DON’T BE CONFUSED, BECAUSE MANY CATHOLICS ARE, ESPECIALLY SCHISMATIC ONES, THE ONE, HOLY, CATHOLIC AND APOSTOLIC CHURCH TEACHES THE PROPER MEANING OF SCHISM AND SHE IS VERY CLEAR ABOUT IT, LESS ANYONE THINK NOT…

 There is a lot of discussion about what constitutes Schism in the Catholic Church. The only answer that I accept, and that’s because it is correct, is the answer that the Holy Roman Catholic Church teaches. I have an AI summary of the true meaning of Catholic schism below my brief, solid and brilliant commentary. 

I am not clairvoyant, although many have attributed that to me, but clairvoyance is of the occult and thus I pray I am not. But, but, but, I think the German Syndoal Way, while not in schism yet, in the Catholic teaching concerning schism, but is promoting heresy and apostasy. Eventually, if this isn’t corrected by the Holy See and the Supreme Pontiff himself, they can go into schism as the FSSPX have attempted once already and are at it again on July 1, 2026. 

There is a commentary in the National catholic Reporter (NcR) today about the schism that has occurred concerning the ordination of women. The commentary focuses in on women deacons. You can read the NcR article HERE. 

Phyllis Zagano should be given an F- for her commentary. She is so wrong about schism, it makes me blush. She is so wrong about women being ordained deacons, that it is laughable. She is so wrong about the fact that Catholics have left the Church over the issue of women’s ordination and calling that schism, yes, they’ve left, but that’s not schism, not by any stretch of the imagination. 

They are heretics and apostates, yes. Yes, WomenChurch is schismatic and they have been excommunicated. Unlike the FSSPX who have valid Orders, WomenChurch female ordinations are invalid, from deacons to priests, to bishops. They are nothing like the Eastern Orthodox Schism which maintains all of the Sacraments of the Church including Holy Orders that are valid and valid Apostolic Succession. The FSSPX will be in this category too with their schism. 

But those wanting female ordinations are minuscule in number compared to those Cathoics who have joined non-denominational Protestant sects or left Christianity altogether for new age religion or no religion at all. The FSSPX is minuscule in number too, but with valid orders, they pose a greater threat to the Church’s unity than WomenChurch and those simulating ordinations that in reality are invalid.  

This is an AI summary of that teaching, bless AI’s little digital heart:

Overview 

In Catholic theology, a schism is the formal refusal of submission to the Pope or the refusal to remain in communion with the rest of the Catholic Church. It is a deliberate rupture of the Church's unity rather than a disagreement over core doctrine. [1, 2, 3]

To understand the concept completely, it helps to look at the exact definition and how the Church differentiates it from other terms:

1. The Canonical Definition

According to Canon 751 of the Catholic Church's Code of Canon Law, schism is formally defined as: [1]

• The refusal of submission to the Supreme Pontiff (the Pope).
• The refusal of communion with the members of the Church subject to him. [1, 2]

2. Schism vs. Heresy vs. Apostasy

The Catholic Church categorizes these offenses differently based on exactly what is being broken:

• Schism: Breaking the structural and organizational bond. A schismatic accepts Catholic doctrine but rejects the authority of the Pope or the community of the Church.
• Heresy: The obstinate denial or doubt of a core dogma that must be believed as a matter of Catholic faith.
• Apostasy: The total repudiation of the Christian faith altogether. [1, 2, 3]

3. Penalties

Because it ruptures the unity of the mystical body of Christ, schism is considered an ecclesiastical crime. According to Canon 1364, an individual who commits schism incurs an automatic excommunication, known as latae sententiae. [1, 2]

4. Famous Historical Examples

• The East-West Schism (1054): The great fracture that separated the Orthodox Church in the East from the Roman Catholic Church in the West. It was largely driven by political, cultural, and jurisdictional disputes over papal authority. [1, 2, 3]
• The Western Schism (1378–1417): A political crisis within the Catholic Church where two—and eventually three—men simultaneously claimed to be the true Pope, dividing the loyalty of Western Christendom. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]