Council of Sirmium
Encyclopedia
The Council of Sirmium generally refers to the third of the four episcopal councils held in Sirmium
between 357 AD and 359 AD. Specifically one was held in 357, one in 358 and one in 359. The third council marked a temporary compromise between Arianism
and the Western bishops of the Christian church. At least two of the other councils also dealt primarily with the Arian controversy
. All of these councils were held under the rule of Constantius II
, who was sympathetic to the Arians.
. It held that God was uniquely self-existent and immutable: consequently, Christ could not be God. The opponents of Arianism led by Athanasius of Alexandria
claimed that the doctrine reduced Jesus to a demigod
thus restoring polytheism
as Jesus would still be worshipped. Further, it appeared to undermine the concept of redemption as only one who was truly God could reconcile man and God.
The First Council of Nicaea
in 325
appeared to have settled the issue with Arius and his theology condemned and the Nicene Creed
issued stating the Son was "of one substance with the father" (homoousion to Patri). However, Arians made a sustained effort to return to the church and to restore their beliefs after 325 with a prolonged theological dispute ensuing.
, leaving Constantius II, who favored Arianism, as emperor in the East and Constans
, who favored Nicea, emperor in the West. A church council held at Antioch
in 341
issued an affirmation of faith that excluded the homoousion clause; another council held at Sardica
in 342
(now Sofia
) achieved little.
Constantius, who had a residence in Sirmium, convened the first Council of Sirmium in 347
. It opposed Photinus
, the bishop of Sirmium, an anti-Arian who held a belief similar to Marcellus
.
In 350, Constantius became the sole Emperor of both East and West, leading to a temporary strengthening of Arianism.
At the second Council of Sirmium in 351
, Basil, bishop of Ancyra (now Ankara
) and leader of the semi-Arians, had Photinus
deposed. The semi-Arians held that the Son was "of similar substance" (homoiousios) to the Father. Sirmium II also drafted the Sixth Arian Confession, which was an expanded version of the Fourth Arian Confession and was consistent with the strength of the semi-Arians.
in 353
and Milan
in 355
, with Athanasius condemned at both. In 356
, Athanasius began his third exile, and George
was appointed bishop of Alexandria
.
The third Council of Sirmium, in 357
, was the high point of Arianism. The Seventh Arian Confession (Second Sirmium Confession) held that both homoousios (of one substance) and homoiousios (of similar substance) were unbiblical and that the Father is greater than the Son. (This confession was later known as the Blasphemy of Sirmium.)
A Council of Ancyra in 358
, chaired by Basil, released a statement using the term homoousios. But the fourth Council of Sirmium, also in 358, proposed a vague compromise: it said simply that the Son was homoios ("like") the Father.
(Rimini in the West and Seleucia in the East), Constantius tried to impose Sirmium IV's homoios formula on the church.
A council in Constantinople in 361 also approved homoios ("like" the Father), stating that the Son was "like the Father who begot him," and rejected the use of ousia ("substance").
But at the death of Constantinus in 361, the Nicene party in the West, which affirmed homoousios ("of the same substance"), consolidated its position. And in the East, at the death of Athanasius in 373, the Cappadocian Fathers (Basil of Caesarea
, d. 379; his brother Gregory of Nyssa
, d. 394; and Gregory Nazianzus, d. 390), took the lead in support of Nicene orthodoxy.
Theodosius I (emperor of the East, 379-395; sole emperor, 394-395) outlawed Arianism at his accession in 379.
Finally, in 381, the second ecumenical (worldwide) council of the church (the first had been Nicaea), the First Council of Constantinople
, upheld the Nicene Creed.
Sirmium
Sirmium was a city in ancient Roman Pannonia. Firstly mentioned in the 4th century BC and originally inhabited by the Illyrians and Celts, it was conquered by the Romans in the 1st century BC and subsequently became the capital of the Roman province of Lower Pannonia. In 294 AD, Sirmium was...
between 357 AD and 359 AD. Specifically one was held in 357, one in 358 and one in 359. The third council marked a temporary compromise between Arianism
Arianism
Arianism is the theological teaching attributed to Arius , a Christian presbyter from Alexandria, Egypt, concerning the relationship of the entities of the Trinity and the precise nature of the Son of God as being a subordinate entity to God the Father...
and the Western bishops of the Christian church. At least two of the other councils also dealt primarily with the Arian controversy
Arian controversy
The Arian controversy describes several controversies between the Christian Church fathers Arius and Athanasius related to Christology which divided the Christian church from before the Council of Nicaea in 325 to after the Council of Constantinople in 381...
. All of these councils were held under the rule of Constantius II
Constantius II
Constantius II , was Roman Emperor from 337 to 361. The second son of Constantine I and Fausta, he ascended to the throne with his brothers Constantine II and Constans upon their father's death....
, who was sympathetic to the Arians.
Background
Arianism was first put forward early in the fourth century by the Alexandrian presbyter AriusArius
Arius was a Christian presbyter in Alexandria, Egypt of Libyan origins. His teachings about the nature of the Godhead, which emphasized the Father's divinity over the Son , and his opposition to the Athanasian or Trinitarian Christology, made him a controversial figure in the First Council of...
. It held that God was uniquely self-existent and immutable: consequently, Christ could not be God. The opponents of Arianism led by Athanasius of Alexandria
Athanasius of Alexandria
Athanasius of Alexandria [b. ca. – d. 2 May 373] is also given the titles St. Athanasius the Great, St. Athanasius I of Alexandria, St Athanasius the Confessor and St Athanasius the Apostolic. He was the 20th bishop of Alexandria. His long episcopate lasted 45 years Athanasius of Alexandria [b....
claimed that the doctrine reduced Jesus to a demigod
Demigod
The term "demigod" , meaning "half-god", is commonly used to describe mythological figures whose one parent was a god and whose other parent was human; as such, demigods are human-god hybrids...
thus restoring polytheism
Polytheism
Polytheism is the belief of multiple deities also usually assembled into a pantheon of gods and goddesses, along with their own mythologies and rituals....
as Jesus would still be worshipped. Further, it appeared to undermine the concept of redemption as only one who was truly God could reconcile man and God.
The First Council of Nicaea
First Council of Nicaea
The First Council of Nicaea was a council of Christian bishops convened in Nicaea in Bithynia by the Roman Emperor Constantine I in AD 325...
in 325
325
Year 325 was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Proculus and Paulinus...
appeared to have settled the issue with Arius and his theology condemned and the Nicene Creed
Nicene Creed
The Nicene Creed is the creed or profession of faith that is most widely used in Christian liturgy. It is called Nicene because, in its original form, it was adopted in the city of Nicaea by the first ecumenical council, which met there in the year 325.The Nicene Creed has been normative to the...
issued stating the Son was "of one substance with the father" (homoousion to Patri). However, Arians made a sustained effort to return to the church and to restore their beliefs after 325 with a prolonged theological dispute ensuing.
The First and Second Councils of Sirmium
Constantine the Great died in 337337
Year 337 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Felicianus and Titianus...
, leaving Constantius II, who favored Arianism, as emperor in the East and Constans
Constans
Constans , was Roman Emperor from 337 to 350. He defeated his brother Constantine II in 340, but anger in the army over his personal life and preference for his barbarian bodyguards saw the general Magnentius rebel, resulting in Constans’ assassination in 350.-Career:Constans was the third and...
, who favored Nicea, emperor in the West. A church council held at Antioch
Antioch
Antioch on the Orontes was an ancient city on the eastern side of the Orontes River. It is near the modern city of Antakya, Turkey.Founded near the end of the 4th century BC by Seleucus I Nicator, one of Alexander the Great's generals, Antioch eventually rivaled Alexandria as the chief city of the...
in 341
341
Year 341 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Marcellinus and Probinus...
issued an affirmation of faith that excluded the homoousion clause; another council held at Sardica
Council of Sardica
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Sofia and Plovdiv is a Roman Catholic diocese of the Latin Rite, which includes the whole southern part of Bulgaria. The remainder of Bulgaria is comprised in the Diocese of Nicopoli. The seat of the episcopal see is in Plovdiv. The diocese is immediately subject of...
in 342
342
Year 342 was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Constantius and Claudius...
(now Sofia
Sofia
Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...
) achieved little.
Constantius, who had a residence in Sirmium, convened the first Council of Sirmium in 347
347
Year 347 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Rufinus and Eusebius...
. It opposed Photinus
Photinus
Photinus was a Christian heresiarch and bishop of Sirmium in Pannonia, best known for denying the incarnation of Christ. His name became synonymous in later literature for someone asserting that Christ was not God.- Life :...
, the bishop of Sirmium, an anti-Arian who held a belief similar to Marcellus
Marcellus
-In Christianity:* Marcellus of Ancyra , bishop* Pope Marcellus I, saint* Pope Marcellus II, Italian pope* Marcellus of Tangier , martyr* Pseudo-Marcellus, author of the Passio sanctorum Petri et Pauli...
.
In 350, Constantius became the sole Emperor of both East and West, leading to a temporary strengthening of Arianism.
At the second Council of Sirmium in 351
351
Year 351 was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Magnentius and Gaiso...
, Basil, bishop of Ancyra (now Ankara
Ankara
Ankara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. The city has a mean elevation of , and as of 2010 the metropolitan area in the entire Ankara Province had a population of 4.4 million....
) and leader of the semi-Arians, had Photinus
Photinus
Photinus was a Christian heresiarch and bishop of Sirmium in Pannonia, best known for denying the incarnation of Christ. His name became synonymous in later literature for someone asserting that Christ was not God.- Life :...
deposed. The semi-Arians held that the Son was "of similar substance" (homoiousios) to the Father. Sirmium II also drafted the Sixth Arian Confession, which was an expanded version of the Fourth Arian Confession and was consistent with the strength of the semi-Arians.
Third and Fourth Councils
Councils were held in ArlesArles
Arles is a city and commune in the south of France, in the Bouches-du-Rhône department, of which it is a subprefecture, in the former province of Provence....
in 353
353
Year 353 was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Magnentius and Decentius...
and Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
in 355
355
Year 355 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Arbitio and Maesius...
, with Athanasius condemned at both. In 356
356
Year 356 was a leap year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Constantius and Iulianus...
, Athanasius began his third exile, and George
George of Laodicea
George of Laodicea was a philosopher from Alexandria, involved in the debate over the doctrine of the Trinity.-References:...
was appointed bishop of Alexandria
Alexandria
Alexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...
.
The third Council of Sirmium, in 357
357
Year 357 was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Constantius and Iulianus...
, was the high point of Arianism. The Seventh Arian Confession (Second Sirmium Confession) held that both homoousios (of one substance) and homoiousios (of similar substance) were unbiblical and that the Father is greater than the Son. (This confession was later known as the Blasphemy of Sirmium.)
A Council of Ancyra in 358
358
Year 358 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Datianus and Cerealis...
, chaired by Basil, released a statement using the term homoousios. But the fourth Council of Sirmium, also in 358, proposed a vague compromise: it said simply that the Son was homoios ("like") the Father.
Triumph of the Nicene Creed
At two councils in 359359
Year 359 was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Eusebius and Hypatius...
(Rimini in the West and Seleucia in the East), Constantius tried to impose Sirmium IV's homoios formula on the church.
A council in Constantinople in 361 also approved homoios ("like" the Father), stating that the Son was "like the Father who begot him," and rejected the use of ousia ("substance").
But at the death of Constantinus in 361, the Nicene party in the West, which affirmed homoousios ("of the same substance"), consolidated its position. And in the East, at the death of Athanasius in 373, the Cappadocian Fathers (Basil of Caesarea
Basil of Caesarea
Basil of Caesarea, also called Saint Basil the Great, was the bishop of Caesarea Mazaca in Cappadocia, Asia Minor . He was an influential 4th century Christian theologian...
, d. 379; his brother Gregory of Nyssa
Gregory of Nyssa
St. Gregory of Nyssa was a Christian bishop and saint. He was a younger brother of Basil the Great and a good friend of Gregory of Nazianzus. His significance has long been recognized in the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Eastern Catholic and Roman Catholic branches of Christianity...
, d. 394; and Gregory Nazianzus, d. 390), took the lead in support of Nicene orthodoxy.
Theodosius I (emperor of the East, 379-395; sole emperor, 394-395) outlawed Arianism at his accession in 379.
Finally, in 381, the second ecumenical (worldwide) council of the church (the first had been Nicaea), the First Council of Constantinople
First Council of Constantinople
The First Council of Constantinople is recognized as the Second Ecumenical Council by the Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox, the Eastern Orthodox, the Roman Catholics, the Old Catholics, and a number of other Western Christian groups. It was the first Ecumenical Council held in...
, upheld the Nicene Creed.