A report on Oriental Orthodox Churches, Christology and Chalcedonian Definition
The Oriental Orthodox Churches are a group of Eastern Christian churches adhering to Miaphysite Christology, with a total of approximately 60 million members worldwide.
- Oriental Orthodox ChurchesIt was the first council not to be recognised by any Oriental Orthodox church; for this reason these churches may be classified as Non-Chalcedonian.
- Chalcedonian DefinitionMost of the major branches of Western Christianity and Eastern Orthodoxy subscribe to this formulation, while many branches of Oriental Orthodox Churches reject it, subscribing to miaphysitism.
- ChristologyOriental Orthodox Churches shared communion with the Imperial Roman Church before the Council of Chalcedon in 451 AD, as well as with the Church of the East until the Council of Ephesus in AD 431, all separating primarily over differences in Christology.
- Oriental Orthodox ChurchesThe Chalcedonian Definition was written amid controversy between the Western and Eastern churches over the meaning of the Incarnation (see Christology).
- Chalcedonian DefinitionDyophysitism (Eastern Orthodox Church, Catholic Church, Lutheranism, Anglicanism, and the Reformed Churches) Christ maintained two natures, one divine and one human, after the Incarnation; articulated by the Chalcedonian Definition.
- Christology5 related topics with Alpha
Council of Chalcedon
3 linksThe fourth ecumenical council of the Christian Church.
The fourth ecumenical council of the Christian Church.
Whilst this judgment marked a significant turning point in the Christological debates, it also generated heated disagreements between the Council and the Oriental Orthodox Church, who did not agree with such conduct or proceedings.
The Council of Chalcedon issued the Chalcedonian Definition, which repudiated the notion of a single nature in Christ, and declared that he has two natures in one person and hypostasis.
Nestorianism
3 linksTerm used in Christian theology and Church history to refer to several mutually related but doctrinarily distinct sets of teachings.
Term used in Christian theology and Church history to refer to several mutually related but doctrinarily distinct sets of teachings.
c. undefined 450), who promoted specific doctrines in the fields of Christology and Mariology.
His teachings were considered as heretical not only in Chalcedonian Christianity, but even more in Oriental Orthodoxy.
The Armenian Church rejected the Council of Chalcedon (451) because they believed Chalcedonian Definition was too similar to Nestorianism.
Miaphysitism
2 linksMiaphysitism is the Christological doctrine upheld by the Oriental Orthodox Churches, which include the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church, Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, the Syriac Orthodox Church, and the Armenian Apostolic Church.
The council accepted by acclamation Leo's Tome, the letter by Pope Leo I setting out, as he saw it, the church's doctrine on the matter, and issued what has been called the Chalcedonian Definition, of which the part that directly concerns Miaphysitism runs as follows:
Catholic Church
1 linksLargest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptised Catholics worldwide.
Largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptised Catholics worldwide.
Before the Council of Ephesus in AD 431, the Church of the East also shared in this communion, as did the Oriental Orthodox Churches before the Council of Chalcedon in AD 451; all separated primarily over differences in Christology.
Hypostatic union
1 linksHypostatic union (from the Greek: ὑπόστασις hypóstasis, "sediment, foundation, substance, subsistence") is a technical term in Christian theology employed in mainstream Christology to describe the union of Christ's humanity and divinity in one hypostasis, or individual existence.
In 451, the Ecumenical Council of Chalcedon promulgated the Chalcedonian Definition.
The Oriental Orthodox Churches, having rejected the Chalcedonian Creed, were known as Miaphysites because they maintain the Cyrilian definition that characterized the incarnate Son as having one nature.