The Council of Laodicea was a regional Christian

synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word '' synod'' comes from the meaning "assembly" or "meeting" and is analogous with the Latin word mean ...

of approximately thirty clerics from

Asia Minor Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...

which assembled about 363–364 in Laodicea,

Phrygia Pacatiana In classical antiquity, Phrygia ( ; grc, Φρυγία, ''Phrygía'' ) was a kingdom in the west central part of Anatolia, in what is now Asian Turkey, centered on the Sangarios River. After its conquest, it became a region of the great empire ...

Historical context

The council took place soon after the conclusion of the war between the Roman Empire and the Persian Empire, waged by Emperor Julian. Julian, the last Constantinian emperor, attempted a revival of paganism. After his death in battle on 26 June 363, officers of the army elected the Christian Jovian as his successor. Jovian, in a precarious position, far from supplies, ended the war with Persia unfavorably for Rome. He was soon succeeded by Valentinian I, who named his brother Valens as

Emperor of the East This is a list of the Byzantine emperors from the foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD, which marks the conventional start of the Eastern Roman Empire, to its fall to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. Only the emperors who were recognized as le ...

Major concerns

The major concerns of the council involved regulating the conduct of church members. The council expressed its decrees in the form of written rules or canons. Among the sixty canons decreed, several aimed at: * Maintaining order among

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

s, clerics and laypeople (canons 3–5, 11–13, 21–27, 40–44, 56–57) * Enforcing modest behavior of clerics and laypeople (4, 27, 30, 36, 53–55) * Regulating approach to heretics (canons 6–10, 31–34, 37),

Jews Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

(canons 16, 37–38) and pagans (canon 39) * Outlawing the keeping of the Sabbath (Saturday), and encouraging rest on Sunday (canon 29) * Outlining liturgical practices (canons 14–20, 21–23, 25, 28, 58–59) * Restrictions during

lent Lent ( la, Quadragesima, 'Fortieth') is a solemn religious moveable feast#Lent, observance in the liturgical calendar commemorating the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring Temptation of Jesus, temptation by Satan, according ...

(canons 45, 49–52) * Admission and instruction of catechumens and neophytes (canons 45–48) * Specifying a

biblical canon A biblical canon is a set of texts (also called "books") which a particular Jewish or Christian religious community regards as part of the Bible. The English word ''canon'' comes from the Greek , meaning " rule" or " measuring stick". The ...

(canons 59–60)

Biblical canon

The 59th canon forbade the readings in churches of uncanonical books. The 60th canon listed canonical books, with the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chris ...

containing 26 books, omitting the

Book of Revelation The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament (and consequently the final book of the Christian Bible). Its title is derived from the first word of the Koine Greek text: , meaning "unveiling" or "revelation". The Book of ...

, and the

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

including 22 books from the

Tanakh The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
'' deuterocanonical books including I and II Esdras, the Book of Baruch, and the Epistle of Jeremiah. It is also believed that they may have demonized the " Second Book of Enoch", which led to its degeneration.Council of Laodicea
at ''bible-researcher.com''. Retrieved 2011-10-05. The authenticity of the 60th canon is doubtful, as it is missing from various Greek manuscripts and may have been added later to specify the extent of the preceding 59th canon. The Latin version of the canons of Laodicea consistently omit the canon list. Around 350, Cyril of Jerusalem produced a list of biblical books matching that from the Council of Laodicea.

Astrology

The council marks the first occasion in Christianity of the explicit condemnation of

astrology Astrology is a range of divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that claim to discern information about human affairs and terrestrial events by studying the apparent positions of celestial objects. Di ...

, a matter on which theologians and legislators had not yet reached consensus.

References

External links

"Synod of Laodicea (4th Century)", The Canons
with annotations, from Schaff * Philip Schaff (ed.), ''The Seven Ecumenical Councils'' (''A Select Library of the Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers of the Christian Church'', vol. XIV), "The Canons of the Councils of Ancyra, Gangra, Neocæsarea, Antioch and Laodicea, which Canons were Accepted and Received by the Ecumenical Synods"
Synod of Laodicea
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