The Fourth Council of Dvin was a

Church Council 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 Ancient Greek () ; the term is analogous with the Latin word . Originally, ...

held in Dvin the ancient capital city of

Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...

in 648.. The council was presided over by Catholicos Nerses III of Ishkhantsi (641-661) and was attended by 17 participating bishops.

Overview

The council was called by the Armenian Crown and chief Bishops to address the ongoing schism between the

Armenian Apostolic Church The Armenian Apostolic Church () is the Autocephaly, autocephalous national church of Armenia. Part of Oriental Orthodoxy, it is one of the most ancient Christianity, Christian churches. The Armenian Apostolic Church, like the Armenian Catholic ...

, and the western

Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pag ...

and

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

churches. Of particular concern was the recent schism with the Georgian Church, which had originally sided with Armenia in rejecting the Chalcedon canons but has recently changed sides by supporting Rome and Constantinople. A strong case of unification with Georgia was pursued at the council but was ultimately rejected. The council also adopted 12 canons, and strengthened church discipline. The singing of Armenian Church hymns was also discussed. These were modified by vardapet Barsegh Jon and approved by Catholicos Nerses III. The system is now known as Jonundir, meaning "arranged by Barsegh Jon.".

Other Dvin councils

Some parts of the Armenian church recognize two more councils. In particular, they see the Fourth Council as occurring in 645, with the meeting in 648 being the Fifth Council (both presided over by Nerses III). A Sixth Council is said to have been held in 719 during the Pontificate of Hovhannes III. The

Paulicians Paulicianism (Classical Armenian: Պաւղիկեաններ, ; , "The followers of Paul"; Arab sources: ''Baylakānī'', ''al Bayāliqa'' )Nersessian, Vrej (1998). The Tondrakian Movement: Religious Movements in the Armenian Church from the 4th ...

and Docetisms were discussed and 32 canons were established, including some on the blessing of marriage and holy objects.Book of Canon Law pdf, page 29
/ref>

References

{{reflist 7th-century church councils 648 Fourth Council Sasanian Armenia Medieval Christian controversies Armenian Apostolic Church 7th century in Armenia Christianity in the Sasanian Empire Ecumenical councils 640s in the Sasanian Empire

Overview

Other Dvin councils

See also

References