Wednesday, January 8, 2025

*** This is a rough transcript of today’s show ***

It is the 8th of January 2025. Welcome to the Christian History Almanac, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org; I’m Dan van Voorhis.

Really fast- 7-year-old Dean writes: “The coffee service that you were talking about was funny. I want to know: do the grown-ups let the kids drink the coffee at the coffee and frankincense service? Thanks for making us laugh every episode! Dean”

Dean, thanks. In Ethiopia (and other parts of the world), kids start sipping coffee from a young age—in part because it is part of these important rituals. At the Ethiopian coffee service, children help serve the coffee, and then they sip from the third cup—using the same beans, that cup is pretty watered down.

Okay, today we get to tell the story of the “triple council that almost wasn’t and might have unified the church in a way never before seen.” That’s a mouthful. Let me break it down.

Historically, when the church has had conflicts, she has attempted to solve them by calling a council of leaders from all the churches. This happened in Acts 15 and then at Nicea in Turkey in 325, Constantinople in 381, and through the 7th held back in Nicea in 787, most churches were involved.

However, unity was broken when the Western and Eastern churches split in 1054. The Western church also split in the 1300s, so at one point, there were three different Popes.

Fast forward to the early 1400s- the Western church has reunited, and at least there is only one Pope- but there is a council in Basel, Switzerland, that is trying to claim ultimate authority.

In the East, the Ottomans are encroaching- the Eastern church looks for help and accepts a request from the Western churches to gather for a council. The good news, they get two invitations! One from the Pope and the other from the Council at Basil that is trying to take power from the Pope. A council had been in session in Basel since 1431, and in 1437, the Eastern Church agreed to meet with the West. And so two fleets set out to pick up delegates from the Eastern church- one from the council at Basel and the other from the Pope.

The Pope’s fleet arrived first, and the Byzantine/Eastern leaders decided to accompany them. So, the Pope officially moved the Council of Basel to the city of Ferrara in Italy, and the potentially monumental council was called into session on January 8, 1438.

But I called this “a triple council” because it started in Basel and was moved to Ferrara by the Pope, but then- it’s the Middle Ages!- Plague hit Ferrara, and the council moved to Florence. Such that some will just refer to this as “the Council of Florence,” but we know better. It was Basel-Ferrara-Florence. And what made it, possibly, so monumental?

It was the largest and most global gathering of church leaders since the 4th Ecumenical Council of Chalcedon in 451. There were significant differences between the churches- but the East agreed with the West that you could say “And the Son” in the Creed (a major earlier sticking point), and the West agreed with the East that you could use leavened or unleavened bread. The council, earlier at Basel, had also agreed that the reforming Hussites could take communion in both the bread and cup- what could have been! There was even a decree of union in 1439 to celebrate the reunification of the church.

Unfortunately, the union was not popular in the East nor with many people in the West. Add to this continued encroachment from the Ottoman Turks against the East and the West, and there was pessimism that Rome and Constantinople would actually reunite. And then, in 1453, Constantinople fell- it would become Istanbul. The reunion was short-lived, and the Western church was about to experience a new schism with the Reformation. What could have been? We remember the calling of the Council of Ferrara on this day, after moving from Basel but before heading to Florence- the 8th of January in 1438.

The last word for today from Luke 3:

15 The people were waiting expectantly and were all wondering in their hearts if John might possibly be the Messiah. 16 John answered them all, “I baptize you with water. But one who is more powerful than I will come, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 17 His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.” 18 And with many other words John exhorted the people and proclaimed the good news to them.

This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 8th of January 2025, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org.

The show is produced by a man by whom I stand corrected- there are at least 5 Ethiopian coffees- I didn’t count the Decaf because of personal bias… he is Christopher Gillespie.coffee.

The show is written and read by a man, who- Dean… do you know what they call a cow who has just given birth? De-Calf-inated… 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.