The Ecumenical Councils of the Catholic Church: A History

by Joseph F. Kelly

There have been twenty-one universal gatherings 'ecumenical councils' of the Catholic Church. The first opened in 325, the last closed in 1965, and the names of many ring out in the history of the Nicea, Chalcedon, Trent, Vatican II. Though centuries separate the councils, each occurred when the church faced serious crises, sometimes with doctrinal matters, sometimes with moral or even political matters, and sometimes with discerning the church's relation to the world. The councils determined much of what the Catholic Church is and believes. Additionally, many councils impacted believers in other Christian traditions and even in other faiths.  In this accessible, readable, and yet substantial account of the councils Joseph Kelly provides both the historical context for each council as well as an account of its proceedings. Readers will discover how the councils shaped the debate for the following decades and even centuries, and will appreciate the occasional portraits of important conciliar figures from Emperor Constantine to Pope John XXIII.

Genres: Church History, Theology, Religion, History, Catholic

232 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2009

About the author

Joseph F. Kelly, PhD, is professor of religious studies at John Carroll University in Cleveland, Ohio. His books include The Feast of Christmas, The Origins of Christmas, The Ecumenical Councils of the Catholic Church, and others, all published by Liturgical Press.

Reviews

[Dave Betts · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kelly strikes a good balance between pace and detail here. Generally it works well but at times he seems to rush through key events (particularly the case in latter chapters from Luther onwards). However, throughout the book the author provides enough insight to make this a very readable and educational resource.

Of the ecumenical councils, I was most familiar with Constantine's Council of Nicea, and yet still found that I learnt a lot. Kelly's account of the second Council of Nicea and its role in the Iconoclast controversy is extremely well written, and if it wasn't definitely shown to be true would be hard to believe! As a Protestant reader, I appreciated Kelly's charity towards non-Catholic positions, and our to several theological differences were largely irrelevant as a result.

Perhaps my only real quibble was the editorial choice to provide an extensive and helpful bibliography but no references or footnotes to connect his writing and claims to it. This would have been very helpful. Otherwise, a worthwhile read for anyone with an interest in the history of the Church.

[Jacob Frank · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thought-provoking. The Ecumenical Councils were something like constitutional conventions, wherein the church repeatedly reworked and re-elaborated its self-definition. Often enough though, issues were decided by the course of political history, rather than through debate. For example, the first handful of councils revolved around the ecclesiastical power struggle between the sees of Rome, Alexandria, Antioch, and Constantinople, and the political and military contest between the western (Roman, Gothic, Frankish, German, etc.) and eastern (Byzantine) secular rulers. The theological niceties seemed largely to be a sort of code for articulating the underlying political struggle. And the debate was not resolved at a theological level, but rather by the conquest of Alexandria, Antioch, and eventually Constantinople, by Arab and Turkish forces. Similarly, the size and political status of the papal territory was settled by Italian nationalists and by Mussolini, not through conciliar dialogue or via papal decree. In sum, the book was well worth reading, and certainly highlights the progress that was made at Vatican II, particularly with regard to issues such as the freedom of religion and the importance of the laity.

[Tyler · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it. It would be very good for someone who didn't know much at all about the councils. I knew a fair amount already and still very much enjoyed it though.

[Pedro Pascoe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eco's 'The Name of the Rose' has, like many other readers, lead me to a fascination with the Middle Ages, and the debate occuring at the Italian monastery lead me to wonder what the clergy in the middle ages actually argued about. The timing of this book arriving when it did, and reading it as I have, couldn't be better, as I'm currently watching the tv series based on the book as well. Which bodes well for another re-read of 'The Name of the Rose' presently.
My interest in this volume heavily rests on the ecumenical councils of the high middle ages, as a result, and I was tempted to put this slim volume down after the chapter on the Council of Trent. But I'd gone that far, and, frankly, that's where things got real interesting for ecumenical councils as they collided heavily with the modern world, and their own increasing irrelevance. It is easy to comment in hindsight, acknowledged, but the Syllabus of Errors must surely go down in history as one of the most backward-thinking documents ever produced, and is fairly indicative of the church as a whole in our times, let's face it.
It became clear that, after the initial councils, which were debating primarily about theological points, that with the increase of political influence in the Roman Catholic world, the councils would become increasingly about political over theological points. It also became increasingly clear that while advanced age is advantageous in one regard for councils of this kind, in another, they are quite the disadvantage, as the number of popes and delegates dropping off before business got settled was alarming. Oh well.
My own personal wrestles with the contents of this book are more a matter of my criticisms of the venerable institute of the Roman Catholic Church than any literary criticism to be levelled at the book as such. For what it's worth, the book itself is a fairly dry plod through, frankly, fairly dry subject material. While largely sympathetic towards the Catholic Church, the author did take some umbrage (and rightfully so) at the obstinacy of the church's position following Vatican II on contraception. To the tune of Monty Python's 'Every Sperm is Sacred', one would imagine. I took a fair amount of personal glee at the chapter on Vatican I, as the RC church came face to face with the modern world and beat a hasty retreat into dogma and denial. So, while my sphere of interest in ecumenical councils had passed, at least the book kept me entertained watching the RC church squirm and wriggle into the modern world, hissing and fuming every forced step of the way. Recent events involving the Australian High Court overturning of Cardinal Pell's sentence for historic sexual abuses would suggest that the RC church is still far from coming to terms with a world that has well and truly moved on from the world where the RC church reined over the ignorant masses, and likely still enjoys playing political games where it shouldn't.
But I digress.
This is a handy sweep of the ecumenical councils, from the very first to the most recent, and does invite further reading. It offers a brief lead-in giving historic and theological context for each council, which also proviced a view of European history from a theological perspective. I personally would have appreciated an account that balanced sympathy for the RC church with criticism, naturally from the viewpoint of the ecumenical councils, instead of pointing out one or two essentially indefensible positions and leaving others, but that's just me.

[Patrick Obregón · Rating 3 out of 5]

Es común la afirmación de creer en Dios, Jesús o la Virgen, pero no en la iglesia. Así, quienes se denominan creyentes, pero no practicantes, separan la verdad teológica de la institución que la promueve. Sin embargo, ambas manifestaciones religiosas son, en realidad, inescindibles. En efecto, los principios de la fe católica, lejos de provenir de una sola fuente originaria, como lo sería la biblia, ha sido construida a través del desarrollo de la iglesia. En los concilios ecuménicos se han definido los aspectos principales de esa doctrina. Así ocurrió en los primeros concilios, en los que se establecieron posturas tan fundamentales como la divinidad de Jesús (Nicea 325 d. C) o el hecho de que el Espíritu Santo es parte integrante de la trinidad (Constantinopla 381 d. C). También, se acordó que Jesús era un solo ser, con dos naturalezas: divina y humana (Constantinopla III 680 d. C). Y, en general, a través de la historia de los concilios, se promulgaron otras perspectivas teóricas principales, como la naturaleza de la Virgen, su carácter inmaculado, el sacramento de la confesión, las partes integrantes de la eucaristía, la transubstanciación del cuerpo de cristo o la infalibilidad del papa, entre otras. Es difícil, entonces, confiar en una verdad metafísica católica, si esta se ha construido políticamente. Además, varios concilios fueron implementados para discriminar a quien pensaba diferente, o simplemente excluir un grupo por meros intereses políticos. Ello, usualmente resultaba en su excomunión y la condena a muerte de sus miembros. Así ocurrió, por ejemplo, con los templarios, en el concilio de Vienne (1311 d. C). Por esa razón, entre más investigo de la teología y la historia de la religión, más confirmo mi agnosticismo. A pesar de lo anterior, lo cierto es que confío en el rol que tiene la iglesia actual. La institución se ha ido liberalizando desde el Concilio Vaticano II, y hoy se ofrece como un contrapeso al dogmatismo político imperante en el contexto internacional. En 1891, un papa rebelde, León XIII profirió la encíclica Rerum Novarum. Mediante ésta, expresa preocupación por los cambios acelerados del mundo causados por la industrialización y defiende la justicia social, así como la dignidad del trabajador. Fue un documento que resistía una realidad injusta del momento. No es fortuito, entonces, que el papa actual haya honrado esa postura, eligiendo su nombre: León XIV.

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Provides short summaries of the ecumenical councils and their backgrounds. having read a book on the first 7, I feel like some of the background was too shallow, but overall the book seems to provide a concise history.

[Michael McCluskey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent historical account, but not as in-depth concerning agendas, heresy, and other foundational concepts. Enjoyable, but I need deeper examination, maybe not a church-sanctioned text.

[Mr S Jarvis · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good historical look at how Church orthodoxy became established. Not so much out of love.

[Kyle Evens · Rating 5 out of 5]

This outstanding and brief summation serves not only as a primer of ecclesiastical history but more generally as a macrolevel overview of Western history.

[Stephen Prater · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book provides a great history lesson on the Ecumenical Councils of the Church. The author does a remarkable job of writing a very readable and informative account of the councils. The book is just over 200 pages, so this is an introduction rather than a thorough treatment of the councils.