The schism in the west was a dispute about the authority of______within the Roman Catholic Church. A.) the Pope B.)the King C.)Peasants D.)nobles

A.) the Pope

The Schism in the West, also known as the Western Schism or Papal Schism, was a period in the history of the Roman Catholic Church when there were two, and later three, competing popes. It started in 1378 and ended in 1417. The main issue at the heart of the schism was the legitimacy and authority of the papacy.

The schism began shortly after the return of the papacy to Rome from Avignon, where the popes had resided for most of the 14th century. The cardinals elected Urban VI as the pope in Rome, but soon after, due to his harsh rule, they claimed the election was made under fear and elected Clement VII as a rival pope, who returned to Avignon. This resulted in a divide where different parts of Christendom supported different popes.

The Western Schism is not to be confused with the East-West Schism (or Great Schism) of 1054, which was the split between the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church. The Western Schism was more about politics and ecclesiastical power within the Catholic Church rather than theological differences.

The Council of Constance (1414-1418) eventually resolved the schism by deposing or accepting the resignation of the competing popes and electing Martin V as the new pope, restoring the papacy to a single office-holder and reaffirming the authority of the Pope within the Roman Catholic Church. This period in church history is significant because it highlighted the political nature of the papacy and the extensive influence that European monarchies and cardinals held within the ecclesiastical hierarchy. It also prompted discussions about reform within the Church and the nature of papal authority, which prefigured arguments that would later become central to the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century.