The Nicea Council Essay

527 Words2 Pages

Throughout the years of the early Church, councils were created where Christians gathered and discussed issues about our faith. Most councils were created in order to refute heresies, which were detrimental to our faith and confused Christians. Others, such as the Council of Jerusalem, was solely created for deciding what it meant to be a Christian and dealt with Gentile concerns. Altogether, these early Church councils have shaped our faith and are used as references when settling matters. The Council of Jerusalem was around 48 A.D. and many say it is a key part of Christian ethics and had set many standards for future ecumenical councils. It decided whether a Gentile had to become a Jew before turning into a Christian and whether Gentiles …show more content…

in order to stop the Arian Heresy. The Arian Heresy stated that Jesus was not both human and divine. For this council, every Catholic bishop in the world was invited. Thus, this meeting can be refferred to as an ecumencial council. The importance of the Nicea Council was that it settled the question of whether Jesus was both God and man for the whole Church. The Nicene Creed clearly expresses that Jesus is true God and true man. Therefore, according to the Council of Nicea, Jesus is not a creature made by God, but rather he is God’s own son and is God just as much as his father is God. On the other hand, the Council of Constantinople was created in 381 A.D. and expanded the creed that was begun at Nicea. It was second of the first seven ecumenical councils which defined the divine nature of the Holy Spirit, whose mission is like Jesus’ mission. Atlast, the Council of Ephesus was created in 431 A.D. and stated that Mary was the Mother of God, who is God himself. This council was created in order to refute the Nestorius Heresy, which taught that Jesus was two persons and Mary was not the Mother of God. Altogether, these three councils are three of the most imporant ecumencial councils and truly still affect our Church

Open Document