Nestorianism

Nestorianism was a Schism within Christianity that lasted between 431-544 CE.
It was based on the teachings of Nestorius (386-450 CE) who was Patriarch of Constantinople (428-431 CE). The Nestorian Schism resulted in Antiochine Christianity (Nestorianism) moving East permanently.

Nestorius (386-450 CE) was brought up in the School of Antioch in Syria, which did not believe in Monophysitism, and instead believed in Christ’s dual Nature as being Human and Divine.
Whereas the School of Alexandria in Egypt believed in Monophysitism and emphasised Christ’s Divinity. Nestorius became involved in a Debate with Cyril, Patriarch of Alexandria (412-444 CE), over the Christological Controversies.
This was the debate over Nature of Christ, whether he was Divine or Human. They were resolved by the Third and Fourth Ecumenical Councils which both declared Nestorius and his teachings as Heretical.
This was to be the second major schism in the Christian Church, after the First Council of Nicaea (325 CEE) had adopted Trinitarianism over Arianism.

The Council of Ephesus was the third of the Ecumenical Councils and was held at Ephesus in 431 CE.
The Aim of the Council which was convened by Nestorius, was to resolve the existing split over the Christological Controversy, between the two factions in the Church.
Nestorius proposed to the Council that the Virgin Mary’s title be changed from:
- ‘Theotokos’: meaning ‘God Bearer’. This was because Nestorius believed that the Union of God and Man was impossible. Instead Nestorius proposed a new Title:
- ‘Christokos’: meaning ‘Christ Bearer’ which acknowledged his Human ‘Nature’ as well as his Divine ‘Nature’.
Cyril, Patriarch of Alexandria, opposed Nestorius for denying that the Virgin Mary was the Mother of God.
The Council rejected the title ‘Christokos’ and upheld the title ‘Theotokos’.
The Consequence of the Council was that Nestorius was condemned as a Heretic and the Christian Church permanently split between the East and the West.

The Council was convened by supporters of Nestorianism and attempted to oppose the conclusions of the First Council of Ephesus over the Christological Controversies.
The Second Council of Ephesus upheld that Christ had one united Nature ‘Miaphysis’ and that he was a divine human.
Miaphysitism was the Belief that Jesus Christ had one ‘Nature’, that was both Divine and Human, but not two separate ‘Natures’.
The Second Council of Ephesus was later branded as a ‘Robber Council’ by the Fourth Ecumenical Council and it was never accepted as one of the Ecumenical Councils.

The Council of Chalcedon was the fourth of the Ecumenical Councils and held at Chalcedon in 451 CE.
The Council was specifically convened to repudiate the Second Council of Ephesus of 449 CE.
The Second Council of Ephesus was branded as a ‘Robber Council’, and it was not accepted as the Fourth of the Ecumenical Councils.
Nestorius was again condemned as a Heretic for his teachings. This Council ended Nestorianism in the West.

The Council supported:

Dyophysitism:
- The Belief that Christ existed as two separate ‘Natures’ known as:
- Hypostatic Union: that Jesus Christ had two separate Natures, the Human and the Divine, which were united within one individual.
- This became the accepted Doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, the Maronite Church and of subsequent Protestant Churches. They consider Monophysitism to be Heretical.
- Consequently, they are known as the Chalcedonian Churches.

The Council opposed and made Heretical::

Monophysitism:
- The Belief that Jesus Christ had one ‘Nature’ that was Divine.
- Monophysites believed that because Christ was an Incarnation of God (the Virgin Birth), therefore his Divine Nature and his Human Nature were not separate, but combined into one Divine Nature.
- Monophysitism was the view of the Alexandrian Church in Egypt, which was opposed to the Dyophisitism of the Antiochine Church in Syria.
Miaphysitism:
- The Belief that Jesus Christ had one ‘Nature’, that was both Divine and Human, but not two separate ‘Natures’.

The Nestorian Schism lasted between 431 and 544 CE.
The Church of the East was formed during the first century CE. It covered the Aramaic speaking region of Assyria, including parts of Turkey, Syria, Iraq and Persia. It later became the Assyrian Church of the East.
The Church of the East accepted the first two Ecumenical Councils, but not the conclusions of the Second or Third.
In 424 CE, the Church of the East, influenced by the Sassanid Empire which was concerned over Byzantine influence in Persia, declared its independence from Constantinople. The Church subsequently welcomed the Nestorian Followers and adopted Nestorianism.
The Churches who followed Nestorius relocated into Persia ruled by the Sassanian Empire.
In 489 CE, Zeno, the Eastern Emperor closed the School of Edessa for being too Nestorian, and the Nestorian scholars finally moved to Nisibis in Persia, where it became the School of Nisibis.
Nestorianism spread in the East, but lost all influence in the West.

After the Council of Chalcedon rejected Monophysitism, the Oriental Orthodox Churches then adopted Miaphysitism. This became the Doctrine of the Oriental Orthodox Churches who then left the Western Church based at Rome and Constantinople.
The Oriental Churches accept the first three Ecumenical Councils, but do not accept the Ruling of the Fourth Ecumenical Council of Chalcedon of 451 CE.