{"id":4470,"date":"2025-03-11T09:20:38","date_gmt":"2025-03-11T13:20:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/js1cd06kre.onrocket.site\/?p=4470"},"modified":"2025-03-11T09:20:38","modified_gmt":"2025-03-11T13:20:38","slug":"the-council-of-nicaea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/2025\/03\/11\/the-council-of-nicaea\/","title":{"rendered":"The Council of Nicaea"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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To listen to today’s reflection as a podcast,\u00a0<\/em>click here<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n


Each day this Lent we\u2019re looking at major \u201cturning points\u201d in Christian history \u2013 moments or seasons in which the story of God\u2019s people took an important and often unexpected turn. \u00a0<\/em>

What is common sense?

\u201cCommon\u201d refers to that which is universal. \u201cSense,\u201d in this context, connotes things we perceive through logic and observation. Common sense is therefore that body of knowledge that \u201ceverybody knows to be true\u201d \u2013 certainties that don\u2019t require special training or an advanced degree. \u00a0

For instance, it\u2019s common sense to look both ways before crossing the street. And not to touch a hot stove. And to make sure your ladder is secure before you start to climb. And not to try to pet a snarling dog.

Speaking of dogs, it\u2019s common sense not to ask what hot dogs are made of. You don\u2019t really want to know.

During the reign of Emperor Constantine, about 300 years after the time of Christ, an Egyptian Bible teacher named Arias claimed it was common sense that Jesus was not divine. Sure, he was like<\/em> God, but he was certainly not equal<\/em> in essence or status. Arias was an ardent defender of monotheism: There is only one God<\/em>. That was a good thing. But his monotheism was so extreme that Jesus was reduced to a kind of heavenly superhero \u2013 a mere creature (although a very special one) assigned to carry out special tasks.

For pagans who were curious about Christianity, this made good sense. They were used to a pantheon in which a single deity (Zeus) reigned supreme, while myriad lesser gods and goddesses assumed designated roles.

Arias, as it turned out, was a captivating preacher and talented musician. He proclaimed his commonsense theology via catchy tunes. Soon more than half the Christians in the empire were singing along.

Orthodox pastors and teachers were aghast. If Jesus was nothing more than one of God\u2019s creations, how could his sacrificial death be enough to pay for the sins of the whole world?\u00a0

Lines were drawn. People took sides. Punches were thrown in the streets. These were the days when church fights were a lot more interesting than our occasional squabbles over whether drums should be allowed in worship.

Alarmed that such civil strife might fracture his empire, Constantine opted for a bold plan. He would call together the \u201cupper management\u201d of the Church. Bishops and theologians were invited to journey along the Roman roads to Nicaea, a village in modern-day Turkey. Arias would have an opportunity to present his views, and the Church\u2019s spiritual leadership would grapple with the question of Jesus\u2019 true identity.

Nothing like this had ever happened before. There was no guarantee that such a diverse group \u2013 most of whom had never met \u2013 could achieve consensus.

The ecumenical council began on May 20, A.D. 325, with 240 bishops and Constantine himself in attendance. Arias eloquently stated his case. Jesus, while undoubtedly important to God\u2019s plan, could not possibly be divine. Christians could not and should not worship multiple gods.

The vast majority of those present disagreed. They noted scriptures like John 1:1 (\u201cIn the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God<\/u><\/em>\u201d) \u2013 where Jesus is clearly identified as the Word \u2013 as evidence of his divinity.

Now things got interesting. How is it possible that the Father, Son, and even the Holy Spirit are all God?\u00a0

Anyone who has tried to come with a children\u2019s sermon to explain the Trinity has felt this tension. Perhaps God is like H20, which is one substance that can exist in three different forms: water, ice, and water vapor. Or God is like an egg, which has three parts: shell, yolk, and albumen. Or God is one being who can be in three different relationships, like a man who is simultaneously a dad, a son, and a husband.

It\u2019s worth noting that all three of those perspectives were condemned as heresies at Nicaea, which has no doubt given a few children\u2019s ministers some sleepless nights.

The discussion came down to a single iota<\/em> \u2013 that is, the letter \u201cI\u201d in the Greek language.

Arias taught that Jesus and God the Father were homoiousios,<\/em> where homoi<\/em> means \u201csimilar\u201d and ousia <\/em>refers to \u201csubstance.\u201d The Father and the Son shared a similar consistency, but they were not identical.

The bishops countered that Jesus and God the Father were homoousios, where homo<\/em> means \u201csame.\u201d By dropping a single iota<\/em>, Jesus\u2019 identity was transformed into \u201cvery God of very God,\u201d the wording that appeared in the council\u2019s final statement. Jesus is not a piece of God or a creation of God, but is 100% divine.\u00a0

From this moment on, orthodox Christian theology felt more empowered to speak of God as a living, loving, eternal society \u2013 as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

But isn\u2019t the whole notion of Trinity a blatant contradiction?\u00a0How can God be both three and one?\u00a0

Theologians have been careful to point out that God is singular<\/em> in one category (essence \u2013 there is only one God) but plural<\/em> in another category (personhood \u2013 God is tri-personal by nature).\u00a0Such a description is neither a contradiction nor a violation of the principles of logic.\u00a0

Nevertheless, it is certainly a paradox<\/em> (something that at first glance seems<\/em> to be contradictory) and a mystery<\/em> (a profound truth that we can\u2019t comprehend at present, because we don\u2019t have nearly enough information).

In the end, only Arias and a pair of bishops dissented from the majority view. That\u2019s not to say that Arianism magically disappeared. Because it seemed like common sense, the notion that Jesus is a lesser being persisted for generations after Nicaea, and remains alive and well in unorthodox groups like the Jehovah\u2019s Witnesses.

Did something important happen at Nicaea? Absolutely.

But first we need to dismiss a claim that was popularized in Dan Brown\u2019s novel The Da Vinci Code<\/em>. According to Brown\u2019s 2003 bestseller, Constantine used the assembly of bishops to orchestrate a secret power move that redefined the meaning of Christianity.

Until A.D. 325, the novelist suggested, there were as many as 80 different \u201cgospels\u201d of the life of Jesus. Constantine ensured that only Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John represented the official party line, quashing alternative views of Jesus and any meaningful leadership roles for women. Brown proposed that Christianity was originally a fertility cult centered on Jesus\u2019 marriage to Mary Magdalene.

Such claims provoke legitimate Bible scholars to tear out their hair. Brown\u2019s conspiracy theories about the \u201creal meaning\u201d of Nicaea are ludicrous, but when you sell 100 million copies of a page-turner and then turn it into a movie starring Tom Hanks, you\u2019re going to generate a lot more attention than the average Sunday School teacher.

Perhaps movie critic Roger Ebert said it best: “I should read a potboiler like\u00a0The Da Vinci Code<\/em>\u00a0every once in a while, just to remind myself that life is too short to read books like\u00a0The Da Vinci Code<\/em>.\u201d

How, then, did the Council of Nicaea represent a major turning point in Christian history?

For the first time \u2013 and certainly not the last \u2013 religion and politics tried to walk hand-in-hand. There is no evidence that Constantine knew more than the basics of Christian theology. But when the emperor himself ordered the Church\u2019s leaders to sit down and figure out what they believed, they had little choice but to obey. That they did. The fruits of their efforts was a document \u2013 the Nicene Creed \u2013 that is still recited by many congregations the world over every Sunday.

More significantly, Nicaea represented a moment when the Church\u2019s finest thinkers made a choice.

Should they go with common sense \u2013 what most people would conclude about the relationship of Jesus and God if they gave them half a thought?

Or should they respect those strange teachings in the New Testament that lead us to grasp that God and God\u2019s ways are mysterious? How can we ever reconcile God\u2019s sovereignty and human free will? How can the first be last, and the last be first? What does it mean that the only way to save our lives is to lose our lives? How can Father, Son, and Spirit be one God in three persons?

The Nicene delegates decided those mysteries are what makes Christianity special \u2013 and that it\u2019s more important to embrace them than to try to \u201cfigure God out.\u201d

Did they make the right choice?

Seventeen centuries of reflection on their enduring legacy suggests they were blessed with uncommon sense. \u00a0

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To listen to today’s reflection as a podcast,\u00a0click here Each day this Lent we\u2019re looking at major \u201cturning points\u201d in Christian history \u2013 moments or seasons in which the story of God\u2019s people took an important and often unexpected turn. \u00a0 What is common sense? \u201cCommon\u201d refers to that which is universal. \u201cSense,\u201d in this context, connotes things we perceive… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4471,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[877,878,492],"class_list":["post-4470","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-arias","tag-church-councils","tag-trinity"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4470","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4470"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4470\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4472,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4470\/revisions\/4472"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4471"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4470"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4470"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4470"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}