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122-556: The Third Council of Constantinople , counted as the Sixth Ecumenical Council by the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Churches, and by certain other Western Churches , met in 680–681 and condemned monoenergism and monothelitism as heretical and defined Jesus Christ as having two energies and two wills (divine and human). The council settled a set of theological controversies that went back to
244-745: A priest , the sacrificial bread and wine become the body and blood of Christ. The Virgin Mary is venerated in the Eastern Orthodox Church as the God-bearer and honoured in devotions . The Churches of Constantinople, Alexandria, Jerusalem, and Antioch—except for some breaks of communion such as the Photian schism or the Acacian schism — shared communion with the Church of Rome until
366-654: A sect or a denomination but simply continuing the Christian church , and, despite their varied origins, by adherence to the Byzantine rite ". Those churches are negatively defined by their rejection of papal immediate and universal supremacy . The seven ecumenical councils recognised by the Eastern Orthodox churches are: Nicaea I , Constantinople I , Ephesus , Chalcedon , Constantinople II , Constantinople III , and Nicaea II . Those churches consider
488-587: A continuation of, the Third Council of Constantinople . To be considered ecumenical, Orthodox accept a council that meets the condition that it was accepted by the whole church. That it was called together legally is also an important factor. A case in point is the Third Ecumenical Council , where two groups met as duly called for by the emperor, each claiming to be the legitimate council. The Emperor had called for bishops to assemble in
610-494: A controversy that persisted even after the loss of the reconquered provinces and the death of Heraclius. When Heraclius' grandson Constans II took the throne, he saw the controversy as threatening the stability of the Empire and attempted to silence discussion by outlawing speaking either in favor or against the doctrine. Pope Martin I and the monk Maximus , the foremost opponents of monothelitism (which they interpreted as denying
732-454: A council he had held in Rome were represented (as was customary at eastern ecumenical councils ) by a few priests and bishops. In its opening session, the council assumed the authority of an ecumenical council. The emperor attended and presided over the first eleven sessions, participated in the discussions, and returned for the closing session on 16 September 681, attended by 151 bishops. During
854-486: A council is accepted as being ecumenical if it is accepted by the Eastern Orthodox church at large—clergy, monks and assembly of believers. Teachings from councils that purport to be ecumenical, but which lack this acceptance by the church at large, are, therefore, not considered ecumenical. Oriental Orthodoxy accepts three ecumenical councils, the First Council of Nicaea, the First Council of Constantinople, and
976-400: A derived authority to the extent that they correctly expound Scripture (as most would generally consider occurred with the first four councils in regard to their dogmatic decisions). Church councils were, from the beginning, bureaucratic exercises. Written documents were circulated, speeches made and responded to, votes taken, and final documents published and distributed. A large part of what
1098-630: A designation for the universality of the Christian Church, centred around Christ. Therefore, the Eastern Orthodox notion of catholicity is not centred around any singular see, unlike the Catholic Church which has one earthly centre. Due to the influence of the Catholic Church in the west, where the English language itself developed, the words "catholic" and "catholicity" are sometimes used to refer to that church specifically. However,
1220-689: A dispute about the relation between the divine and human natures of Jesus . Eventually this led to each group anathematising the other. Those that remained in communion with the other patriarchs (by accepting the Council of Chalcedon) are known today as the Greek Orthodox Church of Alexandria , where the adjective "Greek" refers to their ties to the Greek-speaking culture of the Byzantine Empire. Those who disagreed with
1342-529: A human faculty of will to Christ), held a synod in Rome in 649 that condemned monoenergism and monothelitism. At Constantinople in around 653, some accused the Pope of supporting revolution; this was regarded as high treason, and Martin was accordingly arrested, tried, condemned and sent into exile, where he soon died. Martin and Maximus's position was supported by others at the Council of Constantinople. After Constans' son and successor, Constantine IV had overcome
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#17327768666851464-519: A mere 37 bishops and several presbyters convened in the imperial palace, the domed hall called the Trullus. The patriarchs of Constantinople and Antioch participated in person. In contrast, the patriarchates of Alexandria and Jerusalem were represented by Byzantine appointees (because of the Saracen Muslim conquest, there was, at this date, no patriarch in either of these sees). The Pope and
1586-450: A potential "Eighth Ecumenical Council" following debates on several issues facing Eastern Orthodoxy, however not all autocephalous churches were represented. Although some Protestants reject the concept of an ecumenical council establishing doctrine for the entire Christian faith, Catholics, Lutherans, Anglicans, Methodists, Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox all accept the authority of ecumenical councils in principle. Where they differ
1708-491: A solemn manner its supreme and full power over the whole Church. It holds that "there never is an ecumenical council which is not confirmed or at least recognized as such by Peter's successor". Its present canon law requires that an ecumenical council be convoked and presided over, either personally or through a delegate, by the Pope, who is also to decide the agenda; but the church makes no claim that all past ecumenical councils observed these present rules, declaring only that
1830-629: A special way to honour the saint on whose day they received the sacrament of baptism . It is the most solemn day of the year for all Serbs of the Orthodox faith and has played a role of vital importance in the history of the Serbian people. Slava remains a celebration of the conversion of the Serbian people, which the church blessed and proclaimed a church institution. The missionaries to the East and South Slavs had great success in part because they used
1952-652: A specific local matter. From this point of view, there has been no fully "pan-Orthodox" (Ecumenical) council since 787. The use of the term "pan-Orthodox" is confusing to those not within Eastern Orthodoxy, and it leads to mistaken impressions that these are ersatz ecumenical councils rather than purely local councils to which nearby Orthodox hierarchs, regardless of jurisdiction, are invited. Others, including 20th-century theologians Metropolitan Hierotheos (Vlachos) of Naupactus , Fr. John S. Romanides , and Fr. George Metallinos (all of whom refer repeatedly to
2074-479: Is a meeting of bishops and other church authorities to consider and rule on questions of Christian doctrine, administration, discipline, and other matters in which those entitled to vote are convoked from the whole world ( oikoumene ) and which secures the approbation of the whole Church. The word " ecumenical " derives from the Late Latin oecumenicus "general, universal", from Greek oikoumenikos "from
2196-480: Is also defined in the Coptic liturgy, where it is mentioned "He made it [his humanity] one with his divinity without mingling, without confusion and without alteration", and "His divinity parted not from his humanity for a single moment nor a twinkling of an eye." They do not accept the teachings of Eutyches , or Eutychianism . Both the Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches formally believe themselves to be
2318-619: Is an example of a council accepted as ecumenical in spite of being rejected by the East, as the Councils of Ephesus and Chalcedon are accepted in spite of being rejected respectively by the Church of the East and Oriental Orthodoxy . The Catholic Church teaches that an ecumenical council is a gathering of the College of Bishops (of which the Bishop of Rome is an essential part) to exercise in
2440-524: Is based on the Scriptures and holy tradition , which incorporates the dogmatic decrees of the seven ecumenical councils , and the teaching of the Church Fathers . The church teaches that it is the one, holy, catholic and apostolic church established by Jesus Christ in his Great Commission , and that its bishops are the successors of Christ's apostles . It maintains that it practises
2562-630: Is defined as the Eastern Christians which recognise the seven ecumenical councils and usually are in communion with the Ecumenical Patriarchate , the Patriarchate of Alexandria , the Patriarchate of Antioch , and the Patriarchate of Jerusalem . The Eastern Orthodox churches "are defined positively by their adherence to the dogmatic definitions of the seven [ecumenical] councils, by the strong sense of not being
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#17327768666852684-511: Is expressed most fundamentally in scripture and worship, and the latter most essentially through baptism and in the Divine Liturgy . The lines of even this test can blur, however, when differences that arise are not due to doctrine, but to recognition of jurisdiction. As the Eastern Orthodox Church has spread into the west and over the world, the church as a whole has yet to sort out all the inter-jurisdictional issues that have arisen in
2806-610: Is held or on the granting or withholding of prior authorization or legal status by any state, in line with the attitude of the 5th-century bishops who "saw the definition of the church's faith and canons as supremely their affair, with or without the leave of the Emperor" and who "needed no one to remind them that Synodical process pre-dated the Christianisation of the royal court by several centuries". The Catholic Church recognizes as ecumenical various councils held later than
2928-656: Is in English Orthodoxy , while the Georgians use the title Martlmadidebeli . The term "Eastern Church" (the geographic east in the East–West Schism) has been used to distinguish it from western Christendom (the geographic West, which at first came to designate the Catholic communion, later also the various Protestant and Anglican branches). "Eastern" is used to indicate that the highest concentrations of
3050-464: Is in which councils they accept and what the conditions are for a council to be considered "ecumenical". The relationship of the Papacy to the validity of ecumenical councils is a ground of controversy between Catholicism and the Eastern Orthodox churches. The Catholic Church holds that recognition by the Pope is an essential element in qualifying a council as ecumenical; Eastern Orthodox view approval by
3172-450: Is known about the beliefs of heresies comes from the documents quoted in councils in order to be refuted, or indeed only from the deductions based on the refutations. Most councils dealt not only with doctrinal but also with disciplinary matters, which were decided in canons ("laws"). Study of the canons of church councils is the foundation of the development of canon law , especially the reconciling of seemingly contradictory canons or
3294-512: Is monophysite and prefers the term " miaphysite ", to denote the "united" nature of Jesus (two natures united into one) consistent with Cyril's theology: "The term union ... signifies the concurrence in one reality of those things which are understood to be united" and "the Word who is ineffably united with it in a manner beyond all description" ( Cyril of Alexandria , On the Unity of Christ ). This
3416-531: Is practised by a vicariate of the Antiochian Orthodox church. In keeping with the church's teaching on universality and with the Nicene Creed, Eastern Orthodox authorities such as Raphael of Brooklyn have insisted that the full name of the church has always included the term " Catholic ", as in "Holy Orthodox Catholic Apostolic Church". The official name of the Eastern Orthodox Church
3538-454: Is the "Orthodox Catholic Church". It is the name by which the church refers to itself and which is issued in its liturgical or canonical texts. Eastern Orthodox theologians refer to the church as Catholic. This name and longer variants containing "Catholic" are also recognised and referenced in other books and publications by secular or non-Eastern Orthodox writers. The catechism of Philaret (Drozdov) of Moscow published in
3660-621: Is the primary religious denomination in Russia , Ukraine , Romania , Greece , Belarus , Serbia , Bulgaria , Georgia , Moldova , North Macedonia , Cyprus , Montenegro , one of the main religious sects in Albania , Bosnia and Herzegovina , Kosovo , Lebanon , a significant sect in Syria , Iraq and other countries in the Middle East . Roughly half of Eastern Orthodox Christians live in
3782-777: The Apostles travelled extensively throughout the Roman Empire , including Asia Minor, establishing churches in major communities , with the first churches appearing in Jerusalem and the Holy Land , then in Antioch , Ethiopia , Egypt , Rome , Alexandria , Athens , Thessalonica , Illyricum , and Byzantium , which centuries later would become prominent as the New Rome . Christianity encountered considerable resistance in
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3904-549: The Catholic Church . In Hungarian, the church is still commonly called "Eastern Greek" ( Hungarian : Görögkeleti ). This identification with Greek, however, became increasingly confusing with time. Missionaries brought Eastern Orthodoxy to many regions without ethnic Greeks, where the Greek language was not spoken. In addition, struggles between Rome and Constantinople to control parts of Southeastern Europe resulted in
4026-511: The Catholic Church . Nevertheless, the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople is recognised by them as primus inter pares ("first among equals"), a title formerly given to the patriarch of Rome. As one of the oldest surviving religious institutions in the world, the Eastern Orthodox Church has played an especially prominent role in the history and culture of Eastern and Southeastern Europe . Eastern Orthodox theology
4148-719: The Christianisation of Bulgaria in 864, the disciples of Cyril and Methodius in Bulgaria , the most important being Clement of Ohrid and Naum of Preslav , were of great importance to the Orthodox faith in the First Bulgarian Empire . In a short time they managed to prepare and instruct the future Bulgarian clergy into the biblical texts and in AD 870 the Fourth Council of Constantinople granted
4270-624: The Council of Elvira (306), the Council of Carthage (311) , the Synod of Neo-Caesarea (c. 314), the Council of Ancyra (314) and the Council of Arles (314) . The first seven councils recognised in both East and West as ecumenical and several others to which such recognition is refused were called by the Byzantine emperors. In the first millennium, various theological and political differences such as Nestorianism or Dyophysitism caused parts of
4392-542: The Council of Serdica (343), the Second Council of Ephesus (449) and the Council of Hieria (754), which saw themselves as ecumenical or were intended as such. As late as the 11th century, seven councils were recognised as ecumenical in the Catholic Church. Then, in the time of Pope Gregory VII (1073–1085), canonists who in the Investiture Controversy quoted the prohibition in canon 22 of
4514-597: The East–West Schism in 1054. The 1054 schism was the culmination of mounting theological, political, and cultural disputes, particularly over the authority of the pope , between those churches. Before the Council of Ephesus in AD 431, the Church of the East also shared in this communion, as did the various Oriental Orthodox Churches before the Council of Chalcedon in AD 451, all separating primarily over differences in Christology . The Eastern Orthodox Church
4636-675: The First Council of Nicaea (325) to the Second Council of Nicaea (787), represent an attempt to reach an orthodox consensus and to unify Christendom . All of the original seven ecumenical councils as recognized in whole or in part were called by an emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire and all were held in the Eastern Roman Empire , a recognition denied to other councils similarly called by an Eastern Roman emperor and held in his territory, in particular
4758-576: The Muslim siege of Constantinople in 678 , he immediately set his sights on restoring communion with Rome: he wrote to Pope Donus suggesting a conference on the matter. When the letter reached Rome, Donus had died. Still, his successor, Pope Agatho , agreed to the Emperor's suggestion and ordered councils held throughout the West so that legates could present the tradition of the Western Church. There
4880-630: The Nicene Creed , and referred to in Orthodox worship, e.g. in the litany of the catechumens in the Divine Liturgy. With the mutual excommunications of the East–West Schism in 1054, the churches in Rome and Constantinople each viewed the other as having departed from the true church , leaving a smaller but still-catholic church in place. Each retained the "Catholic" part of its title, the " Roman Catholic Church" (or Catholic Church) on
5002-547: The Orthodox Catholic Church , and also called the Greek Orthodox Church or simply the Orthodox Church , is the second-largest Christian church , with approximately 230 million baptised members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops via local synods . The church has no central doctrinal or governmental authority analogous to the pope of
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5124-582: The Quinisext Council "shar[es] the ecumenical authority of Constantinople III. "By an agreement that appears to be in place in the [Eastern] Orthodox world, possibly the council held in 879 to vindicate the Patriarch Photius will at some future date be recognized as the eighth [ecumenical] council" by the Eastern Orthodox Church. Western Rite Orthodoxy exists both outside and inside Eastern Orthodoxy . Within Eastern Orthodoxy, it
5246-570: The Second Council of Ephesus of 449, also held in Anatolia, was called by the Byzantine Emperor Theodosius II and, though annulled by the Council of Chalcedon, was confirmed by Emperor Basiliscus , who annulled the Council of Chalcedon. This too ceased to be considered an ecumenical council. The Catholic Church does not consider the validity of an ecumenical council's teaching to be in any way dependent on where it
5368-584: The Sixth Ecumenical Council , Pope Honorius and Patriarch Sergius were declared heretics. The council anathematized them and declared them tools of the devil and cast them out of the church. It is their position that, since the Seventh Ecumenical Council, there has been no synod or council of the same scope. Local meetings of hierarchs have been called "pan-Orthodox", but these have invariably been simply meetings of local hierarchs of whatever Eastern Orthodox jurisdictions are party to
5490-549: The Syriac Orthodox Church from the Byzantine Patriarchate of Antioch . Those who disagreed with the Council of Chalcedon are sometimes called " Oriental Orthodox " to distinguish them from the " Eastern Orthodox ", who accepted the Council of Chalcedon. Oriental Orthodox are also sometimes referred to as "non-Chalcedonians", or "anti-Chalcedonians". The Oriental Orthodox Church denies that it
5612-672: The divine liturgy , other liturgical texts, and the Gospels along with some other scriptural texts into local languages; with time, as these translations were copied by speakers of other dialects, the hybrid literary language Church Slavonic was created. Originally sent to convert the Slavs of Great Moravia , Cyril and Methodius were forced to compete with Frankish missionaries from the Roman diocese; their disciples were driven out of Great Moravia in AD 886 and emigrated to Bulgaria . After
5734-543: The eastern and western denominations comprising Chalcedonian Christianity , were convoked by Roman Emperors, who also enforced the decisions of those councils within the state church of the Roman Empire . Starting with the third ecumenical council, noteworthy schisms led to non-participation by some members of what had previously been considered a single Christian Church . Thus, some parts of Christianity did not attend later councils, or attended but did not accept
5856-400: The ecumenical movement . The Oriental Orthodox hold that the Dyophysite formula of two natures formulated at the Council of Chalcedon is inferior to the Miaphysite formula of "One Incarnate Nature of God the Word" ( Byzantine Greek : Mia physis tou theou logou sarkousomene ) and that the proceedings of Chalcedon themselves were motivated by imperial politics . The Alexandrian Church ,
5978-410: The " Nestorian " churches resulted from the reaction of the Council of Ephesus (431), which are the earliest surviving Eastern Christian churches that keep the faith of only the first two ecumenical councils, i.e., the First Council of Nicaea (325) and the First Council of Constantinople (381) as legitimate. "Nestorian" is an outsider's term for a tradition that predated the influence of Nestorius ,
6100-412: The "Eighth and Ninth Ecumenical Councils"), Fr. George Dragas , and the 1848 Encyclical of the Eastern Patriarchs (which refers explicitly to the "Eighth Ecumenical Council" and was signed by the patriarchs of Constantinople , Jerusalem , Antioch , and Alexandria as well as the Holy Synods of the first three), regard other synods beyond the Seventh Ecumenical Council as being ecumenical. Before
6222-410: The 19th century is titled: The Longer Catechism of the Orthodox, Catholic, Eastern Church ( Russian : Пространный христианский катехизис православныя, кафолическия восточныя Церкви ). From ancient times through the first millennium, Greek was the most prevalent shared language in the demographic regions where the Byzantine Empire flourished, and Greek, being the language in which the New Testament
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#17327768666856344-414: The 20th century, the Council at Constantinople in 879 AD was recognised as the 8th ecumenical council by people like the famous expert on Canon Law, Theodore Balsamon (11th century), St. Neilos of Rhodes, St. Mark of Ephesus (15th century), St. Symeon of Thessalonica (15th century), and the Patriarch Dositheos II of Jerusalem in his Tome of Joy (17th century). From the Eastern Orthodox perspective,
6466-402: The 530s the Church of the Holy Wisdom (Hagia Sophia) was built in Constantinople under Emperor Justinian I . Beginning with subsequent Byzantine architecture , Hagia Sophia became the paradigmatic Orthodox church form and its architectural style was emulated by Ottoman mosques a thousand years later. Being the episcopal see of the ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople , it remained
6588-430: The Bishop of Rome (the Pope) as being roughly equivalent to that of other patriarchs. Some have held that a council is ecumenical only when all five patriarchs of the Pentarchy are represented at it. Others reject this theory in part because there were no patriarchs of Constantinople and Jerusalem at the time of the first ecumenical council. Both the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches recognize seven councils in
6710-421: The Blessed Virgin Mary gave birth always was that of the Son of God himself". Both sides recognised the legitimacy and rightness, as expressions of the same faith, of the Assyrian Church's liturgical invocation of Mary as "the Mother of Christ our God and Saviour" and the Catholic Church's use of "the Mother of God" and also as "the Mother of Christ". The Lutheran World Federation , in ecumenical dialogues with
6832-456: The Bulgarians the oldest organised autocephalous Slavic Orthodox Church, which shortly thereafter became Patriarchate. The success of the conversion of the Bulgarians facilitated the conversion of the East Slavs . A major event in this effort was the development of the Cyrillic script in Bulgaria , at the Preslav Literary School in the ninth century; this script, along with the liturgical Old Church Slavonic , also called Old Bulgarian ,
6954-459: The Catholic Church), the Catholic Church continues to hold general councils of the bishops in full communion with the Pope , reckoning them as ecumenical. In all, the Catholic Church recognizes twenty-one councils as ecumenical. The first four ecumenical councils are recognized by some Lutheran Churches , Anglican Communion and Reformed Churches —though they are " considered subordinate to Scripture ". The Lutheran World Federation recognizes
7076-435: The Catholic Church. The first known use of the phrase "the catholic Church" ( he katholike ekklesia ) occurred in a letter written about AD 110 from one Greek church to another ( Ignatius of Antioch to the Smyrnaeans ). The letter states: "Wheresoever the bishop shall appear, there let the people be, even as where Jesus may be, there is the universal [katholike] Church." Thus, almost from the beginning, Christians referred to
7198-425: The Christian Church as the "one, holy, catholic (from the Greek καθολική, 'according to the whole, universal' ) and apostolic Church". The Eastern Orthodox Church claims that it is today the continuation and preservation of that same early church. A number of other Christian churches also make a similar claim: the Roman Catholic Church , the Anglican Communion , the Assyrian Church , and the Oriental Orthodox . In
7320-428: The Christian Church is "universal", unseparated, and comprehensive, including all who share that faith. Orthodox bishop Kallistos Ware has called that "simple Christianity". That is the sense of early and patristic usage wherein the church usually refers to itself as the "Catholic Church", whose faith is the "Orthodox faith". It is also the sense within the phrase "one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church", found in
7442-437: The Church of the West, the Catholic Church, and the Eastern Byzantine churches, now the Orthodox. There were doctrinal issues like the filioque clause and the authority of the Roman Pope involved in the split, but these were greatly exacerbated by political factors of both Church and state, and by cultural and linguistic differences between Latins and Greeks. Regarding papal supremacy , the Eastern half grew disillusioned with
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#17327768666857564-446: The Church to separate after councils such as those of Ephesus and Chalcedon , but councils recognised as ecumenical continued to be held. The Council of Hieria of 754, held at the imperial palace of that name close to Chalcedon in Anatolia, was summoned by Byzantine Emperor Constantine V and was attended by 338 bishops, who regarded it as the seventh ecumenical council. The Second Council of Nicaea , which annulled that of Hieria,
7686-604: The Council of Constantinople of 869–870 against laymen influencing the appointment of prelates elevated this council to the rank of ecumenical council. Only in the 16th century was recognition as ecumenical granted by Catholic scholars to the Councils of the Lateran, of Lyon and those that followed. The following is a list of further councils generally recognised as ecumenical by Catholic theologians: Eastern Orthodox catechisms teach that there are seven ecumenical councils and there are feast days for seven ecumenical councils. Nonetheless, some Eastern Orthodox consider events like
7808-415: The Council of Constantinople of 879–880, that of Constantinople in 1341–1351 and that of Jerusalem in 1672 to be ecumenical: It is unlikely that formal ecumenical recognition will be granted to these councils, despite the acknowledged orthodoxy of their decisions, so that seven are universally recognized among the Eastern Orthodox as ecumenical. The 2016 Pan-Orthodox Council was sometimes referred to as
7930-405: The Council of Ephesus. The formulation of the Chalcedonian Creed caused a schism in the Alexandrian and Syriac churches. Reconciliatory efforts between Oriental Orthodox with the Eastern Orthodox and the Catholic Church in the mid- and late 20th century have led to common Christological declarations. The Oriental and Eastern Churches have also been working toward reconciliation as a consequence of
8052-410: The East (accused by others of adhering to Nestorianism ) accepts as ecumenical the first two councils. Oriental Orthodox Churches accept the first three. Both the Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodox Church recognize as ecumenical the first seven councils , held from the 4th to the 9th centuries. While some Eastern Orthodox accept one later council as ecumenical (which was later repudiated by
8174-415: The Eastern Orthodox Church presence remain in the eastern part of the Christian world, although it is growing worldwide. Orthodox Christians throughout the world use various ethnic or national jurisdictional titles, or more inclusively, the title "Eastern Orthodox", "Orthodox Catholic", or simply "Orthodox". What unites Orthodox Christians is the catholic faith as carried through holy tradition . That faith
8296-460: The Eastern Orthodox churches uphold versions of this doctrine. However, the Catholic Church holds that solemn definitions of ecumenical councils meet the conditions of infallibility only when approved by the Pope, while the Eastern Orthodox Church holds that an ecumenical council is itself infallible when pronouncing on a specific matter. Protestant churches would generally view ecumenical councils as fallible human institutions that have no more than
8418-420: The Eastern Orthodox position. They are the Synods of Constantinople, in 1484 , 1583, 1755 , 1819, and 1872 , the Synod of Iași in 1642, and the Pan-Orthodox Synod of Jerusalem in 1672 . Another council convened in June 2016 to discuss many modern phenomena, other Christian confessions, Eastern Orthodoxy's relation with other religions and fasting disciplines. Constantinople is generally considered to be
8540-422: The Eastern Orthodox view, the Assyrians and Orientals left the Orthodox Church in the years following the Third Ecumenical Council of Ephesus (431) and the Fourth Ecumenical Council of Chalcedon (451), respectively, in their refusal to accept those councils' Christological definitions. Similarly, the churches in Rome and Constantinople separated in an event known as the East–West Schism , traditionally dated to
8662-536: The Eastern and Western halves of the Church were in perpetual conflict, particularly during the periods of Eastern iconoclasm and the Photian schism . Ecumenical council God Schools Relations with: 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: An ecumenical council , also called general council ,
8784-525: The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. There are additional Christian churches in the east that are in communion with neither the Catholic Church nor the Eastern Orthodox Church, who tend to be distinguished by the category named " Oriental Orthodox ". While the Eastern Orthodox Church continues officially to call itself "Catholic", for reasons of universality , the common title of "Eastern Orthodox Church" avoids casual confusion with
8906-740: The First Council of Ephesus (after which churches out of communion with the Holy See because of the Nestorian Schism did not participate), later than the Council of Chalcedon (after which there was no participation by churches that rejected Dyophysitism ), later than the Second Council of Nicaea (after which there was no participation by the Eastern Orthodox Church ), and later than the Fifth Council of
9028-543: The Holy Spirit maintains the unity and consistency of holy tradition to preserve the integrity of the faith within the church, as given in the scriptural promises. Orthodoxy asserts that its shared beliefs, and its theology, exist within holy tradition and cannot be separated from it, and that their meaning is not expressed in mere words alone; that doctrine cannot be understood unless it is prayed; and that it must also be lived in order to be prayed, that without action,
9150-539: The Lateran (after which groups that adhered to Protestantism did not participate). Of the twenty-one ecumenical councils recognised by the Catholic Church, some gained recognition as ecumenical only later. Thus the Eastern First Council of Constantinople became ecumenical only when its decrees were accepted in the West also. In the history of Christianity , the first seven ecumenical councils, from
9272-646: The Levant. A number of influential schools of thought had arisen, particularly the Alexandrian and Antiochian philosophical approaches. Other groups, such as the Arians , had also managed to gain influence. However, their positions caused theological conflicts within the church, thus prompting the Emperor Constantine to call for a great ecumenical synod in order to define the church's position against
9394-540: The Pope's centralisation of power, as well as his blatant attempts of excluding the Eastern half in regard to papal approvals. It had previously been the case that the emperor would have a say when a new Pope was elected, but towards the high Middle Ages, the Christians in Rome were slowly consolidating power and removing Byzantine influence. However, even before this exclusionary tendency from the West, well before 1054,
9516-472: The Pope's confirmation or at least recognition has always been required, and saying that the version of the Nicene Creed adopted at the First Council of Constantinople (381) was accepted by the Church of Rome only seventy years later, in 451. The Eastern Orthodox Church accepts seven ecumenical councils , with the disputed Council in Trullo —rejected by Catholics—being incorporated into, and considered as
9638-437: The Roman Empire , mostly because its adherents refused to comply with the demands of the Roman state—often even when their lives were threatened—by offering sacrifices to the pagan gods. Despite persecution, skepticism, and initial social stigma, the Christian Church spread, particularly following the conversion of Emperor Constantine I in AD 312. By the fourth century , Christianity was present in numerous regions well beyond
9760-488: The areas where they arose, before they grew significant enough to require an ecumenical council. There are seven councils authoritatively recognised as ecumenical by the Eastern Orthodox Church: There are also two other councils which are considered ecumenical by some Eastern Orthodox: In addition to these councils, there have been a number of other significant councils meant to further define
9882-781: The centre and the "cradle of Orthodox Christian civilisation ". From the mid-5th century to the early 13th century, Constantinople was the largest and wealthiest city in Europe. Eastern Christian culture reached its golden age during the high point of the Byzantine Empire and continued to flourish in Ukraine and Russia, after the fall of Constantinople . Numerous autocephalous churches were established in Europe: Greece, Georgia, Ukraine, as well as in Russia and Asia. In
10004-414: The church and of the church by God), especially in worship, yield the pair "correct belief" and "true worship". Together, these express the core of a fundamental teaching about the inseparability of belief and worship and their role in drawing the church together with Christ. All Slavic churches use the title Pravoslavie ( Cyrillic : Православие ), meaning "correctness of glorification", to denote what
10126-567: The city of Ephesus. Theodosius did not attend but sent his representative Candidian to preside. However, Cyril managed to open the council over Candidian's insistent demands that the bishops disperse until the delegation from Syria could arrive. Cyril was able to completely control the proceedings, completely neutralizing Candidian, who favored Cyril's antagonist, Nestorius. When the pro-Nestorius Antiochene delegation finally arrived, they decided to convene their own council, over which Candidian presided. The proceedings of both councils were reported to
10248-524: The continuation of the true church. In the ninth and tenth centuries, Christianity made great inroads into pagan Europe, including Bulgaria (864) and later Kievan Rus' (988). This work was made possible by Cyril and Methodius of Thessaloniki , two brothers chosen by Byzantine emperor Michael III to fulfil the request of Rastislav of Moravia for teachers who could minister to the Moravians in their own language. Cyril and Methodius began translating
10370-399: The conversion of some churches to the Catholic Church, which then also used "Greek Catholic" to indicate their continued use of the Byzantine rites. Today, only a minority of Eastern Orthodox adherents use Greek as the language of worship. "Eastern", then, indicates the geographical element in the church's origin and development, while "Orthodox" indicates the faith, as well as communion with
10492-539: The council, a letter by Pope Agatho was read, which asserted the traditional belief of the Church that Christ was of two wills, divine and human. Most of the bishops present accepted the letter, proclaiming that Peter spoke through Agatho, though this council also proclaimed another historical pope as anathema. Macarius of Antioch defended monothelitism but was condemned and deposed, along with his partisans. The council, in keeping with Agatho's letter, defined that Jesus Christ possessed two energies and two wills but that
10614-483: The dead, thereby proving his faith supreme. He had a corpse brought forth, but after whispering prayers into its ears, he could not revive the body. Eastern Orthodox Church 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 Eastern Orthodox Church , officially
10736-414: The decrees were sent to Rome where they were accepted by Agatho's successor, Pope Leo II . In his letter of confirmation of the council, Leo accuses, "Honorius who did not attempt to sanctify this Apostolic Church with the teaching of Apostolic tradition, but by profane treachery permitted its purity to be polluted". At some point during the council's proceedings, a Monothelite priest claimed he could raise
10858-484: The determination of priority between them. Canons consist of doctrinal statements and disciplinary measures—most Church councils and local synods dealt with immediate disciplinary concerns as well as major difficulties of doctrine. Eastern Orthodoxy typically views the purely doctrinal canons as dogmatic and applicable to the entire church at all times, while the disciplinary canons apply to a particular time and place and may or may not be applicable in other situations. Of
10980-498: The early centuries of the church, but Catholics also recognize fourteen councils in later times called or confirmed by the Pope. At the urging of German King Sigismund , who was to become Holy Roman Emperor in 1433, the Council of Constance was convoked in 1414 by Antipope John XXIII , one of three claimants to the papal throne, and was reconvened in 1415 by the Roman Pope Gregory XII . The Council of Florence
11102-537: The ecumenical councils were a continuation of earlier councils (also known as synods ) held in the Empire before Christianity was made legal. These include the Council of Jerusalem (c. 50), the Council of Rome (155), the Second Council of Rome (193), the Council of Ephesus (193), the Council of Carthage (251) , the Council of Iconium (258), the Council of Antioch (264) , the Councils of Arabia (246–247),
11224-486: The emperor, who decided ultimately to depose Cyril, Memnon and Nestorius. Nonetheless, the Orthodox accept Cyril's group as being the legitimate council because it maintained the same teaching that the church has always taught. Paraphrasing a rule by St Vincent of Lérins , Hasler states ...a teaching can only be defined if it has been held to be revealed at all times, everywhere, and by all believers. Orthodox believe that councils could over-rule or even depose popes. At
11346-465: The expansion, leaving some areas of doubt about what is proper church governance. Moreover, as in the ancient church persecutions, the aftermath of persecutions of Christians in communist nations has complicated some issues of governance that have yet to be completely resolved. All members of the Eastern Orthodox Church profess the same faith, regardless of race or nationality, jurisdiction or local custom, or century of birth. Holy tradition encompasses
11468-529: The findings of the Council of Chalcedon were the majority in Egypt. Today they are known as the Coptic Orthodox Church , having maintained a separate patriarchate. The Coptic Orthodox Church is currently the largest Christian church in Egypt and in the whole Middle East. There was also a similar, albeit smaller scale, split in Syria ( Patriarchate of Antioch ), which resulted in the separation of
11590-566: The first seven Ecumenical Councils as "exercises of apostolic authority" and recognizes their decisions as authoritative; while member churches are not required to accept all theological statements produced by the Federation, but only to subscribe to the most basic Lutheran historical confessional documents, most do follow this recommendation. The doctrine of the infallibility of ecumenical councils states that solemn definitions of ecumenical councils, which concern faith or morals, and to which
11712-478: The fourth century onwards led to the calling of ecumenical councils . In the Orthodox Church, an ecumenical council is the supreme authority that can be invoked to resolve contested issues of the faith. As such, these councils have been held to resolve the most important theological matters that came to be disputed within the Christian Church. Many lesser disagreements were resolved through local councils in
11834-549: The growing, often widely diverging, philosophical and theological interpretations of Christianity. He made it possible for this council to meet not only by providing a location, but by offering to pay for the transportation of all the existing bishops of the church. Most modern Christian churches regard this synod, commonly called the First Council of Nicaea or more generally the First Ecumenical Council , as of major importance. Several doctrinal disputes from
11956-463: The human will was 'in subjection to his divine and all-powerful will'. The council carefully avoided any mention of Maximus the Confessor , who was still regarded with suspicion. It condemned both monoenergism and monothelitism as heretical and included those who had supported this heresy, including Pope Honorius I and four previous patriarchs of Constantinople. When the council had concluded,
12078-455: The issues go as deep as the schisms. The depth of this meaning in the Eastern Orthodox Church is registered first in its use of the word " Orthodox " itself, a union of Greek orthos ("straight", "correct", "true", "right") and doxa ("common belief", from the ancient verb δοκέω-δοκῶ which is translated "to believe", "to think", "to consider", "to imagine", "to assume"). The dual meanings of doxa , with "glory" or "glorification" (of God by
12200-478: The main Oriental Orthodox body, also felt unfairly underrepresented at the council following the deposition of their Pope, Dioscorus of Alexandria at the council. The Church of the East accepts two ecumenical councils, the First Council of Nicaea and the First Council of Constantinople, as well as a series of their own national councils, starting with the Council of Seleucia-Ctesiphon in 410 AD. It
12322-455: The more prominent dictionary sense given for general use is still the one shared by other languages, implying breadth and universality, reflecting comprehensive scope. In a Christian context, the Christian Church, as identified with the original church founded by Christ and his apostles, is said to be catholic (or universal) in regard to its union with Christ in faith. Just as Christ is indivisible, so are union with him and faith in him, whereby
12444-455: The one hand, and the " Orthodox Catholic Church" on the other, each of which was defined in terms of inter-communion with either Rome or Constantinople. While the Eastern Orthodox Church recognises what it shares in common with other churches, including the Catholic Church, it sees catholicity in terms of complete union in communion and faith, with the Church throughout all time, and the sharing remains incomplete when not shared fully. Paul and
12566-604: The origin of which might lie in certain sections of the School of Antioch or via Nestorius' teachers Theodore of Mopsuestia or Diodore of Tarsus . The modern incarnation of the " Nestorian Church " is commonly referred to as "the Assyrian Church" or fully as the Assyrian Church of the East . The church in Egypt ( Patriarchate of Alexandria ) split into two groups following the Council of Chalcedon (451), over
12688-463: The original Christian faith, as passed down by holy tradition. Its patriarchates , descending from the pentarchy , and other autocephalous and autonomous churches, reflect a variety of hierarchical organisation . It recognises seven major sacraments , of which the Eucharist is the principal one, celebrated liturgically in synaxis . The church teaches that through consecration invoked by
12810-524: The other from the bishops of the Rome synod to those gathered in Constantinople. In the meantime, Constantine summoned Patriarch George I of Constantinople and all bishops of his jurisdiction of Constantinople to a council. He also summoned Patriarch Macarius of Antioch , a Byzantine appointee permanently resident in Constantinople because of the Muslim occupation of his see. On 7 November 680,
12932-544: The people's native language rather than Greek , the predominant language of the Byzantine Empire, or Latin , as the Roman priests did. Perhaps the greatest legacy of their efforts is the Russian Orthodox Church, which is the largest of the Orthodox churches. In the 11th century, what was recognised as the Great Schism took place between Rome and Constantinople , which led to separation between
13054-721: The post Eastern Bloc countries, mostly in Russia. The communities in the former Byzantine regions of North Africa , the Eastern Mediterranean are among the oldest Orthodox communities from the Middle East , which are decreasing due to forced migration driven by increased religious persecution . Eastern Orthodox communities outside Western Asia , Asia Minor , Caucasia and Eastern Europe , including those in North America , Western Europe , and Australia , have been formed through diaspora , conversions , and missionary activity. The Eastern Orthodox Church
13176-466: The prayer is idle, empty, and in vain, and therefore the theology of demons. The Eastern Orthodox Church considers itself to be both orthodox and catholic. The doctrine of the Catholicity of the Church , as derived from the Nicene Creed , is essential to Eastern Orthodox ecclesiology . The term Catholicity of the Church ( Greek Καθολικότης τῆς Ἐκκλησίας ) is used in its original sense, as
13298-694: The results. Bishops belonging to what became known as the Eastern Orthodox Church accept seven ecumenical councils, as described below . Bishops belonging to what became known as the Church of the East participated in the first two councils. Bishops belonging to what became known as Oriental Orthodoxy participated in the first four councils, but rejected the decisions of the fourth and did not attend any subsequent ecumenical councils. Acceptance of councils as ecumenical and authoritative varies between different Christian denominations . Disputes over Christological and other questions have led certain branches to reject some councils that others accept. The Church of
13420-462: The seven councils recognised in whole or in part by both the Catholic and the Eastern Orthodox Church as ecumenical, all were called by a Roman emperor . The emperor gave them legal status within the entire Roman Empire . All were held in the eastern part of the Roman Empire . The bishop of Rome (self-styled as "pope" since the end of the fourth century) did not attend, although he sent legates to some of them. Church councils were traditional and
13542-517: The sixth century but had intensified under the emperors Heraclius ( r. 610–641 ) and Constans II ( r. 641–668 ). Heraclius had set out to recover much of the part of his empire lost to the Persians and had attempted to bridge the controversy with monophysitism , which was particularly strong in Syria and Egypt, by proposing a moderate theological position that had as good support in
13664-527: The tradition as any other. The result was first monoenergism , i.e., that Christ, though existing in two natures (divine and human), had one energy; the second was monothelitism , i.e., that Christ had one will (that is, that there was no opposition in Christ between his human and divine volition). This doctrine was accepted in most of the Byzantine world. Still, it was opposed in Jerusalem and Rome and started
13786-417: The understandings and means by which that unity of faith is transmitted across boundaries of time, geography, and culture. It is a continuity that exists only inasmuch as it lives within Christians themselves. It is not static, nor an observation of rules, but rather a sharing of observations that spring both from within and also in keeping with others, even others who lived lives long past. The church proclaims
13908-406: The whole Church must adhere, are infallible. Such decrees are often labeled as 'Canons' and they often have an attached anathema , a penalty of excommunication , against those who refuse to believe the teaching. The doctrine does not claim that every aspect of every ecumenical council is dogmatic, but that every aspect of an ecumenical council is free of errors or impeccable. Both the Catholic and
14030-560: The whole world", from he oikoumene ge "the inhabited world" (as known to the ancient Greeks); the Greeks and their neighbors, considered as developed human society (as opposed to barbarian lands); in later use "the Roman world" and in the Christian sense in ecclesiastical Greek, from oikoumenos , present passive participle of oikein ("inhabit"), from oikos ("house, habitation"). The first seven ecumenical councils , recognised by both
14152-425: The world's largest cathedral for nearly a thousand years, until Seville Cathedral was completed in 1520. Hagia Sophia has been described as "holding a unique position in the Christian world ", and architectural and cultural icon of Byzantine and Eastern Orthodox civilisation , and it is considered the epitome of Byzantine architecture and is said to have "changed the history of architecture". There are
14274-493: The year 1054, although it was more a gradual process than a sudden break. To all these churches, the claim to catholicity (universality, oneness with the ancient Church) is important for multiple doctrinal reasons that have more bearing internally in each church than in their relation to the others, now separated in faith. The meaning of holding to a faith that is true is the primary reason why anyone's statement of which church split off from which other has any significance at all;
14396-519: Was a synod in Milan under Archbishop Mausuetus; another synod was held in 680 at Hatfield, over which Theodore , Archbishop of Canterbury presided. Pope Agatho then convened a synod at Rome at Easter 680, with representatives from the regional synods. Then he sent a delegation to meet the Easterners at Constantinople. The delegates set out bearing two letters, one from Pope Agatho to the Emperor and
14518-495: Was declared official in Bulgaria in 893. The work of Cyril and Methodius and their disciples had a major impact on the Serbs as well. They accepted Christianity collectively along familial and tribal lines, a gradual process that occurred between the seventh and ninth centuries. In commemoration of their baptisms, each Serbian family or tribe began to celebrate an exclusively Serbian custom called Slava (patron saint) in
14640-412: Was itself annulled at the synod held in 815 in Constantinople under Emperor Leo V . This synod, presided over by Patriarch Theodotus I of Constantinople , declared the Council of Hieria to be the seventh ecumenical council, but, although the Council of Hieria was called by an emperor and confirmed by another, and although it was held in the East, it later ceased to be considered ecumenical. Similarly,
14762-742: Was the formulation of Mary as the Theotokos which caused a schism with the Church of the East, now divided between the Assyrian Church of the East and the Ancient Church of the East , while the Chaldean Catholic Church entered into full communion with Rome in the 16th century. Meetings between Pope John Paul II and the Assyrian Patriarch Mar Dinkha IV led to a common Christological declaration on 11 November 1994 that "the humanity to which
14884-534: Was written, was the primary liturgical language of the church. For this reason, the eastern churches were sometimes identified as "Greek" (in contrast to the "Roman" or "Latin" church , which used a Latin translation of the Bible), even before the Great Schism of 1054. After 1054, "Greek Orthodox" or "Greek Catholic" marked a church as being in communion with Constantinople, much as "Catholic" did for communion with
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