The Council of Chalcedon was an ecumenical council that took place from October 8 to November 1, 451, at Chalcedon (a city of Bithynia in Asia Minor), today part of the city of Istanbul on the Asian side of the Bosphorus and known as the district of Kadıköy. The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... The term Anglican (from Medieval Latin ecclesia anglicana, meaning the English Church) is used to describe the people, institutions and churches as well as the liturgical traditions and theological concepts developed by the established Church of England, the Anglican Communion and the Continuing Anglican Churches (a loosely affiliated group of... ... Lutheranism is a movement within Christianity that began with the theological insights of Martin Luther in the 16th century. ... The Council of Ephesus was held in Ephesus, Asia Minor in 431 under Emperor Theodosius II, grandson of Theodosius the Great. ... The Fifth Ecumenical Council (the Second Council of Constantinople) was a Christian Ecumenical Council that was held in 553. ... Another but lesser Marcian was a son-in-law of Byzantine Emperor Leo I and his queen Verina. ... Eutyches (c. ... Monophysitism (from the Greek monos meaning one, alone and physis meaning nature) is the christological position that Christ has only one nature, as opposed to the Chalcedonian position which holds that Christ has two natures, one divine and one human. ... This article is about Jesus of Nazareth. ... The Second Council of Ephesus (called the Robber Council of Ephesus, Robber Synod or Latrocinium by its opponents) was a church council at Ephesus. ... The Chalcedonian Creed was adopted at the Council of Chalcedon in 451 in Asia Minor. ... Eutyches (c. ... Dioscorus (or Dioscurus) (died c. ... In Christianity, an Ecumenical Council or general council is a meeting of the bishops of the whole church convened to discuss and settle matters of Church doctrine and practice. ... In Christianity, an Ecumenical Council or general council is a meeting of the bishops of the whole church convened to discuss and settle matters of Church doctrine and practice. ... October 8 is the 281st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (282nd in leap years). ... November 1 is the 305th day of the year (306th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 60 days remaining. ... Events April 7 - The Huns sack Metz June 20 - Attila, king of the Huns is defeated at Troyes by Aëtius in the Battle of Chalons. ... Chalcedon (Χαλκηδών, sometimes transliterated as Chalkedon; see also list of traditional Greek place names) was an ancient maritime town of Bithynia, in Asia Minor, almost directly opposite Byzantium, south of Scutari (modern Ãœsküdar). ... Bithynia was an ancient region, kingdom and Roman province in the northwest of Asia Minor, adjoining the Propontis, the Thracian Bosporus and the Euxine (today Black Sea). ... Anatolia (Greek: ανατολη anatole, rising of the sun or East; compare Orient and Levant, by popular etymology Turkish Anadolu to ana mother and dolu filled), also called by the Latin name of Asia Minor, is a region of Southwest Asia which corresponds today to... Istanbul (Turkish: , Greek: / Konstandinúpoli, historically known in English as Constantinople; see other names) is Turkeys most populous city, and its cultural and financial center. ... Bosphorus - photo taken from International Space Station. ... Kadıköy (known as Chalcedon in antiquity), is a large cosmopolitan district on the Anatolian side of Ä°stanbul, Turkey. ...

It is the fourth of the first seven Ecumenical Councils in Christianity, and is therefore recognized as infallible in its dogmatic definitions by the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. It repudiated the Eutychian doctrine of monophysitism, and set forth the Chalcedonian Creed, which describes the "full humanity and full divinity" of Jesus, the second person of the Holy Trinity. Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament. ... Infallibility is the ability to be free from error (obtain certainty). ... In Roman Catholicism, a dogmatic definition is an infallible statement published by a pope or an ecumenical council concerning a matter of faith or morals, the belief in which the Catholic Church requires of all Christians (but Christians who are not Catholics do not recognize the Catholic Churchs authority... The Roman Catholic Church or Catholic Church (see terminology below) is the Christian Church in full communion with the Bishop of Rome, currently Pope Benedict XVI. It traces its origins to the original Christian community founded by Jesus Christ and led by the Twelve Apostles, in particular Saint Peter. ... ... Eutyches (c. ... Monophysitism (from the Greek monos meaning one, alone and physis meaning nature) is the christological position that Christ has only one nature, as opposed to the Chalcedonian position which holds that Christ has two natures, one divine and one human. ... The Chalcedonian Creed was adopted at the Council of Chalcedon in 451 in Asia Minor. ... This article is about Jesus of Nazareth. ... For other uses, see Trinity (disambiguation). ...

Historical background

Relics of Nestorianism

After the Council of Ephesus had condemned Nestorianism, there remained a conflict between patriarchs John of Antioch and Cyril of Alexandria. Cyril claimed that John remained Nestorian in outlook, while John claimed that Cyril held to the Apollinarian heresy. The two settled their differences under the mediation of the bishop of Beroea, Acacius, on April 12, 433. In the following year, Theodoret of Cyrrhus assented to this formula as well, apparently putting a rest to Nestorianism forever. The Council of Ephesus was held in Ephesus, Asia Minor in 431 under Emperor Theodosius II, grandson of Theodosius the Great. ... Nestorianism is the Christian doctrine that Jesus existed as two persons, the man Jesus and the divine Son of God, or Logos, rather than as a unified person. ... For other senses, see Patriarch (disambiguation). ... St. ... Apollinarism or Apollinarianism was a view proposed by Apollinaris of Laodicea that Jesus had a human body but a divine mind. ... April 12 is the 102nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (103rd in leap years). ... Events Petronius Maximus becomes Roman Consul John of Antioch and Cyril of Alexandria sign the Formula of Reunion, thus ending their conflict over the Nestorian controversy and the Council of Ephesus. ... Theodoret (393 – c. ... Cyrrhus, Cyrrus, or Kyrros (Greek Κύρρος) was a city in ancient Syria founded by Seleucus Nicator, one of Alexander the Greats generals. ...

However, the works of two long dead Antiochean theologians, Diodorus of Tarsus and Theodore of Mopsuestia were at this time translated into Syriac. By the intervention of Archbishop Proclus of Constantinople, the two theologians were condemned throughout the East, but this situation would later provide the material for the Second Council of Constantinople some hundred years later. Antioch on the Orontes (Greek: Αντιόχεια η επί Δάφνη, Αντιόχεια η επί Ορόντου or Αντιόχεια η Μεγάλη; Latin: Antiochia ad Orontem, also Antiochia dei Siri), the Great Antioch or Syrian Antioch was an ancient city located on the eastern side (left bank) of the Orontes River about 30 km from the sea and its port, Seleucia Pieria. ... After the early School of Antioch came into decline, the presbyter Diodore of Tarsus re-founded it in the middle of the fourth century as a semi-monastic community. ... Theodore (c. ... Syriac is an Eastern Aramaic language that was once spoken across much of the Fertile Crescent. ... Saint Proclus (died July 446) was an Archbishop of Constantinople. ... The Fifth Ecumenical Council (the Second Council of Constantinople) was a Christian Ecumenical Council that was held in 553. ...

Eutychian controversy

About two years after Cyril of Alexandria's death in 444, an aged monk from Constantinople named Eutyches began teaching a subtle variation on the traditional Christology in an attempt (as he described in a letter to Pope Leo I in 448) to stop a new outbreak of Nestorianism. He claimed to be a faithful follower of Cyril's teaching, which was declared orthodox in the Union of 432. St. ... Munichs city symbol celebrates its founding by Benedictine monks—and the origin of its name A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, the conditioning of mind and body in favor of the spirit. ... Eutyches (c. ... Christology is that part of Christian theology which studies and attempts to define Jesus the Christ. ... Pope Leo I was a Roman aristocrat who was Pope from 440 to 461. ... Nestorianism is the Christian doctrine that Jesus existed as two persons, the man Jesus and the divine Son of God, or Logos, rather than as a unified person. ...

Cyril had taught that "There is only one physis, since it is the Incarnation, of God the Word." Cyril had apparently understood the Greek word physis to mean approximately what the Latin word persona (person) means, while most Greek theologians would have interpreted that word to mean natura (nature). Thus, many understood Eutyches to be advocating Docetism, a sort of reversal of Arianism -- where Arius had denied the divine nature of Jesus, Eutyches seemed to be denying his human nature. (Cyril's orthodoxy was not called into question, since the Union of 433 had explicitly spoken of two physeis in this context.) Latin is an ancient Indo-European language originally spoken in Latium, the region immediately surrounding Rome. ... In Christianity, Docetism is the belief, regarded by most theologians as heretical, that Jesus did not have a physical body; rather, that his body was an illusion, as was his crucifixion. ... This article is about theological views like those of Arius. ... This article is about Jesus of Nazareth. ...

Pope Leo I, from Rome, wrote that Eutyches' error seemed to be more from a lack of skill on the matters than from malice. Further, his side of the controversy tended not to enter into arguments with their opponents, which prevented the misunderstanding from being uncovered. Nonetheless, due to the high regard in which Eutyches was held (second only to the Patriarch of Constantinople in the East), his teaching spread rapidly throughout the east.

In November 447, during a local synod in Constantinople, Eutyches was denounced as a heretic by the bishop of Dorylaeum, Eusebius, with the demand that he be removed from his office. The then archbishop, Flavian of Constantinople, did not wish to consider the matter as a result of the great prestige that Eutyches enjoyed, but finally relented, and so Eutyches was condemned as a heretic by the synod. However, the emperor Theodosius II and the Patriarch of Alexandria, Dioscorus, did not accept the decision of the synod because Eutyches had repented and confessed his orthodoxy. Dioscorus held his own synod reinstating Eutyches, and the emperor called a council to be held in Ephesus in 449, inviting Pope Leo I, who agreed to be represented by three legates. A synod (also known as a council) is a council of a church, usually a Christian church, convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. ... Dorylaeum was an ancient city in Anatolia. ... Flavian or Phlabianus (d. ... Theodosius II Flavius Theodosius II (April, 401 - July 28, 450 ). The eldest son of Eudoxia and Arcadius who at the age of 7 became the Roman Emperor of the East. ... This article is about the city in Egypt. ... Dioscorus (or Dioscurus) (died c. ... Historical Map of Ephesus, from Meyers Konversationslexikon 1888 Ephesus (Greek: , Turkish: ), was one of the great cities of the Ionian Greeks in Anatolia, located in Lydia where the Cayster River (Küçük Menderes) flows into the Aegean Sea (in modern day Turkey). ... Pope Leo I was a Roman aristocrat who was Pope from 440 to 461. ...

"Latrocinium" of Ephesus

By this time, the pope had received communications from Flavian, and had himself determined that Eutyches was in the wrong and that the deposition in 447 was just. He wrote to the council, telling them that they must accept his judgment on the matter, but he left the punishment of Eutyches open for discussion. It appears Pope Leo I was unaware of the confession made to Pope Dioscorus of Alexandria.

The Second Council of Ephesus convened on August 8, 449, with some 130 bishops in attendance. Dioscorus presided by command of the emperor. The emperor denied the vote to any bishop who had voted in Eutyches' deposition two years earlier. As a result, there was a near-unanimous support for Eutyches, and Flavian was himself deposed and exiled. He died shortly thereafter. The papal legates left with a letter for the pope from Flavian, and in a second session, without papal representation, several more bishops were deposed, including Ibas of Edessa, Irenaeus of Tyre (a close personal friend of Nestorius), Domnus of Antioch, and Theodoret. The Second Council of Ephesus (called the Robber Council of Ephesus, Robber Synod or Latrocinium by its opponents) was a church council at Ephesus. ... August 8 is the 220th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (221st in leap years), with 145 days remaining. ... Events August 3 - The Second Council of Ephesus opens, chaired by Dioscorus, Patriarch of Alexandria. ...

The decisions of this council threatened schism between the East and the West, since they went plainly against the papal declaration, although it was never read. The pope dubbed this council a "synod of robbers" — Latrocinium — and refused to accept its pronouncements. His letter was not read at the council and the papal legates left with it as well and it is for this reason that he called it so. The word schism (IPA: or ), from the Greek σχίσμα, skhísma (from σχίζω, skhízō, to split), means a division or a split, usually in an organization or a movement. ... Latrocinium is a ecclesiastical Latin word meaning rebel or hostile council. It literally means robber council. ...

Convocation and session

The situation continued to deteriorate, with the pope demanding the convocation of a new council and the emperor refusing to budge, all the while appointing bishops in agreement with Dioscorus. All this changed dramatically with the death of Theodosius II and the elevation of Marcian to the imperial throne, for Marcian was a defender of the doctrine of Flavian and Leo. Another but lesser Marcian was a son-in-law of Byzantine Emperor Leo I and his queen Verina. ...

Marcian agreed to hold a new council, but not in Italy, as the pope had requested, but rather in the East, but he invited the pope to preside in person. He had the exiled bishops returned to their dioceses, and had the body of Flavian brought to the capital to be buried in honor.

The council was called to meet at Nicaea, but was moved at the last moment to Chalcedon, where the council opened on October 8, 451. The papal legate Paschanius was sent to preside. Leo himself sent a letter to the council, condemning the work of the "latrocinium" and indicating that the correct doctrine about the Incarnation could be found in his previous letter to Flavian. Iznik (formerly Nicaea) is a city in Anatolia (now part of Turkey) which is known primarily as the site of two major meetings (or Ecumenical councils) in the early history of the Christian church. ... Chalcedon (Χαλκηδών, sometimes transliterated as Chalkedon; see also list of traditional Greek place names) was an ancient maritime town of Bithynia, in Asia Minor, almost directly opposite Byzantium, south of Scutari (modern Üsküdar). ... October 8 is the 281st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (282nd in leap years). ... Events April 7 - The Huns sack Metz June 20 - Attila, king of the Huns is defeated at Troyes by Aëtius in the Battle of Chalons. ...

Attendance at this council was very high, some 500 bishops. Paschanius refused to give Dioscorus (who had carried out an excommunication of the pope in the period leading up to the council) a seat at the council, and as a result, he was moved to the nave of the church. Paschanius further ordered the reinstatement of Theodoret and that he be given a seat, but this move caused such an uproar among the council fathers, that Theodoret also sat in the nave, though he was given a vote in the proceedings, which began with a trial of Dioscorus. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Marcian wished to bring proceedings to a more speedy end, and asked the council to make a pronouncement on the doctrine of the Incarnation before continuing the trial. The council fathers, however, felt that no new creed was necessary, and that the doctrine had been laid out clearly in Leo's letter to Flavian, by then called "The Tome"[1]. The second day of the council ended with shouts from the bishops, "It is Peter who says this through Leo. This is what we all of us believe. This is the faith of the Apostles. Leo and Cyril teach the same thing." Saint Peter, also known as Simon ben Jonah/BarJonah, Simon Peter, Cephas and Kepha — original name Simon or Simeon (Acts 15:14) — was one of the Twelve Apostles whom Jesus chose as his original disciples. ...

The council continued with Dioscorus' trial, but he refused to appear before the assembly. As a result, he was condemned unanimously (though the Egyptian bishops seem to have been intimidated in this), and all of his decrees were declared null. Marcian responded by exiling Dioscorus. All of the bishops were then asked to sign their assent to the Tome, but a group of thirteen Egyptians refused, saying that they would assent to "the traditional faith". As a result, the emperor's commissioners decided that a creed would indeed be necessary and presented a text to the fathers. No consensus was reached, and indeed the text has not survived to the present.

Paschanius threatened to return to Rome to reassemble the council in Italy. Marcian agreed, saying that if a clause were not added to the creed supporting Leo's doctrine, the bishops would have to relocate. The bishops relented and added a clause, saying that, according to the decision of Leo, in Christ there are two natures united, inconvertible [natures], inseparable [natures].

The work of the council was completed by a series of 30[2] disciplinary canons. Canon law is the term used for the internal ecclesiastical law which governs various churches, most notably the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Churches and the Anglican Communion of churches. ...

1. states all canons of previous councils shall remain in force, specific councils were clarified by Quinisext Council canon 2,
2. states that those who buy their office are anathema,
3. prohibits bishops from engaging in business,
4. bishops were given authority over the monks in their dioceses, with the right to permit or forbid the foundation of new monasteries,
5. travelling bishops are subject to canon law,
6. the clergy were forbidden to change dioceses or
7. to serve in the military or
8. the poorhouses are under the jurisdiction of the bishop,
9. limits the ability to accuse a bishop of wrong doing,
10. prevents clergy belonging to multiple churches,
11. regards letters of travel for the poor,
12. no province shall be divided for the purposes of creating another church,
13. no clergy shall be received by others without a letter of recommendation,
14. regards wives and children of cantors and lectors,
15. a deaconess must be at least 40,
16. monks and nuns are forbidden to marry on pain of excommunication,
17. rural parishes cannot change bishops,
18. conspiring forbidden,
19. twice a year the bishops shall conduct a synod,
20. lists exemptions for those who have been driven to another city,
21. says an accuser of a bishop shall be suspect before the bishop,
22. makes it illegal to seize the goods of a dead bishop,
23. allows the expulsion of outsiders who cause trouble in Constantinople,
24. monasteries are permanent,
25. a new bishop shall be assigned within 3 months,
26. churches shall have a steward from among the congregation to monitor church-business,
27. forbidden to carry off women under pretense of marriage (eloping),
28. grants equal privileges (isa presbeia) to Constantinople as of Rome because Constantinople is the New Rome as renewed by canon 36 of the Quinisext Council (the papal legates were not present for the vote on this canon, and protested it afterwards),
29. states a bishop cannot be demoted, only removed,
30. grants the Coptic Orthodox time to consider their rejection of Leo's Tome.

Both the Fifth Ecumenical Council and the Sixth Ecumenical Council failed to produce disciplinary norms, for which reason the emperor Justinian II convoked an assembly in 692 to meet in Constantinople in the same domed hall where the Sixth Council had been held, called in Trullo (= under the dome). ... Simony is the ecclesiastical crime and personal sin of paying for offices or positions in the hierarchy of a church, named after Simon Magus, who appears in the Acts of the Apostles 8:18-24. ... Anathema (in Greek Ανάθεμα) meaning originally something lifted up as an offering to the gods; later, with evolving meanings, it came to mean: to be formally set apart, banished, exiled, excommunicated or denounced, sometimes accursed. ... A cantor is a musician working in a church with responsibilities for the singing in the church. ... Deaconess (and also deacon) comes from a Greek word diakonos (διακονος). This Greek word means a servant or helper and occurs frequently in the Christian New Testament of the Bible and is sometimes applied to Christ himself. ... A Roman Catholic monk A monk is a person who practices monasticism, adopting a strict religious and ascetic lifestyle, usually in community with others following the same path. ... In general, a nun is a female ascetic who chooses to voluntarily leave the world and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... A synod (also known as a council) is a council of a church, usually a Christian church, convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. ... Buddhist monastery near Tibet A monastery is the habitation of monks. ... New Rome is a term that can be applied to a city or a country. ... Both the Fifth Ecumenical Council and the Sixth Ecumenical Council failed to produce disciplinary norms, for which reason the emperor Justinian II convoked an assembly in 692 to meet in Constantinople in the same domed hall where the Sixth Council had been held, called in Trullo (= under the dome). ... A papal Legate, from the Decretals of Boniface VIII (1294 to 1303). ... Christ - Coptic Art Coptic Orthodox Christianity is the indigenous form of Christianity that, according to tradition, the apostle Mark established in Egypt in the middle of the 1st century AD (approximately AD 60). ...

Consequences of the council

The near-immediate result of the council was a major schism. The bishops that were uneasy with the language of Pope Leo's Tome repudiated the council, saying that the acceptance of two physes was tantamount to Nestorianism. This is the origin of Oriental Orthodoxy as a distinct communion, which still today rejects the results of this council. The term Oriental Orthodoxy refers to the communion of Eastern Christian Churches that recognize only the first three ecumenical councils — the First Council of Nicaea, the First Council of Constantinople and the Council of Ephesus — and reject the dogmatic definitions of the Council of Chalcedon. ...

Recent years have brought about a certain amount of dialogue between other Christians and the Oriental Orthodox. Some Oriental Orthodox bishops have indicated that the difference in doctrine was never more than a misunderstanding and have since reintegrated in the Roman Catholic or Eastern Orthodox churches. Formerly Oriental Orthodox Eastern Rite Catholic Churches coming under Rome since Chalcedon include elements of the Alexandrian, Syriac and Armenian churches. For a time, the Georgian Orthodox and Apostolic Church was part of the Oriental Orthodox communion, but is now Eastern Orthodox. Additionally, a part of the Armenian Apostolic Church temporarily came into union with Eastern Orthodoxy via the Russian Orthodox Church. The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... The Eastern Orthodox Church is a Christian body that views itself as the historical continuation of the original Christian community established by Jesus and the Twelve Apostles, preserving the traditions of the early church unchanged, accepting the canonicity of the first seven ecumenical councils held between the 4th and the... The Eastern Catholic Churches are autonomous particular Churches in full communion with the Pope in Rome. ... The Georgian Apostolic Autocephalous Orthodox Church (Saqartvelos Samotsiqulo Avtokepaluri Martlmadidebeli Eklesia in Georgian language) is one of the worlds most ancient Christian Churches, founded in the 1st century by the Apostle Andrew. ... Official standard of Karekin II Catholicos of Armenia The Armenian Apostolic Church, sometimes called the Armenian Orthodox Church or the Gregorian Church, is the worlds oldest national church and one of the most ancient Christian communities. ... The Russian Orthodox Church (Russian: ), also known as the Orthodox Christian Church of Russia, is that body of Christians who are united under the Patriarch of Moscow, who in turn is in communion with the other patriarchs and primates of the Eastern Orthodox Church. ...

Confession of Chalcedon

The most comprehensive confession of the Person of Christ was made at the Council of Chalcedon in 451:

External links

• Catholic Encyclopedia: Council of Chalcedon
• Catholic Encyclopedia: Robber Council of Ephesus
• Coptic interpretations of the Fourth Ecumenical Council
• Council of Ephesus

See also

• Ecumenical Council of Nicea
• Council of Ephesus