Thursday, October 5, 2023

It is the 5th of October, 2023. Welcome to the Christian History Almanac brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org. I’m Dan van Voorhis.

One of the strokes of genius in the early church was to build a theology by consensus. While not done perfectly, the intention was to let the Spirit work through Christians from all churches and to establish boundaries as to what one might believe with regards to the foundational doctrines of the church.

These early councils are often referred to as the “Ecumenical Councils,” with the first being Nicea in 325 and then after five more councils that last, called Nicea II in 787, permitted images to be used in churches so long as they did not become themselves objects of worship. These seven are agreed upon by the Eastern Orthodox and Western Latin churches (it should be noted that the Oriental Orthodox churches only abide by the first two). So… what happened? Why wasn’t there an “8th Ecumenical Council”? Well, it wasn’t for a lack of trying. In fact, one might count 2 “8th ecumenical councils” all in Constantinople, and none agreed upon by the major church bodies, with the Latin West adopting the council that began on this, the 5th of October in 869 and the Eastern Orthodox holding theirs a decade later. Both are called the “8th Ecumenical Councils” oof, and as you might imagine, it would set the stage for the schism between the East and West in 1054.

Let’s look at the background of this, the dissolution of the ecumenical councils, and the events leading up to the first 8th so-called Ecumenical Council, also called the 4th Council of  Constantinople.

The theology behind the schism can be wrapped up in the Latin phrase “Filioque” (spell it out). It means “and from the son”. In the original Nicene Creed (updated and agreed upon at the first council of Constantinople), the confession was that the Holy Spirit proceeded from the Father. In the 6th century, some Christians in the West began to say proceeds from the Father “and from the Son” (Filioque). This was to try and safeguard the full divinity of Christ- after all, if he was on the same level as God, the Father wouldn’t the Spirit proceed from both.

 The Eastern church objected to this addition, not necessarily because it was bad theology but because it wasn’t added by an ecumenical council. It represented the Western church going rogue.

And then, in the 800s, there was tension when the Patriarch of the Orthodox Church, Ignatius, was put on house arrest by the Emperor, and a layman- Photius, was quickly ordained and made Patriarch. Ignatius called on the Pope Nicholas I for help. The Pope held a Synod at Rome and named Ignatius the rightful Patriarch. Photius then called his own synod at Constantinople and condemned the Pope for claiming authority over all churches.

But there were other issues that would develop. The Khazars on the Black Sea converted to Judaism, and then their Khan was baptized as a Christian. The Bulgarians also converted to Christianity, and the question arose over jurisdiction: would they be Western or Eastern churches? Preserving the peace seemed appropriate for the time with these monumental additions to the broader Christian church.

And then Pope Nicholas died, as did the Greek Emperor. The new Emperor, Basil I, deposed Photius, and the new pope, Hadrian II, decided to bury the hatchet and call the 8th Ecumenical Council in Constantinople that began on this day in 869. But what happens if you call a council and no one (or very few) people show up? Only 12 Bishops from the global church agreed to attend. Compare that with the over 300 at the first council and over 500 at Chalcedon in 451.

The bad blood between the Eastern and Western churches had doomed the churches' once glorious (and truly) ecumenical approach to doing theology by consensus. There was politics and regional pettiness on both sides. Still, the growing call of the Bishop of Rome for supremacy over other Bishops and Patriarchs, as well as the “Filioque” controversy, set the stage for the division in 1054. Today, we remember the first of two attempts at an 8th ecumenical council In Constantinople in 869.

The last word for today is from the daily lectionary- a good word in the face of disunion from Colossians 2:

16 Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. 17 These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ. 18 Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify you. Such a person also goes into great detail about what they have seen; they are puffed up with idle notions by their unspiritual mind. 19 They have lost connection with the head, from whom the whole body, supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows as God causes it to grow.

This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 5th of October 2023, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org.

The show is produced by a man who thought the filioque was a boiled dumpling filled with potatoes and cheese- he is Christopher Gillespie.

The show is written and read by a man who assures you Phil Nevin wasn’t the problem- Arte, sell the team- I’m Dan van Voorhis.

You can catch us here every day- and remember that the rumors of grace, forgiveness, and the redemption of all things are true…. Everything is going to be OK.