Subscribe to Christianity Today and get instant access to past issues of Christian History! Get the best from CT editors, delivered straight to your inbox! Previous Article Which Creed is Which?
Next Article Why a Creed? Oberman Is Over-Hard. Beginning as a despised, illicit religious sect, Christianity endured years of hostility to emerge as the dominant force in the Roman Empire. Thomas Schirrmacher hopes to lead Christians into conversations, cooperation, and witness. November Web-only Episode 1 hr. The norms of working across the aisle are changing. So is the church's attitude about it. The Emperor sent Arius into exile, along with Eusebius and Theognis and their followers.
Eusebius and Theognis, however, soon after their banishment, wrote a declaration that they had changed their opinion, and now agreed in the belief that the Son and the Father are of the same substance. Going back to the time of the council, Eusebius Pamphilus, bishop of Caesarea in Palestine, spent a while on his own deliberating over whether he could agree with the definition of the faith given in the creed.
In the end, he acquiesced and signed it along with the rest. This is what he wrote:. You have probably heard rumors, my loved ones, about what has been happening at the great council of Nicea, in connection with the faith of the Church. So that you will be properly informed, I will tell you about 1 the creed I proposed myself, and 2 the other creed which has been published, consisting of ours with certain additions.
The declaration of faith I proposed was read before our most pious Emperor, and seemed to meet with universal approval. We believe also in one Holy Spirit. No one opposed this creed. In fact our most pious Emperor himself was the first to admit that it was perfectly correct, and reflected his own belief. He himself explained that the term does not describe a bodily state or physical properties, and so it is not saying that the Son comes from the Father as a division of his being or as a cutting off from it.
Therefore, we can only understand such things in divine and mysterious terms. I also had no objections to the anathema added at the end, because it prohibits the use of illegitimate terms which caused almost all the present commotion in the churches.
Moreover, I have not been in the habit of using such terms myself. I thought it my duty, my loved ones, to let you know how cautious I have been in considering and agreeing to these things.
On justifiable grounds, I resisted some objectionable expressions to the last moment, as long as they were unacceptable, but when on mature deliberation the meaning of these words seemed in harmony with the sound creed I had originally proposed, I agreed to them without dispute. How important do you think it is that all churches should share the same doctrine and the same date for Christian festivals?
What do you think it must have been like to be present at this first meeting of all the church leaders? Some bishops there still bore injuries that they suffered from imperial persecution. How do you think they felt at this state-sponsored council? How would you summarize the doctrine enshrined in the creed they produced? How does it rebut the teaching of Arius?
Why could some of those present not accept the creed? God himself had provided the sacrifice. The Council of Nicea, then, laid the cornerstone for the orthodox understanding of Jesus Christ. That foundation has stood ever since.
Bruce L. Shelley is professor of church history at Denver Seminary and a member of the advisory board of Christian History. Click here for reprint information on Christian History. Sections Home. Bible Coronavirus Prayer. Subscribe Member Benefits Give a Gift. Subscribers receive full access to the archives. Christian History Archives Eras Home. Current Issue November Subscribe.
Read This Issue. Subscribe to Christianity Today and get instant access to past issues of Christian History! Get the best from CT editors, delivered straight to your inbox! Tags: Doctrine Heresy International Rome. Previous Article The Edict of Milan. Next Article Augustine Converts to Christianity. A Hunger For Holiness. East Africa's second generation Christians faced that age-old spiritual problem - dullness of hearts. Simeon Nsibambi's message of a victorious life sparked a revival that continues today.
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