Edict of Milan, the Council of Nicea, and the Council of Chaledon
Introduction
Throughout history, there have been many pivotal moments that have affected the way that humans view Christianity. These pivotal moments began with the Apostles witnessing the death, burial, and resurrection, as they finally understood what their rabbi had been teaching them for three long years. From this point they sought to instruct others in accepting a message of eternal love and salvation. As time progressed, the message became less of a revelation and more of universal creed. This however did not come without many moments that progressed or limited the Christian faith. Three of such instances are Edict of Milan, the Council of Nicea, and the Council of Chalcedon.
Edict of Milan
Christians had lived in a culture of constant turmoil due to the various rulers of the Roman Empire. At times the emperors would simply ignore the monotheistic believers. While at other times they openly persecuted them due to their growing popularity. The Edict of Milan, “was the outcome of a political agreement concluded in Milan between the Roman emperors Constantine I and Licinius in February 313. The proclamation, made for the East by Licinius in June 313, granted all persons freedom to worship whatever deity they pleased, assured Christians of legal rights (including the right to organize churches), and directed the prompt return to Christians of confiscated property” (Edict of Milan, Encyclopedia Britannica Online). This was a cosmic step for the Christian church as they moved from being an underground movement, to a recognizable religion in Rome and the surrounding territories. In fact, the edict itself states that, “we (the emperors) thought to arrange that no one whatsoever should be denied the opportunity to give his heart to the observance of the Christian religion, of that religion which he should think best for himself, so that the Supreme Deity, to whose worship we freely yield our hearts, may show in all things His usual favor and benevolence. Therefore, your Worship should know that it has pleased us to remove all conditions whatsoever, which were in the rescripts formerly given to you officially, concerning the Christians and now any one of these who wishes to observe Christian religion may do so freely and openly, without molestation” (Edict of Milan, gbgm-umc.org). Without this edict establishing the freedom of religion, one must consider if Christianity would have been as wide spread or accepted with such reverence that it eventually received.
The Council of Nicea
After Constantine defeated Licinius in 323, thus ensuring the preservation of religious freedom, the Christian’s themselves began to fragment over the Arian controversy. The Arian controversy began, “as a debate between the bishop Alexander and the presbyter (pastor, or priest) Arius. Arius proposed that if the Father begat the Son, the latter must have had a beginning, that there was a time when he was not, and that his substance was from nothing like the rest of creation” (The Council of Nicea, Columbia.edu). This controversy agitated Constantine, but he called the council together in 325 and “presided over the opening session and took part in the discussions. He hoped a general council of the church would solve the problem” (Council of Nicea, Encyclopedia Britannica Online). From this gathering of “some three hundred bishops”, the word, “”homoousious” or “consubstantial” meaning “of one substance”” was coined and used to refute Arius’ assertion (The Council of Nicea, Columbia.edu). From the concept of Christ being homoousious, the council sought to prevent additional disputes in discovering what Jesus was.
The Council of Chalcedon
The Council of Chalcedon met in 451 and “confirmed the decisions of Nicaea, and responded to new debates of which had subsequently erupted over the humanity of Christ” (McGrath, 1998, P. 33). Presided over “by the emperor Marcian, it was attended by about 520 bishops or their representatives and was the largest and best-documented of the early councils. It approved the creed of Nicaea (325), the creed of Constantinople (381; subsequently known as the Nicene Creed), two letters of Cyril against Nestorius, which insisted on the unity of divine and human persons in Christ, and the Tome of Pope Leo I confirming two distinct natures in Christ and rejecting the Monophysite doctrine that Christ had only one nature” (Coucil of Chalcedon, Encyclopedia Britannica Online). While this council convened to primarily to approve the work of previous councils and creeds, yet it provided a model of constantly checking and revising what previous theologians have taught as.
Conclusion
Through their many functions, the Edict of Milan, the Council of Nicea, and the Council of Chalcedon, each had a long lasting effect upon the Church or culture as a whole. First, the Edict of Milan was a major milestone, marking a vast acceptance of various religions, but most importantly Christianity. Progressing it from an underground religion and into everyday Roman life. Rome’s established freedom of religion could be argued to be a model for the forefathers of the United States constitution, thus providing a model for today’s religious acceptance or tolerance today. The Council of Nicaea was the first large gathering of church leaders to answer the Arian Controversy. From this council the edict of Christ being of one substance or homoousious, was established and is no longer a key issue for the church today. Additionally, the convening of this council set precedence for churches then and now. Following the model of Acts 15:4-22, the council of Nicaea sought to be orderly and unified on key issues in the Christian faith. Finally, the Council of Chalcedon convened primarily to ratify what other councils and creeds set forth as norms close to a century before, thus, establishing a clear example of constantly looking backwards to see what our predecessors have done and how that is impacting us today. Through each of these aspects of theological history we begin to see and accept how the church of today was formed and shaped by these key instances. This must remain in the forefront of our minds as we continue to influence the church today.
References
Council of Nicaea. (2009). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved May 17, 2009, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/413817/Council-of-Nicaea
Edict of Milan. (2009). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved May 17, 2009, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/382119/Edict-of-Milan
Council of Chalcedon. (2009). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved May 17, 2009, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/104580/Council-of-Chalcedon
McGrath, Alister E. (1998) Historical Theology: An Introduction to the History of Christian Thought. Blackwell Publishing. Malden, MA.
The Council of Nicaea. (2009). Columbia.edu. Retrieved May 17, 2009, from: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/augustine/arch/sbrandt/nicea.htm
The Edict of Milan. (2009). The Bible: The book that bridges the Millennia. Retrieved May 17, 2009, from GBGM-UMC.org: http://gbgm-umc.org/umw/bible/milan.stm
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