Arius: Encyclopedia II - Arius - The Council of Nicaea

Arius - The Council of Nicaea

The Christian church had by this time become so powerful a force in the Roman world that Constantine found himself unable to keep aloof from the controversy. He therefore sent Hosius, bishop of Córdoba to put an end, if possible, to the controversy, armed with an open letter from the Emperor: "Wherefore let each one of you, showing consideration for the other, listen to the impartial exhortation of your fellow-servant." But as it continued to rage, Constantine took an unprecedented step: he called a council of delegates, summoned from all parts of the empire, to resolve this issue. All of the secular dioceses into which the empire had been divided, Roman Britain only excepted, sent one or more representatives to the council, the majority of the bishops coming from the East. Pope Sylvester I, himself too aged to be present, sent two presbyters as his delegates. The object of the council, it must be remembered, was not to pronounce what the church ought to believe, but to ascertain as far as possible what had been taught from the beginning. It was indeed a remarkable gathering: there was not only as good a representation of race and nationality as was possible under the circumstances, but the ability and intellect of the church were also well represented. There was the already mentioned Eusebius of Nicomedia, and Alexander, patriarch of Alexandria. There was also the renowned Eusebius of Caesarea, a sound theologian, perhaps the most well-informed, careful, impartial, and trustworthy ecclesiastical historian the church has ever possessed. And, young as he was, Athanasius was already confident of his insight into the deepest mysteries of the religion. And beside these there were other men present, the brave "confessors," as they were called, whose faces and limbs bore evident traces of the sufferings they had undergone for their faith. The emperor did his best to secure an honest selection and an honest decision.

This was the First Council of Nicaea, which met in 325, near Constantinople. Under the influence of the emperor Constantine, the assembled bishops agreed upon a creed to be used at baptisms and in catechetical instruction expressed in words that made Arius's language heretical. Both council and emperor issued a circular letter to the churches in and around Alexandria. Arius, Theonas, and Secundus were deposed and banished, while three other bishops, who had been supportive of Arius, namely Eusebius of Nicomedia, Theognis of Nicaea, and Maris of Chalcedon, were unwilling signatories of the document, but affixed their signatures in deference to the emperor. However, Constantine found some reason to suspect the sincerity of Eusebius of Nicomedia, as well as that of Theognis and Maris, for he soon after included them in the sentence pronounced on Arius. Eusebius of Caesarea defended himself in a letter as having objected to the changes in the creed which he had originally presented, but finally accepted them in the interests of peace (Theod. H. E. i. 12).

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "The Council of Nicaea", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki