Eutychian Heresy

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Eutyches (; c. 375–454) or Eutyches of ConstantinopleEncyclopædia Britannica The is a general knowledge, general-knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It has been published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. since 1768, although the company has changed ownership seven times. The 2010 version of the 15th edition, ...

'', 1 Jan. 2022 was a

presbyter Presbyter () is an honorific title for Christian clergy. The word derives from the Greek ''presbyteros'', which means elder or senior, although many in Christian antiquity understood ''presbyteros'' to refer to the bishop functioning as overseer ...

and

archimandrite The title archimandrite (; ), used in Eastern Christianity, originally referred to a superior abbot ('' hegumenos'', , present participle of the verb meaning "to lead") whom a bishop appointed to supervise several "ordinary" abbots and monaste ...

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 ...

. He first came to notice in 431 at the

First Council of Ephesus The Council of Ephesus was a council of Christian bishops convened in Ephesus (near present-day Selçuk in Turkey) in AD 431 by the Roman Emperor Theodosius II. This third ecumenical council, an effort to attain consensus in the church th ...

, for his vehement opposition to the teachings of

Nestorius Nestorius of Constantinople (; ; ) was an early Christian prelate who served as Archbishop of Constantinople from 10 April 428 to 11 July 431. A Christian theologian from the Catechetical School of Antioch, several of his teachings in the fi ...

. Eutyches was condemned for having adopted a polar opposite view of

Nestorianism Nestorianism is a term used in Christian theology and Church history to refer to several mutually related but doctrinary, doctrinarily distinct sets of teachings. The first meaning of the term is related to the original teachings of Christian t ...

, where the two natures (Greek: ''hypostases'') of Christ fuse together to form one, single Divine nature, dubbed

Monophysitism Monophysitism ( ) or monophysism ( ; from Greek , "solitary" and , "nature") is a Christological doctrine that states that there was only one nature—the divine—in the person of Jesus Christ, who was the incarnated Word. It is rejected as he ...

. This was condemned at the

Council of Chalcedon The Council of Chalcedon (; ) was the fourth ecumenical council of the Christian Church. It was convoked by the Roman emperor Marcian. The council convened in the city of Chalcedon, Bithynia (modern-day Kadıköy, Istanbul, Turkey) from 8 Oct ...

and

Third Council of Ephesus The Third Council of Ephesus was held in the Anatolian city of Ephesus in 475. It was presided over by Pope Timothy II of Alexandria, and also attended by Peter the Fuller, then Patriarch of Antioch, and Paul the Exarch of Ephesus. It ratified a ...

. He himself, however, would reject this interpretation of his thought.

Life

Eutyches was an archimandrite of a monastery outside the walls of Constantinople, where he ruled over 300 monks. He was much respected and was godfather to Chrysaphius, an influential

eunuch A eunuch ( , ) is a male who has been castration, castrated. Throughout history, castration often served a specific social function. The earliest records for intentional castration to produce eunuchs are from the Sumerian city of Lagash in the 2 ...

at the court of Theodosius II.Chapman, John. "Eutyches." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 5. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909. 21 Jan. 2014
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Controversy

The

patriarch of Constantinople The ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople () is the archbishop of Constantinople and (first among equals) among the heads of the several autocephalous churches that comprise the Eastern Orthodox Church. The ecumenical patriarch is regarded as ...

, having asserted that

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a female given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religion * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also called the Blesse ...

ought not to be referred to as the "Mother of God" (Greek: ''

Theotokos ''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-beare ...

'', literally "God-bearer"), was deposed by the

Council of Ephesus The Council of Ephesus was a council of Christian bishops convened in Ephesus (near present-day Selçuk in Turkey) in AD 431 by the Roman Emperor Theodosius II. This third ecumenical council, an effort to attain consensus in the church th ...

; in combating this assertion, Eutyches was claimed to have declared that

Jesus Christ Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

was "a fusion of human and divine elements", which caused his deposition as well seventeen years after the

at the 448 AD Synod of Constantinople. Later, his teachings would also be condemned at the

and the

. According to Nestorius, all the human experiences and attributes of Christ are to be assigned to 'the man', as a personal subject distinct from God the Word, though united to God the Word from the moment of conception. The fathers of the Synod of Constantinople argued that in opposition to this Eutyches had inverted the assertion to the opposite extreme, asserting that human nature and divine nature were combined into the single nature of Christ without any alteration, absorption or confusion: that of the incarnate

Word A word is a basic element of language that carries semantics, meaning, can be used on its own, and is uninterruptible. Despite the fact that language speakers often have an intuitive grasp of what a word is, there is no consensus among linguist ...

. Although this accorded with the later teaching of Cyril of Alexandria, Eutyches was accused of having gone beyond Cyril in denying that Christ was "

consubstantial Consubstantiality, a term derived from , denotes identity of substance or essence in spite of difference in aspect. It appears most commonly in its adjectival form, "consubstantial", from Latin ''consubstantialis'', and its best-known use is i ...

with us men", by which he did not intend to deny Christ's full manhood, but to stress His uniqueness. In the surviving acts of the 448 Synod in which Eutyches presents his own defence; however, he himself rejects this understanding of his thought, and the doctrine that became known as "Eutychianism" is presented only by hostile parties as an interpretation of the implications of his thinking. In an overview of the proceedings against Eutyches, which they view as a type of imperial

show trial A show trial is a public trial in which the guilt (law), guilt or innocence of the defendant has already been determined. The purpose of holding a show trial is to present both accusation and verdict to the public, serving as an example and a d ...

directed against Cyril's radical supporters, the historians Patrick T. R. Gray and George A. Bevan argue that "what utycheshimself said gives us no reason to see him as having been anything other than a vigorous champion of a late Cyrillian position."

Career

Eutyches denied that Christ's humanity was limited or incomplete, a view that some thought similar to the Alexandrine doctrine. In any event, the energy and imprudence with which Eutyches asserted his opinions led to his being misunderstood. He was accused of heresy by

Domnus II of Antioch Domnus II of Antioch was the Patriarch of Antioch (441 – 449), nephew of John I of Antioch, and friend of the influential Theodoret of Cyrrhus. Biography Domnus was ordained deacon by the Patriarch Juvenal of Jerusalem in 429 and remained a ...

and Eusebius, bishop of Dorylaeum at a synod presided over by Flavian at

in 448. His explanations deemed unsatisfactory, the council deposed him from his priestly office and excommunicated him. In 449, however, the

Second Council of Ephesus The Second Council of Ephesus was a Christological church synod in 449 convened by Emperor Theodosius II under the presidency of Pope Dioscorus I of Alexandria. It was intended to be an ecumenical council, and it is accepted by the miaphysit ...

was convened by

Dioscorus of Alexandria Dioscorus I (), also known as Dioscorus the Great, was the pope of Alexandria and patriarch of the See of St. Mark who was deposed by the Council of Chalcedon in 451. He was recognized as patriarch by the Coptic Church until his death. He die ...

, who was under the impression that Eutyches had renounced

. Overawed by the presence of a large number of

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

ian monks, the council not only reinstated Eutyches to his office but also deposed Eusebius, Domnus, and Flavian, his chief opponents. The council's judgment conflicted with the opinion of the bishop of Rome,

Leo Leo is the Latin word for lion. It most often refers to: * Leo (constellation), a constellation of stars in the night sky * Leo (astrology), an astrological sign of the zodiac * Leo (given name), a given name in several languages, usually mas ...

, who, departing from the policy of his predecessor

Celestine Celestine is a given name and a surname. People Given name * Pope Celestine I (died 432) * Pope Celestine II (died 1144) * Pope Celestine III (c. 1106–1198) * Pope Celestine IV (died 1241) * Pope Celestine V (1215–1296) * Antipope Cel ...

, had written very strongly to Flavian in support of the doctrine of "two natures in one person". Meanwhile, the emperor

Theodosius II Theodosius II ( ; 10 April 401 – 28 July 450), called "the Calligraphy, Calligrapher", was Roman emperor from 402 to 450. He was proclaimed ''Augustus (title), Augustus'' as an infant and ruled as the Eastern Empire's sole emperor after the ...

died. His successor,

Marcian Marcian (; ; ; 392 – 27 January 457) was Roman emperor of the Byzantine Empire, East from 450 to 457. Very little is known of his life before becoming emperor, other than that he was a (personal assistant) who served under the commanders ...

, married Theodosius's sister,

Pulcheria Aelia Pulcheria (; ; 19 January 398 or 399 – 453) was an Eastern Roman empress who advised her brother, the emperor Theodosius II, during his minority and then became wife to emperor Marcian from November 450 to her death in 453. She was th ...

. In October 451, Marcian and Pulcheria summoned a

council A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or natio ...

that met at

Chalcedon Chalcedon (; ; sometimes transliterated as ) was an ancient maritime town of Bithynia, in Asia Minor, Turkey. It was located almost directly opposite Byzantium, south of Scutari (modern Üsküdar) and it is now a district of the city of Ist ...

, attended by Dioscorus and at which he was condemned. There the

was called a "robber synod," at which some bishops alleged that Dioscorus had threatened them with death if they did not agree with him, a claim that they recanted afterwards. That previous synod's proceedings were annulled, and, in deviance to the teaching of Cyril of Alexandria, it was declared that the two natures subsist individually and 'come together to form one person and one hypostasis.' Eutyches died in exile, but of his later life nothing is known. Those who did not approve the Council of Chalcedon were later erroneously accused of being "Monophysites", and formed the

Oriental Orthodox communion The Oriental Orthodox Churches are Eastern Christian churches adhering to Miaphysite Christology, with approximately 50 million members worldwide. The Oriental Orthodox Churches adhere to the Nicene Christian tradition. Oriental Orthodoxy is ...

. They were wrongfully accused of agreeing with Eutyches's view of 'one nature' in Christ and rejecting Christ's dual consubstantiality (with the

Father A father is the male parent of a child. Besides the paternal bonds of a father to his children, the father may have a parental, legal, and social relationship with the child that carries with it certain rights and obligations. A biological fat ...

and with man); however, the Oriental Orthodox Churches use the term

Miaphysitism Miaphysitism () is the Christological doctrine that holds Jesus, the Incarnate Word, is fully divine and fully human, in one nature ('' physis'', ). It is a position held by the Oriental Orthodox Churches. It differs from the Dyophysitism of ...

to describe their Christology, and explicitly denounce the teachings of Eutyches. The term is directly taken from

Cyril of Alexandria Cyril of Alexandria (; or ⲡⲓ̀ⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ Ⲕⲓⲣⲓⲗⲗⲟⲥ; 376–444) was the Patriarch of Alexandria from 412 to 444. He was enthroned when the city was at the height of its influence and power within the Roman Empire ...

's formula "mia physis tou Theo Logou sesarkomene". In May 1973, the late

Pope of Alexandria The pope (; ), officially the pope of Alexandria and the patriarch of the see of St. Mark, also known as the bishop of Alexandria, or the patriarch of Alexandria, is the leader of the Coptic Orthodox Church, with ancient Christian roots in Eg ...

Pope Shenouda III Pope Shenouda III (3 August 1923 – 17 March 2012) was the 117th Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark. His papacy lasted 40 years, 4 months, and 4 days, from 14 November 1971 until his death. His official title was Pope of ...

, visited Rome and penned a Christological statement with the Pope of Rome,

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI (born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding John XXII ...

, that further detailed this position. Eutyches's memory was kept alive by the Chalcedonians such as Leo I, who used the term ' Eutychian' as a pejorative description of the non-Chalcedonians who in their turn accused the Chalcedonians of being 'Nestorians'.

Notes

References

* G. A. Bevan and P. T. R. Gray, "The Trial of Eutyches: A New Interpretation", ''Byzantinische Zeitschrift'' 101 (2009), 617–57. * Cohen, Samuel (2020). "Eutychianorum furor! Heresiological Comparison and the Invention of Eutychians in Leo I's Christological Polemic". ''Entangled Religions''. 11(4). doi:10.46586/er.11.2020.9434.

ISSN An International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) is an eight-digit to uniquely identify a periodical publication (periodical), such as a magazine. The ISSN is especially helpful in distinguishing between serials with the same title. ISSNs a ...

2363-6696. *

Adolf Harnack Carl Gustav Adolf von Harnack (born Harnack; 7 May 1851 – 10 June 1930) was a Baltic German Lutheran theologian and prominent Church historian. He produced many religious publications from 1873 to 1912 (in which he is sometimes credited ...

, ''History of Dogma'', iv. passim * F. Loofs, ''Dogmnegeschichte'' (4th ed., 1906), 297 ff. * * * *

R. L. Ottley Robert Lawrence Ottley (2 September 1856 – 1 February 1933) was an English theologian. Life He was the son of Lawrence Ottley, Canon of Ripon. He was born in Richmond, Yorkshire, and was educated by his sister Alice OttleyGillian Avery, 'O ...

, ''The Doctrine of the Incarnation'', ii. 97 ff. * Article in Herzog-Hauck, ''Realencyk. für prot. Theol.'', with a full bibliography. * {{Authority control 380s births 450s deaths 4th-century Romans Byzantine theologians Christologists Founders of religions People declared heretics by the first seven ecumenical councils 5th-century Christian clergy 5th-century Christian theologians