The History of the Church through 100 Masterpieces

The First Conflicts, the First Councils

The History of the Church 56 The First Conflicts, the First Councils Even before his controversial conversion, Emperor Constantine called the first ecumenical council to bring an end to the theological quarrels that were dividing the nascent church. These religious differences threatened the unity of the empire. This first council, convened in Nicæa in 325, settled the matter in favor of the divinity of Christ, as upheld by Rome, against the Arian heresy. One century later, the Council of Chalcedon (451) would extend the condemnation of Arianism to Nestorianism and the Monophysitism of the Egyptian church. The Symbol of Nicæa-Constantinople, composed by the first council and completed at the Council of Constantinople in 381, encapsulates the essentials of the Christian message. It is more commonly known as the Credo or Creed. However, the Latin Church later added a detail by which the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son. This occasioned the dispute over the filioqu (“and the son” in Latin) which eventually led to the Great Schism between Rome and the Orthodox world. As a note of interest, John Paul II, when reciting the Creed, would often omit the formula filioqu . This point of difference regarding the nature of the Holy Spirit is reflected in the way the Trinity is portrayed in Catholic paintings and in Orthodox icons. Andrea del Sarto (1486–1530) Discussion about the Trinity Palazzo Pitti, Florence ...