Nestorian Schism

The Nestorian Schism was the split between the traditional Christian churches (i.e., the Catholic Church and Orthodox Church) and those churches affiliated with Nestorian doctrine in the 5th century. The schism rose out of a Christological dispute, the key figures in which were Cyril of Alexandria and Nestorius. Nestorius and his doctrine, which emphasized the distinctness between Christ's human and divine natures, were condemned at the First Council of Ephesus in 431 and the Council of Chalcedon. Afterward, churches affiliated with Nestorius' teachings broke with the Catholic Church, thereby establishing Nestorianism as a distinct Christian sect. Nestorian doctrine was gradually adopted by the Church of the East, the Christian church of Sassanid Persia, which was thereafter often known as the Nestorian Church.