliya thus reuniting the Shemon VII Ishoyahb factions. In 1827, he outlived Joseph V and became the head of the Chaldean Catholic Church replacing the Joseph I line.
Mormon succession crisis	Carthage, Hancock County, Illinois, United States of America	27 June 1844	–	Church of Christ (Latter Day Saints)	LDS church Bickertonite church Strangite church Church of Christ (Temple Lot) Church of Christ With the Elijah Message Cutlerite church Community of Christ
Watch Tower Society presidency dispute	Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States of America	8 August 1917	–	Watch Tower Society	Joseph Franklin Rutherford's faction former Watch Tower Society directors
Ethiopian Schism of 1991	Transitional Government of Ethiopia	1991	28 July 2018	Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church	Ethiopian Orthodox Church in Exile
Bulgarian Schism of 1996	Republic of Bulgaria	4 July 1996	20 May 2015	Bulgarian Orthodox Church	Bulgarian Orthodox Church – Alternative synod

Foundations of Protestant denominations

16th century schisms

These include Reformations in those regions where the original clergy was largely replaced.

Protestant regions within the Holy Roman Empire (including Switzerland and Bohemia)

Name of schism	Original location of schism	Start date	Schism resolved	Original Church body	Resulting Church bodies or Schismatic bodies	Notes
Protestant Reformation	Worms, Freie und Reichsstädte Worms, Oberrheinischer Reichskreis, Holy Roman Empire	25 May 1521	–	Catholic Church	Lutherans	Although the Reformation is usually considered to have begun in 1517, this edict is the first overt schism associated with it.
Reformation in Zürich	Zürich, Republik Zürich, Corpus helveticum, Holy Roman Empire	1523	–		Zwinglians	Initially sparked during the Affair of the Sausages by Huldrych Zwingli in 1522, his ideas gained the support of the magistrates of the city of Zürich and Katharina von Zimmern, the princess-abbes of Fraumünster. One of the earliest episodes of the Reformation in Switzerland.
Radical Reformation	Zürich, Republik Zürich, Corpus helveticum, Holy Roman Empire	1525	–	Zwinglians	Anabaptists	Anabaptism in Switzerland began as an offshoot of the church reforms instigated by Huldrych Zwingli.
Reformation in Sweden	Västerås, Västmanlandskap, Svealand, Kingdom of Sweden	22 June 1527	–	Catholic Church	Church of Sweden	It resulted in both Sweden and Finland becoming Protestant countries, as the latter formed an integral part of Sweden at the time. Most of the clergy remained in place.
English Reformation	Palace of Westminster, Westminster, Middlesex, Kingdom of England	3 November 1534	–		Church of England	Originally started as an attempt by King Henry VIII of England to circumvent his inability to obtain a papal-sanctioned annulment from his marriage to Catherine of Aragon. In 1531, Henry created the title Supreme Head of the Church of England for himself, which was put into law by the 1534 Act of Supremacy. The parliament of Ireland followed suit in 1537, but most of the Irish population remained Catholic. The schism was formally ended when Mary I reunited the English Church with the Roman Catholic Church, but it was reignited by Pope Pius V's excommunication of Elizabeth I through the bull Regnans in Excelsis, issued on 25 February 1570. Most of the clergy remained in place.
Reformation in Geneva	Genève, République de Genève, Holy Roman Empire	21 May 1536	–		Calvinists	Part of the Reformation in Switzerland.
Reformation in Denmark–Norway	København, Sokkelund Herred, København Amt, Sjælland, Denmark–Norway	2 September 1537	–		Church of Denmark Church of Norway	On 2 September 1537, Christian III of Denmark signed a new Church order for the kingdoms of Denmark and Norway and all his other possessions.
Reformation in the Kingdom of Hungary	Royal Hungary, Eastern Hungarian Kingdom	1550 c. 1550	–		Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Hungary Reformed Church in Hungary Unitarian Church of Transylvania
Reformation in France	Paris, Kingdom of France	28 May 1559	–		Reformed Church of France
Scottish Reformation	Parliament House, Edinburgh, Edinburghshire, Kingdom of Scotland	August 1560	–		Church of Scotland	Most of the clergy remained in place.
Brownist schism	London, City of London, Kingdom of England	March 1566	–	Church of England	London underground church	The forerunners of the Pilgrims and modern Congregationalism.

17th century schisms

Name of schism	Original location of schism	Start date	Schism resolved	Original Church body	Resulting Church bodies or schismatic bodies	Notes
Baptist movement	Amsterdam, Graafschap Holland, Dutch Republic	1609	–	Church of England	Baptists	The movement later came to be called General Baptists, as they held Arminian soteriology, in contrast to the Reformed Baptists who held Calvinistic soteriology.
Reformed Baptist movement	Kingdom of England	1630 c. 1630	–		Reformed Baptists
Sabbatarian schism	Dés, Principality of Transylvania	7 July 1638	1944 c. 1944	Unitarian Church of Transylvania	Szekler Sabbatarians	The Sabbatarians were expelled from the church and remained their own group until they were murdered during the Holocaust.
Great Ejection	Palace of Westminster, Westminster, Middlesex, Kingdom of England	19 May 1662	–	Church of England	Puritans	Ejection followed the 1662 Act of Uniformity in England. Several thousand Puritan ministers were forced out of their positions in the Church of England following the Restoration of Charles II. It was a consequence (not necessarily an intended one) of the Savoy Conference of 1661.
Nonjuring schism	Palace of Westminster, Westminster, Middlesex, Kingdom of England	24 April 1688	1779 c. 1779		Non-Jurors	After Glorious Revolution, clergy had to swear an oath of allegiance to the new monarchs. The consecutively deaths of all their original bishops, James II, William III and George Hickes caused many to return to the Church of England in 1710s. The remaining group began to split into "Usagers" and "Non-Usagers" over liturgical questions. The last non-juring bishop in regular succession died in 1779. Another line ended in 1805 with some alleged minor groups continuing into the 19th century.
	Parliament House, Edinburgh, Kingdom of Scotland	7 June 1690	–	Church of Scotland	Scottish Episcopal Church	An act was passed which restored previously expelled Presbyterian clergy and forbade the bishops to continue their ministry.
	Palace of Westminster, Westminster, Middlesex, Kingdom of Great Britain	3 March 1712	24 October 1804	Scottish Episcopal Church	Qualified chapels	The Toleration Act 1712 allowed the Episcopalians to practice as long as they swore an oath of abjuration. Following failed Jacobite risings, "qualified chapels" were limited to those clergy ordained by the Churches of England and Ireland. After the death of the Jacobite pretender Charles Edward Stuart, the Episcopalians started to abandon their resistance against the ruling dynasty. The qualified chapels gradually merged into the Episcopal Church after the church adopted the Thirty-nine Articles of the Anglican church.

18th century schisms

Name of schism	Original location of schism	Start date	Schism resolved	Original Church body	Resulting Church bodies or schismatic bodies	Notes
First Secession	Scotland, Kingdom of Great Britain	December 1733	2 October 1929	Church of Scotland	Associate Presbytery	The dispute ties back to the Church Patronage Act of 1711. They merged with other offspring. The majority of the latest iteration United Free Church of Scotland merged back in 1929.
Second Secession	Colinsburgh, Fife, Scotland, Kingdom of Great Britain	1761			Relief Church	The split occurred after the Inverkeithing case which is also related to the 1711 act. They merged with other offspring. The majority of the latest iteration United Free Church of Scotland merged back in 1929.
Anglican-Methodist schism in the United States	Lovely Lane Chapel, Baltimore, Baltimore County, State of Maryland, United States of America	December 1784	–	Church of England	Methodist Episcopal Church	John Wesley ordained ministers for America on 1 September 1784, but the formal establishment of the Methodist Episcopal Church was dated from the Christmas Conference in December 1784. In 1788, Thomas Coke attempted a secret unification with the Episcopal Church, which was ultimately blocked by Francis Asbury.
Swedenborgian movement	England and Wales, Kingdom of Great Britain	7 May 1787	–		The New Church	In 1787, 15 years after Emanuel Swedenborg's death, his followers formally founded the New Church. Part of Restorationism.
Anglican-Methodist schism in Great Britain	England and Wales, Kingdom of Great Britain	1795	–		Wesleyan Methodist Church	Formal schism between the English Anglicans and Methodists was entrenched by the decision of the Methodist Conference of 1795 to permit the administration of the Lord's Supper in any chapel where both a majority of the trustees and a majority of the stewards and leaders allowed it.

19th century schisms

Name of schism	Original location of schism	Start date	Schism resolved	Original Church body	Resulting Church bodies or schismatic bodies	Notes
Stone movement	Cane Ridge Meeting House, Cane Ridge, Bourbon County, Commonwealth of Kentucky, United States of America	10 September 1803	–	Presbyterian Church in the United States of America	Springfield Presbytery	On 10 September 1803, Barton W. Stone and others formed the Springfield presbytery, breaking away from the Kentucky Synod of the Presbyterian Church. Later, the presbytery was dissolved on 28 June 1804 and they adopted the name "Christian" to identify their group. Most of this movement united with the Campbell movement on 1 January 1832 with a handshake between Stone and "Raccoon" John Smith, to become the Restoration Movement. Part of Restorationism.
Campbell movement	Washington, Washington County, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States of America	7 September 1809	–	Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church	Christian Association of Washington	On 17 August 1809, Thomas Campbell and 21 of his associates formed the Christian Association of Washington, which becomes the Brush Run Church on 4 May 1811. Later they adopted the name "Disciples". They eventually merged with the above-mentioned Stone movement. Part of Restorationism.
Old Lutheran schism	Breslau, Province of Silesia, Kingdom of Prussia	1830 c. 1830	–	Prussian Union of Churches	Old Lutherans
Afscheiding of 1834	Ulrum, Provincie Groningen, Kingdom of the Netherlands	14 October 1834	–	Dutch Reformed Church	Reformed Churches under the Cross Separated Christian Congregations
Irving movement	Annan, Annandale, Dumfriesshire, Scotland, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland	14 July 1835	–	Church of Scotland	Irvingians	Edward Irving was deposed on the charges of heresy in March 1833. He died on 7 December 1834, and then in 14 July 1835, his followers formally established the Catholic Apostolic Church. Part of Restorationism.
Thomas movement	United States of America	1837	–	Restoration Movement	John Thomas and his associates	John Thomas was disfellowshipped on 1837, but his movement didn't have any official name until 1864, when it became "Christadelphians", to enable them to be conscientious objectors. Part of Restorationism.
Disruption of 1843	Scotland, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland	23 May 1843	2 October 1929 (majority)	Church of Scotland	Free Church of Scotland	The main conflict was over whether the Church of Scotland or the British Government had the power to control clerical positions and benefits. On 18 May 1843, 121 ministers and 73 elders led by David Welsh met at the Church of St Andrew in George Street, Edinburgh. After Welsh read a Protest, the group left St. Andrews and walked down the hill to the Tanfield Hall at Canonmills. There they held the first meeting of the Free Church of Scotland, the Disruption Assembly. Thomas Chalmers was appointed the first Moderator. On 23 May 1843, a second meeting was held for the signing of the Act of Separation by the ministers. Eventually, 474 of about 1,200 ministers left the Church of Scotland for the Free Church. The majority merged into the United Free Church of Scotland which returned to the Church of Scotland in 1929.
Anglican schism of 1844	United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland	1844	–	Church of England	Free Church of England
Armenian Evangelical schism	Ḳosṭanṭīnīye, Sancak-i Ḳosṭanṭīnīye, Eyālet-i Rūm-ėli, Ottoman Empire	1 July 1846	–	Armenian Apostolic Church	Armenian Evangelical Church	Part of Eastern Protestant reformations/schisms.
Booth movement	East End of London, Middlesex, England and Wales, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland	1861	–	Methodist New Connexion	William Booth and his associates	William Booth became an independent evangelist in 1861, and with his wife Catherine founded the East London Christian Mission on 2 July 1865 in the East End of London. The name "The Salvation Army" developed from an incident on 19 and 20 May 1878. Part of Holiness movement.
Irvingian schism of 1863	Berlin, Provinz Brandenburg, Kingdom of Prussia	6 February 1863	–	Catholic Apostolic Church	Hamburg congregation	Francis Woodhouse wrote the formal expulsion of the Hamburg congregation, which eventually became the New Apostolic Church. Part of Restorationism.
Mar Thoma schism	Āmid/Diyār-i Bekr, Sancak-i Diyār-i Bekr, Kurdistan Eyalet, Ottoman Empire	3 April 1865	–	Malankara Church	Mar Thoma Syrian Church	Part of Eastern Protestant reformations/schisms.
Salvation Army schism of 1884	United States of America	24 October 1884	–	Salvation Army	Salvation Army of America	The international Salvation Army sued the Salvation Army of America, and in 1913 it became American Rescue Workers.
Doleantie of 1886	Bijbelgordel	7 February 1886	1 May 2004	Dutch Reformed Church	Reformed Churches in the Netherlands
Salvation Army schism of 1892	Dominion of Canada	30 September 1892	–	Salvation Army	United Christian Workers	United Christian Workers became the Christian Workers' Church of Canada in 1922, and then Associated Gospel Churches in 1925. It was federally incorporated March 18, 1925.
Salvation Army schism of 1896	Cooper Union, Manhattan, New York County, State of New York, United States of America	8 March 1896	–		Volunteers of America	Ballington and his wife Maud Booth founded the Volunteers of America in 8 March 1896 after disagreements with other Salvation Army leaders, including Ballington Booth's brother Bramwell Booth.

20th century schisms

Name of schism	Original location of schism	Start date	Schism resolved	Original Church body	Resulting Church bodies or schismatic bodies	Notes
Liberal Catholic movement	England and Wales, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland	13 February 1916	–	Church of England	Liberal Catholic Church	J. I. Wedgwood and Charles Webster Leadbeater, two Theosophists, founded the church. Wedgwood had been consecrated as a bishop in 1916 in England by Frederick Samuel Willoughby; Willoughby had been consecrated as bishop by Arnold Harris Mathew of the Old Roman Catholic Church in Great Britain, but had later been disowned by Mathew. Wedgwood then travelled to Australia and ordained and consecrated Leadbeater.
Czechoslovak schism of 1924	Praha, Bohemia, Czechoslovak Republic	30 August 1924	–	Czechoslovak Hussite Church	Orthodox Church of the Czech Lands and Slovakia	The split occurred over apostolic succession.
PCUSA schism of 1936	Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States of America	11 June 1936	–	Presbyterian Church in the United States of America	Presbyterian Church of America	In 1939, after PCUSA filed a lawsuit against the fledgling denomination for its name choice, the denomination adopted its current name, the Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC).Part of Fundamentalist–modernist controversy.
STECI schism of 1961	Kerala, Republic of India	1961	–	Mar Thoma Syrian Church	St. Thomas Evangelical Church of India
Lutheran schism of 1963	United States of America	1963	–	Evangelical Lutheran Synodical Conference of North America	Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod Evangelical Lutheran Synod	The churches started to terminate their fellowships from 1955. ELS and WELS remain in fellowship after they left the conference.
Anglican schism of 1966	Kerala, Republic of India	1966	–	Church of South India	CMS Anglican Church	Founded by Dalit Christians and sees itself as the true Anglican church in India as opposed to the Syrian dominated united CSI.
Church of God schism of 1972	Kerala, Republic of India	1972	–	Church of God (Full Gospel) in India	Church of God (Kerala Division) Church of God (Kerala State)	The church was divided across caste lines.
LCMS schism of 1976	Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States of America	3 December 1976	–	Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod	Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches	During the 1960s, many clergy and members of the LCMS grew concerned about the direction of education at their flagship seminary, Concordia Seminary, in St. Louis, Missouri. Professors at Concordia Seminary had, in the 1950s and 1960s, begun to utilize the historical-critical method to analyze the Bible rather than the traditional historical-grammatical method that considered scripture to be the inerrant Word of God. After attempts at compromise failed, on January 20, 1974, the seminary Board of Control chose to suspend the seminary president John Tietjen, leading to a walkout of most faculty and students, and the formation of Seminex. 200 liberal and moderate congregations split from the LCMS to form the Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches (AELC), leaving the LCMS a more conservative body than it had been in 1969. The AELC itself would later merge with other liberal and moderate Lutheran churches to form the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Part of Fundamentalist–modernist controversy.
Continuing Anglican movement	City of St. Louis, State of Missouri, United States of America	16 September 1977	–	Episcopal Church Anglican Church of Canada	Fellowship of Concerned Churchmen	In 1976, the General Convention of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America voted to approve the ordination of women to the priesthood and the episcopate, and also provisionally adopted a new and doctrinally controversial Book of Common Prayer, later called the 1979 version. Between 14–16 September 1977, several thousand dissenting clergy and laypersons responded to those actions by meeting in St. Louis, Missouri, under the auspices of the Fellowship of Concerned Churchmen, where they adopted a theological statement, the Affirmation of St. Louis. The Affirmation expressed a determination "to continue in the Catholic Faith, Apostolic Order, Orthodox Worship, and Evangelical Witness of the traditional Anglican Church, doing all things necessary for the continuance of the same". Out of this meeting came a new church with the provisional name "Anglican Church in North America (Episcopal)". The first bishops of the new church, later named the Anglican Catholic Church, were consecrated on January 28, 1978, in Denver, Colorado.
SBC schism of 1987	Providence Baptist Church, Charlotte, State of North Carolina, United States of America	12 February 1987	–	Southern Baptist Convention	Southern Baptist Alliance	The Southern Baptist Alliance subsequently changed its name to the Alliance of Baptists in 1992.

21th century schisms

Name of schism	Original location of schism	Start date	Schism resolved	Original Church body	Resulting Church bodies or schismatic bodies	Notes
SBC schism of 2002	United States of America	2002	–	Southern Baptist Convention	Cooperative Baptist Fellowship
Anglican schism of 2008	West Chicago, DuPage County, State of Illinois, United States of America	3 December 2008	–	Episcopal Church Anglican Church of Canada	Common Cause Partnership	The partnership founded the Anglican Church in North America on 22 June 2009. Part of Anglican realignment.
Lutheran schism of 2010	Grove City, Franklin County, State of Ohio, United States of America	27 August 2010	–	Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada	North American Lutheran Church
PCUSA schism of 2012	Orlando, Orange County, State of Florida, United States of America	January 2012	–	Presbyterian Church in the United States of America	ECO: A Covenant Order of Evangelical Presbyterians
Methodist schism of 2022	United States of America	1 May 2022	–	United Methodist Church	Global Methodist Church
Anglican schism of 2022	Commonwealth of Australia	August 2022	–	Anglican Church of Australia	Diocese of the Southern Cross	Part of Anglican realignment.

Modern schisms from non-Protestant denominations

Name of schism	Original location of schism	Start date	Schism resolved	Original Church body	Resulting Church bodies or schismatic bodies	Notes
Saint Thomas Christian schism	Southern India	1665 c. 1665	–	Malabar Church	Syro-Malabar Church Malankara Church	After Coonan Cross Oath led to the first split among the Saint Thomas Christians. Thoma I was ordained by Gregorios Abdal Jaleel of the Syriac Orthodox Church. His cousin Palliveettil Chandy was consecrated by Catholic bishop Joseph Sebastiani leading to a schism between the Eastern Catholic Pazhayakoottukar and Oriental Orthodox Puthankoottukar.
Russian schism of 1666	Moskva, Tsardom of Russia	April 1666	–	Russian Orthodox Church	Old Believers	Between 1653 and 1656, Patriarch Nikon of Moscow introduced numerous reforms to liturgical and ritual practices of the Russian Church. Tsar Alexis attempted to reconcile the controversy by convening the 1666–1667 Great Moscow Synod, where the old rite was anathemized and declared heretical, and the reformed rite was proclaimed universally binding, and in which ironically also saw the deposition of Patriarch Nikon. By the 1690s, the turbulence gradually waned, as Peter the Great relaxed the persecution of nonconformists, and the apocalyptic zeal diminished as the world evidently did not end. In the following decades, the surviving dissenter communities who retained the old forms mostly evolved into the Old Believers, a loose movement defined by rejection of Nikon's reforms, but also to more radical sectarians like the Khlysts (flagellants).
Thozhiyoor schism of 1772	Kerala, India	1772	–	Malankara Church	Malabar Independent Syrian Church
Old Catholic schism	–	1870 c. 1870	–	Catholic Church	Old Catholic Church
Aglipayan schism	Centro de Bellas Artes, Quiapo, City of Manila, Philippine Insular Government, United States of America	3 August 1902	–		Philippine Independent Church	Following the end of the Philippine–American War, Isabelo de los Reyes, together with the members of Unión Obrera Democrática Filipina, formally founded and publicly proclaimed the commencement of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente (abbreviated as IFI and translated to "Philippine Independent Church" in English) on 3 August 1902.
Malankara schism of 1912	Kerala, India	1912	–	Malankara Syrian Church	Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church Malankara Jacobite Syrian Church	A long-standing schism between the autocephalous Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church and the autonomous Malankara Jacobite Syrian Church under the Syriac Orthodox Church. Though it originated in 1912, it remains a major 21st-century conflict with a terminal legal conclusion made by the Supreme Court of India in 2017.
Malankara schism of 1930	Kerala, India	1930	–		Syro-Malankara Catholic Church	A faction of the Malankara Church formed a full communion with the Catholic Church.
Greek Old Calendarist schism of 1935	Republic of Greece	26 May 1935 N.S.	–	Church of Greece	Old Calendarists in Greece	The Church of Greece adopted the Revised Julian calendar, also called 'New Calendar' in 1924. At first, resistance to it was muted, with a small number of laymen, priests and monks, whose number grew over the years. The situation changed in 1935 when three Church of Greece bishops joined the movement and consecrated four new bishops. Metropolitan Chrysostomos (Kavourides) of Florina emerged to become its leader. Three out of those seven bishops ended up rejoining the Church of Greece, and the four remaining ones created the Old Calendarist Holy Synod on 13 May 1935. Part of True Orthodox movement.
Greek Old Calendarist schism of 1937	Kingdom of Greece	18 September 1937 N.S.	–	Old Calendarists in Greece	Chrysostomos (Kavourides) line Matthaios (Karpoudakis) line	The Greek Old Calendarists experienced schism in 1937, due to a disagreement on the validity of the sacraments performed by members of churches which have adopted the reformed calendar. After Chrysostomos, head of the Holy Synod, refused to declare the sacraments of the New Calendarists as graceless, bishop Matthew led the group which seceded from the Holy Synod. Part of True Orthodox movement.
Romanian Old Calendarist schism of 1955	Socialist Republic of Romania	5 April 1955	–	Romanian Orthodox Church	Old Calendarists in Romania	The Romanian Orthodox Church adopted the revised calendar in 1924, which fomented the Old Calendarist movement there. The abbot of Prokof, Glycerius Tănase, became the head of the movement. The Greek Old Calendarist hierarchs did not manage to consecrate him a bishop due to the interventions from the Greek state., and so the Old Calendarist movement in Romania was only composed of priests and laypeople, including several hundreds monks from Mount Athos until 1955, when Metropolitan Galaction Cordun joined the movement. Since December 2022, the Old Calendar Orthodox Church of Romania is not in communion with any other groups. Part of True Orthodox movement.
Assyrian schism of 1964	St. Zaia Cathedral, Baġdād, Muḥāfaẓat Baġdād, Republic of Iraq	1964	–	Church of the East	Ancient Church of the East
Schism of Montaner	Orthodox Church of Montaner, Montaner, Comune di Sarmede, Provincia di Treviso, Regione del Veneto, Italian Republic	26 December 1967	–	Roman Catholic Diocese of Vittorio Veneto	almost all parishioners in Montaner	Today, the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox communities still exist within the village, though divisions remain.
Palmarian movement	La Alcaparrosa, El Palmar de Troya, Provincia de Sevilla, Comunidad autónoma de Andalucía, Kingdom of Spain	6 August 1978	–	Catholic Church	Palmarian Christian Church	The origins of the Palmarian Christian Church, commonly known as the Palmarian (Catholic) Church, as a distinct body can be traced back to the alleged Marian apparitions of Our Lady of Palmar, which took place in Andalusia, Spain, from 1968 onward.
Giguère movement	Cathedral Basilica of Notre-Dame de Québec, Quebec City, Province of Quebec, Canada	4 May 1987	–	Catholic Church	Community of the Lady of All Nations	It was founded in 1971 by Marie-Paule Giguère in Quebec as a prayer group, and then was formally approved as a Roman Catholic "pious association" in 1975, but was rescinded by the Archbishop of Quebec after Giguère announced herself the reincarnation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. On 4 May 1987, the Archbishop of Quebec, Cardinal Louis-Albert Vachon, withdrew the approval of his predecessor, and on declared the movement schismatic and disqualified it as a Catholic association due to its false teachings. On 11 July 2007, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith issued a declaration of excommunication against the group for heretical teachings and beliefs after a six-year investigation. The declaration was announced by the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops on 12 September 2007.
Lefebvrian schism of 1988	Écône, Commune de Riddes, District de Martigny, Canton du Valais, Swiss Confederation	30 June 1988	24 January 2009	Catholic Church	Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X	The Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X, commonly known as the Society of Saint Pius X, is a Traditionalist Catholic priestly fraternity founded in 1970 by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre. Tensions between the Society and the Holy See climaxed with the 1988 Écône consecrations when Archbishop Lefebvre consecrated four bishops without the papal Mandate and against a personal warning by Pope John Paul II, resulting in the papal declaration that all the consecrators and the consecratees had incurred Latæ Sententiæ excommunication. On 24 January 2009, Pope Benedict XVI lifted the excommunications of the four consecratees, but the Society did not return into full communion with the Holy See.
Teruel movement	Republic of the Philippines	13 July 1991	–	Catholic Church	Holy Trinity Catholic movement	It started in the early 1970s as the Holy Trinity Catholic movement, a Catholic lay organization in Hermosa, Bataan founded by Maria Virginia Leonzon. On 13 July 1991 her son, John Florentine Teruel, was consecrated patriarch by Old Catholic and Orthodox bishops, and the organization formally separated itself from the Catholic Church. It was then registered as the Apostolic Catholic Church on 7 June 1992. By that time, the movement had already spread throughout the Philippines, Hong Kong, Australia, Canada and the United States of America.
Bulgarian Old Calendarist schism of 1993	Republic of Bulgaria	17 January 1993	–	Bulgarian Orthodox Church	Old Calendarists in Bulgaria	The Bulgarian Orthodox Church adopted the revised Julian calendar in 1968. The Protection Convent near Sofia became a center of the resistance to this adoption. In 1993, Fotiy Siromakhov of Triadista was consecrated bishop by the Cyprianite Old Calendarist Church to be hierarch of the Bulgarian Old Calendarists. On 16 December 2024, the Supreme Court of Cassation ruled in favor of the Old Calendar Bulgarian Orthodox Church entering the register of religious denominations. This action was accepted by the Bulgarian Orthodox Church as the creation of a schism. Part of True Orthodox movement.
ROCOR schism of 1994	Francis F. Palmer House, Manhattan, New York County, State of New York, United States of America	5 April 1994	–	Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia	Russian Orthodox Free Church	The Russian Orthodox Free Church later became Russian Orthodox Autonomous Church in October 1998. Part of True Orthodox movement.
ROCOR schism of 2001	Canada	October 2001	–	Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia	Russian Orthodox Church in Exile	This movement later renamed themselves Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia; in common parlance ROCOR-Vitaly or ROCOR(V).
Lefebvrian schism of 2026	Écône, Riddes, District de Martigny, Canton du Valais, Swiss Confederation	1 July 2026	–	Catholic Church	Society of Saint Pius X

See also

• Ecclesiastical separatism
• Old and New Lights

References

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Further reading

• Chaillot, Christine; Belopopsky, Alexander (1998). Towards Unity. The Theological Dialogue between the Orthodox Church and the Oriental Orthodox Churches. Geneva: Inter-Orthodox Dialogue. ISBN 9788390695846.
• Dvornik, Francis (2008). The Photian Schism: History and Legend. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521101769.
• Frend, W. H. C. (2000). The Donatist Church: A Movement of Protest in Roman North Africa. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0198264088.
• Ionita, Viorel (2014). "Bilateral Theological Dialogues of Orthodox Churches – a General Introduction". Orthodox Handbook on Ecumenism. Pantelis Kalaitzidis, Thomas Fitzgerald, Cyril Hovorun, Aikaterini Pekridou, Nikolaos Asproulis, Guy Liagre, Dietrich Werner (1st ed.). Oxford: Regnum book international. pp. 457–472. ISBN 978-1-908355-44-7.
• Kalaitzidis, Pantelis (2014). "Theological, historical, and cultural reasons for anti-ecumenical movements in Eastern Orthodoxy". Orthodox Handbook on Ecumenism. Pantelis Kalaitzidis, Thomas Fitzgerald, Cyril Hovorun, Aikaterini Pekridou, Nikolaos Asproulis, Guy Liagre, Dietrich Werner (1st ed.). Oxford: Regnum book international. pp. 134–152. ISBN 978-1-908355-44-7.
• Ward, Gary L. (1990). Independent Bishops: An International Directory. Omnigraphics Inc. ISBN 978-1558883079.