The Council of Constantinople of 843 or the Synod of Constantinople of 843 was a local council (as opposed to an

ecumenical council An ecumenical council, also called general council, is a meeting of bishops and other church authorities to consider and rule on questions of Christian doctrine, administration, discipline, and other matters in which those entitled to vote are ...

) of

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

bishops that was convened in

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

(modern-day

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

) in AD 843 by the

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

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Theodora to confirm iconophilism in the Church. This council is still celebrated on the first Sunday of

Great Lent Great Lent, or the Great Fast (Greek language, Greek: Μεγάλη Τεσσαρακοστή, ''Megali Tessarakosti'' or Μεγάλη Νηστεία, ''Megali Nisteia'', meaning "Great 40 Days", and "Great Fast", respectively), is the most impor ...

in the

Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, officially the Orthodox Catholic Church, and also called the Greek Orthodox Church or simply the Orthodox Church, is List of Christian denominations by number of members, one of the three major doctrinal and ...

, as presecribed by the council. After the council which was under the presidency of the Patriarch Methodios I, the attendees met on 11 March 843 and symbolically processed from the Blachernae Church to the Church of Hagia Sophia bearing an

icon An icon () is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, in the cultures of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Catholic Church, Catholic, and Lutheranism, Lutheran churches. The most common subjects include Jesus, Mary, mother of ...

of the

Mother of God ''Theotokos'' (Greek: ) is a title of Mary, mother of Jesus, used especially in Eastern Christianity. The usual Latin translations are or (approximately "parent (fem.) of God"). Familiar English translations are "Mother of God" or "God-bearer ...

Background

In AD 815, iconoclasm was officially reinstated in the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived History of the Roman Empire, the events that caused the ...

by Leo the Armenian. This period is generally referred to as the ''Second Iconoclasm'' and lasted until of the Council of Constantinople in 843. In 829, Theophilos became the sole emperor and began an intensification of iconoclasm with an edict in 832 forbidding the veneration of icons. After the death of Theophilos in January of 842, the empire was inherited by the infant

Michael III Michael III (; 9/10 January 840 – 24 September 867), also known as Michael the Drunkard, was Byzantine emperor from 842 to 867. Michael III was the third and traditionally last member of the Amorian dynasty, Amorian (or Phrygian) dynasty. He ...

and managed by his mother Theodora until 856. The eunuch and ''

Logothetes tou dromou The (), in English usually rendered as Logothete of the Course/Drome/ or Postal Logothete, was the head of the department of the Public Post (, , or simply , ), and one of the most senior fiscal ministers (logothetes) of the Byzantine Empire. H ...

Theoktistos Theoktistos or Theoctistus (; died 20 November 855) was a leading Byzantine official during the second quarter of the 9th century and the ''de facto'' head of the regency for the underage emperor Michael III from 842 until his dismissal and ...

was appointed as coregent with Theodora and was her aid during her regency. It is unclear whether or not Theophilos, being an iconoclast, had known that his wife Theodora was an iconophile. Theoktistos (who as coregent became a driving force against iconoclasm according to the historians

Theophanes Continuatus ''Theophanes Continuatus'' () or ''Scriptores post Theophanem'' (, "those after Theophanes") is the Latin name commonly applied to a collection of historical writings preserved in the 11th-century Vat. gr. 167 manuscript.Kazhdan (1991), p. 2061 It ...

, Genesios, John Skylitzes, and Zonaras) advocated for the replacement of the iconoclast patriarch John the Grammarian with Methodios I who had earlier been imprisoned by Theophilos. Theodora consented, and Methodios was chosen to become the patriarch of Constantinople during the council on March 3 or 4, 843. After he was elevated (probably a week later on March 11), he immediately disposed of and replaced a great number of iconoclast bishops in the empire.

Proceedings

On March 3 or 4 of AD 843, a council was convened by Theodora. Little is known about the details of the council, and the lengthiest extant description of it comes from the ''Vitae of Sts. David, Symeon and George''. The actual location of the synod is a point of dispute. The ''Synodicon Vetus'' and many other authorities name the Kanikleiou Palace, the home of Theoktistos, but there is some indication that this was the location of a pre-council meeting, while the actual synod location was held at the Blachernae Church. Notable attendees of the council were Patriarch Methodios, Theodora, Theoktistos, Sergios Niketiates, and several iconoclast clergymen. The objective of the council was principally to reaffirm the canonical decisions regarding the proper veneration of icons that the

Second Council of Nicaea The Second Council of Nicaea is recognized as the last of the first seven ecumenical councils by the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church. In addition, it is also recognized as such by Old Catholic Church, Old Catholics and others. ...

, the seventh

, had already made in AD 787. To do this, the council condemned two iconoclast councils, Hieria (754) and

(815), and disposed of any bishops who did not respect the resolutions of the Nicea council. These bishops were replaced by iconophile bishops who had been exiled during the Second Iconoclasm. The Council of Hieria had also previously been condemned by the 787 Nicea council. As a condition for signing the resolution of the 843 council, Theodora required that the

anathema The word anathema has two main meanings. One is to describe that something or someone is being hated or avoided. The other refers to a formal excommunication by a Christian denomination, church. These meanings come from the New Testament, where a ...

that the Church had placed on her late husband be lifted.

Celebration

It is likely that the official elevation of Methodios and restoration of the veneration of icons took place a week after the council on

Cheesefare Sunday Maslenitsa (; ; ; ), also known as Butter Lady, Butter Week, Crepe week, or Cheesefare Week, is an Eastern Slavic religious and folk holiday which has retained a number of elements of Slavic mythology in its ritual. It is celebrated during the ...

in the Church of Hagia Sophia, which would be March 11, 843 (it was traditional to elevate a hierarch on a Sunday). Methodios himself wrote that there were

monks A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

from all over the empire present, including

Mount Athos Mount Athos (; ) is a mountain on the Athos peninsula in northeastern Greece directly on the Aegean Sea. It is an important center of Eastern Orthodoxy, Eastern Orthodox monasticism. The mountain and most of the Athos peninsula are governed ...

. Participants symbolically processed from the Blachernae Church to the Church of Hagia Sophia, bearing an icon of the Mother of God to adorn the barren cathedral. The ''Vitae of Sts. David, Symeon and George'' recounts, "At dawn, he took that great

phalanx The phalanx (: phalanxes or phalanges) was a rectangular mass military formation, usually composed entirely of heavy infantry armed with spears, pikes, sarissas, or similar polearms tightly packed together. The term is particularly used t ...

of people and they raised on high with their hands the all-holy icon of our Lord and of the Mother of God who bore Him hristand openly carried it through the street in public procession." According to the ''Book of Ceremonies'', the people chanted "

Kyrie Eleison ', a transliteration of Greek , vocative case of ('' Kyrios''), is a common name of an important prayer of Christian liturgy, also called the ( ; ). In the Bible The prayer, , "Lord, have mercy" derives from a Biblical phrase. Greek , ...

" during the procession.

Synodikon of Orthodoxy

In the Church of Hagia Sophia, the people recited the ''Synodikon of Orthodoxy'', a short profession of the validity of icon veneration which was authored by Patriarch Methodios. This profession of faith is still recited today in the Eastern Orthodox Church on the first Sunday of Great Lent, called the Sunday of Orthodoxy. Beginning in the mid-eleventh century and then increasingly during the Komnenian era (1081–1185), the document received a series of additions. The ''Synodikon'' serves as a fundamental piece of the

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

and

doctrine Doctrine (from , meaning 'teaching, instruction') is a codification (law), codification of beliefs or a body of teacher, teachings or instructions, taught principles or positions, as the essence of teachings in a given branch of knowledge or in a ...

of icons in the Eastern Orthodox Church.

References

Works cited

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * {{cite book, author-last=Treadgold , author-first=Warren , author-link=Warren Treadgold , title=A History of the Byzantine State and Society , publisher=

Stanford University Press Stanford University Press (SUP) is the publishing house of Stanford University. It is one of the oldest academic presses in the United States and the first university press to be established on the West Coast. It is currently a member of the Ass ...