The First Ecumenical Council, also known as the First Council of Nicea, was a landmark assembly in Christian history, convened in Nicea in A.D. 325. This Council served as a foundational event, establishing a pattern for all subsequent Ecumenical Councils.
Its primary purpose was to address and condemn the Arian Heresy, a significant theological controversy of the 4th century, which culminated in the formulation of the original Nicene Creed. Additionally, the Council set a universal standard for calculating the date of Pascha, known as the Paschalion.
Background to the Council: The Arian Controversy
The impetus for the Council arose from the widespread theological storm ignited by the teachings of Arius (c. 250-336), a presbyter in Alexandria, Egypt. Although Arianism bears Arius's name, its doctrines did not entirely originate with him. Lucian of Antioch, Arius's teacher and mentor, was accused by Bishop Alexander of Alexandria of being the source for Arius's heretical teachings. It was not that Lucian explicitly taught Arianism, but rather that he held certain heretical tendencies which he passed on to his pupil. Indeed, the noted Russian historian Alexander Vasiliev referred to Lucian as "the Arius before Arius".
The immediate spark for the controversy occurred in 318 when Arius entered into a dispute with Bishop Alexander. Alexander had sought to instruct his clergy on the unity of the Holy Trinity. However, Arius, either through misunderstanding or from a "love of controversy," as alleged by Church historian Socrates Scholasticus, opposed his bishop's teaching, deeming it to smack of Sabellianism. Sabellianism is a theological position that asserts God is one person manifesting in three different modes. In response to Alexander's instruction, Arius proffered his own syllogism: "If the Father begat the Son, he that was begotten had a beginning of existence. From this it is evident that there was a time when the Son was not. It therefore necessarily follows that he had his substance from nothing". This syllogism fundamentally denied the essential unity and consubstantiality of the Holy Trinity and provoked an uproar among Arius's listeners, which quickly spread throughout the Church as Arius insisted upon disseminating his views.
The Core of the Arian Heresy
Arius's teaching denied the full deity of the pre-existent Son of God, the Logos who became incarnate as Jesus Christ. He maintained that the Son, while divine and like God, was created by God to be the agent through whom the universe was created. Consequently, Arius held that "there was a time when the Son 'was not'".
Bishop Alexander of Alexandria meticulously detailed Arius's errors in a letter addressed to Alexander of Constantinople and Eusebius of Nicomedia. According to Alexander, Arius taught a series of specific theological deviations:
- God was not always the Father, and there was a period when He was not the Father.
- The Word of God was not from eternity but was made out of nothing; the ever-existing God ("the I AM") created Him who did not previously exist, out of nothing.
- Thus, there was a time when the Son did not exist, inasmuch as the Son is a creature and a work.
- The Son is neither like the Father as regards His essence, nor is He by nature either the Father’s true Word or true Wisdom. He is one of God’s works and creatures, erroneously called Word and Wisdom, since He was made by God’s own Word and the Wisdom which is in God, whereby God made all things, including the Son.
- The Son is mutable and susceptible of change, similar to all other rational creatures.
- The Word is therefore alien to and other than the essence of God.
- The Father is inexplicable by the Son and invisible to Him, for the Word neither perfectly and accurately knows the Father, nor can He distinctly see Him.
- The Son knows not the nature of His own essence.
- He was made on humanity’s account, in order that God might create humans by Him, as by an instrument; nor would He ever have existed unless God had wished to create humans.
Arius succeeded in developing a following among some Syrian prelates. In response, Bishop Alexander summoned an Alexandrian synod of approximately 100 bishops in 321, which condemned and excommunicated Arius and his followers. Arius subsequently fled to Palestine, where he formed a friendship with Eusebius of Nicomedia. Arius was a proficient writer, producing numerous compositions in both prose and verse defending his beliefs, including a poem titled the Thalia. Most of these writings were later destroyed as heretical, though fragments of the Thalia and a few other Arian texts have survived. Eusebius of Nicomedia, holding significant influence due to Emperor Constantine's residence in his city, petitioned the emperor to reinstate Arius, thereby setting the stage for a broader conflict across the Christian world.
The Emperor's Intervention and the Calling of the Council
The deepening schism between the Alexandrian and Arian factions caused great grief to Emperor Constantine the Great. Constantine, having risen to power and credited his victory at the Milvian Bridge in 312 to the Christian God, converted to Christianity and effectively ended the era of Christian persecution.
He was sincere in his faith and increasingly believed that a common Orthodox Faith was necessary for the preservation of a unified empire. The disunity in Alexandria and its spread to the Eastern churches threatened the political stability of his vast Roman Empire.
Constantine initially sought to resolve the dispute by sending Hosius of Cordoba, his trusted advisor, with a letter to both Alexander and Arius. The emperor's aim was to maintain the unity of both the Empire and the Church, rather than to choose a theological side.
He chastised both figures for publicising their disagreement, urging them to bury it in silence and downplaying the theological dispute as unimportant. He encouraged them to reconcile and restore unity. However, the theological rift was too fundamental for genuine compromise.
The escalating conflict, marked by personal attacks over theological issues, prompted Constantine to call for a general Council of Church leaders from across Christendom. This First Ecumenical Council was therefore summoned to formally address and resolve the divisions.
The synod had originally been intended to be held at Ancyra, but Constantine moved its location to Nicea, which was much closer to his imperial headquarters in Nicomedia, allowing him to participate more easily. The Council formally assembled on May 20, 325. Notably, an earlier council at Antioch, presided over by St. Hosius of Cordoba, had already condemned Arianism and its followers, explicitly naming Eusebius of Caesarea, who was believed to have wavered on the question. At Nicea, Hosius is generally believed to have presided, acting as Constantine’s theological advisor. St. Constantine himself described the disputes within the Church as "more dangerous than war and other conflicts; they bring me more grief than anything else".
The Council's Deliberations and the Nicene Creed
During the Council's proceedings, Eusebius of Nicomedia initially submitted an Arian creed for the delegates' consideration, but it was immediately rejected. Following this, Eusebius of Caesarea presented a baptismal creed native to Palestine.
Many historians regard this latter creed as forming the essential framework for the Nicene Creed. The Palestinian creed included the biblical phrase "Firstborn of all creation" in its description of Christ, but this phrase was intentionally omitted from the Nicene Creed. This omission was likely because, taken out of its context in the Apostle Paul's letter to the Colossians, the phrase could be interpreted in an Arian manner.
The omitted phrase was notably replaced with the famous term homoousios. This philosophical term, meaning that the Son of God is "of one essence" with the Father, became the cornerstone of the Nicene formulation. It is particularly interesting that this term was used, despite its previous employment by the heretical Sabellians (notably Paul of Samosata) in the 3rd century.
However, as with much philosophical terminology, the Church Fathers strategically adopted homoousios and imbued it with a new, Orthodox meaning. The term was originally introduced at Nicea by Hosius, or possibly even by Constantine himself, and was strongly supported by "a small group of bold and far-sighted theologians who understood the inadequacy of merely condemning Arius and the need to crystallize Church tradition in a clear concept".
The Council definitively condemned Arianism. It maintained that Christ was "God from God, Light from Light, Very God from Very God, begotten not made (not created), and One in essence with the Father". The distinction between "begotten" and "made" was crucial to refute Arian claims. All things in the universe are "made" or "created ex nihilo". However, what is "begotten" comes from another but "perfectly participates in that from which he comes," as articulated by St. Athanasius.
Thus, the Son, the Logos, proceeds from the Father, but does not come from the Father as a creature does, being "infinitely other". Instead, He comes "utterly participating in the one from whom he comes". He is homoousios, "one in being with the Father," and it is "through him all things were made". If the Son were "made," then He would be a creature like the rest of creation, and humanity would not be saved through Him.
Although the human nature of Jesus is indeed a creature—a finite, created reality conditioned by time and space—Jesus Himself is not a creature. He is the Second Person of the Trinity who "instantiates two natures divine and human," taking on this created human nature and joining Himself to it "hypostatically" (in the unity of His person).
These definitive statements were incorporated into the first version of the Nicene Creed. In addition to the Creed's core affirmation, four explicitly anti-Arian anathemas were attached to it.
All but two bishops at the Council, Theonas of Marmarica and Secundus of Ptolemais, signed the Creed. These two, along with Arius, who also refused to accept the Council's decrees, were subsequently deposed by the Church and exiled by the emperor. This action led Schmemann to remark that Constantine was "thus again confusing the judgment of the Church with that of Caesar," recalling similar uses of civil power in persecuting the Donatists.
Other Council Decisions and Participants
Beyond the Arian question, the First Ecumenical Council also addressed other significant concerns, most notably the Paschalion, which defined the method for calculating the celebration of Pascha (Easter). Prior to Nicea, various methods existed for determining the date of Pascha. At the Council, the assembled bishops chose to adopt the Alexandrian practice, which involved making a calculation independent of the Jewish Passover.
They further stipulated that the Paschal celebration had to occur after the vernal equinox. Consequently, the Antiochian practice, which referred to Jewish reckoning for determining Pascha's date, was rejected. Alexandria was the chosen authority for this matter due to the long-standing renown of its astronomers for their accuracy. To this day, the Pope of Alexandria retains a title reflecting this choice, sometimes translated as "Master of the Universe," essentially referring to the ability to judge the astronomical state of the cosmos.
A list of bishops attending the Council exists, including approximately 230 names, though there are indications that the signature lists are incomplete. St. Athanasius of Alexandria, a leading voice at the Council, placed the number of participants at 318, a figure regarded as mystically significant, referencing Abraham's 318 servants in Genesis 14:14. Only a few bishops from the West were present, a pattern common to all Ecumenical Councils. These included Marcus of Calabria, Nicasius of Dijon, Domnus of Stridon, Hosius of Cordoba, and Caecilian of Carthage. Pope St. Sylvester I of Rome was represented by two of his priests. Among the renowned Eastern saints present were St. Athanasius the Great(at the time a mere deacon in the Alexandrian church, but leading in his teachings), Nicholas of Myra, Spyridon of Trimythous, Alexander of Alexandria, and Paphnutius of Egypt.
Aftermath and Enduring Legacy
The Holy Fathers of the First Ecumenical Council are commemorated on May 29, the seventh Sunday after Pascha, and the ninth Sunday after Pentecost, the Sunday of the Fathers of the First Six Councils. Hymns celebrate them as "lights on the earth" who guided the Church to the true faith, establishing "one faith" adorned with truth, defining and glorifying the "great mystery of Orthodoxy".