Arian heresy: essence, history of foundation, ideology

2024 Author: Miguel Ramacey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 06:11

The Arian heresy is one of the most significant in the history of the medieval church. It appeared in the 9th century AD and shook the very foundations of Christianity. Even after several centuries, this teaching continues to influence the modern world.

What is heresy

Heresy is the deliberate distortion of the doctrine of any religion. This can be either a retreat in the understanding of certain theological dogmas, or the creation of separate religious schools or sects.

During the formation of Christianity, various heretical teachings posed a serious threat to the church. The main tenets of religion were not yet ordered and clearly formulated, which gave rise to many interpretations that often contradicted the very essence of the Christian faith.

Most of the heresiarchs of the Middle Ages were sincere believers, well educated and famous preachers. They were popular and had a certain influence on people.

Prerequisites for the birth of Arianism

The first centuries of the existence of Christianity, its followers were subjected to severe persecutionaround the world. Only in 313 was the Edict of Milan issued by the emperors Constantine and Licinius, according to which all creeds on the territory of Rome were recognized as equal.

By the time Arianism appeared, the persecution of believers had ceased and the Christian Church had taken the lead in the Roman Empire. Its influence on public and political life spread very quickly. Thus, discord within the church was reflected in the life of the entire imperial structure.

Heresies and schisms were common for that time. They were not always based on ideological theological differences. Disagreements often arose on the basis of a clash of various economic, political, and ethnic interests. Some social groups tried to fight for their own rights with the help of religion.

In addition, many well-educated, thoughtful people have come to the church. They began to raise questions that had not previously been considered significant. For example, a different understanding of the doctrine of the Holy Trinity became the impetus for the emergence of Arianism.

The Essence of Arianism

So what is this heresy that has stirred up the entire Christian world? In short, Arianism is the doctrine according to which Jesus Christ is the creation of God the Father, therefore, is not consubstantial (that is, equal) to him, but is lower. Thus, God the Son does not have the fullness of divinity, but becomes only one of the instruments of the higher power.

Later, Arius somewhat softened his position, calling the Son the most perfect creation of the Father, not like the rest. Butthe essence is still the same.

The Arian heresy contradicts the modern understanding of the dogma of the Holy Trinity, which states that all divine hypostases, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, are consubstantial, without beginning and equal.

But there were no clearly formulated dogmas in the early Christian church. There was no single creed yet. The theologians each used their own terminology and were calm about debates and discrepancies. Only with the coming to power of Constantine the Great did the Roman Empire demand that the church adopt a single doctrine with precise wording.

Priest Arius

Arius, after whom the teaching is named, was a prominent preacher and thinker of the 4th century. He served as presbyter of the Bavkal church in the city of Alexandria. Arius was a talented and charismatic person, a favorite of the people. Bishop Achilles of Alexandria named him as one of his successors before his death.

But in the struggle for the episcopal throne, his rival Alexander won. He was an ardent opponent of the heresy of Arianism and began a full-scale persecution of the presbyter and his followers. Arius was excommunicated, defrocked, and fled to Nicomedia. The local bishop Eusebius ardently stood up for him. It was in the east that the teachings of Arius were received especially favorably and gained many supporters.

When the emperor Constantine ascended the throne, defeating Licinius in 324, he faced the heated ecclesiastical disputes head on. His idea was to make Christianity the statereligion of the Roman Empire. Therefore, he actively intervened in the course of the discussion and sent his envoys to Arius and Alexander demanding reconciliation.

But the political and religious views of these people were too different to easily forget the differences. And in 325, the first Ecumenical Council in Nicaea was convened in church history.

What are church councils

The tradition of church councils began in the year 50, when the apostles, according to the book of Acts, gathered together in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost. Since then, church hierarchs have met to solve serious problems affecting the entire church.

But so far these gatherings have been limited to local bishops. No one before Constantine could have imagined a discussion of doctrinal issues at the level of the entire Roman Empire. The new emperor was going to strengthen his power with the help of Christianity, and he needed scale.

The Russian word "universal" is a translation of the Greek "inhabited land". For the Greco-Roman Empire, this meant that the decisions of the councils were made in all the territory known to them. Today, these decrees are considered significant for the entire Christian church. The Orthodox world recognizes the decisions of seven councils, the Catholic world recognizes many more.

Nicaea Council

The First Ecumenical Council was held in Nicaea in 325. This city was located next to the eastern imperial residence of Nicomedia, which made it possible for Constantine to personally attend the debate. In addition, Nicaea was the fiefdomWestern church, where Arius had few supporters.

The emperor considered the party of the Bishop of Alexandria to be stronger and more suitable to lead the dominant church, so he took his side in the dispute. The authority of Rome and Alexander significantly influenced the decision.

The council lasted about three months, and as a result, the Nicene Creed was adopted, based on the Caesarean baptismal creed with some additions. This document affirmed the understanding of the Son of God as uncreated and consubstantial with the Father. The Arian heresy was condemned and its followers sent into exile.

Arianism after Nicaea

Almost immediately after the end of the Ecumenical Council, it became clear that not all bishops support the new Creed. It was very different from the traditions prevailing in the eastern dioceses. Arius's teaching was seen as more logical and intelligible, so many were in favor of accepting compromise formulations.

Another stumbling block was the word "consubstantial". It is never used in the texts of Holy Scripture. Moreover, it was associated with the heresy of the modalists, condemned at the Council of Antioch back in 268.

Emperor Constantine himself, seeing that the split in the church after the expulsion of the Arians only intensified, spoke out in favor of softening the wording of the Creed. He returns the exiled bishops and sends into exile those already supporters of Niceneism. It is known that at the end of his life he even received baptism from one of the most devoted Arianpriests of Eusebius of Nicomedia.

The emperor's sons supported various Christian currents. Therefore, Niceneism flourished in the west, and the Arian heresy in the east, but in a more moderate version. Her followers called themselves the Omi. Even Arius himself was pardoned and was already preparing for the return of his priesthood, but suddenly died.

In essence, Arianism was the dominant direction until the convening of the Ecumenical Council in Constantinople. This was also facilitated by the fact that mainly representatives of the Eastern Church were sent as missionaries to the barbarian tribes in Europe. Many of the Visigoths, Vandals, Rugs, Lombards and Burgundians converted to Arianism.

Second Ecumenical Council

Emperor Theodosius, who succeeded Julian the Apostate on the throne, issued a decree according to which all who refuse to accept the Nicene symbol were declared heretics. For the final approval of the unified teaching of the Church in May 381, the Second Ecumenical Council was convened in Constantinople.

By this time, the positions of the followers of Arius had already significantly weakened even in the east. The pressure of the emperor and the Nicaeans was too strong, so the moderate omii either passed into the bosom of the official church, or became pronouncedly radical. Only the most ardent representatives remained in their ranks, whom the people did not support.

About 150 bishops arrived in Constantinople from different regions, mostly from the east. At the Council, the concept of Arianism was finally condemned, and the Nicene Creed was adopted.as the only true one. It has, however, undergone minor revisions. For example, the item about the Holy Spirit has been expanded.

After the end of the hearings, the bishops sent the conciliar resolutions for approval to Emperor Theodosius, who equalized them with state laws. But the fight against Arianism did not end there. Among the East German and North African barbarians, this doctrine remained dominant until the 6th century. Roman anti-heretical legislation was not applicable to them. Only the conversion of the Lombards to Niceneism in the 7th century put an end to the Arian dispute.

The emergence of Arianism in Russia

Already in the second half of the 9th century, Russia established active trade with Byzantium. Thanks to this, a cultural exchange took place. Byzantine historians wrote about the cases of the baptism of the Russians and the creation of large Christian communities. The Patriarchate of Constantinople announced the foundation of a Russian metropolis somewhere on the Crimean peninsula.

Christianity of the Slavic peoples depended little on both Byzantium and the Roman Empire. The originality was preserved, services were conducted in local languages, sacred texts were actively translated.

By the time Arianism appeared in Russia, the Slavs from the sermon of Cyril and Methodius had already picked up the idea of a universal church, as the apostles understood it. That is, the Christian community, embracing all peoples and united in its diversity. The Slavs of the 9th-10th centuries were distinguished by religious tolerance. They received followers of various Christian teachings, including Irish monks and Arians.

Fight thisheresy was not particularly violent in Russia. After Rome forbade Slavic worship, Methodius moved closer to the Arian communities, which already had prepared priests and liturgical texts in Slavic. He stood up for the national church so much that in one of the Czech chronicles he was called "the Russian archbishop." Byzantium and Rome considered him a follower of the Arian heresy.

False Dmitry and Arian sects

Despite the fact that the teachings of Arius were condemned by the church in Rome and Constantinople, he had many supporters in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe until the 17th century. It is known that large Arian communities existed in the territories of Zaporozhye and the Commonwe alth.

In one of them, in the Polish city of Goshcha, Grishka Otrepiev, the future False Dmitry I, was hiding from the persecution of Tsar Boris. At that time, he was looking for funding from we althy Orthodox nobles and the clergy of Ukraine, but failed. Therefore, he turned to the Arians, completely abandoning the monastic vows.

At the school of the community, Otrepiev studied Latin and Polish, comprehended the basics of the dogma and, according to contemporaries, was very imbued with it. Having received the support of the Arians, he went to their fellow believers in Zaporozhye, where the elders received him with honors.

During the campaign against Moscow, False Dmitry was accompanied by a detachment of Zaporizhzhya Cossacks-Arians, led by Jan Buchinsky, adviser and closest friend of the impostor. The support of the Polish and Ukrainian communities became a serious financial help for Otrepyev, but completely destroyed his reputation onRussia.

The real king could not be a non-Orthodox heretic. Now not only the clergy renounced False Dmitry, but the entire Russian people. Otrepiev was supposed to return the location. Therefore, he did not return to Goscha, but began to seek patronage from the noble Orthodox Lithuanian Adam Vishnevsky.

Pretending to be ill on his estate, the impostor in confession told the priest about his origins and claims to the Moscow throne. Enlisting support, he finally broke with Arianism.

Consequences of Arianism

The history of Arianism is not just a stormy dispute about dogmas that shook the church in the 4th century. The consequences of this split can be seen even in contemporary culture and religion. One of the followers of the Arians today are Jehovah's Witnesses.

Some researchers believe that this teaching indirectly provoked the appearance of images of God in temples and the ensuing dispute with the iconoclasts. The image of Christ in the Arian communities was allowed, because, in their opinion, he was only the creation of the Father, and not God.

But the most important achievement of Arius was that, thanks to disputes with him, the Christian community was able to clearly identify and formulate the main dogmas and rules of church doctrine. Until now, the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed is accepted by all Christian denominations as an indisputable truth.