Second Council of Ephesus
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| Second Council of Ephesus | |
|---|---|
| Date | 449 |
| Accepted by | |
| Chronological list of ecumenical councils | |
| Part of Oriental Orthodoxy |
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| Oriental Orthodox churches |
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The Second Council of Ephesus was a
Both this council and that at Chalcedon dealt primarily with Christology,
Those who do not accept the decrees of Chalcedon nor later ecumenical councils are variously named
Background
First session
The Acts by the Second Council of Ephesus are known through a Syriac translation by a monk, that was published by the British Museum (MS. Addit. 14,530) and written in 535. The first session is missing.[7]
Attending signatories
There was insufficient time for Western bishops to attend except a certain Julius,
There were 127 bishops present at the council, with eight representatives of absent bishops, and lastly the deacon Hilarius with his notary, Dulcitius. The question before the council, by order of the emperor, was whether
Opening proceeding
The brief of convocation by Theodosius II was read. Then the legates to the Pope of the Church of Rome explained that although it would have been contrary to custom for their Pope to be present in person, the Pope of the Church of Rome had sent a letter with the legates to be read at the council. In the letter, Leo I referred to his dogmatic letter to Flavian, the
However, the head notary declared that the emperor's letter should be read first, and Bishop Juvenal of Jerusalem commanded for the letter of the emperor to be presented. It ordered the presence at the council of the anti-Nestorian monk Barsumas.[8] The question of faith was next on the proceedings. Pope (Patriarch of Alexandria) Dioscorus declared that it was not a matter for inquiry but that they had to consider only recent activity, as all present had acknowledged that they strictly adhered to the faith. He was acclaimed as a guardian and the Champion of Oriental Orthodoxy.
Eutyches was then introduced, and he declared that he held the Nicene Creed to which nothing could be added and from which nothing could be taken away. He claimed that he had been condemned by Flavian for a mere slip of the tongue even though he had declared that he held the faith of Nicaea and Ephesus, and he had appealed to the present council. His life had been put in danger and he now asked for judgment against the calumnies that had been brought against him.
Eutyches' accuser, Bishop Eusebius of Dorylaeum, was not allowed to be heard. The bishops agreed that the acts of the condemnation of Eutyches, at the 448 Constantinople council, should be read, but the legates of Rome asked that Leo's letter might be heard first. Eutyches interrupted with the complaint that he did not trust the legates. They had been to dine with Flavian and had received much courtesy. Pope Dioscorus decided that the acts of the trial should have precedence and so the letter of Leo I was not read.
The acts were then read in full and also the account of an inquiry made on April 13, 449, into the allegation of Eutyches that the synodal acts had been incorrectly noted down, and then the account of another inquiry on April 27, 449, into the accusation made by Eutyches that Flavian had drawn up the sentence against him beforehand. While the trial was being related, cries arose from those present, declaring a belief in one nature, that two natures meant Nestorianism, and of "Burn Eusebius", and so forth. Flavian rose to complain that no opportunity was given to him to defend himself.
The Acts of the Second Council of Ephesus now give a list of 114 votes in the form of short speeches absolving Eutyches; three of his former judges also absolved him but by the emperor's order they were not allowed to vote. Lastly, Barsumas added his voice. A petition was read from Eutyches' monastery which had been excommunicated by Flavian. The monks asserted that they agreed in all things with Eutyches and with the Holy Fathers, and therefore the synod absolved them.
An extract from the acts of the first session of the
Dioscorus then spoke, declaring that it followed that Flavian and Eusebius must be deposed, as if an anathema was passed unjustly, and he who passed it was to be judged by the same. Flavian and Eusebius had previously interposed an appeal to the Roman Pope and to a synod held by him.
Evidence given at the ecumenical
The papal legate Hilarius uttered a single word in Latin, "Contradicitur", annulling the sentence in Leo's name. He then escaped with difficulty. Flavian and Eusebius of Dorylaeum appealed to the pope, and their letters, only lately discovered, were probably taken by Hilarus to Rome, which he reached by a devious route.[9]
It was said Dioscorus had previously gathered 1000 monks, telling them to wait outside the church during the council and to come when he called them. When Dioscorus began to read the sentence of condemnation against Flavian and Eusebius, some bishops went up to Dioscorus, asking him not to. Dioscorus called the guards, and the 1000 monks who were waiting outside with some soldiers came in and charged at Flavian and his followers. Flavian ran to the altar and grabbed hold of it for his life. The soldiers and monks forcefully took him from the altar beating him, kicking him and then whipping him.
Flavian was deported into exile and died from his wounds a few days later in
Subsequent sessions
Attitude of schism
The Syriac Acts take up the history where the Chalcedonian Acts break off. Of the first session, only the formal documents, letters of the emperor, and petitions of Eutyches are known to be preserved in Syriac though not within the same manuscript. It is evident that the non-Chalcedonian editor disapproved of the first session and purposely omitted it, not because of the high-handed proceedings of Dioscorus but because the later Miaphysites generally condemned Eutyches as a heretic and did not wish to remember his rehabilitation by a council that they considered to be ecumenical but the rest of Christianity scorned.[citation needed]
Attendance
In the next session, according to the Syriac Acts, 113 people were present, including Barsumas. Nine new names appeared. The legates did not appear and were sent for, but only the notary Dulcitius could be found and he was unwell. It was an uncanonical charge against Dioscorus at the Council of Chalcedon that he "had held an (ecumenical) council without the Roman See, which was never allowed". That manifestly refers to his having continued at the council after the departure of the legates.
Double jeopardy
The first case was that of Ibas, Bishop of Edessa. The famous champion of the Antiochian party, he had been accused of crimes before by Domnus, Bishop of Antioch, and had been acquitted soon after Easter 448. His accusers had gone to Constantinople and been granted a new trial by the emperor. Bishops Photius of Tyre, Eustathius of Berytus and Uranius of Imeria were to examine the matter. The bishops met at Tyre, removed to Berytus, and returned to Tyre. Eventually, in February 449, they acquitted Ibas once more, together with his fellow accused: Daniel, Bishop of Harran and John of Theodosianopolis.
The report, which provided a history of the whole affair, was read at length by the order of Dioscorus. When the famous letter of Ibas to Bishop Maris was read, cries arose such as: "These things pollute our ears. ...Cyril is immortal. ...Let Ibas be burnt in the midst of the city of Antioch. ...Exile is of no use. Nestorius and Ibas should be burnt together!"
A final indictment was made in a speech by a priest of Edessa named Eulogius. Sentence was finally given against Ibas of deposition and excommunication, without any suggestion that he ought to be called to speak in his own defence.
In the next case, that of Ibas's nephew, Daniel of Harran, it was declared that they had clearly seen his guilt at Tyre and had acquitted him only because of his voluntary resignation. He was quickly deposed by the agreement of all the council. He, too, was not present and could not defend himself.
Next was the turn of Irenaeus, who, as an influential layman at the first
Aquilinus, Bishop of Byblus, had been consecrated by Irenaeus and was his friend. He was the next to be deposed. Sophronius, Bishop of Tella, was a cousin of Ibas. He was, therefore, accused of magic, and his case was reserved for the judgment of the new Bishop of Edessa, a surprisingly-mild decision.
Condemnation of Theodoret
Theodoret, an opponent of
A monk from Antioch produced a volume of extracts from the works of Theodoret. First was read Theodoret's letter to the monks of the East (see Mansi, V, 1023), then some extracts from a lost Apology for Diodorus and Theodore. The very name of the work was sufficient, in the view of the council, to condemn Theodoret, and Dioscorus pronounced the sentence of deposition and excommunication.
When Theodoret, in his remote diocese, heard of the sentence pronounced in his absence, he at once appealed to Leo in a letter (Ep. cxiii). He also wrote to the legate Renatus (Ep. cxvi), being unaware that he was dead.
Condemnation of Domnus
The council had a yet-bolder task before it. Domnus of Antioch is said to have agreed in the first session to the acquittal of Eutyches, but he refused, on the plea of sickness, to appear at the later sessions of the council. He seems to have been disgusted or terrified or both at the leadership of Pope Dioscorus. The council had sent him an account of their actions, and he replied, according to the Acts, that he agreed to all the sentences that had been given and regretted that his health made his attendance impossible.
Immediately after receiving this message, the council proceeded to hear a number of petitions from monks and priests against Domnus. Domnus was accused of friendship with Theodoret and Flavian, of Nestorianism, of altering the form of the Sacrament of Baptism, of intruding an immoral bishop into Emessa, of having been uncanonically appointed himself and of being an enemy of Dioscorus. Several pages of the manuscripts are missing, but it does not seem that the patriarch was asked to appear or given a chance to defend himself. The bishops shouted that he was worse than Ibas. He was deposed by a vote of the council, and with that final act, the Acts come to an end.
Reception
The council wrote the customary letter to the emperor (see Perry, trans., p. 431), who confirmed it with his own letter (Mansi, VII, 495, and Perry, p. 364). Dioscorus sent an
Juvenal of Jerusalem was loyal to Dioscorus. He had deposed the Patriarchs of Antioch and Constantinople, but one powerful adversary yet remained. He halted at Nicaea and with ten bishops (probably the same ten Egyptian metropolitans whom he had brought to Ephesus) "in addition to all his other crimes he extended his madness against him who had been entrusted with the guardianship of the Vine by the Saviour", in the words of the bishops at Chalcedon, "and excommunicated the Pope himself".
Meanwhile, Leo I had received the appeals of Theodoret and Flavian (of whose death he was unaware) and had written to them and to the Emperor and Empress, nullifying all of the Acts of the council. He eventually excommunicated all who had taken part in it and absolved all whom it had condemned (including Theodoret), with the exception of Domnus of Antioch, who seems to have had no wish to resume his see and retired into the monastic life that he had left many years earlier with regret.
The Council of Chalcedon gave rise to what has been called the
References
- ^ ISBN 978-0-8146-5616-7.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-8146-5376-0.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-226-65371-6.
- ^ John Anthony McGuckin, ed. (2011). The Encyclopedia of Eastern Orthodox Christianity. Wiley-Blackwell. p. 872.
- ISBN 9789004099906
- ^ Chapman, John. "Eutyches." The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 5. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909. 6 February 2019
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ a b c Chapman, John. "Robber Council of Ephesus." The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 5. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909. 7 February 2019
- ^ "Chalcedon – The Treachery that Split Christendom into two" (PDF). Bishoy’s Blog on the Coptic Orthodox Church.
- ^ a b c Chapman, John. "Dioscurus." The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 5. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909. 7 February 2019 This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- Sources
- ISBN 978-1-889758-88-6.
- This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Robber Council of Ephesus". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
External links
- Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). . Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. Second section.