The word “schism” means “a deliberate separation from ecclesiastical communion; it is also the state of being separated, or the Christian group which is in such a state. The schismatic is one who causes schism, who favours or bears responsibility for it, or who simply adheres to it through conviction or in fact” (Y. Congar).

In classical Greek, σχίσμα means a crack or tear. St. Paul uses it in a moral sense for differences of opinion or of inclination which endanger the pea…