Page "Eastern Orthodox Church" Paragraph 7

Almost from the very beginning, Christians referred to the Church as the " One, Holy, Catholic the Greek καθολική, or " according to the whole " and Apostolic Church ".

Today, in addition to the Orthodox Church, a number of other Christian churches lay claim to this title ( including the Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion, the Assyrian Church and the Oriental Orthodox Church ); however, the Orthodox Church considers these other churches to be schismatic and, in some cases, heretical.

In the Orthodox view, the Assyrians and Orientals left the Orthodox Church in the first few centuries after Christ, and later the Catholics did the same, becoming the largest ever group to leave the Church.

This event is known as the East – West Schism, and it is traditionally dated to the year 1054, although it was more of a gradual process than a sudden break.