EMPEROR CONSTANTINE, HERESIES AND COUNCILS
EMPEROR CONSTANTINE, HERESIES AND COUNCILS
THE CHURCH IN THE ROMAN EMPIRE
The peace of the Church in 313 CE marked a turning point in
history.
The State intervened in the life of the Church.Convocations of
councilsThe Church obtained certain financial, material and legal
advantages from the State.Emperor Constantine made a great
contribution to the development of the Church in Christian
religion.
Emperor Constantine
Constantine was born in Naissus or Nish in modern Serbia
probably from 274 to 288 CE.His parents were Constantius, an
emperor, and Elena, a Christian.When Constantius died in 306 CE,
his troops proclaimed him Augustus.In a dream, he saw a cross in
the sky and the words conquer in this sign. When he won over the
troops of Maxentius, Constantine looked upon his success as proof
of the power of Christ and the superiority of the Christian
religion.
What did Constantine do for the Christians?
In 312 CE onwards, he favored Christianity openly and supported
it in every way .In 313 CE, he and Licinius drafted the program of
toleration and sent it to governors of the eastern provinces,
granting to Christianity full equality with the religions in the
empire. In 315 CE, he decreed the abolition of death on the
cross.In 321 CE, he gave the church permission to accept bequests
and donations and decreed Sunday as a public holiday.In 325 CE, he
summoned the bishops of the whole empire to the general Council of
Nicea known as the first Roman ecumenical council to settle an
issue on the Arian heresy.
In this council, Constantine was known as the Pontifex Maximus
which means the greatest bridge-maker.
Emperor Constantine made Christianity a part of the public life
and because of this the Church faced a truly new world
situation.
Constantine was wary of alienating his pagan subjects by seizing
their sites and temples.a prophet of Apollo was tortured at
Antioch, another at Didyma was forced to confess to fraud, and a
shrine of Aphrodite was razed at the site of the crucifixion at
Jerusalem.In 356 CE, Constantines son Constantius decreed that all
pagan temples should close and he prohibited sacrifices to the gods
on pain of death.Christians turned from persecuted to
persecutors.
TheodosiusThe reverse of the situation was also administered by
Theodosius, a pious and intolerant Christian and heretic-hunter who
became emperor in 379 CE. He definitively banned all pagan cults in
391. Like the Church before them, they were denied the legal right
to own property.
Christians turned from persecuted to persecutors.
INTERNAL CRISES:HERESIES AND SCHISMS
Understanding heresyIn its original sense, the word heresy did
not mean blasphemy. It came from the Greek for choice, and it meant
no more than a sect or faction whose membership involved a choice
of belief, whether good or bad.
By the early 2nd century, however, the word already implied
falsehood and evil, and was beginning the journey that made it
perhaps the most ominous expression in the Christian
vocabulary.
The Church found herself having the responsibility to safeguard
the true faith inherited from the bible.The Church is aware of its
mission to carry the treasure of divine truth in an earthen vessel.
Its task, however, of keeping that truth unadulterated remains for
all ages. It has, therefore, the task of refuting false
doctrines.
The Church alone could declare truths which must be believed
with divine and catholic faith; to deny or doubt such a truth was
to commit a grave sin for which the punishment was
excommunication.
GnosticismThe various Gnostic systems are products of syncretism
and go back to the pre-Christian times. Syncretism, in general, is
the mixing of elements from different schools (philosophy) or
religious traditions without any suitable synthesis.For the
Gnostics, true knowledge is open only to the select
few.MarcionismMarcion came from a well-to-do native of Asia Minor
and was born on 85 CE.According to Marcion, the Old Testament God
was not the true God, the Father of Jesus Christ, but only the
strict and just God who in the Mosaic Law laid upon the Jewish
people an unbearable yoke.
Heretic Movements
MontanismOnly in the 4th century was the term Montanism invented
to emphasize the person of Montanus as the main representative. The
name New Prophecy aptly describes the basic idea of this
movement.Montanus proclaimed to his fellow Christians with ecstatic
behavior and in strange, obscure language, that he was the
mouthpiece and prophet of the Holy Spirit.
Heretic Movements
ManicheismIt took its name from its founder, the Persian Mani or
Manes, who is called in Latin sources Manichaeus.There are two
highest beings or principles of equal rank, the one light and the
other of darkness.Both possess equal power but stand in
irreconcilable opposition to one another, each in a realm of its
own; the region of light or the good and the reign of evil.
Heretic Movements
The controversy on Christ and the TrinityAdoptionismThe
adoptionists looked on Christ as a mere man who at some time,
probably on the occasion of his baptism, was filled with divine
power and transformed into a God. Thus, he was adopted by God. The
real and original Gad was only the Father; and Christ was an
adopted God.ModalismThe modalists saw in Christ only one form or
mode of the one and only God. This one God manifests himself at one
time as the Father, as another as the Son, and at third as Holy
Spirit.
Dogmatic Controversies
The controversy on the Trinity came out in understanding the
unity of the three person in the Trinity. The controversy on
Trinity was raised on the questions: (1) How could God be unique
(one) and at the same time Father and Son? (2) How could a man was
born, lived and died (Jesus), be God, if God is by definition one
who is beyond all change?Both adoptionism and modalism were
rejected by the authorities Church.
The Arian ControversyArius came up with his own theological
views on the Trinity. Arius was a priest and pastor of a certain
church in Alexandria since 313 CE during the time of
Constantine.For Arius, the Logos was the first created being, and
far superior to human beings, but it was not in itself divine.
Thus, Arius denied the divinity of Christ as claimed by the
opposition. Alexander, the bishop of Rome, did not accept Arius
theology. The Logos (Christ) had existed from all eternity as equal
of the Father. Truly, the dispute was between Arius and alexander.
Arius was placed outside Christianity; a synod of Alexandria
condemned his teaching and excommunicated him.
CHURCHS COUNCILS:TO SETTLE THE CONTROVERSIES
The Roman Councils of the Church:
1. Council of Nicea in 325 CE This was conducted from 20th May
to 25th July 325 CE to settle the controversy on Christs nature
(human and divine). In the convocation of the council, Emperor
Constantine provided the transportation for all the attending
bishops.After the long debate, the side of Alexander won. Hence,
the Council of Nicea formulated the Nicene Creed as the doctrine on
Christs nature: Christ was the only begotten son from the substance
of the Father, God from God, light from light, true God from true
God, begotten not made, of one substance (homousios) with the
Father.
ARIUS (AntiochianSchool)
ALEXANDER (Alexandrian School)
The Word did not co-exist with the Father from all eternity.
The Word has co-existed with the Father from the beginning.
The word was created from nothing.
The Word was not created, but the one who created all
things.
Constantine informed the whole empire that Arius and his
followers, as the worst enemies of true faith, had been excluded
from the Church. Yet after some years, Constantine permitted the
return of Arius to his office in 328 CE.
Christ was the only begotten son from the substance of the
Father, God from God, light from light, true God from true God,
begotten not made, of one substance (homousios) with the
Father.
2. Council of Constantinople in 381 CEIn the meantime, the
struggle for the Nicene formula of one substance (homousios)
continued steadily. A moderate group, Semi-Arians, broke away from
the strict Arians. They rejected one substance (homousios) and
wanted arguably to replace it with similar (homoios).
This debate was called for synods by the emperor but brought no
agreement. Finally, in 381 CE, Emperor Theodosius summoned the
second general ecumenical council the Council of Constantinople to
complete the clarification of the Arian disputes. This time they
clearly defined the terms persons and nature. The Cappadocian
Fathers contributed a lot to settle this dispute. They were: (1)
Basil the Great (330 379 CE); (2) Gregory of Nazianzus (329 390
CE); and (3) Gregory of Nyssa (334 394 CE). They saw the
distinction between the three divine persons as existing solely in
their inner divine relations. According to them, there is only one
nature, but three carriers: one Godhead in three persons. The creed
adopted at Nicea in 325 CE received the addition: and in the Holy
Spirit, the Lord and giver of life, who proceeds from the Father,
who with the Father and the son is together worshipped and together
golrified, who spoke through the prophets
3. Council of Ephesus in 431 CEThe two schools, Alexandria and
Antioch, differed in the interpretation of the relevant passages of
the Scriptures about these two aspects in Christ. The Alexandrians
emphasized the divine nature of Christ; the Antiochian emphasized
the human nature of Christ.The debate was between Cyril of
Alexandria and Nestorius of Antioch. They condemned each other.
Thus, Emperor Theodosius II called for this council.
4.Council of Chalcedon in 451 CEIt became clear that when
Eutyches, abbot of a monastery near Constantinople, continued
Cyrils doctrine of one nature in Christ (monophysitism). Eutyches
taught that the human nature of Christ is absorbed by his divinity.
Because of this, Patriarch Flavian of Constantinople called
Eutyches before a synod and condemned him as heretic. Dioscorus,
Patriarch of Alexandria and follower of Cyrils teaching, supported
Eutyches. Consequently, the issue had been aggravated again, making
Emperor Marcian (450 457 CE) called the 4th ecumenical council the
Council of Chalcedon in 451 CE.
5. Council of Ephesus in 431 CEIn spite of its condemnation,
monophysitism maintained its position in Palestine, Egypt and
Syria. Under Emperor Justinian I (527 565 CE), the heresy of
monophysites was permitted. Emperor Justinian I condemned in 543 CE
three heads of the Antiochian school from which Nestorianism had
sprung. They were: Theodore of Mopsuestia, Theodoret of Cyrus and
Ibas of Edessa. Pope Vigilius was convinced to give his consent;
yet, the pope refused. Such refusal of the pope resulted to his
maltreatment by the imperial soldiers. Emperor Justinian I called
the fifth general council in 553 CE which the pope refused to take
part.
6.Council at ConstantinopleStill the Christological question
remained unresolved, Patriarch Sergius of Constantinople proposed
the union of wills: the human and divine wills were so intimately
attuned that in reality only one natural human-divine energy and
one will (monothelism) has been active in Christ. Sergius succeeded
in convincing Pope Honorius whose knowledge in Greek theology was
limited. The sixth general council held at Constantinople under the
chairmanship of papal legates condemned monothelism together with
its exponents and supporters including Pope Honorius. Pope Leo II
approved the decisions of the council and the condemnation of
Honorius because of his ignominious treason to stain the pure
faith. Afterwards, Pope Leo II defended him because Honorius
happened to be negligent in guarding the true faith.
Conclusion:
In these councils, we primarily see the interventions of the
emperors to settle the controversies on Christ and the Trinity.
With their interventions, we can see how the State and the Church
interrelate in the society.Despite of such intervention, the
heresies (of the heretics) continued to spread throughout the
empire. Debates and excommunications were the common ways to
resolve the controversy.
As they try to resolve the issue, it took more long years for
them to settle by formulating dogmas or doctrines recited in the
creed. This creed is faithfully confessed by the members of the
Church even until today. Because of this creed formulated thousand
years ago, there were Christians (we may call them heretic
Christians) sheeding their blood as they stood up on what they
believed to be true. Thus, to be heretic is to really stand up on
what you believe to be true that is the choice of the heretic. In
the early period of Christianity, heresy is the most unforgivable
and condemnable choice of ones belief.
Conclusion:
THANK YOU!
