The Council of Nicea - Term Paper Example

Download file to see previous pages The council discussed and came into an agreement, in the church of Alexandria, concerning the terms of Jesus in relation to the Father. In addition, the council came into an agreement concerning the date for Easter, which is the most documented event in the Christian history. This assignment will discuss the reasons for Nicaea council, the agendas discussed, Nicene Creed and the effects of the Nicaea council. Reasons for Nicaea Council Different reasons led to the gathering of the Nicaea council in 325 AD. Earlier, in 313 AD, Christianity was practiced without fear of persecution by any group. Since there was no persecution, Christianity spread and grew enormously. As Christianity grew rapidly, there emerged many church heretics. These false church heretics made it difficult to explain the correct teachings about Christ since there was a mix up in teaching; different church leaders had different views regarding Christ teachings (Wordsworth 37). This difference in teachings about Christ made the council seek the correct teaching. Hence, with this confusion in Christ teaching, the council of Nicaea gathered in order to discus the correct teachings of Christ. One such false teaching about Christ was that Jesus had no relationship with the Father, which taught that Jesus was a superficial creature. This teaching caused chief controversies within the church and was condemned by the council of Nicaea. With the gathering of the council, Bishops and Constantine were able to come up with a common teaching of Christ through the formation of the Nicene Creed, which contained the statement of faith for the Christians (Wordsworth 40). The other chief reason for the council assembling; was to discuss and set the date for Easter. The council of Nicaea discussed the issue of Easter and came up to a conclusion that Easter should be celebrated by all Christians in the first Sunday after Equinox. The council resolved the issue raised by various individuals regarding the nature of Jesus. Although some people argued that Jesus had no relationship with God the Father, the council concluded that Jesus has a connection with the Father (Davis 40). Agenda of the Council of Nicaea The council’s gathering was not without an agenda and procedure. The council gathered in order to discuss agenda such as the Arian question. The Arian question entailed the relationship that existed between Jesus and God (Wordsworth 56). Those who supported the Arian argument claimed that Jesus was the first creature to be created by God, and there existed no connection between Jesus and God. According to their argument, those who supported the Arian argument, Jesus was a superhuman. On discussing the agenda, the council ruled that Jesus and God were one in being. The second agenda discussed by the council concerned observation of the Paschal or better known as Easter. Christians differed on the actual date of celebrating the Easter. On discussing the agenda, the council concluded that all Christians should celebrate Easter on the first Sunday after Equinox. The third agenda discussed by the council of Nicaea was the Meletian schism. The council decided that Meletius should not ordain new clergy. He could not go out of the town for the purpose of ordaining Melitian leaders. The fourth agenda to be discussed by the Nicaea council comprised the validity of baptism (Davis 43). The council condemned the argument of heretics that baptism was not necessary. The council conclud ...Download file to see next pagesRead More