Abstract

This article will formulate an explanatory model in which all the specifics of the controversy between Rome and Constantinople in the schism of 1054 will be considered in theological and ecclesiastical-political terms. Thus, both the complexity of the historical context and the diversity of the motives of its protagonists will be taken into account. In a first step, the current state of research on the events of 1054 will be presented, before confronting it with open questions in a second step. They are derived partly from the historical context, partly from the ambivalent information conveyed by Latin and Greek sources. The latter entails several source-critical problems, but thereby offers a chance to pose new questions to „old“ sources. Based on these open questions, the sources will be re-read and re-interpreted in terms of determining the course of events in 1054 and the motives of the protagonists of the 1054 schism.