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{{Short description|381 AD council of Christian bishops}}{{Too many quotes|date=October 2023}}{{For|the earlier Council of Constantinople in 359 dominated by Arians|Council of Constantinople (360)}}
The '''First Council of Constantinople''' (second [[ecumenical council]]) was called by
{{Infobox ecumenical council
[[Theodosius I]] in 381 to confirm the [[Nicene creed]]
| council_name = First Council of Constantinople
and deal with other matters of
| image = [[File:Homilies of Gregory the Theologian gr. 510, f 723.jpg|363x363px]]
[[Arianism|the Arian controversy ]].
| caption = 9th century Byzantine manuscript illumination of I Constantinople. ''[[Paris Gregory|Homilies of St. Gregory of Nazianzus]]'', 879–883.
| council_date = 381
| accepted_by =
* [[Catholic Church]]
* [[Eastern Orthodox Church]]
* [[Oriental Orthodoxy]]
* [[Church of the East]]
* [[Anglican Communion]]
* [[Lutheranism]]
* [[Calvinism]]
| previous = [[First Council of Nicaea]]
| next = [[Council of Ephesus]]
| convoked_by = Emperor [[Theodosius I]]
| presided_by = [[Timothy of Alexandria]], [[Meletius of Antioch]], [[Gregory Nazianzus]], and [[Nectarius of Constantinople]]
| attendance = 150 (no representation of Western Church)
| topics = [[Arianism]], [[Holy Spirit]]
| documents = [[Nicene Creed#Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed|Nicene Creed of 381]], seven [[canon law|canon]]s (three disputed)
}}
{{Ecumenical councils of the Catholic Church}}


The '''First Council of Constantinople''' ({{lang-la|Concilium Constantinopolitanum}}; {{lang-grc-gre|Σύνοδος τῆς Κωνσταντινουπόλεως}}) was a council of Christian bishops convened in [[Constantinople]] (now [[Istanbul]], [[Turkey]]) in AD 381 by the [[Roman Emperors|Roman Emperor]] [[Theodosius I]].<ref>[[Socrates Scholasticus]], ''Church History'', book 5, chapters 8 & 11, puts the council in the same year as the revolt of Magnus Maximus and death of Gratian.</ref><ref>{{ cite book |last1=Hebblewhite |first1=M. |title=Theodosius and the Limits of Empire|pages= 56ff |year=2020}}</ref> This second [[ecumenical council]], an effort to attain [[consensus decision-making|consensus]] in the church through an [[legislature|assembly]] representing all of [[Christendom]], except for the [[Western Church]],<ref name="dictionary">Richard Kieckhefer (1989). "Papacy". ''[[Dictionary of the Middle Ages]]''. {{ISBN|0-684-18275-0}}.</ref> confirmed the [[Nicene Creed]], expanding the doctrine thereof to produce the [[Nicene Creed#Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed|Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed]], and dealt with sundry other matters. It met from May to July 381<ref>{{Cite web|title=Catholic Encyclopedia: First Council of Constantinople|url=https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04308a.htm|access-date=2021-06-02|website=www.newadvent.org}}</ref> in the [[Hagia Irene|Church of Hagia Irene]] and was affirmed as ecumenical in 451 at the [[Council of Chalcedon]].
[[Meletius of Antioch]], [[Gregory Nazianzen]],
and [[Nectarius]] successively presided. Gregory
Nazianzen was made patriarch, but soon resigned,
and Nectarius was then put in his place.


==Background==
Seven canons, four doctrinal and three disciplinary, are
Between 350 and 450 a number of heresies arose, forcing all Christian churches to clarify their answers to the question, "Who is Jesus Christ?" Around 380 Apollinaris, the Bishop of Laodicca, began to teach that Jesus Christ had a human body and lower soul. He believed that Christ's mind had been replaced by the divine word or logos, and that this logos was steady and immutable.<ref>{{ cite book |last1=Shelley |first1=Bruce L. |title=Church History in Plain Language|pages= 119-120 |year=2013}}</ref> Apollinaris' position raised a number of questions from Christians. Do not the gospels picture Jesus as a complete and genuine human being? If God displaced the reason of human nature and free will, how could He secure the personal salvation of mankind?
attributed to the council and accepted by the
Greek Church, but the Roman Church accepts only
the first four.


When Theodosius ascended to the imperial throne in 380 in this atmosphere of criticism and inquiry, he began on a campaign to bring the Eastern Church back to Nicene Christianity. Theodosius wanted to further unify the entire empire behind the orthodox position and decided to convene a church council to resolve matters of faith and discipline.<ref name="Ruether">{{citation |author-link=Rosemary Radford Ruether |last=Ruether |first=Rosemary Radford |title=Gregory of Nazianzus: Rhetor and Philosopher | publisher = Oxford University Press | year = 1969}}</ref>{{rp |45}} [[Gregory Nazianzus]] was of similar mind, wishing to unify Christianity. In the spring of 381 they convened the second ecumenical council in Constantinople.

===Theological context===
[[Richard Hanson (bishop)|R.P.C. Hanson]] stated:<blockquote>"The Creed of Nicaea of 325, produced in order to end the controversy, signally failed to do so. Indeed, it ultimately confounded the confusion because its use of the words ousia and hypostasis was so ambiguous as to suggest that the Fathers of Nicaea had fallen into Sabellianism, a view recognized as heresy even at that period."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hanson |first=Richard Patrick Crosland |date=2021-11-26 |orig-date=1981-05-02 (Lecture at New College, University of Edinburgh) |editor-last=Niekerk |editor-first=Andries van |title=RPC Hanson - A lecture on the Arian Controversy |url=https://revelationbyjesuschrist.com/hanson/ |access-date=2023-10-29 |website=From Daniel to Revelation |language=en-US}}</ref></blockquote>[[Lewis Ayres]], therefore, states:<blockquote>“Within a few years (after Nicaea) there is a near-fifteen year absence before the creed is mentioned again.” “Nicaea's creed seemed problematic if not useless to many.”<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{rp|100}}</blockquote>After Nicaea, [[Arius]] and his sympathizers, e.g. [[Eusebius of Nicomedia]] were admitted back into the church after ostensibly accepting the Nicene creed. [[Athanasius]], bishop of Alexandria, the most vocal opponent of Arianism, was ultimately exiled through the machinations of Eusebius of Nicomedia.

After the death of [[Constantine I]] in 337 and the accession of his Arian-leaning son [[Constantius II]], open discussion of replacing the Nicene creed itself began. Up until about 360, theological debates mainly dealt with the divinity of the Son, the second person of the [[Trinity]]. However, because the Council of Nicaea had not clarified the divinity of the [[Holy Spirit]], the third person of the Trinity, it became a topic of debate. The [[Macedonians (religious group)|Macedonians]] denied the divinity of the Holy Spirit. This was also known as [[Pneumatomachi|Pneumatomachianism]].

[[Nicene Christianity]] also had its defenders: apart from Athanasius, the [[Cappadocian Fathers]]' Trinitarian discourse was influential in the council at [[Constantinople]]. [[Apollinaris of Laodicea]], another pro-Nicene theologian, proved controversial. Possibly in an over-reaction to Arianism and its teaching that [[Jesus|Christ]] was not God, he taught that Christ consisted of a human body and a divine mind, rejecting the belief that Christ had a complete human nature, including a human mind.<ref>{{cite book |author-link=Alister McGrath |last=McGrath |first=Alister |year=1998 |title=Historical Theology, An Introduction to the History of Christian Thought |location=Oxford |publisher=Blackwell Publishers |chapter=The Patristic Period |isbn=0-631-20843-7 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/historicaltheolo0000mcgr }}</ref> He was charged with confounding the persons of the [[Godhead (Christianity)|Godhead]], and with giving in to the heretical ways of [[Sabellius]]. [[Basil of Caesarea]] accused him of abandoning the literal sense of the scripture, and taking up wholly with the allegorical sense. His views were condemned in a [[Synod]] at [[Alexandria]], under [[Athanasius of Alexandria]], in 362, and later subdivided into several different heresies, the main ones of which were the [[Polemian]]s and the [[Antidicomarianite]]s.

===Ecumenical Council===
This Council is identified as the [[Ecumenical council|second ecumenical council]]. However:<blockquote>“The details … of this council indicate the problems with later presentation of the meeting as an ‘ecumenical’ reaffirmation of Nicaea.”<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{rp|255}} “It seems unlikely that this meeting was intended as a universal council to rival Seleucia/Ariminum or Nicaea itself. … Those present at the council initially came from a fairly restricted area and the majority from areas known to be favourable to Meletius.”<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{rp|253}}</blockquote>Furthermore, the delegated were carefully chosen:<blockquote>“Only about 150 bishops attended and they appear to have been carefully chosen from areas which would be friendly to Meletius, who was its president, that is areas under the influence of the see of Antioch.”<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Hanson |first=Richard Patrick Crosland |title=The Search for the Christian Doctrine of God: The Arian Controversy, 318-381 |publisher=T. & T. Clark |year=1988 |isbn=978-0-567-09485-8}}</ref>{{rp|806}}</blockquote>Rome was not involved in this council at all. Hanson refers to the “tenuous contact which the council might have been thought to have with the see of Rome.”<ref name=":0" />{{rp|807}}

===Geopolitical context===
The political context is important because, as Simonetti remarked, "the Emperor was in fact the head of the church."<ref name=":0" />{{rp|849}} And, as Hanson stated: <blockquote>
"If we ask the question, what was considered to constitute the ultimate authority in doctrine during the period reviewed in these pages, there can be only one answer. The will of the Emperor was the final authority."<ref name=":0" />{{rp|849}} </blockquote>“When (emperor) Constantius died in 361 his immediate successor was his cousin Julian.”<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{rp|168}} "As Emperor, Julian soon became an active non-Christian, repudiating the Christianity that he had earlier professed. In his attempt to undermine the Church Julian tried to foment dissension between groups in the Church.”<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{rp|168-9}} But Julian ruled only for two years.

“After Julian's death in 363 … Constantius' most powerful successors emerged: in the east the Emperor Valens (364–78); in the west the Emperor Valentinian (364–75).”<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{rp|169}}

“Valens, like Constantius, has gone down in history as an ‘Arian’ emperor.” However, “again like Constantius, (he) was a pragmatic ruler prepared to promote Homoians when possible, but not at any great cost to his civil administration.” For example, “his eventual acceptance of Athanasius' position in Alexandria” and his “accepting Basil's (Basil of Caesarea) significant role in the Church of Asia Minor.”<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{rp|169}} “Valens was considerably more hostile towards Heterousian theology. … While we read the fourth century so easily in terms of a battle between Nicenes and their opponents, it is important to remember that differences between non-Nicenes were equally important.”<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{rp|169}} Under Valens, “open and large-scale challenge to the Homoian creed would have been impossible in the east: the creed of 359–60 was maintained as a universal standard.”<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{rp|160-170}}

Valens was killed in 378 at “the battle of Adrianople in 378.”<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{rp|240}} “A large Roman army was defeated and, by some estimates, as many as two-thirds of the troops were wiped out.”<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{rp|241}} “The authority that had promoted Homoian interests (Valens) was now gone.”<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{rp|241}} [https://revelationbyjesuschrist.com/lewis-ayres-nicaea-and-its-legacy/#p9.4 Lewis Ayres explains] how, in this period, various branches of Christianity attempted "to seize the initiative.”<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{rp|242-3}}

Theodosius was "declared Augustus in January 379 at the age of 32 or 33.”<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{rp|241}} “Just as the victories of Constantius in 350–3 created the conditions for the rise of the Homoians, now the rise to power of a new emperor (Theodosius) enabled the victory of the pro-Nicene cause.”<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{rp|240}} In February 380 - already a year before the ‘ecumenical’ council of Constantinople - Theodosius issued a pro-Nicene edict saying: <blockquote>“We shall believe in the Single Deity of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, under the concept of equal majesty and of the Holy Trinity.”<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{rp|251}}</blockquote>
He exiled leaders of the anti-Nicenes. For example: <blockquote>
"When Theodosius had entered Constantinople in November 380 he had given the Homoian Demophilus the chance to remain as bishop if he subscribed to Nicaea. When he did not he was exiled and Theodosius accepted Gregory Nazianzen as de facto bishop."<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{rp|253}} </blockquote>
Theodosius issued a second Pro-Nicene decree a year later in January 381, which was still before the Council of Constantinople, saying: <blockquote>“Almighty God and Christ the Son of God are one in name … (we should) not violate by denial the Holy Spirit … the undivided substance of the incorrupt Trinity.”<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{rp|252}}</blockquote>The second decree forbids “heretics,” meaning people who do not believe as required by the law, “the right to assemble for worship.”<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{rp|252}} Theodosius' strong commitment to Nicene Christianity involved a calculated risk because Constantinople, the imperial capital of the Eastern Empire, was solidly Arian.

To complicate matters, the two leading factions of Nicene Christianity in the East, the Alexandrians and the supporters of Meletius in Antioch, were "bitterly divided ... almost to the point of complete animosity".<ref name="McGuckinP235">McGuckin, p. 235</ref> Furthermore, Damasus, bishop of Rome, and Basil, bishop of Caesarea and the first of the Cappadocian Fathers, opposed one another:<blockquote>Damasus stated “that Basil's letters addressed to the West were returned as unacceptable.”<ref name=":0" />{{rp|798}} “A confession of faith (was sent) from Damasus which Basil was to sign without altering a single word.” “Basil replied to this demand in a polite but biting letter.”<ref name=":0" />{{rp|798}}</blockquote>The bishops of Alexandria and Rome had worked over a number of years to keep the see of Constantinople from stabilizing. Thus, when Gregory was selected as a candidate for the bishopric of Constantinople, both Alexandria and Rome opposed him because of his Antiochene background.{{Citation needed|date=May 2021}}

===Meletian schism===
{{expand section|date=October 2011}}
The Meletian schism refers to a dispute in the years preceding the 381-council between two Pro-Nicene groups about who the rightful bishop of Antioch is. [[Meletius of Antioch|Meletius]] was bishop of Antioch from 360 until his death in 381. He was opposed by a rival bishop named [[Paulinus II of Antioch|Paulinus]]. [[Athanasius of Alexandria|Athanasius]] and [[Pope Damasus I|Damasus]], the bishop of Rome, supported Paulinus:<blockquote>
Paulinus “was recognized as legitimate bishop of Antioch by '''Athanasius'''. Later, Athanasius' successor Peter extended the same recognition to him and persuaded '''Damasus''' to do the same.” (RH, 801) “In May 373 Athanasius died, Peter his successor was driven out, fled to Rome, and proceeded to poison the mind of Damasus against Basil and Meletius.”<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=798}} In 375, '''Damasus''' wrote a letter which “constituted also an official recognition of Paulinus, not Meletius, as bishop of Antioch.”<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=799}}</blockquote>
In contrast, [[Basil of Caesarea]], the first of the [[Cappadocian Fathers|Cappadocian fathers]], supported Meletius:<blockquote>
“Basil would not desert Meletius and Athanasius would not recognize him (Meletius) as bishop of Antioch.” (RH, 797) “Paulinus was a rival of Basil's friend and ally Meletius.”<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=801}}</blockquote>This dispute was not simply one of personalities but deeply theological. Basil opposed Paulinus because Paulinus was a 'one hypostasis' (Sabellian) theologian:<blockquote>'''Paulinus''' was “Marcellan/Sabellian.”<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=799}} He derived “his tradition in continuity from '''Eustathius''' who had been bishop about forty years before.”<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=800-1}} "The fragments of Eustathius that survive present a doctrine that is close to '''Marcellus''', and to '''Alexander''' and '''Athanasius'''. Eustathius insists there is only one hypostasis.“<ref name="Ayres2006" />{{Rp|page=69}} "Basil suspected that Paulinus was at heart a Sabellian, believing in only one Person (hypostasis) in the Godhead. Paulinus' association with the remaining followers of Marcellus and his continuing to favour the expression 'one hypostasis' … rendered him suspect.”<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=801}}</blockquote>But Damasus supported Paulinus because he (Damasus) was also a 'one hypostasis' (Sabellian) theologian:<blockquote>Basil wrote a letter which “contained some shafts directed at Damasus because of his toleration of Eustathius and the Marcellans.”<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=799}} In response to a letter from Basil, “Damasus sent a very cool reply … conveying a considerable theological statement on the ousia and the personae which deliberately avoided making any statement about '''the three hypostases'''. It was the adhesion of Basil, Meletius and their followers to '''this doctrine of the hypostases''' which caused Damasus … to suspect them of heresy.”<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=798}}</blockquote>As quoted above, Athanasius supported Paulinus because he (Athanasius) was also a 'one hypostasis' (Sabellian) theologian. The following confirms this:<blockquote>“Basil was never sure in his own mind that Athanasius had abandoned Marcellus of Ancyra and his followers.”<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=797}} “In a letter written to Athanasius he (Basil of Caesarea) complains that the Westerners have never brought any accusation against Marcellus.”<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=802}} “About the year 371 adherents of Marcellus approached Athanasius, presenting to him a statement of faith. … He accepted it and gave them a document expressing his agreement with their doctrine.”<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=801}}</blockquote>In conclusion, both Damasus and Basil are regarded as pro-Nicene leaders, but Damasus, Athanasius, and Paulinus were 'one hypostasis' (Sabellian) theologians while Basil and his friend Meletius taught three hypostases (three Persons or Realities). This schism resulted in hostile relationships:<blockquote>“Basil writes letters to Athanasius asking him to approach Damasus and assist Basil's overtures. None of them was answered and nothing came of them.”<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=797}} Damasus stated “that Basil's letters addressed to the West were returned as unacceptable.”<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=798}} “A confession of faith (was sent) from Damasus which Basil was to sign without altering a single word.” “Basil replied to this demand in a polite but biting letter.”<ref name=":0" />{{Rp|page=798}}</blockquote>
=== See of Constantinople ===
The incumbent bishop of Constantinople was Demophilus, a [[homoiousia|Homoian]] Arian. On his accession to the imperial throne, Theodosius offered to confirm Demophilus as bishop of the imperial city on the condition of accepting the [[Nicene Creed]]; however, Demophilus refused to abandon his Arian beliefs, and was immediately ordered to give up his churches and leave Constantinople.<ref>{{harvnb|Onslow|1911}} cites Socr. H. E. v. 7.</ref><ref name="Butler2006">{{cite book|author=Alban Butler|title=The Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs, and Other Principal Saints; Compiled from Original Monuments, and Other Authentic Records|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XeBclBLATNEC&pg=PA280|access-date=22 October 2011|date=May 2006|publisher=Kessinger Publishing|isbn=978-1-4286-1025-5|pages=280–}}{{Dead link|date=April 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> After forty years under the control of Arian bishops, the churches of Constantinople were now restored to those who subscribed to the Nicene Creed; Arians were also ejected from the churches of other cities in the Eastern Roman Empire thus re-establishing Christian [[orthodoxy]] in the East.{{sfn|Onslow|1911}}

There ensued a contest to control the newly recovered see. A group led by [[Archbishop Maximus I of Constantinople|Maximus the Cynic]] gained the support of Patriarch Peter of Alexandria by playing on his jealousy of the newly created see of Constantinople. They conceived a plan to install a cleric subservient to Peter as bishop of Constantinople so that Alexandria would retain the leadership of the Eastern Churches.<ref name="The Church standard">{{cite book|title=The Church standard|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1kVJAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA125|access-date=21 October 2011|year=1906|publisher=Walter N. Hering|pages=125–}}</ref> Many commentators characterize Maximus as having been proud, arrogant and ambitious. However, it is not clear the extent to which Maximus sought this position due to his own ambition or if he was merely a pawn in the power struggle.{{citation needed|date=October 2011}} In any event, the plot was set into motion when, on a night when Gregory was confined by illness, the conspirators burst into the cathedral and commenced the consecration of Maximus as bishop of Constantinople. They had seated Maximus on the [[archiepiscopal]] throne and had just begun shearing away his long curls when the day dawned. The news of what was transpiring quickly spread and everybody rushed to the church. The [[magistrate]]s appeared with their officers; Maximus and his consecrators were driven from the cathedral, and ultimately completed the tonsure in the tenement of a flute-player.<ref name="McGuckinP318">McGuckin p. 318</ref>

The news of the brazen attempt to usurp the episcopal throne aroused the anger of the local populace among whom Gregory was popular. Maximus withdrew to [[Thessalonica]] to lay his cause before the emperor but met with a cold reception there. Theodosius committed the matter to [[Ascholius]], the much respected [[bishop of Thessalonica]], charging him to seek the counsel of [[Pope Damasus I]].<ref>{{harvnb|Venables|1911}} cites [[Migne]], ''[[Patrologia Latina]]'' xiii. pp. 366–369; Epp. 5, 5, 6.</ref>

Damasus' response repudiated Maximus summarily and advised Theodosius to summon a council of bishops for the purpose of settling various church issues such as the schism in Antioch and the consecration of a proper bishop for the see of Constantinople.<ref name="Lincoln.)1882">{{cite book|author=Christopher Wordsworth (bp. of Lincoln.)|title=A Church history|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=i-ICAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA312|access-date=21 October 2011|year=1882|publisher=Rivingtons|pages=312–}}</ref> Damasus condemned the translation of bishops from one see to another and urged Theodosius to "take care that a bishop who is above reproach is chosen for that see."<ref name="Marique1962">{{cite book|author=Joseph Marie Felix Marique|title=Leaders of Iberean Christianity, 50–650 A.D.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2kkbAAAAMAAJ|access-date=23 October 2011|year=1962|publisher=St. Paul Editions|page=59}}</ref>

==Proceedings==
[[Image:Gregor-Chora (cropped).jpg|150px|thumb|left| Gregory of Nazianzus presided over part of the Council.]]

Thirty-six [[Pneumatomachi|Pneumatomachians]] arrived but were denied admission to the council when they refused to accept the Nicene creed.

Since Peter, the Pope of Alexandria, was not present, the presidency over the council was given to [[Meletius of Antioch|Meletius]] as Patriarch of Antioch.<ref>{{cite book |title=Catholic Encyclopedia |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HSWpSJINLRwC&pg=PR3 |access-date=10 September 2013|last1 = Herbermann|first1 = Charles|year = 1907}}</ref> The first order of business before the council was to declare the clandestine consecration of Maximus invalid, and to confirm Theodosius' installation of [[Gregory Nazianzus]] as Archbishop of Constantinople. When Meletius died shortly after the opening of the council, Gregory was selected to lead the council.

The Egyptian and Macedonian bishops who had supported Maximus's ordination arrived late for the council. Once there, they refused to recognise Gregory's position as head of the church of Constantinople, arguing that his transfer from the See of Sasima was canonically illegitimate because one of the canons of the Council of Nicaea had forbidden bishops to transfer from their sees.<ref name="McGuckin">McGuckin</ref>{{rp |358–9}}

McGuckin describes Gregory as physically exhausted and worried that he was losing the confidence of the bishops and the emperor.<ref name=McGuckin />{{rp |359}} Ayres goes further and asserts that Gregory quickly made himself unpopular among the bishops by supporting the losing candidate for the bishopric of Antioch and vehemently opposing any compromise with the Homoiousians.<ref name="Ayres2006">{{cite book|author=Lewis Ayres|title=Nicaea and its legacy: an approach to fourth-century Trinitarian theology|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CYbDjXRz5-0C&pg=PA254|access-date=21 October 2011|date=3 May 2006|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-875505-0}}</ref>{{rp|254}}

Rather than press his case and risk further division, Gregory decided to resign his office: "Let me be as the Prophet Jonah! I was responsible for the storm, but I would sacrifice myself for the salvation of the ship. Seize me and throw me... I was not happy when I ascended the throne, and gladly would I descend it."<ref>''[[Patrologia Graeca|PG]]'', 37.1157–9, ''Carm. de vita sua'', ll 1828–55.</ref> He shocked the council with his surprise resignation and then delivered a dramatic speech to Theodosius asking to be released from his offices. The emperor, moved by his words, applauded, commended his labor, and granted his resignation. The council asked him to appear once more for a farewell ritual and celebratory orations. Gregory used this occasion to deliver a final address (Or. 42) and then departed.<ref name=McGuckin />{{rp |361}}

[[Archbishop Nectarius of Constantinople|Nectarius]], an unbaptized civil official, was chosen to succeed Gregory as president of the council.<ref name=Ayres2006 />{{rp|255}}

==Canons==
{{Eastern Orthodox sidebar|expanded=councils}}

Seven [[canon law|canon]]s, four of these doctrinal canons and three disciplinary canons, are attributed to the council and accepted by both the [[Eastern Orthodoxy|Eastern Orthodox Church]] and the [[Oriental Orthodoxy|Oriental Orthodox Churches]]; the [[Roman Catholic|Roman Catholic Church]] accepts only the first four<ref name="SevenCouncils">{{cite web |url=http://www.ccel.org/fathers2/NPNF2-14/Npnf2-14-59.htm#P3825_663549 |title=NPNF2-14. The Seven Ecumenical Councils |website=Christian Classics Ethereal Library |date=2005-06-01 |access-date=2013-08-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060615214631/http://ccel.org/fathers2/NPNF2-14/Npnf2-14-59.htm#P3825_663549 |archive-date=2006-06-15 |url-status=dead }}</ref> because only the first four appear in the oldest copies and there is evidence that the last three were later additions.<ref name="FirstCouncil">{{cite web |url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04308a.htm |title=NPNF2-14. First Council of Constantinople |website=Christian Classics Ethereal Library |access-date=2015-08-24}}</ref>

* The first canon is an important dogmatic condemnation of all shades of Arianism, and also of Macedonianism and [[Apollinarianism]].<ref name="SevenCouncils" />
* The second canon renewed the Nicene legislation imposing upon the bishops the observance of diocesan and patriarchal limits.<ref name="SevenCouncils" />
* The third canon reads:{{Blockquote|The Bishop of Constantinople, however, shall have the prerogative of honour after the [[Bishop of Rome]] because [[Constantinople]] is [[New Rome]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf214.ix.viii.iv.html |title=NPNF2-14. Canon III |website=Christian Classics Ethereal Library |date=2005-06-01 |access-date=2011-10-27}}</ref><ref name=FirstCouncil /><ref name=SevenCouncils />}}
* The fourth canon decreed the consecration of [[Archbishop Maximus I of Constantinople|Maximus]] as [[Bishop of Constantinople]] to be invalid, declaring "that [Maximus] neither was nor is a bishop, nor are they who have been ordained by him in any rank of the clergy".<ref name="SevenCouncils" /><ref>{{harvnb|Venables|1911}} cites [[Philippe Labbe]], ''Concilia'', ii. 947, 954, 959.</ref> This canon was directed not only against Maximus, but also against the Egyptian bishops who had conspired to consecrate him clandestinely at Constantinople, and against any subordinate ecclesiastics that he might have ordained in Egypt.<ref name="Ullmann1851">{{cite book|author=Carl Ullmann|title=Gregory of Nazianzum |translator-first=G. V. |translator-last=Cox |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QdcCAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA241|access-date=21 October 2011|year=1851|pages=241ff}}</ref>
* The fifth canon might actually have been passed the next year, 382, and is in regard to a ''Tome'' of the Western bishops, perhaps that of [[Pope Damasus I]].<ref name="SevenCouncils" />
* The sixth canon might belong to the year 382 as well and was subsequently passed at the [[Quinisext Council]] as canon 95. It limits the ability to accuse bishops of wrongdoing.<ref name="SevenCouncils" />
* The seventh canon regards procedures for receiving certain heretics into the church.<ref name="SevenCouncils" />

==Dispute concerning the third canon==
The third canon was a first step in the rising importance of the new imperial capital, just fifty years old, and was notable in that it demoted the patriarchs of Antioch and Alexandria. Jerusalem, as the site of the first church, retained its place of honor. It originally did not elicit controversy, as the Papal legate [[Paschasinus]] and a partisan of his, [[Diogenes of Cyzicus]], reference the canon as being in force during the first session of the [[Council of Chalcedon]].<ref>Richard Price and Michael Gaddis, The Acts of the Council of Chalcedon Vol 1, Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, p. 159</ref> According to Eusebius of Dorlyeum, another Papal ally during Chalcedon, "I myself read this very canon [Canon 3] to the most holy pope in Rome in the presence of the clerics of Constantinople and he accepted it."<ref>Richard Price and Michael Gaddis, The Acts of the Council of Chalcedon Vol 3, Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, p. 89</ref>

Nevertheless, controversy has ensued since then. The status of the canon became questioned after disputes over Canon 28 of the [[Council of Chalcedon]] erupted. [[Pope Leo the Great]],<ref>Ep. cvi in P.L., LIV, 1003, 1005.</ref> declared that this canon had never been submitted to Rome and that their lessened honor was a violation of the Nicene council order. Throughout the next several centuries, the [[Western Christianity|Western Church]] asserted that the Bishop of Rome had supreme authority, and by the time of the [[East–West Schism|Great Schism]] the [[Roman Catholic Church]] based its claim to supremacy on the [[apostolic succession|succession]] of [[St. Peter]]. At the [[Fourth Council of Constantinople (Roman Catholic)|Fourth Council of Constantinople]] (869), the Roman legates<ref>[[J. D. Mansi]], XVI, 174.</ref> asserted the place of the bishop of Rome's honor over the bishop of Constantinople's.
After the Great Schism of 1054, in 1215 the [[Fourth Lateran Council]] declared, in its fifth canon, that the Roman Church "by the will of God holds over all others pre-eminence of ordinary power as the mother and mistress of all the faithful".<ref>[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/lateran4.asp The Canons of the Fourth Lateran Council, 1215]</ref><ref>[[J. D. Mansi]], XXII, 991.</ref> Roman supremacy over the whole world was formally claimed by the new Latin patriarch. The Roman correctores of Gratian,<ref>(1582), at dist. xxii, c. 3.</ref> insert the words: "canon hic ex iis est quos apostolica Romana sedes a principio et longo post tempore non recipit" ("this canon is one of those that the Apostolic See of Rome has not accepted from the beginning and ever since").

Later on, [[Baronius]] asserted that the third canon was not authentic, not in fact decreed by the council. Contrarily, roughly contemporaneous Greeks maintained that it did not declare supremacy of the [[Bishop of Rome]], but the primacy; "the first among equals", similar to how they today view the [[Bishop of Constantinople]].

==Aftermath==
It has been asserted by many that a synod was held by [[Pope Damasus I]] in the following year (382) which opposed the disciplinary canons of the Council of Constantinople, especially the third canon which placed Constantinople above Alexandria and Antioch. The synod protested against this raising of the bishop of the new imperial capital, just fifty years old, to a status higher than that of the bishops of Alexandria and Antioch, and stated that the primacy of the Roman see had not been established by a gathering of bishops but rather by Christ himself.<ref name="Chadwick2001">{{cite book|author=Henry Chadwick|title=The church in ancient society: from Galilee to Gregory the Great|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s4aBJWNCDNkC&pg=PA429|access-date=25 October 2011|year=2001|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-924695-3|page=429}}</ref><ref name="R&EC">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Hje62q52XNsC&pg=PA202 |title=Rome and the Eastern Churches|orig-year= (T & T Clark) 1992|pages= 202–203 |year= 2010|isbn=978-1586172824 |access-date=2011-10-27|last1=Nichols |first1=Aidan }}</ref>{{refn|In opposition to this view, Francis Dvornik asserts that not only did Damasus offer "no protest against the elevation of Constantinople", that change in the primacy of the major sees was effected in an "altogether friendly atmosphere." According to Dvornik, "Everyone continued to regard the Bishop of Rome as the first bishop of the Empire, and the head of the church."<ref name="Dvornik1966">{{cite book|first=Francis |last=Dvornik|title=Byzantium and the Roman primacy|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WwfZAAAAMAAJ|access-date=17 October 2011|year=1966|publisher=Fordham University Press|page=47 |quote=Pope Damasus offered no protest against the elevation of Constantinople, even though Alexandria had always been, in the past, in close contact with Rome. This event, which has often been considered the first conflict between Rome and Byzantium, actually took place in an altogether friendly atmosphere. Everyone continued to regard the Bishop of Rome as the first bishop of the Empire, and the head of the church.}}</ref>|group=note}} Thomas Shahan says that, according to Photius too, Pope Damasus approved the council, but he adds that, if any part of the council were approved by this pope, it could have been only its revision of the [[Nicene Creed]], as was the case also when Gregory the Great recognized it as one of the four general councils, but only in its dogmatic utterances.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04308a.htm |title=Thomas Shahan, "First Council of Constantinople" in ''The Catholic Encyclopedia'' |publisher=Newadvent.org |access-date=2011-10-27}}</ref>

===Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed===
{{main|Nicene Creed}}
{{Oriental Orthodox sidebar}}

Traditionally, the [[Nicene Creed#Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed|Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed]] has been associated with the Council of Constantinople (381). It is roughly theologically equivalent to the [[Nicene Creed#Original Nicene Creed of 325|Nicene Creed]], but includes two additional articles: an article on the Holy Spirit—describing Him as "the Lord, the Giver of Life, Who proceeds from the Father, Who with the Father and the Son is worshipped and glorified, and Who spoke through the prophets"—and an article about the church, baptism, and the resurrection of the dead. (For the full text of both creeds, see [[Nicene Creed#Comparison between creed of 325 and creed of 381|Comparison between Creed of 325 and Creed of 381]].)

However, scholars are not agreed on the connection between the Council of Constantinople and the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed. Some modern scholars believe that this creed, or something close to it, was stated by the bishops at Constantinople, but not promulgated as an official act of the council. Scholars also dispute whether this creed was simply an expansion of the Creed of Nicaea, or whether it was an expansion of another traditional creed similar but not identical to the one from Nicaea.<ref>{{cite web |title = Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/413955/Nicene-Creed |access-date=November 9, 2012}}</ref> In 451, the [[Council of Chalcedon]] referred to this creed as "the creed ... of the 150 saintly fathers assembled in Constantinople",<ref>{{cite book |title=Decrees of the Ecumenical Councils |url=https://archive.org/details/decreesofecumeni0000norm_l8e1 |url-access=registration |editor-first=Norman |editor-last=Tanner |editor2-first=Giuseppe |editor2-last=Alberigo |location= Washington, DC |publisher=Georgetown University Press |year=1990 |isbn=0-87840-490-2 |page=[https://archive.org/details/decreesofecumeni0000norm_l8e1/page/n245 84] }}</ref> indicating that this creed was associated with Constantinople (381) no later than 451.

===Christology===
This council condemned [[Arianism]] which began to die out with further condemnations at a [[council of Aquileia, 381|council of Aquileia]] by [[Ambrose of Milan]] in 381. With the discussion of [[Trinitarianism|Trinitarian]] doctrine now developed, the focus of discussion changed to [[Christology]], which would be the topic of the [[First Council of Ephesus|Council of Ephesus]] of 431 and the [[Council of Chalcedon]] of 451.

===Shift of influence from Rome to Constantinople===
David Eastman cites the First Council of Constantinople as another example of the waning influence of Rome over the East. He notes that all three of the presiding bishops came from the East. Damasus had considered both Meletius and Gregory to be illegitimate bishops of their respective sees and yet, as Eastman and others point out, the Eastern bishops paid no heed to his opinions in this regard.<ref name="Eastman2011">{{cite book|author=David L. Eastman|title=Paul the Martyr: The Cult of the Apostle in the Latin West|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NswF2j8IISMC&pg=PA103|access-date=27 October 2011|year=2011|publisher=Society of Biblical Lit|isbn=978-1-58983-515-3|page=103}}</ref>

The First Council of Constantinople (381) was the first appearance of the term 'New Rome' in connection to Constantinople. The term was employed as the grounds for giving the relatively young church of Constantinople precedence over Alexandria and Antioch ('because it is the New Rome').

==Liturgical commemorations==
The 150 individuals at the council are commemorated in the [[Calendar of saints (Armenian Apostolic Church)|Calendar of saints]] of the [[Armenian Apostolic Church]] on February 17.

The [[Eastern Orthodox Church]] in some places (e.g. Russia) has a feast day for the Fathers of the First Six Ecumenical Councils on the Sunday nearest to July 13<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.orthlib.info/Menaia/Rjadovaja-Minea/11-July/jul16.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130927172719/http://www.orthlib.info/Menaia/Rjadovaja-Minea/11-July/jul16.pdf |archive-date=2013-09-27 |url-status=live |title=Menaion – July 13 |access-date=25 August 2013}}</ref> and on May 22.{{cn|date=July 2023}}

==Notes==
{{Reflist|group=note}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

===Works cited===
* {{Cite DCBL |first=P. |last=Onslow |date=1911 |wstitle=Demophilus}}
* {{Cite DCBL |last=Venables |first=E. |date=1911 |author-link=Edmund Venables |wstitle=Atticus, archbp. of Constantinople}}

==Further reading==
* Giuseppe Alberigo, ed., ''Conciliorum Oecumenicoum Generaliumque Decreta'', vol. 1 (Turnhout, 2006), pp.&nbsp;35–70.
* {{cite book |title=AD 381: Heretics, Pagans and the Christian State |last=Freeman |first=Charles |author-link=Charles Freeman (historian) |year=2009 |publisher=Pimlico |isbn=978-1-84595-007-1 }}
* {{cite book |title=Theodosius and the Limits of Empire |last=Hebblewhite |first=Mark |year=2020 |publisher=Routledge }}
* {{cite book |first=John Anthony |last=McGuckin |title=St. Gregory of Nazianzus: An Intellectual Biography |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7jervOqijlwC&pg=PA235 |access-date=25 October 2011 |year=2001 |location=Crestwood, NY |publisher=St Vladimir's Seminary Press |isbn=0-88141-229-5 }}
* {{Cite book|last=Kelly|first=John N. D.|author-link=John Norman Davidson Kelly|title=Early Christian Creeds|year=2006|orig-year=1972|edition=3rd|location=London-New York|publisher=Continuum|isbn=978-0826492166|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Titk-TEYqD4C}}
* {{Cite book|last=Ritter|first=Adolf Martin|title=Das Konzil von Konstantinopel und sein Symbol: Studien zur Geschichte und Theologie des II. Ökumenischen Konzils|year=1965|location=Göttingen|publisher=Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht|isbn=9783666551185 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WZAAAAAAMAAJ}}

==External links==
*[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04308a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia: First Council of Constantinople]
*[http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_hise.htm Council of Constantinople]
*[http://www.legionofmarytidewater.com/faith/ECUM02.HTM Council of Constantinople]
*[https://earlychurchtexts.com/public/constantinople_canons.htm Canons]

{{Ecumenical councils}}
{{Christian History}}
{{History of the Catholic Church}}
{{Portal bar|Catholicism|Christianity}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:First Council Of Constantinople}}
[[Category:380s in the Byzantine Empire]]
[[Category:4th-century church councils|Constantinople]]
[[Category:Church councils in Constantinople]]
[[Category:Theodosian dynasty]]
[[Category:First seven ecumenical councils|Constantinople 1]]
[[Category:Trinitarianism]]
[[Category:381]]
[[Category:Theodosius I]]

Latest revision as of 18:05, 13 April 2024

For the earlier Council of Constantinople in 359 dominated by Arians, see Council of Constantinople (360).
First Council of Constantinople
9th century Byzantine manuscript illumination of I Constantinople. Homilies of St. Gregory of Nazianzus, 879–883.
Date381
Accepted by
Previous council
First Council of Nicaea
Next council
Council of Ephesus
Convoked byEmperor Theodosius I
PresidentTimothy of Alexandria, Meletius of Antioch, Gregory Nazianzus, and Nectarius of Constantinople
Attendance150 (no representation of Western Church)
TopicsArianism, Holy Spirit
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The First Council of Constantinople (Latin: Concilium Constantinopolitanum; Greek: Σύνοδος τῆς Κωνσταντινουπόλεως) was a council of Christian bishops convened in Constantinople (now Istanbul, Turkey) in AD 381 by the Roman Emperor Theodosius I.[1][2] This second ecumenical council, an effort to attain consensus in the church through an assembly representing all of Christendom, except for the Western Church,[3] confirmed the Nicene Creed, expanding the doctrine thereof to produce the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed, and dealt with sundry other matters. It met from May to July 381[4] in the Church of Hagia Irene and was affirmed as ecumenical in 451 at the Council of Chalcedon.

Background[edit]

Between 350 and 450 a number of heresies arose, forcing all Christian churches to clarify their answers to the question, "Who is Jesus Christ?" Around 380 Apollinaris, the Bishop of Laodicca, began to teach that Jesus Christ had a human body and lower soul. He believed that Christ's mind had been replaced by the divine word or logos, and that this logos was steady and immutable.[5] Apollinaris' position raised a number of questions from Christians. Do not the gospels picture Jesus as a complete and genuine human being? If God displaced the reason of human nature and free will, how could He secure the personal salvation of mankind?

When Theodosius ascended to the imperial throne in 380 in this atmosphere of criticism and inquiry, he began on a campaign to bring the Eastern Church back to Nicene Christianity. Theodosius wanted to further unify the entire empire behind the orthodox position and decided to convene a church council to resolve matters of faith and discipline.[6]: 45  Gregory Nazianzus was of similar mind, wishing to unify Christianity. In the spring of 381 they convened the second ecumenical council in Constantinople.

Theological context[edit]

R.P.C. Hanson stated:

"The Creed of Nicaea of 325, produced in order to end the controversy, signally failed to do so. Indeed, it ultimately confounded the confusion because its use of the words ousia and hypostasis was so ambiguous as to suggest that the Fathers of Nicaea had fallen into Sabellianism, a view recognized as heresy even at that period."[7]

Lewis Ayres, therefore, states:

“Within a few years (after Nicaea) there is a near-fifteen year absence before the creed is mentioned again.” “Nicaea's creed seemed problematic if not useless to many.”[8]: 100 

After Nicaea, Arius and his sympathizers, e.g. Eusebius of Nicomedia were admitted back into the church after ostensibly accepting the Nicene creed. Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria, the most vocal opponent of Arianism, was ultimately exiled through the machinations of Eusebius of Nicomedia.

After the death of Constantine I in 337 and the accession of his Arian-leaning son Constantius II, open discussion of replacing the Nicene creed itself began. Up until about 360, theological debates mainly dealt with the divinity of the Son, the second person of the Trinity. However, because the Council of Nicaea had not clarified the divinity of the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, it became a topic of debate. The Macedonians denied the divinity of the Holy Spirit. This was also known as Pneumatomachianism.

Nicene Christianity also had its defenders: apart from Athanasius, the Cappadocian Fathers' Trinitarian discourse was influential in the council at Constantinople. Apollinaris of Laodicea, another pro-Nicene theologian, proved controversial. Possibly in an over-reaction to Arianism and its teaching that Christ was not God, he taught that Christ consisted of a human body and a divine mind, rejecting the belief that Christ had a complete human nature, including a human mind.[9] He was charged with confounding the persons of the Godhead, and with giving in to the heretical ways of Sabellius. Basil of Caesarea accused him of abandoning the literal sense of the scripture, and taking up wholly with the allegorical sense. His views were condemned in a Synod at Alexandria, under Athanasius of Alexandria, in 362, and later subdivided into several different heresies, the main ones of which were the Polemians and the Antidicomarianites.

Ecumenical Council[edit]

This Council is identified as the second ecumenical council. However:

“The details … of this council indicate the problems with later presentation of the meeting as an ‘ecumenical’ reaffirmation of Nicaea.”[8]: 255  “It seems unlikely that this meeting was intended as a universal council to rival Seleucia/Ariminum or Nicaea itself. … Those present at the council initially came from a fairly restricted area and the majority from areas known to be favourable to Meletius.”[8]: 253 

Furthermore, the delegated were carefully chosen:

“Only about 150 bishops attended and they appear to have been carefully chosen from areas which would be friendly to Meletius, who was its president, that is areas under the influence of the see of Antioch.”[10]: 806 

Rome was not involved in this council at all. Hanson refers to the “tenuous contact which the council might have been thought to have with the see of Rome.”[10]: 807 

Geopolitical context[edit]

The political context is important because, as Simonetti remarked, "the Emperor was in fact the head of the church."[10]: 849  And, as Hanson stated:

"If we ask the question, what was considered to constitute the ultimate authority in doctrine during the period reviewed in these pages, there can be only one answer. The will of the Emperor was the final authority."[10]: 849 

“When (emperor) Constantius died in 361 his immediate successor was his cousin Julian.”[8]: 168  "As Emperor, Julian soon became an active non-Christian, repudiating the Christianity that he had earlier professed. In his attempt to undermine the Church Julian tried to foment dissension between groups in the Church.”[8]: 168–9  But Julian ruled only for two years.

“After Julian's death in 363 … Constantius' most powerful successors emerged: in the east the Emperor Valens (364–78); in the west the Emperor Valentinian (364–75).”[8]: 169 

“Valens, like Constantius, has gone down in history as an ‘Arian’ emperor.” However, “again like Constantius, (he) was a pragmatic ruler prepared to promote Homoians when possible, but not at any great cost to his civil administration.” For example, “his eventual acceptance of Athanasius' position in Alexandria” and his “accepting Basil's (Basil of Caesarea) significant role in the Church of Asia Minor.”[8]: 169  “Valens was considerably more hostile towards Heterousian theology. … While we read the fourth century so easily in terms of a battle between Nicenes and their opponents, it is important to remember that differences between non-Nicenes were equally important.”[8]: 169  Under Valens, “open and large-scale challenge to the Homoian creed would have been impossible in the east: the creed of 359–60 was maintained as a universal standard.”[8]: 160–170 

Valens was killed in 378 at “the battle of Adrianople in 378.”[8]: 240  “A large Roman army was defeated and, by some estimates, as many as two-thirds of the troops were wiped out.”[8]: 241  “The authority that had promoted Homoian interests (Valens) was now gone.”[8]: 241  Lewis Ayres explains how, in this period, various branches of Christianity attempted "to seize the initiative.”[8]: 242–3 

Theodosius was "declared Augustus in January 379 at the age of 32 or 33.”[8]: 241  “Just as the victories of Constantius in 350–3 created the conditions for the rise of the Homoians, now the rise to power of a new emperor (Theodosius) enabled the victory of the pro-Nicene cause.”[8]: 240  In February 380 - already a year before the ‘ecumenical’ council of Constantinople - Theodosius issued a pro-Nicene edict saying:

“We shall believe in the Single Deity of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, under the concept of equal majesty and of the Holy Trinity.”[8]: 251 

He exiled leaders of the anti-Nicenes. For example:

"When Theodosius had entered Constantinople in November 380 he had given the Homoian Demophilus the chance to remain as bishop if he subscribed to Nicaea. When he did not he was exiled and Theodosius accepted Gregory Nazianzen as de facto bishop."[8]: 253 

Theodosius issued a second Pro-Nicene decree a year later in January 381, which was still before the Council of Constantinople, saying:

“Almighty God and Christ the Son of God are one in name … (we should) not violate by denial the Holy Spirit … the undivided substance of the incorrupt Trinity.”[8]: 252 

The second decree forbids “heretics,” meaning people who do not believe as required by the law, “the right to assemble for worship.”[8]: 252  Theodosius' strong commitment to Nicene Christianity involved a calculated risk because Constantinople, the imperial capital of the Eastern Empire, was solidly Arian. To complicate matters, the two leading factions of Nicene Christianity in the East, the Alexandrians and the supporters of Meletius in Antioch, were "bitterly divided ... almost to the point of complete animosity".[11] Furthermore, Damasus, bishop of Rome, and Basil, bishop of Caesarea and the first of the Cappadocian Fathers, opposed one another:

Damasus stated “that Basil's letters addressed to the West were returned as unacceptable.”[10]: 798  “A confession of faith (was sent) from Damasus which Basil was to sign without altering a single word.” “Basil replied to this demand in a polite but biting letter.”[10]: 798 

The bishops of Alexandria and Rome had worked over a number of years to keep the see of Constantinople from stabilizing. Thus, when Gregory was selected as a candidate for the bishopric of Constantinople, both Alexandria and Rome opposed him because of his Antiochene background.[citation needed]

Meletian schism[edit]

The Meletian schism refers to a dispute in the years preceding the 381-council between two Pro-Nicene groups about who the rightful bishop of Antioch is. Meletius was bishop of Antioch from 360 until his death in 381. He was opposed by a rival bishop named Paulinus. Athanasius and Damasus, the bishop of Rome, supported Paulinus:

Paulinus “was recognized as legitimate bishop of Antioch by Athanasius. Later, Athanasius' successor Peter extended the same recognition to him and persuaded Damasus to do the same.” (RH, 801) “In May 373 Athanasius died, Peter his successor was driven out, fled to Rome, and proceeded to poison the mind of Damasus against Basil and Meletius.”[10]: 798  In 375, Damasus wrote a letter which “constituted also an official recognition of Paulinus, not Meletius, as bishop of Antioch.”[10]: 799 

In contrast, Basil of Caesarea, the first of the Cappadocian fathers, supported Meletius:

“Basil would not desert Meletius and Athanasius would not recognize him (Meletius) as bishop of Antioch.” (RH, 797) “Paulinus was a rival of Basil's friend and ally Meletius.”[10]: 801 

This dispute was not simply one of personalities but deeply theological. Basil opposed Paulinus because Paulinus was a 'one hypostasis' (Sabellian) theologian:

Paulinus was “Marcellan/Sabellian.”[10]: 799  He derived “his tradition in continuity from Eustathius who had been bishop about forty years before.”[10]: 800-1  "The fragments of Eustathius that survive present a doctrine that is close to Marcellus, and to Alexander and Athanasius. Eustathius insists there is only one hypostasis.“[8]: 69  "Basil suspected that Paulinus was at heart a Sabellian, believing in only one Person (hypostasis) in the Godhead. Paulinus' association with the remaining followers of Marcellus and his continuing to favour the expression 'one hypostasis' … rendered him suspect.”[10]: 801 

But Damasus supported Paulinus because he (Damasus) was also a 'one hypostasis' (Sabellian) theologian:

Basil wrote a letter which “contained some shafts directed at Damasus because of his toleration of Eustathius and the Marcellans.”[10]: 799  In response to a letter from Basil, “Damasus sent a very cool reply … conveying a considerable theological statement on the ousia and the personae which deliberately avoided making any statement about the three hypostases. It was the adhesion of Basil, Meletius and their followers to this doctrine of the hypostases which caused Damasus … to suspect them of heresy.”[10]: 798 

As quoted above, Athanasius supported Paulinus because he (Athanasius) was also a 'one hypostasis' (Sabellian) theologian. The following confirms this:

“Basil was never sure in his own mind that Athanasius had abandoned Marcellus of Ancyra and his followers.”[10]: 797  “In a letter written to Athanasius he (Basil of Caesarea) complains that the Westerners have never brought any accusation against Marcellus.”[10]: 802  “About the year 371 adherents of Marcellus approached Athanasius, presenting to him a statement of faith. … He accepted it and gave them a document expressing his agreement with their doctrine.”[10]: 801 

In conclusion, both Damasus and Basil are regarded as pro-Nicene leaders, but Damasus, Athanasius, and Paulinus were 'one hypostasis' (Sabellian) theologians while Basil and his friend Meletius taught three hypostases (three Persons or Realities). This schism resulted in hostile relationships:

“Basil writes letters to Athanasius asking him to approach Damasus and assist Basil's overtures. None of them was answered and nothing came of them.”[10]: 797  Damasus stated “that Basil's letters addressed to the West were returned as unacceptable.”[10]: 798  “A confession of faith (was sent) from Damasus which Basil was to sign without altering a single word.” “Basil replied to this demand in a polite but biting letter.”[10]: 798 

See of Constantinople[edit]

The incumbent bishop of Constantinople was Demophilus, a Homoian Arian. On his accession to the imperial throne, Theodosius offered to confirm Demophilus as bishop of the imperial city on the condition of accepting the Nicene Creed; however, Demophilus refused to abandon his Arian beliefs, and was immediately ordered to give up his churches and leave Constantinople.[12][13] After forty years under the control of Arian bishops, the churches of Constantinople were now restored to those who subscribed to the Nicene Creed; Arians were also ejected from the churches of other cities in the Eastern Roman Empire thus re-establishing Christian orthodoxy in the East.[14]

There ensued a contest to control the newly recovered see. A group led by Maximus the Cynic gained the support of Patriarch Peter of Alexandria by playing on his jealousy of the newly created see of Constantinople. They conceived a plan to install a cleric subservient to Peter as bishop of Constantinople so that Alexandria would retain the leadership of the Eastern Churches.[15] Many commentators characterize Maximus as having been proud, arrogant and ambitious. However, it is not clear the extent to which Maximus sought this position due to his own ambition or if he was merely a pawn in the power struggle.[citation needed] In any event, the plot was set into motion when, on a night when Gregory was confined by illness, the conspirators burst into the cathedral and commenced the consecration of Maximus as bishop of Constantinople. They had seated Maximus on the archiepiscopal throne and had just begun shearing away his long curls when the day dawned. The news of what was transpiring quickly spread and everybody rushed to the church. The magistrates appeared with their officers; Maximus and his consecrators were driven from the cathedral, and ultimately completed the tonsure in the tenement of a flute-player.[16]

The news of the brazen attempt to usurp the episcopal throne aroused the anger of the local populace among whom Gregory was popular. Maximus withdrew to Thessalonica to lay his cause before the emperor but met with a cold reception there. Theodosius committed the matter to Ascholius, the much respected bishop of Thessalonica, charging him to seek the counsel of Pope Damasus I.[17]

Damasus' response repudiated Maximus summarily and advised Theodosius to summon a council of bishops for the purpose of settling various church issues such as the schism in Antioch and the consecration of a proper bishop for the see of Constantinople.[18] Damasus condemned the translation of bishops from one see to another and urged Theodosius to "take care that a bishop who is above reproach is chosen for that see."[19]

Proceedings[edit]

Gregory of Nazianzus presided over part of the Council.

Thirty-six Pneumatomachians arrived but were denied admission to the council when they refused to accept the Nicene creed.

Since Peter, the Pope of Alexandria, was not present, the presidency over the council was given to Meletius as Patriarch of Antioch.[20] The first order of business before the council was to declare the clandestine consecration of Maximus invalid, and to confirm Theodosius' installation of Gregory Nazianzus as Archbishop of Constantinople. When Meletius died shortly after the opening of the council, Gregory was selected to lead the council.

The Egyptian and Macedonian bishops who had supported Maximus's ordination arrived late for the council. Once there, they refused to recognise Gregory's position as head of the church of Constantinople, arguing that his transfer from the See of Sasima was canonically illegitimate because one of the canons of the Council of Nicaea had forbidden bishops to transfer from their sees.[21]: 358–9 

McGuckin describes Gregory as physically exhausted and worried that he was losing the confidence of the bishops and the emperor.[21]: 359  Ayres goes further and asserts that Gregory quickly made himself unpopular among the bishops by supporting the losing candidate for the bishopric of Antioch and vehemently opposing any compromise with the Homoiousians.[8]: 254 

Rather than press his case and risk further division, Gregory decided to resign his office: "Let me be as the Prophet Jonah! I was responsible for the storm, but I would sacrifice myself for the salvation of the ship. Seize me and throw me... I was not happy when I ascended the throne, and gladly would I descend it."[22] He shocked the council with his surprise resignation and then delivered a dramatic speech to Theodosius asking to be released from his offices. The emperor, moved by his words, applauded, commended his labor, and granted his resignation. The council asked him to appear once more for a farewell ritual and celebratory orations. Gregory used this occasion to deliver a final address (Or. 42) and then departed.[21]: 361 

Nectarius, an unbaptized civil official, was chosen to succeed Gregory as president of the council.[8]: 255 

Canons[edit]

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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[23] because only the first four appear in the oldest copies and there is evidence that the last three were later additions.[24]

  • The first canon is an important dogmatic condemnation of all shades of Arianism, and also of Macedonianism and Apollinarianism.[23]
  • The second canon renewed the Nicene legislation imposing upon the bishops the observance of diocesan and patriarchal limits.[23]
  • The third canon reads:

    The Bishop of Constantinople, however, shall have the prerogative of honour after the Bishop of Rome because Constantinople is New Rome.[25][24][23]

  • The fourth canon decreed the consecration of Maximus as Bishop of Constantinople to be invalid, declaring "that [Maximus] neither was nor is a bishop, nor are they who have been ordained by him in any rank of the clergy".[23][26] This canon was directed not only against Maximus, but also against the Egyptian bishops who had conspired to consecrate him clandestinely at Constantinople, and against any subordinate ecclesiastics that he might have ordained in Egypt.[27]
  • The fifth canon might actually have been passed the next year, 382, and is in regard to a Tome of the Western bishops, perhaps that of Pope Damasus I.[23]
  • The sixth canon might belong to the year 382 as well and was subsequently passed at the Quinisext Council as canon 95. It limits the ability to accuse bishops of wrongdoing.[23]
  • The seventh canon regards procedures for receiving certain heretics into the church.[23]

Dispute concerning the third canon[edit]

The third canon was a first step in the rising importance of the new imperial capital, just fifty years old, and was notable in that it demoted the patriarchs of Antioch and Alexandria. Jerusalem, as the site of the first church, retained its place of honor. It originally did not elicit controversy, as the Papal legate Paschasinus and a partisan of his, Diogenes of Cyzicus, reference the canon as being in force during the first session of the Council of Chalcedon.[28] According to Eusebius of Dorlyeum, another Papal ally during Chalcedon, "I myself read this very canon [Canon 3] to the most holy pope in Rome in the presence of the clerics of Constantinople and he accepted it."[29]

Nevertheless, controversy has ensued since then. The status of the canon became questioned after disputes over Canon 28 of the Council of Chalcedon erupted. Pope Leo the Great,[30] declared that this canon had never been submitted to Rome and that their lessened honor was a violation of the Nicene council order. Throughout the next several centuries, the Western Church asserted that the Bishop of Rome had supreme authority, and by the time of the Great Schism the Roman Catholic Church based its claim to supremacy on the succession of St. Peter. At the Fourth Council of Constantinople (869), the Roman legates[31] asserted the place of the bishop of Rome's honor over the bishop of Constantinople's. After the Great Schism of 1054, in 1215 the Fourth Lateran Council declared, in its fifth canon, that the Roman Church "by the will of God holds over all others pre-eminence of ordinary power as the mother and mistress of all the faithful".[32][33] Roman supremacy over the whole world was formally claimed by the new Latin patriarch. The Roman correctores of Gratian,[34] insert the words: "canon hic ex iis est quos apostolica Romana sedes a principio et longo post tempore non recipit" ("this canon is one of those that the Apostolic See of Rome has not accepted from the beginning and ever since").

Later on, Baronius asserted that the third canon was not authentic, not in fact decreed by the council. Contrarily, roughly contemporaneous Greeks maintained that it did not declare supremacy of the Bishop of Rome, but the primacy; "the first among equals", similar to how they today view the Bishop of Constantinople.

Aftermath[edit]

It has been asserted by many that a synod was held by Pope Damasus I in the following year (382) which opposed the disciplinary canons of the Council of Constantinople, especially the third canon which placed Constantinople above Alexandria and Antioch. The synod protested against this raising of the bishop of the new imperial capital, just fifty years old, to a status higher than that of the bishops of Alexandria and Antioch, and stated that the primacy of the Roman see had not been established by a gathering of bishops but rather by Christ himself.[35][36][note 1] Thomas Shahan says that, according to Photius too, Pope Damasus approved the council, but he adds that, if any part of the council were approved by this pope, it could have been only its revision of the Nicene Creed, as was the case also when Gregory the Great recognized it as one of the four general councils, but only in its dogmatic utterances.[38]

Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed[edit]

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Traditionally, the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed has been associated with the Council of Constantinople (381). It is roughly theologically equivalent to the Nicene Creed, but includes two additional articles: an article on the Holy Spirit—describing Him as "the Lord, the Giver of Life, Who proceeds from the Father, Who with the Father and the Son is worshipped and glorified, and Who spoke through the prophets"—and an article about the church, baptism, and the resurrection of the dead. (For the full text of both creeds, see Comparison between Creed of 325 and Creed of 381.)

However, scholars are not agreed on the connection between the Council of Constantinople and the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed. Some modern scholars believe that this creed, or something close to it, was stated by the bishops at Constantinople, but not promulgated as an official act of the council. Scholars also dispute whether this creed was simply an expansion of the Creed of Nicaea, or whether it was an expansion of another traditional creed similar but not identical to the one from Nicaea.[39] In 451, the Council of Chalcedon referred to this creed as "the creed ... of the 150 saintly fathers assembled in Constantinople",[40] indicating that this creed was associated with Constantinople (381) no later than 451.

Christology[edit]

This council condemned Arianism which began to die out with further condemnations at a council of Aquileia by Ambrose of Milan in 381. With the discussion of Trinitarian doctrine now developed, the focus of discussion changed to Christology, which would be the topic of the Council of Ephesus of 431 and the Council of Chalcedon of 451.

Shift of influence from Rome to Constantinople[edit]

David Eastman cites the First Council of Constantinople as another example of the waning influence of Rome over the East. He notes that all three of the presiding bishops came from the East. Damasus had considered both Meletius and Gregory to be illegitimate bishops of their respective sees and yet, as Eastman and others point out, the Eastern bishops paid no heed to his opinions in this regard.[41]

The First Council of Constantinople (381) was the first appearance of the term 'New Rome' in connection to Constantinople. The term was employed as the grounds for giving the relatively young church of Constantinople precedence over Alexandria and Antioch ('because it is the New Rome').

Liturgical commemorations[edit]

The 150 individuals at the council are commemorated in the Calendar of saints of the Armenian Apostolic Church on February 17.

The Eastern Orthodox Church in some places (e.g. Russia) has a feast day for the Fathers of the First Six Ecumenical Councils on the Sunday nearest to July 13[42] and on May 22.[citation needed]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ In opposition to this view, Francis Dvornik asserts that not only did Damasus offer "no protest against the elevation of Constantinople", that change in the primacy of the major sees was effected in an "altogether friendly atmosphere." According to Dvornik, "Everyone continued to regard the Bishop of Rome as the first bishop of the Empire, and the head of the church."[37]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Socrates Scholasticus, Church History, book 5, chapters 8 & 11, puts the council in the same year as the revolt of Magnus Maximus and death of Gratian.
  2. ^ Hebblewhite, M. (2020). Theodosius and the Limits of Empire. pp. 56ff.
  3. ^ Richard Kieckhefer (1989). "Papacy". Dictionary of the Middle Ages. ISBN 0-684-18275-0.
  4. ^ "Catholic Encyclopedia: First Council of Constantinople". www.newadvent.org. Retrieved 2021-06-02.
  5. ^ Shelley, Bruce L. (2013). Church History in Plain Language. pp. 119–120.
  6. ^ Ruether, Rosemary Radford (1969), Gregory of Nazianzus: Rhetor and Philosopher, Oxford University Press
  7. ^ Hanson, Richard Patrick Crosland (2021-11-26) [1981-05-02 (Lecture at New College, University of Edinburgh)]. Niekerk, Andries van (ed.). "RPC Hanson - A lecture on the Arian Controversy". From Daniel to Revelation. Retrieved 2023-10-29.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v Lewis Ayres (3 May 2006). Nicaea and its legacy: an approach to fourth-century Trinitarian theology. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-875505-0. Retrieved 21 October 2011.
  9. ^ McGrath, Alister (1998). "The Patristic Period". Historical Theology, An Introduction to the History of Christian Thought. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers. ISBN 0-631-20843-7.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Hanson, Richard Patrick Crosland (1988). The Search for the Christian Doctrine of God: The Arian Controversy, 318-381. T. & T. Clark. ISBN 978-0-567-09485-8.
  11. ^ McGuckin, p. 235
  12. ^ Onslow 1911 cites Socr. H. E. v. 7.
  13. ^ Alban Butler (May 2006). The Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs, and Other Principal Saints; Compiled from Original Monuments, and Other Authentic Records. Kessinger Publishing. pp. 280–. ISBN 978-1-4286-1025-5. Retrieved 22 October 2011.[permanent dead link]
  14. ^ Onslow 1911.
  15. ^ The Church standard. Walter N. Hering. 1906. pp. 125–. Retrieved 21 October 2011.
  16. ^ McGuckin p. 318
  17. ^ Venables 1911 cites Migne, Patrologia Latina xiii. pp. 366–369; Epp. 5, 5, 6.
  18. ^ Christopher Wordsworth (bp. of Lincoln.) (1882). A Church history. Rivingtons. pp. 312–. Retrieved 21 October 2011.
  19. ^ Joseph Marie Felix Marique (1962). Leaders of Iberean Christianity, 50–650 A.D. St. Paul Editions. p. 59. Retrieved 23 October 2011.
  20. ^ Herbermann, Charles (1907). Catholic Encyclopedia. Retrieved 10 September 2013.
  21. ^ a b c McGuckin
  22. ^ PG, 37.1157–9, Carm. de vita sua, ll 1828–55.
  23. ^ a b c d e f g h "NPNF2-14. The Seven Ecumenical Councils". Christian Classics Ethereal Library. 2005-06-01. Archived from the original on 2006-06-15. Retrieved 2013-08-25.
  24. ^ a b "NPNF2-14. First Council of Constantinople". Christian Classics Ethereal Library. Retrieved 2015-08-24.
  25. ^ "NPNF2-14. Canon III". Christian Classics Ethereal Library. 2005-06-01. Retrieved 2011-10-27.
  26. ^ Venables 1911 cites Philippe Labbe, Concilia, ii. 947, 954, 959.
  27. ^ Carl Ullmann (1851). Gregory of Nazianzum. Translated by Cox, G. V. pp. 241ff. Retrieved 21 October 2011.
  28. ^ Richard Price and Michael Gaddis, The Acts of the Council of Chalcedon Vol 1, Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, p. 159
  29. ^ Richard Price and Michael Gaddis, The Acts of the Council of Chalcedon Vol 3, Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, p. 89
  30. ^ Ep. cvi in P.L., LIV, 1003, 1005.
  31. ^ J. D. Mansi, XVI, 174.
  32. ^ The Canons of the Fourth Lateran Council, 1215
  33. ^ J. D. Mansi, XXII, 991.
  34. ^ (1582), at dist. xxii, c. 3.
  35. ^ Henry Chadwick (2001). The church in ancient society: from Galilee to Gregory the Great. Oxford University Press. p. 429. ISBN 978-0-19-924695-3. Retrieved 25 October 2011.
  36. ^ Nichols, Aidan (2010) [(T & T Clark) 1992]. Rome and the Eastern Churches. pp. 202–203. ISBN 978-1586172824. Retrieved 2011-10-27.
  37. ^ Dvornik, Francis (1966). Byzantium and the Roman primacy. Fordham University Press. p. 47. Retrieved 17 October 2011. Pope Damasus offered no protest against the elevation of Constantinople, even though Alexandria had always been, in the past, in close contact with Rome. This event, which has often been considered the first conflict between Rome and Byzantium, actually took place in an altogether friendly atmosphere. Everyone continued to regard the Bishop of Rome as the first bishop of the Empire, and the head of the church.
  38. ^ "Thomas Shahan, "First Council of Constantinople" in The Catholic Encyclopedia". Newadvent.org. Retrieved 2011-10-27.
  39. ^ "Encyclopædia Britannica". Retrieved November 9, 2012.
  40. ^ Tanner, Norman; Alberigo, Giuseppe, eds. (1990). Decrees of the Ecumenical Councils. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press. p. 84. ISBN 0-87840-490-2.
  41. ^ David L. Eastman (2011). Paul the Martyr: The Cult of the Apostle in the Latin West. Society of Biblical Lit. p. 103. ISBN 978-1-58983-515-3. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
  42. ^ "Menaion – July 13" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2013-09-27. Retrieved 25 August 2013.

Works cited[edit]

Further reading[edit]

External links[edit]

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