In what ways did the early Christians Ecumenical Councils develop the Research Paper

In what ways did the early Christians Ecumenical Councils develop the Churchs understanding of Jesus - Research Paper Example The first Ecumenical Council known as Nicea, dates 325 AD. It was summoned by Emperor Constantine the great. This meeting was called to resolve the Arian controversy. Arius, a priest from Alexandria, held that Jesus Christ was created by God and was denying Christ’s divinity. He argued that if Jesus was born, then there was a time he did not exist. However, during this meeting, the Nicene Creed which formulated that Jesus is divine, as the father, and was with the father from the very first moment of creation was adopted. Sunday was fixed as the date for celebration of Easter. This first part of the creed enabled the church and the entire Christian fraternity understand the divinity of Jesus as the Son of God. The Constantinople I Ecumenical Council which dates 381 AD was called by Emperor Theodosius who sought to establish teachings on the unity of the holy Trinity and the complete Manhood in Christ. This meeting confirmed the teachings of Nicea and expanded the doctrine that the Holy Spirit is also fully divine; thus the trinity has one divine nature but three distinct â€Å"persons†. The Council condemned Macedonius’ teaching that the Holy Spirit was not a person, but simply a power of God. This second part of the creed defined the divinity of the Holy Spirit and the concept of holy trinity. This became the base of Christian faith (Thomas, 92). During the third Ecumenical Council convened at Ephesus in 431 AD, the Council condemned the doctrines of Nestorios, Archbishop of Constantiple, who over-emphasized the human nature of Christ at the expense of his divine nature. He taught that the Virgin Mary gave birth to a man and not God. On the contrary, the Ecumenical Council adopted that Mary is the mother of God and Jesus has both divine and human nature, but in his one person. The Council also proclaimed that Lord Jesus Christ,