Church Fathers
Patristic Personality Quiz
04/04/2007 23:18 Filed in: Faith & Reason
Theron Mathis sent me this. A bit obscure perhaps, but I suppose that description does fit me somewhat...
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You’re St. Justin Martyr! You have a positive and hopeful attitude toward the world. You think that nature, history, and even the pagan philosophers were often guided by God in preparation for the Advent of the Christ. You find “seeds of the Word” in unexpected places. You’re patient and willing to explain the faith to unbelievers. Find out which Church Father you are at The Way of the Fathers! |
Take the quiz yourself and post your results in the comments.
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Ecumenical Councils at a Glance
01/27/2006 01:04 Filed in: Faith & Reason
Guest Blog by Theron Mathis
Heretics: Arius—Jesus was a created by God and not fully God, but a super-human or demi-God.
Heroes: St. Athanasius.
Decision: Established Symbol of Faith (Nicene Creed).
Canons: Determined formula for determining Pascha (Easter). Condemned mandatory celibacy for all ranks of clergy. Determined prayers on Sundays should be offered standing.
Heretics: Macedonianism, Apollinarians, Eunomians, Eudoxians, Sabellians, Marcellians, Photinians.
Heroes: St. Gregory the Theologian (aka St. Gregory of Nazianzus) and St. Gregory of Nyssa
Decision: Condemned Arianism. Condemned Macedonianism which denied divinity of the Holy Spirit. Defined the Holy Trinity as one God in Three Persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit each fully God of the same essence. Expanded Symbol of Faith from Nicaea I into what is now commonly labelled "Nicene Creed" but is more properly known as the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed. Condemned Apollinarianism which taught the Lord Jesus Christ possessed the divine Logos in place of a human mind and was therefore fully divine, but not fully human. Condemned Eunomians (an extreme form of Arianism), the Eudoxians (semi-Arians), the Sabellians (who taught the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit were three modes of manifestation of the one God, denying the distinction of Three Persons), the Marcellians (who taught the Logos was an impersonal divine power that issued from God and entered into a relationship with Jesus to make him the Son of God), and the Photinians (who taught that Jesus was a mere man upon whom the Logos rested).
Canons: Ranked relative importance of the five patriarchates with Old Rome first and New Rome (Constantinople) second. Established regulations for church discipline, including standing during prayer on Sundays and the days of Pentecost. Established manner in which heretics were to be received into the Church.
Heretics: Nestorius
Heroes: St. Cyril of Alexandria
Decision: Condemned Nestorianism which taught a separation between the Lord Jesus Christ's divinity and humanity. Affirmed the term Theotokos. Upheld Christology of Saint Cyril of Alexandria.
Canons: The Symbol of Faith (Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed) was affirmed and changes to it were forbidden with punishment of deposition for clerics and excommunication for laity prescribed. Established that the rights of each province should be preserved and inviolate (i.e. bishops from one province have no rights over other provinces).
Heretics: Eutyches
Heroes: St. Leo (the Great) of Rome.
Decision: Condemned Monophysitism. After examination of the Tome of Leo affirmed it as "the faith of the Fathers." Affirmed completeness of the two natures of the Lord Jesus Christ: divinity and humanity (perfect God and perfect man).
Canons: Affirmed canons of previous three Ecumenical (Imperial) Councils. Reaffirmed New Rome (Constantinople) as second in honour (following Old Rome) of the patriarchates.
Statement: “one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, only-begotten, recognised in two natures, without confusion, without change, without division, without separation; the distinction of natures being in no way annulled by the union, but rather the characteristics of each nature being preserved and coming together to form one person and subsistence, not as parted or separated into two persons, but one and the same Son and only-begotten God the Word, Lord Jesus Christ”
Heretics: Theodore of Mopsuestia, Eutyches, and Origen
Heroes: Emperor (Saint) Justinian (the Great)
Decision: Condemned the person and writings of Theodore of Mopsuestia, who had been Nestorius' teacher and declared the Logos to be a different God than the one called Christ and who taught the Lord Jesus Christ was troubled by desires of human flesh and passions of the human soul. Condemned Origen, Didymus, and Evagrius for teaching the pre-existence of souls, re-incarnation, the ultimate salvation of demons, that heavenly bodies possessed souls, and other errors.
Heretics: Monothelitism, representing Sergius, Pyrrhus, Paul, Peter, Pope Honorius, and Cyrus.
Heroes: St. Maximos the Confessor, St. Martin (Pope of Rome)
Decision: Condemned Monothelitism (a belief that the Lord Jesus Christ had only one will and one energy). Affirmed that the Lord Jesus Christ, though but one person, after His incarnation possessed two natural wills and two natural energies, just as He possessed two natures.
Heretics: Emperor Leo IV and Constantine V
Heroes: Empress Irene; St. John of Damascus; St. Germanus
Decision: Condemned Iconoclasm. Affirmed veneration (but not adoration, which was for God alone) of images.
Canons: Decreed that those secretly keeping Jewish customs (e.g. keeping the Sabbath) but pretending to be Christians should live as Jews openly, but be excluded from the Church. Established monastic regulations.
Statement: “Whenever these representations are contemplated, they will cause those who look at them to commemorate and love their prototype. We define also that they should be kissed and that they are an object of veneration and honour [timitiki proskynisis], but not of real worship [latreia], which is reserved for Him Who is the subject of our faith and is proper for the Divine Nature. The veneration accorded to an icon is in effect transmitted to the prototype; he who venerates the icon, venerated in it the reality for which it stands.”
Rick's Comments: Theron Mathis originally put this together as a handout for a class he taught at St. Michael Orthodox Church in Louisville, Kentucky. He emailed me a copy recently, and I liked it because it gave a concise overview of the most significant of the early church's ecumenical councils. And it all fit on one page in the original format he sent me! These first seven councils were significant because they are the only councils that both the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church recognize as authoritative before the Great Schism of 1054 AD. These seven councils are important to most Protestants as well because it was at these councils that the doctrine of the Trinity and the understanding of the nature of persons of the godhead were fully articulated, in addition to other important issues that were resolved.
Kudos to Theron for teaching important Christian history at his church.
LINKS:
Theron Mathis can be contacted at TMMATHIS@travelers.com.
For more information on the Ecumenical Councils, you may want to read the Wikipedia article, "Ecumenical Council."
To download Theron's original handout, go to my File Downloads page, select Other, then select Ecumenical Councils.pdf.
325 - 1st Ecumenical Council at Nicea
Heretics: Arius—Jesus was a created by God and not fully God, but a super-human or demi-God.
Heroes: St. Athanasius.
Decision: Established Symbol of Faith (Nicene Creed).
Canons: Determined formula for determining Pascha (Easter). Condemned mandatory celibacy for all ranks of clergy. Determined prayers on Sundays should be offered standing.
381 - 2nd Ecumenical Council at Constantinople
Heretics: Macedonianism, Apollinarians, Eunomians, Eudoxians, Sabellians, Marcellians, Photinians.
Heroes: St. Gregory the Theologian (aka St. Gregory of Nazianzus) and St. Gregory of Nyssa
Decision: Condemned Arianism. Condemned Macedonianism which denied divinity of the Holy Spirit. Defined the Holy Trinity as one God in Three Persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit each fully God of the same essence. Expanded Symbol of Faith from Nicaea I into what is now commonly labelled "Nicene Creed" but is more properly known as the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed. Condemned Apollinarianism which taught the Lord Jesus Christ possessed the divine Logos in place of a human mind and was therefore fully divine, but not fully human. Condemned Eunomians (an extreme form of Arianism), the Eudoxians (semi-Arians), the Sabellians (who taught the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit were three modes of manifestation of the one God, denying the distinction of Three Persons), the Marcellians (who taught the Logos was an impersonal divine power that issued from God and entered into a relationship with Jesus to make him the Son of God), and the Photinians (who taught that Jesus was a mere man upon whom the Logos rested).
Canons: Ranked relative importance of the five patriarchates with Old Rome first and New Rome (Constantinople) second. Established regulations for church discipline, including standing during prayer on Sundays and the days of Pentecost. Established manner in which heretics were to be received into the Church.
431 - 3rd Ecumenical Council at Ephesus
Heretics: Nestorius
Heroes: St. Cyril of Alexandria
Decision: Condemned Nestorianism which taught a separation between the Lord Jesus Christ's divinity and humanity. Affirmed the term Theotokos. Upheld Christology of Saint Cyril of Alexandria.
Canons: The Symbol of Faith (Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed) was affirmed and changes to it were forbidden with punishment of deposition for clerics and excommunication for laity prescribed. Established that the rights of each province should be preserved and inviolate (i.e. bishops from one province have no rights over other provinces).
451 - 4th Ecumenical Council at Chalcedon
Heretics: Eutyches
Heroes: St. Leo (the Great) of Rome.
Decision: Condemned Monophysitism. After examination of the Tome of Leo affirmed it as "the faith of the Fathers." Affirmed completeness of the two natures of the Lord Jesus Christ: divinity and humanity (perfect God and perfect man).
Canons: Affirmed canons of previous three Ecumenical (Imperial) Councils. Reaffirmed New Rome (Constantinople) as second in honour (following Old Rome) of the patriarchates.
Statement: “one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, only-begotten, recognised in two natures, without confusion, without change, without division, without separation; the distinction of natures being in no way annulled by the union, but rather the characteristics of each nature being preserved and coming together to form one person and subsistence, not as parted or separated into two persons, but one and the same Son and only-begotten God the Word, Lord Jesus Christ”
553 - 5th Ecumenical Council at Constantinople
Heretics: Theodore of Mopsuestia, Eutyches, and Origen
Heroes: Emperor (Saint) Justinian (the Great)
Decision: Condemned the person and writings of Theodore of Mopsuestia, who had been Nestorius' teacher and declared the Logos to be a different God than the one called Christ and who taught the Lord Jesus Christ was troubled by desires of human flesh and passions of the human soul. Condemned Origen, Didymus, and Evagrius for teaching the pre-existence of souls, re-incarnation, the ultimate salvation of demons, that heavenly bodies possessed souls, and other errors.
680 - 6th Ecumenical Council at Constantinople
Heretics: Monothelitism, representing Sergius, Pyrrhus, Paul, Peter, Pope Honorius, and Cyrus.
Heroes: St. Maximos the Confessor, St. Martin (Pope of Rome)
Decision: Condemned Monothelitism (a belief that the Lord Jesus Christ had only one will and one energy). Affirmed that the Lord Jesus Christ, though but one person, after His incarnation possessed two natural wills and two natural energies, just as He possessed two natures.
787 - 7th Ecumenical Council at Nicea
Heretics: Emperor Leo IV and Constantine V
Heroes: Empress Irene; St. John of Damascus; St. Germanus
Decision: Condemned Iconoclasm. Affirmed veneration (but not adoration, which was for God alone) of images.
Canons: Decreed that those secretly keeping Jewish customs (e.g. keeping the Sabbath) but pretending to be Christians should live as Jews openly, but be excluded from the Church. Established monastic regulations.
Statement: “Whenever these representations are contemplated, they will cause those who look at them to commemorate and love their prototype. We define also that they should be kissed and that they are an object of veneration and honour [timitiki proskynisis], but not of real worship [latreia], which is reserved for Him Who is the subject of our faith and is proper for the Divine Nature. The veneration accorded to an icon is in effect transmitted to the prototype; he who venerates the icon, venerated in it the reality for which it stands.”
Kudos to Theron for teaching important Christian history at his church.
LINKS:
Theron Mathis can be contacted at TMMATHIS@travelers.com.
For more information on the Ecumenical Councils, you may want to read the Wikipedia article, "Ecumenical Council."
To download Theron's original handout, go to my File Downloads page, select Other, then select Ecumenical Councils.pdf.