Table of Contents
- First Council – The First Council of Nicaea (325)
- Second Council – The First Council of Constantinople (381)
- Third Council – The Council of Ephesus (431)
- Fourth Council – The Council of Chalcedon (451)
- Fifth Council – The Second Council of Constantinople (553)
- Sixth Council – The Third Council of Constantinople (680-81)
- Seventh Council – The Second Council of Nicaea (787)
- Eight Council – The Fourth Council of Constantinople (869-70)
- Ninth Council – The First Lateran Council (1123)
- Tenth Council – The Second Lateran Council (1139)
- Eleventh Council – The Third Lateran Council (1179)
- Twelfth Council – The Fourth Lateran Council (1215)
- Thirteenth Council – The First Council of Lyons (1245)
- Fourteenth Council – The Second Council of Lyons (1274)
- Fifteenth Council – Council of Vienne (1311)
- Sixteenth Council – Council of Constance (1414-18)
- Seventeenth Council – Council of Florence (1431-45) But started in Basel, Switzerland
- Eighteenth Council – The Fifth Lateran Council (1512-17)
- Nineteenth Council – The Council of Trent (1545-63)
- Twentieth Council – The First Vatican Council (1869-70)
- Twenty-First Council – The Second Vatican Council (1962-65)
The description of how I fit in within the Ecumenical Councils will be examined
as follows:
·
The Major
Councils of the Church and me.
· How does this affect my life as a Christian, Muslim, Jew, or a
person in Europe and the whole wide world?
·
How do decisions made centuries ago still form my behaviour and response to my actions
today?
First Council – The First Council of Nicaea (325)
·
Held in a
city located south of Constantinople in Asia Minor
·
Convened by
the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great with Pope St Sylvester I. In the list
of attendance were Arius and St Athanasius.
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
The
definition of the Consubstantiality of the Son with the Father (that is, the
Son is equal to the Father, which is the theological basis of the nature of the
Trinity).
·
The
condemnation of Arian heresy (they argued that the Son of God was begotten
within time by God the Father and that he did not always exist.)
The very first Council dealt with the ‘equality’ of the Son
with the Father. Can we see this same equality flowing down: equality between
man and woman, equality in sexes, races, employments, rights, religions, and so
on?
Second Council – The First Council of Constantinople (381)
·
Held in
Constantinople in Asia Minor
·
Convened by
the Roman Emperor of the East, Theodosius I. In attendance were 186 bishops,
such as Gregory Nazianzen, and Cyril of Jerusalem. Pope Saint Damasus, the first did not
attend his legates because of a misunderstanding he had with the Roman
Emperor living in Constantinople.
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
Reaffirmation
of the First Council of Nicaea
· Redefinition of the Consubstantiality of the Holy Spirit with the
Father and the Son.
·
By this, the
Council Fathers condemned the heresy of Macedonius (or Pneumatomachian heresy –
that the Holy Spirit was created by the Son and therefore should be subordinate
to the Father and the Son).
The Council insisted on the equality of the Holy Spirit
with the Son and the Father. An expansion that led to the doctrine of the
Trinity (three equal persons, not three Gods but One God). In later centuries,
we will see Muhammed arguing against this teaching with his basic tenet:
‘There’s no god but God and Muhammed is the prophet of God.’
Third Council – The Council of Ephesus (431)
·
Held in a
city at the southern end of Asia Minor
·
Convened by
the Roman Emperor Theodosius II (son of Theodosius I and brother of Saint
Pulcheria). In attendance were Pope Saint Celestine I, over 200 bishops, as
well as Cyril of Alexandria.
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
The
declaration of the Blessed Virgin Mary as the Mother of God.
·
The
definition that Jesus Christ has two natures: Divine and Human.
·
By this, the
Council condemned the heresy of Nestorius and Nestorianism (that Christ is made
up of two distinct persons -human and divine Logos, and not a unified person)
and was removed as bishop of Constantinople.
·
The
affirmation of the Council of Carthage’s rulings of 416, therefore condemning
Pelagius and his teachings.
We all have an idea of the concept of a ‘queen mother’ (a
dowager and mother of a reigning monarch). If a dowager is a lady who holds a
title derived from her late husband, then, in human terms, the Blessed Virgin Mary
can be said to be Mother of God, a title derived from her Son, who is God. A
Son who is both Man and God.
Fourth Council – The Council of Chalcedon (451)
·
Held in a
city in Thessalonica – northwest of Constantinople.
·
Convened by
the Roman Emperor of the East, Marcian (husband to Saint Pulcheria) in alliance
with Pope Saint Leo the Great.
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
To root out
false teachings brewing in the church, such as Monophysitism (teaching
suggesting that Jesus Christ had only one nature). Abbot Eutyches had
argued that Jesus Christ had only one nature and that Constantinople and Rome
should be on an equal basis ecclesiastically.
· The resolution of the Council: Pope Leo declared in 451 in his
Dogmatic writing that the See of Peter in Rome is and will always be the only
Seat of Primacy and there will be no comparison.
·
By this, the
Council condemned Eutyches heresy and declared him a heretic.
Once again, the issue of equality popped up in the
Church: between Rome and Constantinople. The Council resolved that Rome and
only Rome is and will be the Seat of Peter. It makes sense to have one head,
however, it ridicules the concept of equality as held in Nicaea.
Fifth Council – The Second Council of Constantinople (553)
·
Held in
Constantinople in Asia Minor
·
Convened by
the Roman Emperor in Constantinople, Justinian I.
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
Some false
teachings continue to plague the church, especially the false teachings
perpetuated by the followers of Nestorius (especially, the denial of the
hypostatic union of Christ and insisted that Christ consisted of two distinct
persons, that is human and divine Logic).
· The Council condemned the ‘Three Chapters’ of the writings of the
disciples of Nestorius, namely: Theodore of Mopsuestia, Theodoret of Cyrrhus, and Ibas of Edessa.
·
By this, the
Council affirmed the condemnations pronounced by Popes of heresies that were
already condemned at the Council of Carthage.
Hypostasis is considered as the underlying substance or
reality rather than the attributes. For example, Peter is a man. That is the underlying
reality. However, Peter becomes a father because he has a son. This becomes an
attribute, that he is a father. Nestorianism denied the single person of Christ
but held on to the attributes, that is, his two natures – human and divine
Logic.
Sixth Council – The Third Council of Constantinople (680-81)
·
Held in
Constantinople in Asia Minor
·
Convened by
the Roman Emperor Constantine IV in agreement with Pope Saint Agatho. In
attendance were over 200 bishops, and Pope Saint Leo II carried on when Pope
Agatho died during the Council.
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
To discuss
the spreading of Islam as a threat to the church and the heresy of
Monothelitism (this argued that Jesus Christ had only one ‘will’ instead of two
‘wills’ and two operations based on his two natures: human and divine. It was
noted that the Patriarch of Constantinople (Sergius) was spreading false
teachings from the East, while Pope Honorius I did the same from Rome.
· The Council condemned the Monothelite's heresy.
·
Besides due
to the errors of previous popes in many matters, the Council asserted and
declared that a Pope can make mistakes when not speaking from the Chair of Peter
(ex-Cathedra).
By the 7th century, the Church considered the threat of
Islam. When there is a threat, it means there are vulnerabilities to be
exploited by the potential threat. Hence, the beginning of the Christian-Muslim
conflicts.
Seventh Council – The Second Council of Nicaea (787)
·
Held in a
city located south of Constantinople in Asia Minor
·
Convened by Empress Irene (widow of Emperor Leo IV and mother of Emperor Constantine IV)
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
To deal with
the heresy of Iconoclasm promoted by Emperor Leo III with his Eastern bishops.
John Damascene defended the need for images in worship as a means of
reverence. Already, Emperor Leo III had been condemned by Pope Hadrian I, Pope
Gregory II, and Pope Gregory III. Of course, this was at the heart of the schism
and hatred between the East and West.
The division between East and West, the division in the
Church – the idea of using images in worship as a means of reverence. The East
rejected it, but the West accepted it.
Eight Council – The Fourth Council of Constantinople (869-70)
·
Held in
Constantinople in Asia Minor
·
Convened by Emperor Basil and Pope Hadrian II.
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
To deal with
the heresy of Photius. He clearly denounced priestly celibacy and challenged Pope
Leo III to crown Charlemagne as Holy Roman Emperor on Christmas day of 800.
At the same time, he questioned the Filioque (and with the Spirit) of the
Creed. This period also saw the growing threat of the Saracens.
· Photius was condemned by the Council Fathers.
· Latterly, about 200 years later, Michael Cerularius closed the
Latin Churches in Constantinople and that marked the beginning of the Great
Eastern Schism.
·
Michael
Cerularius was excommunicated by Pope Leo IV in 1054.
The division in the Church came to a point where the
Eastern Church closed the door to its neighbour, the Latin Church.
Ninth Council – The First Lateran Council (1123)
·
Held in
Lateran Basilica in Rome
·
Convened by
Pope Callistus II.
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
Now the Great
Eastern Schism was in place. The Council was called to deal with the issue of
Lay Investiture, a controversy between ecclesial power and secular power.
· The Council agreed to the Concordat of Worms already signed by
Emperor Henry V and Pope Callistus II (that agreed to the fact that all
elections of bishops and abbots should be the prerogatives of ecclesial
authorities. However, only in Germany was the emperor required to approve such
elections.
·
The Council
declared that priests in the Latin rite must remain celibate.
The Church claimed the authority (a prerogative) to
appoint and elect bishops and abbots instead of the emperors. Here is the
imagined separation of powers between state and church.
Tenth Council – The Second Lateran Council (1139)
·
Held in
Lateran Basilica in Rome
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
This period
saw the growth of anti-popes. There was a growing Papal schism. Pope Innocent
II nullified and voided all acts and decrees by the dead anti-pope known as
Anicletus II. Bernard of Clairvaux expanded a crusade emphasizing the threat of
the Crescent Moon of Islam.
· The Council condemned the heresies of Peter Burys (who was against
infant baptism, the building of churches and the veneration of the crosses, the
doctrine of Transubstantiation and prayers for the dead), and Arnold of Brescia
(called on the Church to reject property ownership).
·
The Council
introduced the reforms suggested by Saint Bernard of Clairvaux
After all, the Church is made up of human beings:
saints and sinners. Hence, the rise in the number of anti-popes became an issue
within the Church. Many of their acts were condemned by the Council.
Eleventh Council – The Third Lateran Council (1179)
·
Held in
Lateran Basilica in Rome
·
Convened by
Pope Alexander III
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
This Council
was called due to the damages done to the church by many anti-popes, such as
Victor IV.
· The Council condemned the heresies of Albigenses and Waldenses.
·
At this Council, rules were set for the election of a Roman Pontiff – one of them was that a two-thirds majority of cardinals voting would decide and the Sacred Conclave was
elected as the voting body.
The democratic idea of electing a Pope to the office was
set, however, the election must be by the cardinals while in Conclave.
Twelfth Council – The Fourth Lateran Council (1215)
·
Held in
Lateran Basilica in Rome
·
Convened by
Pope Innocent III. In attendance were about 500 prelates and Patriarchs of
Jerusalem and Constantinople, and about a thousand abbots. Saint Dominic was also
in attendance.
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
In this
Council Pope Innocent III gave various definitions and declarations, such as
the principle of ex-cathedra and that ‘There is but one Universal Church and
that outside the church, there is no salvation’. Papal powers were at their
peak.
· The Council defined the term ‘Transubstantiation’ and reformed the
disciplines of ecclesiastical life, directing that Catholics should participate
in the sacraments of Penance and Eucharist, at least once a year.
·
The Council
condemned again the heresies of Albigensianism (teaching that marriage and the
sacraments were not required) and Waldensianism (a belief and teaching that the
lay could carry out the same duties as a priest when the priest in question was
in mortal sin).
The Church made a very bold claim at this Council:
‘There’s but One Universal Church and there’s no salvation outside the Church.’
This claim begged the question: Was there a Catholic God different from an Islamic
God, a Judaic God, and God as understood by different religions? Because every
religion promises salvation to its adherents. Could salvation come from them?
Thirteenth Council – The First Council of Lyons (1245)
·
Held in Lyons
– France
·
Convened by
Pope Innocent IV (after freeing Rome and taking refuge in France. On invitation
by King Saint Louis IX of France). In attendance were about 140 bishops and had
the blessings of Patriarchs of Antioch, Constantinople, Venice, and the Emperor
of the East.
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
The Council
reaffirmed the ex-communication of Frederick II by Pope Gregory IX. Frederick
betrayed the trust bestowed on him.
· The Council examined the consequences of the Mongols taking over
Europe and the loss of Jerusalem to the Muslims.
·
The Council
also investigated the issues regarding lax clergy.
The Church had always seen the Universal Church from
the European lens. It could be argued that European values developed from
Christian culture and values. One could make this assumption that, if the Jews
were (are) God’s Chosen People, the Europeans (based on the number of times in
different centuries the Church tried to protect it) are Christ’s Chosen People.
Fourteenth Council – The Second Council of Lyons (1274)
·
Held in Lyons
– France
·
Convened by
Pope Blessed Pope Gregory X. In attendance were 15 cardinals, 500 prelates,
over a thousand clerics and V.I.Ps, Saint Bonaventure, and Saint Thomas Aquinas
who passed on his journey to the Council.
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
In this
Council, an attempt was made to reunite the Latin and Eastern Churches. However,
the concept of Filioque (that the Holy Spirit proceeds from both the Father and
the Son) dealt the schism a bigger blow.
· The Council discussed how to retrieve Palestine from the Turks.
·
The Council
also reassessed the guidelines for the Papal election.
Having concerns for the peace and sovereignty of Palestine,
the Church sought ways to free Palestine from the Turks. Here, we can imagine
the influence of the Church in the Medieval world.
Fifteenth Council – Council of Vienne (1311)
·
Held in City
of Vienne – South of Lyons (Period of ‘Avignon Exile’ 1303-1377)
·
Convened by
the first of the Avignon Pope, Pope Clement V. In attendance were the
Patriarchs of Antioch and Alexandria, fewer bishops, and V.I.Ps.
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
The Council
was concerned with the misdeeds and abuse of privileges after the Crusades of
Knights Templars as well as the undertakings of Jacques de Molay, who planted
the satanic seeds of Freemasonry. The Council suppressed them.
· The Council readmitted King Philip IV, ruler of France back to the
fold after being excommunicated by Pope Boniface VIII (with his Unam Sanctam).
·
The Council
also condemned many other heresies.
Sixteenth Council – Council of Constance (1414-18)
·
Held in the City
of Constance – French area of Switzerland
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
The Council
was called because of the Great Western Schism. There were many Popes
(including the anti-popes of Avignon – Benedict XIII and John XXIII) taking
different stands and seats. As such, at the request of Emperor Sigismund and
for the sake of unity, the legitimate Pope Gregory XII abdicated the Papal
throne.
· John XXIII called a Council in Pisa in 1403 but it was illegal and
thus was not recognized.
· The Council unanimously elected a new Pope, Martin V to sit on
Peter’s throne. With this, the Great Western Schism ended. But it started the
struggle between Papal power and conciliar power.
·
At this
Council, the heresies of John Wycliffe (rejection of veneration of saints, the
sacraments, requiem Masses, Transubstantiation, monastic life, and the
existence of the Papacy) and John Hus (opposed the Churches views on
Ecclesiology, the Eucharist and Simony) were condemned.
An attempt by the Council to muffle up freedom of
beliefs and speech, hence those who refused to recant were considered
heresiarchs. Some left the Church; some were killed, such as John Hus.
Seventeenth Council – Council of Florence (1431-45) But started in Basel, Switzerland
·
Held in the City
of Florence – Italy
·
Convened by
Pope Martin V, who died before the Council ever began. Blessed Pope Eugen IV
opened the Council but was met with several oppositions. He dissolved it and
moved to Ferrara, Italy in 1438. The dissenting bishops elected the anti-pope
Felix V.
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
The Council's major achievement was the establishment of Papal authority over the conciliar
authority.
·
In this
Council, Pope Eugen IV with the Council proclaimed the dogma: ‘No salvation for
anyone outside the Church, hence, the Papal Bull, Cantate Domino.
Eighteenth Council – The Fifth Lateran Council (1512-17)
·
Held in
Lateran – Rome
·
Convened by
Pope Julius II.
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
The Council
was set to address the scandals engendered in the Church by previous pontiffs,
such as Borgia, and Pope Alexander VI (accused of libertinism and nepotism).
However, Pope Julius did not live to follow it through. Pope Leo X continued
from where he stopped.
·
The Council
was preoccupied with the teachings of sorts like Martin Luther and many others
who were rebelling against the Church. This period saw a growing number of
Protestants and their reforming agenda.
Nineteenth Council – The Council of Trent (1545-63)
·
Held in Trent
– a mountain village in Northern Italy
·
Convened by
Pope Paul III on December 13, 1545, but went on under five different Popes:
Julius III, Marcellus II, Paul IV, and Pius IV.
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
The Council
was noted as the longest and greatest in terms of time and achievements, such
as the commission of Trent, reforming the Roman Missal, writing of the Catechism of
Trent, a commission editing the Latin Vulgate Bible, dogmatic degree on the
Holy Eucharist, the Holy Mass, and the sacraments.
·
The Council
was regarded as a Counter-Reformation to the Protestant Reformation. It
condemned as anathema Protestantism, Martin Luther and other reformers who had
left the Church. The Council rededicate itself to holding dear the Truths and
Traditions of the Church as a Sacred Deposit of the Faith.
Twentieth Council – The First Vatican Council (1869-70)
·
Held in
Vatican City – Rome
·
Convened by
Pope Pius IX. In attendance were 803 of the Church’s hierarchy from all over
the world.
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
The Council
reaffirmed the details of the Council of Trent and the dogma of the Infallibility of
the Pope.
Twenty-First Council – The Second Vatican Council (1962-65)
·
Held in
Vatican City – Rome
·
Convened by
Pope John XXIII. Carried on by Pope Paul VI.
Reason for the Council and Outcomes
·
The Council’s
main objectives were the challenges of the Modern World and the role of the
Church. Hence, many documents came out of the Council attempting to address
them.
· The Council’s own words are pieced together in the documents of the Second Vatican Council: Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, on the Means of Social Communication, On the Church, On the Catholic Churches of the Eastern rite, On Ecumenism, Concerning the Pastoral Office of the Bishops, On renewal of religious life, On priestly training, On Christian Education, On the relation of the Church to non-Christian religions, on Divine Revelation, On the Apostolate of the Laity, On religious freedom, on the mission activity of the Church, on the ministry and life of priests, and on the Church in the Modern World.
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