Roman Catholic Answer The "Great Schism" in my books always refers to the Western Schisms which was a controversy over who was the true Pope during the Avignon papacy, (1378-1417) during which there were as many as three separate claimants to the papal throne. However, many of the questions on Answers.com ask the question referring to the Eastern Schism in the eleventh century. That schism was mostly political, although the subjects usually referred to at the actual schism were the use of unleavened bread by the Western Church and the Eastern Church's removal of the Pope's name from the diptychs to be prayed for in the Eucharistic liturgy.Answer:The great schism was a split in the catholic church that resulted in two popes holding office at the same time.A split in the church that resulted in two popes holding office at the same time.A religious crisis in Europe.A period when there were two popes.Roman Catholic Answerfrom A Catholic Dictionary, edited by Donald Attwater, Second edition, revised 1957The Great Schism, otherwise know as the Schism of the West was not strictly a schism at all but a conflict between the two parties within the Church each claiming to support the true pope. Three months after the election of Urban VI, in 1378, the fifteen electing cardinals declared that they had appointed him only as a temporary vicar and that in any case the election was invalid as made under fear of violence from the Roman mob. Urban retorted by naming twenty-eight new cardinals, and the others at once proceeded to elect Cardinal Robert of Geneva as Pope Clement VII, who went to reside at Avignon. The quarrel was in its origin not a theological or religious one, but was caused by the ambition and jealousy of French influence, which was supported to some extent for political reasons by Spain, Naples, Provence, and Scotland; England, Germany, Scandinavia, Wales, Ireland, Portugal, Flanders and Hungary stood by what they believe to be the true pope at Rome. The Church was torn from top to bottom by the schism, both sides in good faith (it was impossible to know to whom allegiance was due), which lasted with its two lines of popes (and at one time three) till the election of Martin V in 1417. It is now regarded as practically certain that the Urbanist popes were the true ones and their names are included in semi-official lists; moreover, the ordinal numbers of the Clementine claimants (who, however, are not called anti-popes,) were adopted by subsequent popes of the same name.The above answer concentrates on the schism between the western churches. However there was, and still is, a schism between the Eastern Church and the Western church which is usually dated to 1054. Although the church split in two at about that date friction due to doctrinal differences and the ever growing authority claimed by Rome had increased suspicions and hostility between east and west for years.Since the begining of The Church the Patriarchs had been equal with no changes being made, either liturgical or doctrinal, without universal agreement. Although the Patriarch of Rome (Pope) was first among equals he did not have primacy over the entire Church; but angry disputes over the calendar, whether to use leavened or unleavened bread and Roman additions to the Creed (which the Orthodox still find unacceptable today) eventually led to the Roman Pope and the Eastern Patriarch excommunicating each other. The two Churches have existed as separate entities ever since.