SCHISM
A rent or fissure; generally used in the New Testament to denote a division within the Christian church, by contentions and alienated affections, without an outward separation into distinct bodies, 1 Corinthians 1:1-12; 1 Corinthians 1:12, 1 Corinthians 1:12. The sin may lie on the side of the majority, or of the minority, or both. It is a sin against Christian love, and strikes at the heart of Christianity, John 17:21 Romans 1:12-21.