This and That BLOG

Today is the sixth Sunday of Easter.

In today’s first reading, from the Acts of the Apostles, we hear about what is sometimes called the Council of Jerusalem. It wasn’t officially a Church Council but it was, as far as we know, the first big meeting about a crisis in the Church. That crisis involved what was to be required of new “coverts” to Christianity. Did they have to become Jewish first or could they pass that step and become Christians right away?

Most Church Councils over the years were brought about by some crisis. Jerusalem, as I mentioned above, Nicaea, about the nature of Jesus, Trent in response to the Reformation, etc.

All of this got me thinking about the 17ooth anniversary of Nicaea that we observed just a few days ago. You might argue differently but it feels to me like Nicaea may have been the most important of the Councils. The crisis that brought Constantine to call that Council involved the various heresies around the nature of Jesus. Today we say heresies because of the way the Council turned out. Some said Jesus was a spirit, some said a special type of human, some said fully divine with no humanity, etc. Constantine was looking for agreement on who Jesus was. Remember he (Constantine) had just made Christianity legal a few years prior to calling the Council.

Essentially the Church determined at Nicaea that Jesus was both fully human and fully divine. In the creed that came out of Nicaea, and was tweaked in the following Council of Constantinople, we affirm that Christ is God from God, Light from Light, True God from True God, Begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father…

The reason I think Nicaea was likely the most important Council is in what we say and believe about Christ. How different would the faith be, if it was at all, if we believed Christ was something other than fully human and fully divine? It seems to me this is the center of what we believe.

For those who like to read Church documents here’s a link to one that was recently published about the Council of Nicaea. I’ve printed it but haven’t read it yet so I can’t comment on it but I’m looking forward to reading it. https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/cti_documents/rc_cti_doc_20250403_1700-nicea_en.html#

I think sometimes we tend to think of the Councils as mostly “inside baseball” sorts of things but I argue, that at least in some cases, the results of these Councils have a profound effect on us as Catholic Christians.

So, at the very least, try to not take the Nicene Creed for granted. Think about the words we say and what they mean. For extra credit, read the document sometime this summer. 🙂

That’s it for now. Thanks for reading.

I hope you enjoy the Memorial Day break and find time to remember what matters most about this holiday. Despite all that’s happening in our Country, whether you’re a Cub or Cardinal, we owe a great debt to those who gave themselves fully for the rest of us.

Peace, Bob