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113-446: "The doctrine of Nestorius, Patriarch of Constantinople (appointed in 428), by which Christ is asserted to have had distinct human and divine persons." Original Nestorianism is attested primarily by works of Nestorius, and also by other theological and historical sources that are related to his teachings in the fields of Mariology and Christology . His theology was influenced by teachings of Theodore of Mopsuestia ( d.  428 ),

226-486: A fatwa that declared the writing of Salman Rushdie to be heretical, and a bounty was issued for anyone who assassinated him. Heresy remains an offense punishable by death in some nations. The Baháʼí Faith is considered an Islamic heresy in Iran, with systematic persecution of Baháʼís . Orthodox Judaism considers views on the part of Jews who depart from traditional Jewish principles of faith heretical. In addition,

339-713: A continuous history since the founding of the city in AD 330 by Constantine the Great . After Constantine the Great had enlarged Byzantium to make it into a second capital city in 330, it was thought appropriate that its bishop, once a suffragan of the Exarch of Thrace and Macedonia, the Metropolitan of Heraclea , should be elevated to an archbishopric. For many decades the heads of the church of Rome opposed this ambition, due to their existing papal claims, and because they defended

452-500: A distinct sect following the Nestorian Schism , beginning in the 430s. Nestorius had come under fire from Western theologians, most notably Cyril of Alexandria . Cyril had both theological and political reasons for attacking Nestorius; on top of feeling that Nestorianism was an error against true belief, he also wanted to denigrate the head of a competing patriarchate. Cyril and Nestorius asked Pope Celestine I to weigh in on

565-437: A heretical movement is called a heresiarch , while individuals who espouse heresy or commit heresy are known as heretics . According to Titus 3 :10 a divisive person should be warned twice before separating from him. The Greek for the phrase "divisive person" became a technical term in the early Church for a type of "heretic" who promoted dissension. In contrast, correct teaching is called sound not only because it builds up

678-458: A hypostatic union, 'Jesus Christ', Jesus thus being both fully man and God, of two ousia ( Ancient Greek : οὐσία ) (essences) but of one prosopon (person). Both Nestorianism and Monophysitism were condemned as heretical at the Council of Chalcedon . Nestorius developed his Christological views as an attempt to understand and explain rationally the incarnation of the divine Logos ,

791-594: A letter addressed to Persian Christians reaffirming their condemnation of the Nestorianism as heresy. Following the exodus to Persia , scholars expanded on the teachings of Nestorius and his mentors, particularly after the relocation of the School of Edessa to the (then) Persian city of Nisibis (modern-day Nusaybin in Turkey ) in 489, where it became known as the School of Nisibis . Nestorian monasteries propagating

904-519: A number of executions on charges of heresy. During the thirty-eight years of Henry VIII 's reign, about sixty heretics, mainly Protestants, were executed and a rather greater number of Catholics lost their lives on grounds of political offences such as treason, notably Sir Thomas More and Cardinal John Fisher , for refusing to accept the king's supremacy over the Church in England. Under Edward VI ,

1017-685: A permanent bureau at the EU headquarters, in addition to enhancing the long-established Patriarchal Centre in Pregny-Chambésy , Switzerland, and also his ecological pursuits which have won him the epithet of "the Green Patriarch". When the Ottoman Turks conquered Constantinople in 1453, the patriarchate ceased to function. The Patriarchate was restored by the conquering ruler, Sultan Mehmed II , who wished to establish his dynasty as

1130-528: A proponent of heresy. Heresy in Christianity , Judaism , and Islam has at times been met with censure ranging from excommunication to the death penalty. Heresy is distinct from apostasy , which is the explicit renunciation of one's religion, principles or cause; and from blasphemy , which is an impious utterance or action concerning God or sacred things. Heresiology is the study of heresy. Derived from Ancient Greek haíresis ( αἵρεσις ),

1243-556: A single nature, his human nature being absorbed into his divinity. A brief definition of Nestorian Christology can be given as: " Jesus Christ, who is not identical with the Son but personally united with the Son, who lives in him, is one hypostasis and one nature: human." This contrasts with Nestorius' own teaching that the Word , which is eternal, and the Flesh, which is not, came together in

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1356-631: A strong presence of Nestorian Christianity in Sri Lanka during the 6th century AD according to Humphrey Codrington , who based his claim on a 6th-century manuscript, Christian Topography , that mentions of a community of Persian Christians who were known to reside in Taprobanê (the Ancient Greek name for Sri Lanka). Nestorian missionaries were firmly established in China during the early part of

1469-455: Is first among equals , or first in honor among all Eastern Orthodox bishops, who presides in person—or through a delegate—over any council of Orthodox primates or bishops in which he takes part and serves as primary spokesman for the Orthodox communion especially in ecumenical contacts with other Christian denominations. He has no direct jurisdiction over the other patriarchs or

1582-561: Is a self-governed polity within the Greek state subject to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in its political aspect and to the ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople as regards to its religious aspect and is home to 20 monasteries and numerous other monastic communities. The ecumenical patriarch has a unique role among Eastern Orthodox bishops, though it is not without its controversy. He is primus inter pares ("first among equals"), as he

1695-524: Is among the foundational documents of Lutheranism, lists 10 heresies by name which are condemned: Manichaeans , Valentinians , Arians , Eunomians , Mohammedans , Samosatenes , Pelagians , Anabaptists , Donatists and "certain Jewish opinions". The 39 Articles of the Anglican Communion condemn Pelagianism as a heresy. In Britain, the 16th-century English Reformation resulted in

1808-529: Is gradually being reduced to its primary meaning, focused on the original teachings of Nestorius, and not to the far older originating Assyrian Church of the East or it's offshoot, the Chaldean Catholic Church . Nestorianism was condemned as heresy at the Council of Ephesus (431). The Armenian Church rejected the Council of Chalcedon (451) because they believed Chalcedonian Definition

1921-399: Is nearly powerless against exoheretics. He acknowledged by examples that heresy has repeatedly become orthodoxy. Publishing his findings as The Dinosaur Heresies , revisionist paleontologist Robert T. Bakker , himself a scientific endoheretic, treated the mainstream view of dinosaurs as dogma : I have enormous respect for dinosaur paleontologists past and present. But on average, for

2034-424: Is not an official title of the patriarch nor is it usually used in scholarly sources on the patriarchate. The Orthodox Church is entirely decentralized: it has no central authority, earthly head, or single bishop in a leadership role. Because it has a synodical system canonically , it is significantly distinguished from the hierarchically organized Catholic Church , whose doctrine is papal supremacy and whose head

2147-502: Is not devoted to the Catholic Church and to our Orthodox holy Faith" a heretic. The Church had always dealt harshly with strands of Christianity that it considered heretical, but before the 11th century these tended to centre on individual preachers or small localised sects, like Arianism , Pelagianism , Donatism , Marcionism and Montanism . The diffusion of the almost Manichaean sect of Paulicians westwards gave birth to

2260-477: Is one of promoting and sustaining Church unity. This unique role often sees the ecumenical patriarch referred to as the "spiritual leader" of the Orthodox Church in some sources, though this is not an official title of the patriarch nor is it usually used in scholarly sources on the patriarchate. Such a title is acceptable if it refers to this unique role, but it sometimes leads to the mistaken belief that

2373-496: Is senior among all Orthodox bishops. This primacy, expressed in canonical literature as presbeia ("prerogatives", literally: "seniorities"), grants to the ecumenical patriarch the right to preside at pan-Orthodox synods . Additionally, the canonical literature of the Orthodox Church grants to the ecumenical patriarch the right to hear appeals in cases of dispute between bishops. However, whether these canonical rights are limited only to his own patriarchate or are universal throughout

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2486-460: Is some theological and practical overlap between these groups. The act of using Church of Scientology techniques in a form different from that originally described by L. Ron Hubbard is referred to within Scientology as " squirreling " and is said by Scientologists to be high treason . The Religious Technology Center has prosecuted breakaway groups who have practiced Scientology outside

2599-632: Is the archbishop of Constantinople and primus inter pares (first among equals) among the heads of the several autocephalous churches that comprise the Eastern Orthodox Church . The ecumenical patriarch is regarded as the representative and spiritual leader of the Eastern Orthodox Christians worldwide. The term ecumenical in the title is a historical reference to the Ecumene , a Greek designation for

2712-715: Is the pope . His titles primus inter pares . 'first among equals', and "ecumenical patriarch" are of honor rather than authority, and in fact the ecumenical patriarch has no real authority over churches other than the Constantinopolitan. The ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople is the direct administrative superior of dioceses and archdioceses serving millions of Greek, Ukrainian, Rusyn and Albanian believers in North and South America, Western Europe, Australia and New Zealand, South Korea, as well as parts of modern Greece which, for historical reasons, do not fall under

2825-635: Is welcome, of ideas that are in fundamental disagreement with the status quo in any practice and branch of knowledge. Scientist/author Isaac Asimov considered heresy as an abstraction, mentioning religious, political, socioeconomic and scientific heresies. He divided scientific heretics into: endoheretics, those from within the scientific community ; and exoheretics, those from without. Characteristics were ascribed to both and examples of both kinds were offered. Asimov concluded that science orthodoxy defends itself well against endoheretics (by control of science education, grants and publication as examples), but

2938-709: The Albanian and Iberian bishops met in Vagharshapat and issued a condemnation of the Chalcedonian Definition. Nestorians held that the Council of Chalcedon proved the orthodoxy of their faith and had started persecuting non-Chalcedonian or Miaphysite Syriac Christians during the reign of Peroz I . In response to pleas for assistance from the Syriac Church , Armenian prelates issued

3051-678: The Antiochian School and the School of Edessa , relocated to the Sasanian Empire , where they were affiliated with the local Assyrian community, many who were followers of the Assyrian Church, known as the Church of the East , while others were Syriac Orthodox . During the period from 484 to 612, gradual development led to the creation of specific doctrinal views within the Church of the East. Evolution of those views

3164-582: The Council of Ephesus in 431, and again at the Council of Chalcedon in 451. His teachings were considered as heretical not only in Chalcedonian Christianity , but even more in Oriental Orthodoxy . The already long extant Assyrian Church of the East , would affirm the orthodoxy of Nestorius, lining up the tradition of the fathers which preceded him. After the condemnation, some supporters of Nestorius, who were followers of

3277-492: The Council of Ephesus in 431, leading to the Nestorian Schism , when churches supportive of Nestorius and the rest of the Christian Church separated. However, this formulation was never adopted by all churches termed 'Nestorian'. Indeed, the modern Assyrian Church of the East, which reveres Nestorius, does not fully subscribe to Nestorian doctrine, though it does not employ the title Theotokos . Nestorianism became

3390-706: The Great Schism and the Protestant Reformation , various Christian churches have also used the concept in proceedings against individuals and groups those churches deemed heretical. The Eastern Orthodox Church also rejects the early Christian heresies such as Arianism , Gnosticism , Origenism , Montanism , Judaizers , Marcionism , Docetism , Adoptionism , Nestorianism , Monophysitism , Monothelitism and Iconoclasm . Martin Luther and Philip Melanchthon , who played an instrumental part in

3503-742: The Middle Ages , they played a major role in the affairs of the Eastern Orthodox Church, as well as in the politics of the Orthodox world, and in spreading Christianity among the Slavs . Currently, in addition to the expansion of the Christian faith and the Eastern Orthodox doctrine , the patriarchs are involved in ecumenism and interfaith dialogue , charitable work, and the defense of Orthodox Christian traditions. Within

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3616-542: The Millet of Rum , which included all Orthodox Christians under Ottoman rule, regardless of their ethnicity in the modern sense. This role was carried out by ethnic Greeks at their great peril, in the midst of enormous difficulties and traps and inevitably with mixed success. Several patriarchs were summarily executed by the Ottoman authorities, most notably Gregory V , who was lynched on Easter Monday 1821 in revenge for

3729-722: The School of Edessa , supported Nestorius – though not necessarily his doctrine – and broke with the churches of the West. Many of Nestorius' supporters relocated to the Sasanian Empire of Iran, home to a vibrant but persecuted Christian minority. In Upper Egypt, Nestorius wrote his Book of Heraclides , responding to the two councils at Ephesus (431, 449). The western provinces of the Persian Empire had been home to Christian communities, headed by metropolitans, and later patriarchs of Seleucia-Ctesiphon . The Christian minority in Persia

3842-688: The Tang dynasty (618–907); the Chinese source known as the Nestorian Stele records a mission under a Persian proselyte named Alopen as introducing Nestorian Christianity to China in 635. The Jingjiao Documents (also described by the Japanese scholar P. Y. Saeki as "Nestorian Documents") or Jesus Sutras are said to be connected with Alopen. Following the Arab conquest of Persia , completed in 644,

3955-544: The ecumenical councils and then enforced orthodoxy by Imperial authority. The first known usage of the term in a legal context was in AD 380 by the Edict of Thessalonica of Theodosius I , which made Christianity the state church of the Roman Empire . Prior to the issuance of this edict, the Church had no state-sponsored support for any particular legal mechanism to counter what it perceived as "heresy". By this edict

4068-537: The 'Petrine principle' by which all Patriarchates were derived from Saint Peter and were unwilling to violate the old order of the hierarchy for political reasons. In 381, the First Council of Constantinople declared that "The Bishop of Constantinople shall have the primacy of honour after the Bishop of Rome, because it is New Rome" (canon iii). The prestige of the office continued to grow not only because of

4181-602: The 7th-century text Concerning Heresy , Saint John of Damascus named Islam as Christological heresy, referring to it as the "heresy of the Ishmaelites" (see medieval Christian views on Muhammad ). The position remained popular in Christian circles well into the 20th century, by theologians such as the Congregationalist cleric Frank Hugh Foster and the Roman Catholic historian Hilaire Belloc ,

4294-714: The Cathars grew to represent a popular mass movement and the belief was spreading to other areas. The Cathar Crusade was initiated by the Catholic Church to eliminate the Cathar heresy in Languedoc . Heresy was a major justification for the Inquisition ( Inquisitio Haereticae Pravitatis , Inquiry on Heretical Perversity) and for the European wars of religion associated with the Protestant Reformation . Galileo Galilei

4407-459: The Catholic Church was Spanish schoolmaster Cayetano Ripoll in 1826. The number of people executed as heretics under the authority of the various "ecclesiastical authorities" is not known. Although less common than in earlier periods, in modern times, formal charges of heresy within Christian churches still occur. Issues in the Protestant churches have included modern biblical criticism and

4520-592: The Councils of Ephesus (431) and Chalcedon (451). The Persian Church became increasingly opposed to doctrines promoted by those councils, thus furthering the divide between Chalcedonian and Persian currents. In 486, the Metropolitan Barsauma of Nisibis publicly accepted Nestorius' mentor Theodore of Mopsuestia as a spiritual authority. In 489, when the School of Edessa in Mesopotamia

4633-560: The East signed by Pope John Paul II and Mar Dinkha IV underlines the Chalcedonian Christological formulation as the expression of the common faith of these Churches and recognizes the legitimacy of the title Theotokos ." In a 2017 paper, Mar Awa Royel , Bishop of the Assyrian Church , stated the position of that church: "After the Council of Ephesus (431), when Nestorius the patriarch of Constantinople

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4746-467: The English heresy originally meant "choice" or "thing chosen". However, it came to mean the "party, or school, of a man's choice", and also referred to that process whereby a young person would examine various philosophies to determine how to live. The word heresy is usually used within a Christian, Jewish, or Islamic context, and implies slightly different meanings in each. The founder or leader of

4859-569: The John Rylands Library , Fellow of the British Academy Sebastian Brock wrote: "the term 'Nestorian Church' has become the standard designation for the ancient oriental church which in the past called itself 'The Church of the East', but which today prefers the fuller title 'The Assyrian Church of the East '. The Common Christological Declaration between the Catholic Church and the Assyrian Church of

4972-613: The Orthodox Church is the subject of debate, especially between the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the Russian Orthodox Church . Historically, the ecumenical patriarch has heard such appeals and sometimes was invited to intervene in other churches' disputes and difficulties. Even as early as the fourth century, Constantinople was instrumental in the deposition of multiple bishops outside its traditional jurisdiction. This still occurs today, as when in 2006

5085-744: The Orthodox Church of Constantinople, he is known as the "archbishop of Constantinople, New Rome ". The Ecumenical Patriarchate is also sometimes called the Greek Patriarchate of Constantinople to distinguish it from the Armenian Patriarchate and the extinct Latin Patriarchate , which was created after the Latin capture of Constantinople in 1204, during the Fourth Crusade . The see of Byzantium, whose foundation

5198-713: The Patriarchate, are also cited by human rights groups. However, in 2004 Patriarch Bartholomew, with the help of the Turkish government, succeeded, after eighty years, in altering the composition of the twelve-member Standing Synod of Metropolitan Bishops in Constantinople so that it can include six bishops from outside Turkey. He has also been convening biennially in Constantinople convocations of all bishops in his jurisdiction. The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople has suffered attacks from 1993 to 2004, including desecration of patriarchal cemeteries as well as assaults on

5311-591: The Persian Church became a dhimmi community under the Rashidun Caliphate . The church and its communities abroad grew larger under the caliphate. By the 10th century it had 15 metropolitan sees within the caliphate's territories, and another five elsewhere, including in China and India. After that time, however, Nestorianism went into decline. In a 1996 article published in the Bulletin of

5424-476: The Persian Church began to branch out beyond the Sasanian Empire. However, through the sixth century, the church was frequently beset with internal strife and persecution by Zoroastrians. The infighting led to a schism, which lasted from 521 until around 539 when the issues were resolved. However, immediately afterward Roman-Persian conflict led to the persecution of the church by the Sassanid emperor Khosrow I ; this ended in 545. The church survived these trials under

5537-416: The Phanar" or "Roman Orthodox Patriarch of Constantinople" ( Turkish : Fener Rum Ortodoks Patriği ; Phanar is the neighbourhood in Istanbul where the patriarchate is located). According to Turkish law, still in force today, he is subject to the authority of the Republic of Turkey; however, Turkey allows the Standing Synod of Metropolitan Bishops to elect the patriarch. To be electable, Turkish law requires

5650-431: The Roman Empire by what is commonly called the Edict of Milan , and was the first Roman Emperor baptized, set precedents for later policy. By Roman law the Emperor was Pontifex Maximus , the high priest of the College of Pontiffs ( Collegium Pontificum) of all recognized religions in ancient Rome . To put an end to the doctrinal debate initiated by Arius , Constantine called the first of what would afterwards be called

5763-500: The Second Person of the Holy Trinity as the man Jesus. He had studied at the School of Antioch where his mentor had been Theodore of Mopsuestia ; Theodore and other Antioch theologians had long taught a literalist interpretation of the Bible and stressed the distinctiveness of the human and divine natures of Jesus. Nestorius took his Antiochene leanings with him when he was appointed Patriarch of Constantinople by Byzantine emperor Theodosius II in 428. Nestorius's teachings became

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5876-470: The United Kingdom in a dispute with his superior in Moscow, though the result of that appeal – and the right to make it – were both rejected by the latter. The ecumenical patriarch has no direct jurisdiction outside the Patriarchate of Constantinople granted to him in Orthodox canonical literature, but his primary function regarding the whole Orthodox Church is one of dealing with relations between autocephalous and autonomous churches. That is, his primary role

5989-420: The Virgin Mary, conceiving and bearing this divine person, is truly called the Mother of God ( Theotokos ). The council accused Nestorius of heresy , and deposed him as patriarch. Upon returning to his monastery in 436, he was banished to Upper Egypt. Nestorianism was officially anathematized, a ruling reiterated at the Council of Chalcedon in 451. However, a number of churches, particularly those associated with

6102-400: The absence of his legates . In the sixth century, the official title became that of "archbishop of Constantinople, New Rome, and ecumenical patriarch". The current patriarch (since 1991) is Bartholomew I who has become better-known than any of his predecessors in modern times as a result of his numerous pastoral and other visits to numerous countries in five continents and his setting up of

6215-443: The actions of the Anglican Puritans , who at that time wielded political as well as ecclesiastic control in the Massachusetts Bay Colony . At the time, the colony leaders were apparently hoping to achieve their vision of a "purer absolute theocracy" within their colony. As such, they perceived the teachings and practices of the rival Quaker sect as heretical, even to the point where laws were passed and executions were performed with

6328-428: The aim of ridding their colony of such perceived "heresies." The Articles of Religion of the Methodist Churches teach that Pelagianism is a heresy. John Wesley , the founder of the Methodist tradition, harshly criticized antinomianism, considering it the "worst of all heresies". He taught that Christian believers are bound to follow the moral law for their sanctification . Methodist Christians thus teach

6441-416: The archdioceses in North America, Asia, Africa and Oceania where growing Greek and other migrant communities have gradually constituted a significant orthodox diaspora. After the proclamation of the Republic of Turkey on 29 October 1923, the Turkish state only recognises the patriarch as the spiritual leader of the Greek minority in Turkey , and officially refers to him as the "Greek Orthodox Patriarch of

6554-442: The candidates to be Turkish citizens. Since the establishment of modern Turkey, the position of the ecumenical patriarch has been filled by Turkish-born citizens of Greek ethnicity. As nearly all Greek Orthodox have left Turkey (see Population exchange between Greece and Turkey and Istanbul Pogrom ), this considerably narrows the field of candidates for succession. Human rights groups have long protested against conditions placed by

6667-410: The civilised world, i.e. the Roman Empire , and it stems from Canon 28 of the Council of Chalcedon . The patriarch's see , the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople is one of the most enduring institutions in the world and has had a prominent part in world history. The ecumenical patriarchs in ancient times helped in the spread of Christianity and the resolution of various doctrinal disputes. In

6780-640: The concept of a hypostatic union of two natures. The distinction is between 'two hypostasis in one person' and 'two natures in one person'. Hypostasis is not seen as subject, but rather a nature existing in reality. This Christological position is viewed by the West as radical dyophysitism , and differs from eastern orthodox dyophysitism , that was reaffirmed at the Council of Chalcedon (451). Such teachings brought Nestorius into conflict with other prominent church leaders, most notably Cyril of Alexandria , who issued 12 anathemas against him (430). Nestorius and his teachings were eventually condemned as heretical at

6893-400: The concept of heresy was retained in theory but severely restricted by the 1559 Act of Supremacy and the one hundred and eighty or so Catholics who were executed in the forty-five years of her reign were put to death because they were considered members of "a subversive fifth column ." The last execution of a "heretic" in England occurred under James VI and I in 1612. Although the charge

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7006-471: The details of his work are in scientific disrepute, the concept of catastrophic change ( extinction event and punctuated equilibrium ) has gained acceptance in recent decades. The term heresy is used not only with regard to religion but also in the context of political theory. The term heresy is also used as an ideological pigeonhole for contemporary writers because, by definition, heresy depends on contrasts with an established orthodoxy . For example,

7119-435: The direct heirs of the Eastern Roman emperors, and who adopted the imperial title Kayser-i-Rûm "caesar of the Romans", one of his subsidiary titles but a significant one. In 1454 he bestowed the office upon an illustrious Byzantine scholar-monk who was well known for his opposition to union with the Latin West, Gennadius Scholarius , who became Patriarch Gennadius II. The patriarch was designated millet-başı ( ethnarch ) of

7232-414: The early centuries of the Christian community. He described the community's beliefs and doctrines as orthodox (from ὀρθός , orthos , "straight" or "correct" and δόξα , doxa , "belief") and the Gnostics ' teachings as heretical. He also invoked the concept of apostolic succession to support his arguments. Constantine the Great , who along with Licinius had decreed toleration of Christianity in

7345-399: The ecumenical patriarch. After the protests from Turkey, the signature of the Ecumenical Patriarchate has been removed from the statement of the June 2024 Ukraine peace summit . Heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, particularly the accepted beliefs or religious law of a religious organization. A heretic is

7458-490: The faith, but because it protects it against the corrupting influence of false teachers. Tertullian ( c.  AD 155–240 ) implied that it was the Jews who most inspired heresy in Christianity: "From the Jew the heretic has accepted guidance in this discussion [that Jesus was not the Christ ]." The use of the word heresy was given wide currency by Irenaeus in his 2nd-century tract Contra Haereses ( Against Heresies ) to describe and discredit his opponents during

7571-415: The famous 11th- and 12th-century heresies of Western Europe. The first one was that of Bogomils in modern-day Bulgaria, a sort of sanctuary between Eastern and Western Christianity. By the 11th century, more organised groups such as the Patarini , the Dulcinians , the Waldensians and the Cathars were beginning to appear in the towns and cities of northern Italy, southern France and Flanders. In France

7684-504: The five apostolic sees of the Pentarchy , the ecumenical patriarch is regarded as the successor of Andrew the Apostle . The current holder of the office is Bartholomew I , the 270th bishop of that see. Autocephaly recognized by some autocephalous Churches de jure : Autocephaly and canonicity recognized by Constantinople and 3 other autocephalous Churches: Spiritual independence recognized by Georgian Orthodox Church: Semi-Autonomous: The ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople

7797-458: The formation of the Lutheran Churches , condemned Johannes Agricola and his doctrine of antinomianism  – the belief that Christians were free from the moral law contained in the Ten Commandments  – as a heresy. Traditional Lutheranism, espoused by Luther himself, teaches that after justification, "the Law of God continued to guide people in how they were to live before God." The Augsburg Confession of 1539, which

7910-420: The function of the patriarchate, since clergy coming from abroad are not eligible to apply for residence and work permits. In its early days the Turkish state promoted a rival Turkish Orthodox Patriarchate , whose congregation, however, has remained limited. Expropriation of Church property and the conditions of state control imposed on the Orthodox Theological School of Halki that have led to its closure by

8023-554: The guidance of Patriarch Aba I , who had converted to Christianity from Zoroastrianism. The church emerged stronger after this period of ordeal, and increased missionary efforts farther afield. Missionaries established dioceses in the Arabian Peninsula and India (the Saint Thomas Christians ). They made some advances in Egypt , despite the strong Miaphysite presence there. Missionaries entered Central Asia and had significant success converting local Turkic tribes. The Anuradhapura Cross discovered in Sri Lanka strongly suggests

8136-461: The heresy laws were repealed in 1547 only to be reintroduced in 1554 by Mary I ; even so two radicals were executed in Edward's reign (one for denying the reality of the incarnation, the other for denying Christ's divinity). Under Mary, around two hundred and ninety people were burned at the stake between 1555 and 1558 after the restoration of papal jurisdiction. When Elizabeth I came to the throne,

8249-463: The image of Jesus as a warrior-king and rescuer of Israel over the traditional image of the Christus dolens . Nestorius' opponents found his teaching too close to the heresy of adoptionism – the idea that Christ had been born a man who had later been "adopted" as God's son. Nestorius was especially criticized by Cyril , Patriarch of Alexandria , who argued that Nestorius's teachings undermined

8362-464: The jurisdiction of the Church of Greece . His actual position is patriarch of the Orthodox Church of Constantinople , one of the fourteen autocephalous and several autonomous churches and the most senior (though not oldest) of the four orthodox ancient primatial sees among the five patriarchal Christian centers comprising the ancient Pentarchy of the undivided Church. In his role as head of

8475-535: The last fifty years, the field hasn't tested dinosaur orthodoxy severely enough. He adds that, "Most taxonomists, however, have viewed such new terminology as dangerously destabilizing to the traditional and well-known scheme." The illustrations by the author show dinosaurs in very active poses, in contrast to the traditional perception of lethargy. Immanuel Velikovsky is an example of a recent scientific exoheretic; he did not have appropriate scientific credentials and did not publish in scientific journals . While

8588-593: The latter describing it as "the great and enduring heresy of Mohammed." For some years after the Reformation , Protestant churches were also known to execute those they considered heretics; for example, Michael Servetus was declared a heretic by both the Reformed Church and Catholic Church for rejecting the Christian doctrine of the Holy Trinity . The last known heretic executed by sentence of

8701-550: The matter. Celestine found that the title Theotokos was orthodox, and authorized Cyril to ask Nestorius to recant. Cyril, however, used the opportunity to further attack Nestorius, who pleaded with Emperor Theodosius II to call a council so that all grievances could be aired. In 431 Theodosius called the Council of Ephesus. However, the council ultimately sided with Cyril, who held that the Christ contained two natures in one divine person ( hypostasis , unity of subsistence), and that

8814-511: The more right-wing groups within Orthodox Judaism hold that all Jews who reject the simple meaning of Maimonides 's 13 principles of Jewish faith are heretics. As such, most of Orthodox Judaism considers Reform and Reconstructionist Judaism heretical movements, and regards most of Conservative Judaism as heretical. The liberal wing of Modern Orthodoxy is more tolerant of Conservative Judaism, particularly its right wing, as there

8927-542: The most prominent theologian of the Antiochian School . Nestorian Mariology prefers the title Christotokos, which encompasses the term Theotokos ('God-bearer') for Mary , thus emphasizing distinction between divine and human aspects of the Incarnation . Nestorian Christology promotes the concept of a prosopic union of two concrete realities (divine and human) in Jesus Christ , thus trying to avoid and replace

9040-759: The nature of God. In the Catholic Church , the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith criticizes writings for "ambiguities and errors" without using the word "heresy." On 11 July 2007, Pope Benedict XVI stated that some Protestant groups are "ecclesial communities" rather than Churches. Representatives of some of these Christian denominations accused the Vatican of effectively calling them heretics. However, Pope Benedict   XVI clarified that

9153-908: The necessity of following the moral law as contained in the Ten Commandments, citing Jesus' teaching, "If ye love me, keep my commandments" (cf. Saint John 14:15). Starting in medieval times, Muslims began to refer to heretics and those who antagonized Islam as zindiqs , the charge being punishable by death. Ottoman Sultan Selim the Grim regarded the Shia Qizilbash as heretics. Shiites, in general, have often been considered heretics by Sunni Muslims , especially in Indonesia , Saudi Arabia and Turkey . To Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb , Sikhs were heretics. In 1989, Ruhollah Khomeini , supreme religious leader of Iran , issued

9266-561: The obvious patronage of the Byzantine Emperor but because of its overwhelming geographical importance. The Council of Chalcedon in 451 established Constantinople as a patriarchate with ecclesiastical jurisdiction over Asia Minor (the dioceses of Asiane and Pontus) and Thrace as well as over the barbaric territories, non-converted lands outside the defined area of the Western Patriarchate (Old Rome) and

9379-503: The office is thus the equivalent of an Orthodox pope. There is, however, no Orthodox notion equivalent to the papacy: the Orthodox churches operate in the synodical system, whereby ecclesiastical matters are settled by the competent synod of bishops, in which each bishop has one vote. The five patriarchs of the ancient Pentarchy (Rome, Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem, in that order) are to be given seniority of honour, but have no actual power over other bishops other than

9492-525: The official Church without authorization. Although Zoroastrianism has had an historical tolerance for other religions, it also held sects like Zurvanism and Mazdakism heretical to its main dogma and has violently persecuted them, such as burying Mazdakians with their feet upright as "human gardens." In later periods Zoroastrians cooperated with Muslims to kill other Zoroastrians deemed heretical. Buddhist and Taoist monks in medieval China often called each other "heretics" and competed to be praised by

9605-429: The other autocephalous Orthodox churches, but he, alone among his fellow primates, enjoys the right of convening extraordinary synods consisting of them or their delegates to deal with ad hoc situations and has also convened well-attended pan-Orthodox synods in the last 40 years. His unique role often sees the ecumenical patriarch referred to as the spiritual leader of the Orthodox Church in some sources, though this

9718-406: The other three patriarchates, Alexandria, Antioch and Jerusalem, gave it appellate jurisdiction extraterritorially over canon law decisions by the other patriarchs and granted it honours equal to those belonging to the first Christian see, Rome, in terms of primacy, Rome retaining however its seniority (canon xxviii). Leo I refused to accept this canon, basing himself on the fact that it was made in

9831-543: The outbreak of the Greek Revolution . In the 19th century, the rising tide of nationalism and secularism among the Balkan Christian nations led to the establishment of several autocephalous national churches, generally under autonomous patriarchs or archbishops, leaving the ecumenical patriarch only direct control over the ethnically Greek-originated Orthodox Christians of Turkey, parts of Greece and

9944-470: The patriarch is a validly consecrated bishop in Roman ecclesiology, and there is merely an imperfect ecclesial communion between Constantinople and Rome, which exists nevertheless and which may be improved at some point in history. The Ecumenical Patriarch bears the name: "(name), by the grace of God Archbishop of Constantinople, New Rome and Ecumenical Patriarch" The (arch)bishopric of Constantinople has had

10057-420: The patriarchate was invited to assist in declaring the archbishop of the Church of Cyprus incompetent due to his having Alzheimer's disease . Additionally, in 2005, the Ecumenical Patriarchate convoked a pan-Orthodox synod to express the Orthodox world's confirmation of the deposition of Patriarch Irenaios of Jerusalem . In 2006, the patriarchate was invited to hear the appeal of a Russian Orthodox bishop in

10170-434: The phrase "ecclesial community" did not necessitate explicit heresy, but only that the communities lacked certain "essential elements" of an apostolic church, as he had written in the document Dominus Iesus . In the Catholic Church , obstinate and willful manifest heresy is considered to spiritually cut one off from the Church, even before excommunication is incurred. The Codex Justinianus (1:5:12) defines "everyone who

10283-494: The power of the synod they are chairing (and in which they also wield one vote). In 2007, the patriarch gave his approval to the Ravenna Document , a Catholic–Orthodox document re-asserting that the bishop of Rome is indeed the prōtos ("first") of the Church, as in "first among equals", although future discussions are to be held on the concrete ecclesiological exercise of papal primacy. According to Lumen Gentium ,

10396-434: The practice of misnaming the Church of the East as Nestorian. For a long time, such labeling seemed appropriate, since Nestorius is officially venerated as a saint in the Assyrian Church of the East. In modern religious studies , this label has been criticized as wholly improper and misleading. As a consequence, the use of Nestorian label in scholarly literature, and also in the field of inter-denominational relations,

10509-408: The root of controversy when he publicly challenged the long-used title Theotokos ('God-Bearer') for Mary. He suggested that the title denied Christ's full humanity, arguing instead that Jesus had two persons (dyoprosopism), the divine Logos and the human Jesus. As a result of this prosopic duality, he proposed Christotokos (' Christ -Bearer') as a more suitable title for Mary. He also advanced

10622-544: The royal court. Although today most Chinese believe in a hybrid of the "Three Teachings" (Buddhism, Taoism, Confucian) the competition between the two religions may still be seen in some teachings and commentaries given by both religions today. A similar situation happened with Shinto in Japan. Neo-Confucian heresy has also been described. In other contexts the term does not necessarily have pejorative overtones and may even be complimentary when used, in areas where innovation

10735-632: The secular government of Turkey on the ecumenical patriarch, a religious office. The same policy also applied to the institution of the Islamic Caliphate, which was abolished by Turkey. For example, the ecumenical status accorded him traditionally within Eastern Orthodoxy, and recognized previously by the Ottoman governments, has on occasion been a source of controversy within the Republic of Turkey. This policy results in problems in

10848-524: The souls of the Jews." He labeled all heresy as "Jewish", claiming that Judaism would "pollute [Catholics and] deceive them with sacrilegious seduction." The identification of Jews and heretics in particular occurred several times in Roman-Christian law . In Eastern Orthodox Christianity heresy most commonly refers to those beliefs declared heretical by the first seven Ecumenical Councils . Since

10961-580: The spiritual leader of the Greek minority in Turkey, and refer to him as the Roman (literally Rûm ) Orthodox patriarch of Fener ( Turkish : Fener Rum Ortodoks Patriği ). The patriarch was subject to the authority of the Ottoman Empire after the conquest of Constantinople in 1453, until the declaration of Turkish Republic in 1923. Today, according to Turkish law, he is subject to the authority of

11074-470: The state of Turkey and is required to be a citizen of Turkey to be patriarch. The patriarch of Constantinople has been dubbed the ecumenical patriarch since the sixth century. The exact significance of the style, which has been used occasionally for other prelates since the middle of the fifth century, is nowhere officially defined but, according to the Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church,

11187-917: The state's authority and that of the Church became somewhat overlapping. One of the outcomes of this blurring of Church and state was the sharing of state powers of legal enforcement with church authorities. Within six years of the official criminalization of heresy by the Emperor, the first Christian heretic to be executed, Priscillian , was condemned in 386 by Roman secular officials for sorcery, and put to death with four or five followers. However, his accusers were excommunicated both by Ambrose of Milan and by Pope Siricius, who opposed Priscillian's heresy, but "believed capital punishment to be inappropriate at best and usually unequivocally evil." The edict of Theodosius II (435) provided severe punishments for those who had or spread writings of Nestorius. Those who possessed writings of Arius were sentenced to death. In

11300-702: The teachings of the Nisibis school flourished in 6th century Persarmenia. Despite this initial Eastern expansion, the Nestorians' missionary success was eventually deterred. David J. Bosch observes, "By the end of the fourteenth century, however, the Nestorian and other churches—which at one time had dotted the landscape of all of Central and even parts of East Asia—were all but wiped out. Isolated pockets of Christianity survived only in India. The religious victors on

11413-541: The title has been criticized in the Catholic Church as incompatible with the claims of the Holy See . The monastic communities of Mount Athos are stauropegic and they are directly under the jurisdiction of the ecumenical patriarch, the only bishop who has jurisdiction over them. Athos, officially the "Autonomous Monastic State of the Holy Mountain” ( Ancient Greek : Αυτόνομη Μοναστικὴ Πολιτεία Ἁγίου Ὄρους ),

11526-414: The tongue-in-cheek contemporary usage of heresy, such as to categorize a " Wall Street heresy" a " Democratic heresy" or a " Republican heresy", are metaphors that invariably retain a subtext that links orthodoxies in geology or biology or any other field to religion. These expanded metaphoric senses allude to both the difference between the person's views and the mainstream and the boldness of such

11639-461: The unity of Christ's divine and human natures at the Incarnation . Some of Nestorius's opponents argued that he put too much emphasis on the human nature of Christ, and others debated that the difference that Nestorius implied between the human nature and the divine nature created a fracture in the singularity of Christ, thus creating two Christ figures. Nestorius himself always insisted that his views were orthodox, though they were deemed heretical at

11752-480: The vast Central Asian mission field of the Nestorians were Islam and Buddhism ". Nestorianism is a radical form of dyophysitism , differing from orthodox dyophysitism on several points, mainly by opposition to the concept of hypostatic union . It can be seen as the antithesis to Eutychian Monophysitism , which emerged in reaction to Nestorianism. Where Nestorianism holds that Christ had two loosely united natures, divine and human, Monophysitism holds that he had but

11865-625: Was brought before the Inquisition for heresy, but abjured his views and was sentenced to house arrest , under which he spent the rest of his life. Galileo was found "vehemently suspect of heresy", namely of having held the opinions that the Sun lies motionless at the centre of the universe , and that the Earth is not at its centre and moves, and that one may hold and defend an opinion as probable after it has been declared contrary to Holy Scripture. He

11978-478: Was closed by Byzantine Emperor Zeno for its pro-Nestorian teachings, the school relocated to its original home of Nisibis, becoming again the School of Nisibis , leading to the migration of a wave of Christian dissidents into Persia. The Persian patriarch Babai (497–502) reiterated and expanded upon the church's esteem for Theodore of Mopsuestia . Now firmly established in Persia, with centers in Nisibis, Ctesiphon , and Gundeshapur , and several metropoleis ,

12091-561: Was condemned for his views on the unity of the Godhead and the humanity in Christ, the Church of the East was branded as 'Nestorian' on account of its refusal to anathematize the patriarch." Several historical records suggest that the Assyrian Church of the East may have been in Sri Lanka between the mid-5th and 6th centuries. Patriarch of Constantinople The ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople ( Greek : Οἰκουμενικός Πατριάρχης , romanized :  Oikoumenikós Patriárchēs )

12204-429: Was finalized by prominent East Syriac theologian Babai the Great ( d.  628 ) who was using the specific Syriac term qnoma ( ܩܢܘܡܐ ) as a designation for dual (divine and human) substances within one prosopon (person or hypostasis) of Christ. Such views were officially adopted by the Church of the East at a council held in 612. Opponents of such views in the West labeled them as "Nestorian" thus creating

12317-555: Was frequently persecuted by the Zoroastrian majority, which accused local Christians of political leanings towards the Roman Empire . In 424, the Church in Persia declared itself independent, in order to ward off allegations of any foreign allegiance. By the end of the 5th century, the Persian Church increasingly aligned itself with the teachings of Theodore of Mopsuestia and his followers, many of whom became dissidents after

12430-543: Was later ascribed to Andrew the Apostle, was originally a common bishopric. It gained importance when Emperor Constantine elevated Byzantium to a second capital alongside Rome and named it Constantinople . The see's ecclesiastical status as the second of five patriarchates were developed by the Ecumenical Councils of Constantinople in 381 and Chalcedon in 451 . The Turkish government recognizes him as

12543-528: Was required to "abjure, curse and detest" those opinions. Most contemporary historians of science believe the Galileo affair is an exception in the overall relationship between science and Christianity. Pope Gregory I stigmatized Judaism and the Jewish people in many of his writings. He described Jews as enemies of Christ: "The more the Holy Spirit fills the world, the more perverse hatred dominates

12656-567: Was technically one of "blasphemy" there was one later execution in Scotland (still at that date an entirely independent kingdom) when in 1697 Thomas Aikenhead was accused, among other things, of denying the doctrine of the Trinity. Another example of the persecution of heretics under Protestant rule was the execution of the Boston martyrs in 1659, 1660, and 1661. These executions resulted from

12769-591: Was too similar to Nestorianism. The Persian Nestorian Church , on the other hand, supported the spread of Nestorianism in Persarmenia . The Armenian Church and other eastern churches saw the rise of Nestorianism as a threat to the independence of their Church. Peter the Iberian , a Georgian prince, also strongly opposed the Chalcedonian Creed. Thus, in 491, Catholicos Babken I of Armenia, along with

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