The First Council of Constantinople (second ecumenical council) was called by Theodosius I in 381 to confirm the Nicene Creed and deal with other matters of the Arian controversy . Events First Council of Constantinople - second Ecumenical council of the Christian Church: The Nicene creed is affirmed and extended, Apollinarism is declared a heresy. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Roman Catholic Church. ... ... 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 rejected the dogmatic definitions of the Council of Chalcedon. ... The symbol of the Assyrian Church The Holy Apostolic and Catholic Assyrian Church of the East under His Holiness Mar Dinkha IV, is a Christian church that traces its origins to the See of Babylon, said to be founded by Saint Thomas the Apostle. ... The term Anglican (from Anglia, the Latin name for England) describes the people, institutions, and churches that adhere the religious traditions developed by the established Church of England. ... Mr wadawits smells Luthers seal Lutheranism is a Christian tradition based upon the main theological insights of Martin Luther. ... The First Council of Nicaea, convoked by the Roman Emperor Constantine I in 325, was the first ecumenical[1] conference of bishops of the Christian Church. ... The Council of Ephesus was held in Ephesus, Asia Minor in 431 under Emperor Theodosius II, grandson of Theodosius the Great. ... On the reverse of this coin minted under Valentinian II, both Valentinian and Theodosius are depicted with halos. ... Timothy served as Patriarch of Alexandria (head of the church that became the Coptic Church and the Orthodox Church of Alexandria) between 380 and 385. ... Meletius Of Antioch (died 381) was a Patriarch of Antioch from 360 to his death, and saint. ... An icon of Saint Gregory Nazianzen the theologian holding a Gospel Book Saint Gregory Nazianzen (AD 329 - January 25, 389), also known as Saint Gregory the Theologian, was a 4th century Christian bishop of Constantinople. ... Nectarius (died 397 or 398) was the archbishop of Constantinople from AD 381 until his death, the successor to Saint Gregory Nazianzus. ... This article is about theological views like those of Arius. ... Apollinarism or Apollinarianism was a view proposed by Apollinaris of Laodicea that Jesus had a human body but a divine mind. ... In various religions, most notably Trinitarian Christianity, the Holy Spirit (also called the Holy Ghost; in Hebrew רוח הקודש Ruah haqodesh) is the third Person of the Holy Trinity. ... Icon depicting the Holy Fathers of the First Council of Nicaea holding the Nicene Creed. ... 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 Commuion of churches. ... 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. ... On the reverse of this coin minted under Valentinian II, both Valentinian and Theodosius are depicted with halos. ... Events First Council of Constantinople - second Ecumenical council of the Christian Church: The Nicene creed is affirmed and extended, Apollinarism is declared a heresy. ... Icon depicting the Holy Fathers of the First Council of Nicaea holding the Nicene Creed. ... This article is about theological views like those of Arius. ...

Background

The Council of Nicaea did not end the Arian controversy which it had been called to clarify. By 327 Emperor Constantine had begun to regret the decisions that had been made at the Nicene Council. He granted amnesty to the Arian leaders and exiled Athanasius because of Eusebius of Nicomedia. Even during numerous exiles, Athanasius continued to be a vigorous defender of Nicene Christianity against Arianism. The Cappadocian Fathers also took up the torch, their Trinitarian discourse was influential in the council at Constantinople. The First Council of Nicaea, convoked by the Roman Emperor Constantine I in 325, was the first ecumenical[1] conference of bishops of the Christian Church. ... This article is about theological views like those of Arius. ... Constantine. ... The First Council of Nicaea, convoked by the Roman Emperor Constantine I in 325, was the first ecumenical[1] conference of bishops of the Christian Church. ... Athanasius of Alexandria (also spelled Athanasios) was a Christian bishop of Alexandria in the fourth century. ... Eusebius of Nicomedia and Constantinople, (d. ... The First Council of Nicaea, which took place during the reign of the emperor Constantine in 325 AD, was the first ecumenical (from Greek oikumene, worldwide) conference of bishops of the Christian Church. ... The Cappadocian Fathers are the 4th century church fathers Basil the Great, Gregory Nazianzen, and Basils brother Gregory of Nyssa, who made major contributions to the definition of the Trinity finalized at the First Council of Constantinople in 381 and the Nicene Creed. ... Constantinople[1] was the name of the modern-day city of Ä°stanbul, Turkey over the centuries that it served as the second capital of the unified Roman Empire, and after its division into East and West, of the Eastern Roman Empire, also known as the Byzantine Empire (from the city...

Up until about 360, theological debates mainly dealt with the Divinity of Jesus, the 2nd person of the Trinity. However, because the Council of Nicaea had not clarified the divinity of the Holy Spirit, the 3rd person of the Trinity, it became a target for heretics. The Macedonians denied the divinity of the Holy Spirit. This was also known as Pneumatomachianism. Christology is that part of Christian theology that studies and defines who Jesus the Christ was and is. ... For other uses, see Trinity (disambiguation). ... In various religions, most notably Trinitarian Christianity, the Holy Spirit (also called the Holy Ghost; in Hebrew רוח הקודש Ruah haqodesh) is the third Person of the Holy Trinity. ... Heresy, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, is a theological or religious opinion or doctrine maintained in opposition, or held to be contrary, to the ‘catholic’ or orthodox doctrine of the Christian Church, or, by extension, to that of any church, creed, or religious system, considered as orthodox. ... The Macedonians were a Christian sect of the 4th century AD, named after Patriarch Macedonius I of Constantinople. ...

The proceedings

Timothy of Alexandria, Meletius of Antioch, Gregory Nazianzus, and Nectarius of Constantinople successively presided. Gregory Nazianzus was appointed Patriarch of Constantinople, but soon resigned from the position a few months later, and Nectarius was then put in his place. Timothy served as Patriarch of Alexandria (head of the church that became the Coptic Church and the Orthodox Church of Alexandria) between 380 and 385. ... Meletius Of Antioch (died 381) was a Patriarch of Antioch from 360 to his death, and saint. ... An icon of Saint Gregory Nazianzen the theologian holding a Gospel Book Saint Gregory Nazianzen (AD 329 - January 25, 389), also known as Saint Gregory the Theologian, was a 4th century Christian bishop of Constantinople. ... Nectarius (died 397 or 398) was the archbishop of Constantinople from AD 381 until his death, the successor to Saint Gregory Nazianzus. ... Bishops of Byzantium (until 330) St. ...

The council affirmed the original Nicene creed of faith as true and an accurate explanation of Scripture. This council also developed a statement of faith which included the language of Nicaea, but expanded the discussion on the Holy Spirit to combat heresies. It is called the Nicene Creed of 381 and was a commentary on the original Nicene formula. It expanded the third article of the creed dealing with the Holy Spirit, as well as some other changes. About the Holy Spirit the article of faith said he is "the Lord, the Giver of Life, Who proceeds from the Father, With the Father and the Son he is worshipped and glorified". The statement of proceeding from the Father is seen as significant because it established that the Holy Spirit must be of the same essence (ousia) as God the Father. Icon depicting the Holy Fathers of the First Council of Nicaea holding the Nicene Creed. ... Icon depicting the Holy Fathers of the First Council of Nicaea holding the Nicene Creed. ... In various religions, most notably Trinitarian Christianity, the Holy Spirit (also called the Holy Ghost; in Hebrew רוח הקודש Ruah haqodesh) is the third Person of the Holy Trinity. ... This article or section contains information that has not been verified and thus might not be reliable. ... In many religions, the supreme God is given the title and attributions of Father. ...

This Council's decision regarding the Holy Spirit also gave official endorsement to the concept of the Trinity. By the end of the 4th century, the Byzantine Emperor Theodosius "issued a decree that the doctrine of the Trinity was to be the official state religion and that all subjects shall adhere to it" (See "Constantine, the first Christian emperor," Antiquity Online) For other uses, see Trinity (disambiguation). ... On the reverse of this coin minted under Valentinian II, both Valentinian and Theodosius are depicted with halos. ...

Seven canons, four of these doctrinal canons and three disciplinary canons, are attributed to the Council and accepted by both the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Oriental Orthodox Churches; the Roman Catholic Church accepts only the first four[1]. 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 Commuion of churches. ... ... 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 rejected the dogmatic definitions of the Council of Chalcedon. ... The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ...

The first canon[2] is an important dogmatic condemnation of all shades of Arianism, also of Macedonianism and Apollinarianism. Apollinarism or Apollinarianism was a view proposed by Apollinaris of Laodicea that Jesus had a human body but a divine mind. ...

The second canon[3] renews the Nicene legislation imposing upon the bishops the observance of diocesan and patriarchal limits.

The famous third canon[4] declares that because Constantinople is New Rome the bishop of that city should have a pre-eminence of honour after the Bishop of Old Rome. Baronius wrongly maintained the non-authenticity of this canon, while some medieval Greeks maintained (an equally erroneous thesis) that it declared the Bishop of Constantinople in all things the equal of the Bishop of Rome. The purely human reason of Rome's ancient authority, suggested by this canon, was never admitted by the Roman Catholic Church, which always based its claim to supremacy on the succession of St. Peter. Nor did Rome easily acknowledge this reordering of rank among the ancient patriarchates of the East. It was rejected by the Papal Legates at the Council of Chalcedon. Pope Leo the Great (Ep. cvi in P.L., LIV, 1003, 1005) declared that this canon has never been submitted to Rome and that it was a violation of the Nicene order. At the Fourth Council of Constantinople in 869 the Roman legates (J. D. Mansi, XVI, 174) acknowledged Constantinople as second in patriarchal rank. In 1215, at the Fourth Lateran Council (op. cit., XXII, 991), this was formally admitted for the new Latin patriarch, and in 1439, at the Council of Florence, for the Greek patriarch (Hefele-Leclercq, Hist. des Conciles, II, 25-27). The Roman correctores of Gratian (1582), at dist. xxii, c. 3, insert the words: "canon hic ex iis est quos apostolica Romana sedes a principio et longo post tempore non recipit." Constantinople[1] was the name of the modern-day city of İstanbul, Turkey over the centuries that it served as the second capital of the unified Roman Empire, and after its division into East and West, of the Eastern Roman Empire, also known as the Byzantine Empire (from the city... New Rome is a term that can be applied to a city or a country. ... The Patriarch of Constantinople is the Ecumenical Patriarch, the first among equals in the Eastern Orthodox communion. ... Christ Giving the Keys to Peter, fresco by Pietro Perugino, 1481–82, commissioned by Pope Sixtus IV, Sistine Chapel, Rome: the act upon which papal authority depends The Bishop of Rome is the bishop of the Holy See and is more commonly referred to as the Pope. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Catholicism. ... In Christianity, the doctrine of Apostolic Succession (or the belief that the Church is apostolic) maintains that the Christian Church today is the spiritual successor of the Church of the Apostles. ... According to tradition, Peter was crucified upside-down, as shown in this painting by Caravaggio. ... A patriarchate is the office or jurisdiction of a patriarch. ... A Papal Legate -from the Latin, authentic Roman title Legatus- is a personal representative of the Pope to the nations, or rather to some part of the universal church. ... The Council of Chalcedon was an ecumenical council that took place from October 8–November 1, 451 at Chalcedon, a city of Bithynia in Asia Minor. ... Pope Saint Leo I, or Leo the Great, was a Roman aristocrat who was Pope from 440 to 461. ... The Fourth Council of Constantinople is considered an ecumenical council by Roman Catholics and met from October 5, 869 to February 28, 870. ... Gian (Giovanni) Domenico Mansi (16 February 1692–27 September 1769) was an Italian theologian, scholar and historian, known for his massive works on the Church councils. ... The Fourth Council of the Lateran was summoned by Pope Innocent III with his Bull of April 19, 1213. ... A decree of the Council of Constance (9 October 1417), sanctioned by Pope Martin V obliged the papacy to summon general councils periodically. ...

The fourth canon[5] declares invalid the consecration of Maximus of Constantinople, the Cynic philosopher and rival of Gregory of Nazianzus, as Bishop of Constantinople. Maximus, also known as Maximus I or Maximus the Cynic, was a cynic professor and the intrusive bishop of Constantinople in 380, whence he became a rival of Gregory Nazianzus. ... The Cynics were an influential school of ancient philosophers. ... Saint Gregory Nazianzus (AD 329 - January 25, 389), also known as Saint Gregory the Theologian, was a 4th century Christian bishop of Constantinople. ... The Patriarch of Constantinople is the Ecumenical Patriarch, the first among equals in the Eastern Orthodox communion. ...

The fifth canon[6] might have been passed the next year, 382, and is in regard to a Tome of the Western bishops, perhaps that of Pope Damasus I. Saint Damasus I ( 305-383) was Pope from 366. ...

The sixth canon[7] might belong to the year 382 as well and was passed at the Quinisext Council as #95 and limits the ability to accuse bishops of wrongdoing. 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). ...

The seventh canon[8] regards procedures for receiving certain heretics into the church.

Pope Damasus I was not invited (or declined to attend), thus sometimes this council is called the unecumenical council. However, it was affirmed as ecumenical at the Council of Chalcedon in 451. Saint Damasus I ( 305-383) was Pope from 366. ... The Council of Chalcedon was an ecumenical council that took place from October 8–November 1, 451 at Chalcedon, a city of Bithynia in Asia Minor. ...

Aftermath

This council effectively handled Arianism and it began to die out with more condemnations at a council by Ambrose of Milan in 381. With the discussion of Trinitarian doctrine now developed and well under agreement to orthodox and Biblical understanding, it led to Christology. Christology would be the topic of the Council of Ephesus of 431 and the Council of Chalcedon of 451. This article is about theological views like those of Arius. ... Saint Ambrose, Latin Sanctus Ambrosius, Italian SantAmbrogio (circa 340 - April 4, 397), bishop of Milan, was one of the most eminent fathers of the Christian church in the 4th century. ... Events First Council of Constantinople - second Ecumenical council of the Christian Church: The Nicene creed is affirmed and extended, Apollinarism is declared a heresy. ... The adjective trinitarian is used in several senses: Ideas or things pertaining to the Holy Trinity A person or group adhering to the doctrine of Trinitarianism, which holds God to subsist in the form of the Holy Trinity The Trinitarian Order is a Catholic monastic order founded in 1198 by... Christology is that part of Christian theology that studies and defines who Jesus the Christ was and is. ... The Council of Ephesus was held in Ephesus, Asia Minor in 431 under Emperor Theodosius II, grandson of Theodosius the Great. ... The Council of Chalcedon was an ecumenical council that took place from October 8–November 1, 451 at Chalcedon, a city of Bithynia in Asia Minor. ...

External links

• Catholic Encyclopedia: First Council of Constantinople
• Council of Constantinople