Oriental Orthodox

Oriental Orthodox

The split between Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy occurred after the Council of Chalcedon in 451, making it older than the later Great Schism with Rome. The division centered on Christology, how to properly understand the relationship between Christ’s divine and human natures.

The Council of Chalcedon defined that Christ exists in two natures, divine and human, united in one person "without confusion, without change, without division, without separation." Eastern Orthodoxy accepted this definition and recognizes Chalcedon as the Fourth Ecumenical Council.

The Oriental Orthodox Churches rejected the Chalcedonian definition. These churches include the Coptic, Armenian, Ethiopian, Eritrean, Syriac, and Indian traditions.

The Oriental Orthodox position is often described as Miaphysitism, which emphasizes "one nature of God the Word incarnate." While debates continue over whether the disagreement was largely terminological or reflected deeper theological differences, the division has remained a point of separation between Eastern Orthodoxy and the Oriental Orthodox Churches for many centuries.