Third Council of Dvin
Date607 or 609-610
Accepted byArmenian Apostolic Church
Previous council
Second Council of Dvin
LocationDvin
Chronological list of ecumenical councils

The Third Council of Dvin was a church council held in 607 (or 609-610[1]) in the city of Dvin (then in Sasanian Armenia).

Overview

This council (or synod) was the culmination of a series of post-Chalcedon debates on the nature(s) of Christ. The schism within the Armenian Church which had erupted as a result of the second Chalcedonian Catholicosate in Armenia (591-610), was mended, and the conclusions of the Council of Chalcedon of 451 were explicitly condemned.[2][3]

The Armenian Orthodox Church concluded that both “monophysitism” and the Chalcedonian Definition were to be condemned. Instead the church decided to follow the doctrine of Cyril of Alexandria, who described Christ as being of one incarnate nature, with both divine and human nature being united.[4]

The synod saw the election of an Armenian, Abraham I of Aghbatan, as Catholicos. Abraham condemned the Council of Chalcedon in accordance with the decision of the Second Council of Dvin.[5]

Split with the Georgian Church

By the end of the council, the Armenians were fully opposed to the Christological definition given by the Chalcedonian Church. The Georgian Orthodox Church decided to join with Constantinople in upholding the Chalcedonian definition of the dual nature of Christ.[6] This Council established the distinct split between the Armenian and Georgian Churches.

Although a rift was established with the Georgian church, the Council led to mending of an internal rift within the Armenian Church itself.[7]

A Fourth Council of Dvin was held in 648 to discuss possible reunification with the Georgian church, but this idea was rejected.[8]

Other elements

The council also established seven canon laws regarding the orthodoxy of bishops. In particular, the laws dealt with bishops who had deviated from the faith.[9]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Cone, Steven D.; Rea, Robert F. (2019-09-05). "Chapter 2: The Church from 500 to 1500". A Global Church History: The Great Tradition through Cultures, Continents and Centuries. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-0-567-67305-3.
  2. ↑ La Porta 2018, p. 137.
  3. ↑ van Lint 2018, p. 423.
  4. ↑ The Armenian Apostolic Church website
  5. ↑ "The Orthodox Church of Georgia". CNEWA. Retrieved 2020-09-17.
  6. ↑ University of Exeter website
  7. ↑ Augustine Casiday, The Orthodox Christian World (Routledge, 21 Aug 2012) page 47-48.
  8. ↑ van Lint, Theo (2018). "councils of the Church, Armenia". In Nicholson, Oliver (ed.). The Oxford Dictionary of Late Antiquity, Volume 1: A–I. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 423. ISBN 978-0-19-881624-9.
  9. ↑ Book of Canon Law pdf, page 26

Sources


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