A church assembly or council convened in opposition to another synod, or a competing ecclesiastical gathering.
From counter- + synod. Synod comes from Greek synodos (syn- 'together' + hodos 'way'). This term is primarily historical, used in Christian church history to describe rival councils, especially during periods of religious conflict.
During the Great Schism between Eastern and Western Christianity, countersynods were called by rival factions claiming the 'real' authority—it was like competing versions of Christian government!
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