Test Three Flashcards
Council of Nicea
Main Players: Arius; Alexander; Athanasius; Eusebius; Nicholas
Dates: 325
Theological Issues and Terms: First Ecumenical Council; Addressed the divine nature of the Son and his relationship to the Father; Arianism, Heteroousios, Homoousious; Homoiousios; Creed of Nicea; Jesus is fully God
Council of Constantinople
Main Players: Theodosius; Cappadocian Fathers (Basil the Great, Gregory of Nyssa, Gregory of Nazianzus)
Dates: 381
Theological Issues and Terms: Post Nicea the conflict between orthodoxy and Arianism continued; “If Christ were ‘very God’ how could he be ‘true man’?; issued Nicene Creed; Jesus is fully human
Council of Ephesus
Main Players: Nestorius; Cyril of Alexandria; Theodosius II;
Dates: 431
Theological Issues and Terms: Confirmed original Nicene Creed; Condemned teachings of Nestorius who said that Mary may be called Christokos (Birth giver of Christ) but not Theotokos (Birth giver of God); Theological conflict between Alexandria (emphasized divinity of Christ; tended toward one nature) and Antioch (emphasized humanity of Christ; tended toward two persons); both parties accepted “one person, two natures”; Jesus is one person;
Council of Chalcedon
Main Players: Eutyches
Dates: 451
Theological Issues and Terms: Christ is perfect in deity and humanity
Athanasius
the “Black Dwarf”; Educated in Alexandria; in close contact with desert fathers–wrote Life of Saint Anthony; Became bishop of Alexandria; Wrote On the Incarnation; experienced exile over his opposition to Arianism;
Basil the Great
went to school with Gregory of Naz & Julian the Apostate; pursued monastic life; wrote Basil’s rule; “Father of Eastern Monasticism”; Became bishop of Caesarea;
Gregory of Nyssa
pursued literary life and career as rhetorician; married but wife died; pursued monastic life; ordained by Basil as Bishop of Nyssa–shy and ill-suited for public ministry; wrote catechetical orations–a systematic theology
Gregory of Nazianzus
on of elder Gregory; pursued monastic life with Basil and Macrina; Basil ordained him against his will as bishop of Sasmia–where he never served; Elected Bishop of Constantinople–presided at council–retired at end of year; wrote five theological orations;
Macrina
Mother and Grandmother were saints; engaged at 12-husband died-vowed to remain celibate; after father died became the spiritual leader of the family; influenced Basil toward monastic life; founded women’s monastary; dictated On the Soul and Resurrection to Gregory; Gregory wrote Life of Macrina–referred to his sisters as “the teacher”; because of her influence on Basil known as Mother of Eastern Monasticism;
John Chrysostom
Born to devout Christian mother; pursued monastic life; returned to Antioch as priest, “Golden Mouthed” preacher; consecrated against his will as archbishop of the Church of Saint Sophia; reform of clergy; Euxoxia did not like him;
Jerome
ursued classical learning and then monastic life; good friends with Roman widows; studied Hebrew; Creator of the Vulgate (Bible translated into Latin from original languages);
Ambrose
Unbaptized when elected Bishop of Milan; influenced Augustine;
Monica
Mother of Augustine who prayed both her husband and son into the kingdom of God;
Theodosius I
Reinstated Gregory of Nyssa;
Be able to list two points of conflict between Augustine and Pelagius and identify each one’s position.
–Humanity Before Fall
Augustine: Innocent with free will, immortal
Pelagius: innocent with free will, mortal
–Human Will
Augustine: Enslaved to sin, can choose only to obey civil laws
Pelagius: always free, can choose to follow sin and Adam or righteousness and God
Confessions by Augustine
first autobiography written in western world; written as a prayer; spiritual autobiography
The City of God by Augustine
written after the fall of Rome to vandals which pagans blamed on Christianity; Augustine’s answer and philosophy of history; two cities built on love (city of God–love of God; earthly city–love of self) both cities are intermingled but irreconcilable;
Augustine Against Manichaeism
Human has free will, not predetermined; evil is departure from good just as darkness is absence of light; evil is not eternal principle;
Augustine Against Donatism
Validity of ordination and sacraments comes from authority of Christ, not character of minster; visible church is mixed field of wheat and tares; Compulsion in faith is right (an act of love to bring one to true faith and into true church)
Augustine Against Pelagianism
Power of sin takes hold of will, we cannot move our will against it; still free but only to sin; when redeemed free both to sin and not to sin; in heaven, only free to sin; Grace is irresistible, given by God only to those who have been predestined;
Original Sin
We inherit sin nature from Adam; not free not to sin, therefore, not free to accept grace
Mass of Damnation
Because of original sin, all humanity if born into mass of damnation
Predestination
God reaches down and choose the elect, who are saved through external work of the Word and internal work of the Holy Spirit
Single Predestination
God passes over those who are not elect, but does not predestine them to damnation; they are condemned because of their sin nature (Augustine)
