The Nicene Council
Introduction
The first Council of Nicea or Nicaea was called together by the Roman Emperor Constantine I in what is modern day Turkey, in the region then known as Bithynia, in C.E. 325. It represents an important point in church history as, apart from meetings in the very first years of the church before it spread outside the borders of Israel, it was the very first attempt to gain a consensus about belief among representatives of the whole Christian community, although the majority of those who attended actually came from one area, the eastern Mediterranean. At that the question Jesus divinity had caused a split within the church. Earlier in the year there had been a meeting led by St. HYPERLINK httpwww.orthodoxwiki.orgindex.phptitleHosius_of_Cordobaactionedit o Hosius of Cordoba Hosius of Cordoba, the emperors spiritual adviser, condemning Arianism. Constantine intended to make Christianity the official state religion, but only if the Christians could settle their internal differences. Alexander Schmemann said that Constantine saw the synod as the crown and symbol of the unification of the empire as well as his victory over Licinius.
The result of the Nicean Councils prayerful and lengthy deliberations was the summary of Christian doctrine still known and used as the Nicene Creed and which remains an important part of the eucharistic litergies in both Roman Catholic and Eastern HYPERLINK orthodox Orthodox churches. Blaising claimed that this creed was the first one that could legally claim to have universal authority because it was sent out to churches throughout the empire in order to get their agreement. It should be pointed out that the alternatives were excommunication and possible banishment. The creed they produced includes clear definitions of the doctrine of the Trinity. The first official meeting was presided over by the emperor as described by Norman Tanner, but it took time to gather people from the far reaches of the empire and beyond, so there would have been preliminary meetings before this. Ninian Smart described it as -
The culmination of a process in which Christians had been increasingly
defining themselves in terms of what they believed.
Chrsitianity was about to become the state religion throughout the empire. It was therefore important that doctrines were agreed by all Christians within that empire. Israel had been defined by ethnic origin, the descendents of Abraham. It was perfectly possible to be a Jew ethnically and have no belief in God, but the New Israel would be defined by belief. Chambers Dictionary of Beliefs and Religions pointed out that it was intended to settle differences in doctrine between the followers of Arius and orthodox Christians. Tanner believed that there was already a creed in use, probably originating in Palestine or even Jerusalem, and th at this was added to and formalized..
318 bishops, mainly from the eastern churches, met at the first council called by Constantine. Priests, deacons and acolytes werealso in attendence. At first 5 bishops were not in agreement with the rest as to the final wording, but this number was soon reduced to only two according to H LeClercq who also includes a long list of other matters discussed and agreed. These included such things as fixing the date of Easter, various penances and rules about living with women and various matters to do with clerical authority, the rules for ordination and so on.
Historical Context
Since its earliest days the church had had to deal with misinterpretation of its message. Among the earliest of these attacks was Gnosticism. The Gnostics believed that they , rather than the more orthodox members of the church, held the real truth about the teachings of Christ, and so were the only ones who would achieve salvation. They had a docetic view of Chrsit , that is they believed that Christ had only assumed human form and that the crucifixion was just a trick to fool Satan. .
In 312 C.E. the then pagan Roman emperor Constantine I had a vision in which he was told he would conquer in the sign of the cross. He developed the idea of unification and peace throughout his vast empire. The empire was Christianized, but the church, although more united doctrinally, became a political entity as a result..
Jehovahs Witnesses and others sometimes make claims that the Council invented the
idea of the Trinity, but , according to the article The Nicene Council what was it all about the word Trinitas, had been popularized 100 years earlier by Tertullian.He had done so in response to the ideas of Praxeas who had promoted Monarchianism, a strict form of progression monotheistically. Praxeas believed that the Father had become the Son, and the Son later became the Spirit.
Creeds
In the earliest days of the church simply to say Jesus is Lord was considered sufficient.The word creed has come down to us from the Latin phrase credo I believe. Gradually these developed into the creeds we have today. The earliest is the Apostles Creed, not so called because it was written by Apostles, but because it was used by the early church, who felt it summed up the gospel as preached by the apostles. At the time the Apostles Creed, known in Latin as Symbolum Apostolorum or the Symbol of the Apostles, was being composed, the chief enemy of orthodox Christian belief was Gnosticism. Gnostics denied that Jesus was really truly Man and so the Apostles creed is designed to repudiate such ideas and contains no reference to the HYPERLINK httpen.wikipedia.orgwikiDivinity_of_Jesus o Divinity of Jesus divinity of HYPERLINK httpen.wikipedia.orgwikiGod_the_Son o God the Son Jesus or of the HYPERLINK httpen.wikipedia.orgwikiHoly_Spirit o Holy Spirit Holy Spirit. Traditionally it contains 12 statements -
1. I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
2. I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
3. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary.
4. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.
5. He descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again.
6. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
7. He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
8. I believe in the Holy Spirit,
9. the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints,
10. the forgiveness of sins,
11. the resurrection of the body,
12. and life everlasting.
The Apostles Creed was never abandoned but it was the The Nicene creed , which was in its final form by the end of the churchs 4th century, which quickly became the basic statement of belief in all eastern churches and, more gradually, came to be used in the west.
Creeds are more than just statements of belief, although they do provide a summary of the central beliefs held by all branches of the Christians church. They are not just a subject to study or an interestng reminder of the past they are living, current statements of belief as well as the churches carefully and prayerfully considered response to challenges to its beliefs that have come from sources both within and from outside the church. When people say that they believe in God they are also saying something about themselves and their relationship with him that they are created beings dependent upon God. Faith in God, as expressed in the creeds and in other ways, changes the way in which people feel about themselves.When they are recited the people concerned are publically declaring the faith they hold. They are maintaining that certain events actually happened as described in the scriptures and through these God revealed himself to man. They reaffirm their spiritual convictions as part of their worship. The modern day church has many branches with a diverity of practices. The creeds , whether the Apostolic or the Nicene, provide common ground. Those who use them or believe in them are identifying themselves with the millions of other Christians around the globe. Creeds contains statements which have been challenged on more than one occasion in the past, yet which have stood the test of time and are still believed to this day.
The creed has had its variations. Arnold Harnack in The Constantopolitan Creedmentioned 3 main variations. He also described it as the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed and points out that it is not known whether the creed, as generally accepted, was based upon an older one or was new and independent. He points out that it was Eusebias who claimed that it was his personal formula that was the basis for the new creed. For the next 16 years alternative forms were being suggested, but at the Council of Sardica in 344 C.E. it was accepted as it was. From the 6th century onwards, according to Arnack, and widely accepted, it was said that the creed was in fact drawn up in 381 C.E. at the Council of Constantinople. This gathering is supposed to have expanded the third section of the original and the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed that resulted was thought to have been universally accepted. Cyril of Jerusalem in a fourth century letter says -
In learning and profession the faith, you must accept and retain only the Churchs present tradition, confirmed as it is by the Scriptures.
He points out however that not everyone could read the scriptures and goes on to say-
Now I order you to retain this creed for your nourishment throughout life and never to accept any alternative..So for the present be content to listen to the simple words of the creed and to memorize them at some suitable time you can find the proof of each article in the Scriptures.
This is helpful advice, especially for those who are new to Christianity and where literacy levels are low or where copies of the scriptures are not readily accessible.
Arianism
Arius was a Libyan philosopher. He trained in Antioch and later became a presbyter in Alexandria. In about 319 C.E., despite the more orthodox teaching of his bishop, he stated that Jesus was the highest of created beings, rather than being co-equal and co-eternal with the Father God. If Christ were to be a created being, even if created first, he is not God in any meaningful way not. Both Gnostics and many pagans believed God was so perfect that he was unable able to create a material world. The Gnostics held that it was a remote process merely initiated by God who created A, who created B, and so on until eventually someone created the world as it is.
In 321 C.E. the synod of Alexandrian bishops both deposed and excommunicated Arius. He settled in Nicomedia, now in Turkey. From there he wrote many letters to various bishops defending his ideas. He was finally absolved by Eusebius of Nicomedia and in 323 C.E. the Bithynian synod had come down on his side. Arius was allowed to both expound and to defend his beliefsbefore the council. It was because of this that the bishops defined the absolute unity and absolute equality of the Godhead. Athanasias, a deacon from Alexandria, was one of the main spokesmen for the full deity of the Christ.
Only two bishops did not agree and they, along with Arius, were banished to Illyricum.Arius was allowed to return in 334 C.E. but Athanasis refused to allow him communion. The controversy continued. In 336 C.E. the emperor commanded the bishop of Constantinople to allow Arius to partake in the sacrement, but he died before this took place. There were rumours that he had been poisoned by orthodox Christians. After his death the western church held mainly orthodox beliefs, but in the east Arianism or semi-Arianism held sway. It took until the reigns of Theodosius in the eastand Valentian II in the western empire. The Germanic tribes continued to hold Arian views until the 7th century. In more recent times it has been replaced by Unitarianism since the Reformation. Also the Jehovahs witnesses can be said to hold Arian views and so are considered to be a sect rather than part of mainstream Christianity.
Analysis of the Creed
I believe in one God. Exodus 20 v 3 tells us You shall have no other gods before me.
We believe in one Lord Jesus Christ the only son of God. John 1 v 14 has in Greek Monogenetos Huios which can be translated as either Only Son or Only begotten Son.
Begotten of the Father before all worlds. This didnt mean originally before the galaxies were created. The word translated world is in fact related to were meaning man. So Christ existed before any man. Arius is quoted as having said The Logos is not eternal. God begat him, and before he was begotten, he did not exist.
God of God, Light of Light. Followers of Athanasius, the chief defender of orthodox Christian beliefs, used the following analogy about light which they saw as streaming in a continuous flow from the sun. It was obvious to them that light came from the sun. It was possible for them, to imagine that the sun had always been in existence. But it was not true that the sun first existed and later came the light. If the sun had always existed then light had always been emitted by it. The two exist and had always existed together. In the same way they believed the Son exists because the Father does, but also that there was never a time when one existed without the other. Also, just as the sun is known because of the light received from it, so in the same way Jesus said He who has seen me has seen the Father.
Very God of very God, begotten, not made. This idea that Christ was of the same essence as the Father was for Arians the sticking point, the unacceptable. The Greek says Homo-ousios tw patri. There was no way Arius and his followers could interpret as fitting in with their beliefs. They could not continue to teach that the Son is good and a strong power, Gods main agent in the created world and in creating it. If the Arian view had been accepted as being permissible within Christian orthodoxy then verses such as Philippians 2 verse5, 6 and 7are of no value.
Christ Jesus who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with
God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very
nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.
As far as the Eastern Church was concerned the Trinity, although made up of three hypostases united in one ousia.
By whom all things were made. This is a direct quotation from Johns gospel. Even more than not himself being created, Christ is the agent by which everything that is not God was created.
Who for us men and for our salvation. Modern translations are less sexually weighted and might read For us and for our salvation. In the original Greek or Latin the words are gender inclusive. John 3 v 16 states quite clearly that this was because God loved his creation and so sent his only Son so that if people believed in him they might be saved.
Came down from heaven. As described in John chapter 1.And was incarnate by the Holy Ghost of the Virgin Mary,and was made manand was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate- as described in the gospels.He suffered and was buried. The writer of The Nicene Creed web page has pointed out how an early translation includes the Latin words passus et supultus est. This seems to point to the fact that by the 4th century it was no longer necessary to state that Jesus had actually died as the Apostles Creed states when it claims He descended to the dead. And the third day he rose again according to the Scriptures. Ist Corinthians is being quoted.
He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
And his kingdom will have no end.,
And I believe in the Holy Ghost the Lord, and Giver of Life,who proceedeth from the Father and the Son The words in brackets and the Son are a later addition by the western church, the original being a statement that was accepted by the whole church both east and west. The bracketed words are in Latin Filioque and the controversy about their inclusion is therefore referred to as the Filioque controversy
Who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorifiedwho spake by the Prophets. This statement puts paid to the idea that the Holy Spirit only came into existence after the Ascension.
And I believe one holy catholic and apostolic church. Catholic in this sense means universal, all embracing, and the word apostolic refers to the gospel message passed on from the earliest church members.
I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins. In John 3 v 5 Jesus tells Nicodemus No-one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the spirit.
The resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come as described by St Paul in 1Corinthians15
Amen. This means simply so be it and is often rendered as I agree. This points to the fact that this creed is not just for study, but that there must be a conscious effort on the part of individuals to consider its relevance in their lives. Agreeing to the contents of the Nicene Creed is a confession of faith. Despite not being part of scripture it nevertheless truly expresses its message.
Conclusion
The Nicene creed had the effect of uniting Christians as people with a common mind set as far as their beliefs were concerned, as it continues to do so. The monastic movement was on the rise and growing in strength, and the monks wanted to be sure that the Christ they worshipped was divine,and was someone who needed no redemption for himself as was described by Geoffrey Barraclough et al.
Although over time the church has divided many times into smaller groups, especially at the time of the Reformation, this central body of belief has persisted. Even in churches which do not have a set litergy, such as Brethran Assemblies and the Baptist Church, the Nicene Creed is still believed and recited on occasions. Even in those churches where this is not done the members would be committed to its beliefs and the ideas contained within it would be taught. It is the means by which someone can be assessed as being a Christian or not, whether by themselves or others. If someone believes and accepts the contents of the creed they are an orthodox i.e. mainstream, Christian whatever denomination they belong to and whatever their style of worship..
Traditional English Wording of the Nicene Creed
I believe in one God,the Father Almighty,maker of heaven and earth,and of all things visible and invisible
And in one Lord Jesus Christ,the only begotten Son of God,begotten of his Father before all worlds,God of God, Light of Light,very God of very God,begotten, not made,being of one substance with the Fatherby whom all things were madewho for us men and for our salvationcame down from heaven,and was incarnate by the Holy Ghostof the Virgin Mary,and was made manand was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilatehe suffered and was buriedand the third day he rose againaccording to the Scriptures,and ascended into heaven,and sitteth on the right hand of the Fatherand he shall come again, with glory,to judge both the quick and the deadwhose kingdom shall have no end.
And I believe in the Holy Ghost the Lord, and Giver of Life,who proceedeth from the Father and the Sonwho with the Father and the Son togetheris worshipped and glorifiedwho spake by the Prophets.And I believe one holy Catholic and Apostolic ChurchI acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sinsand I look for the resurrection of the dead,and the life of the world to come. AMEN. hymn.
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