Archbishop Succession Crises

Archiepiscopal succession controversy derives from the existence of two people who have or claim to be the Archbishop of the Church of the Holy Light, a supreme office that orthodoxy and canon law holds may only be held by one person. Succession crises are symptomatic of a philosophical schism, confusion in election, or sometimes purely political reasons.

History
Historically, there were occasionally disagreements in politics that led the regional claims against the orthodoxy, but these were usually resolved in compromise and had not much implication on the way the faithful practices. Modern succession controversy, with some exception, can be said to originate with the death of Jerome IX and to have caught major public attention after the death of Alonsus Faol before the Third War in what is referred to as the Great Renewal.

Aside from schism, regional disagreements, the most problematic situation is when an Archbishop dies but a body is not recovered.

Conciliar Line
The Conciliar Line is the common opinion of the faithful, the belief that the Archbishop is elected in an unbroken by the Church of the Holy Light's bishops through a unanimous vote. The Council of Bishops recognized after a year of the disappearance of Benedictus that he was dead and that the throne was vacant, thus continuing the line in an unbroken way.

Columban V

Caspius

Alonsus II

Jeromian Line (extinct)
The Jeromian Line claimed that Jerome IX could not be presumed to be dead since a body wasn't recovered and thus, the Church must presume that he is not dead.

Jerome IX

Scarlet Line (extinct)
The Scarlet Line claims that the Church of the Holy Light outside of the Scarlet Onslaught fell to heresy and that the Scarlet Crusade is the only valid successor of the archiepiscopal line.

Landgren

Undercity Line (extinct)
The Undercity Line is based on the doctrine espoused in a decree by a Forsaken priest that dictated that he was the Archbishop of Lordaeron.

Pelaios

Serylian Line (extinct)
The Serylian Line, otherwise called the Gilnean line, is based on the claim that the erection of the Gilnean Wall necessitated the election of a second Archbishop to lead the Church of the Holy Light in Gilneas. The Serylian Line is unique in that it did not dispute the validity of any other linee but rather declined that the position was exclusive to only one chief shepherd.

Seryl

Kastonite Line (extinct)
The Kastonite Line was declared by the Church of Northshire which held the belief, not in the Holy Light, but in an all-powerful personified deity.

Kaston Electus

Benedictine Line (disputed)
The Benedictine Line is predicated on the idea that Benedictus was not the Twilight Prophet, is alive, and that the Church of the Holy Light has the responsibility to wait for him to come back into his throne.

Benedictus

Sedevacantism
Sedevacatism is the minority held opinion idea that there is no Archbishop and that the position is vacant.