The Christological councils and their reception
Ephesus, Chalcedon, Constantinople II, and Constantinople III addressed linked questions about the one Christ: who is born of Mary, how divinity and humanity are united, and whether His humanity includes a real human will and activity.
Historical context
The councils occurred amid contested terms, imperial politics, and lasting divisions. Their definitions should be read in sequence and in the wording of the acts, rather than compressed into one slogan.
Key points
- Ephesus defended the one subject of the incarnation and the title Theotokos.
- Chalcedon confessed Christ in two natures without confusion or division.
- Constantinople III affirmed two natural wills and activities in the one Christ.
Scripture
- John 1:14 — The Word became flesh.
- Luke 22:42 — Gethsemane became significant in debate over Christ's willing.
Primary sources
The Ephesian dossier includes Cyril's words:
Cyril's first anathema ties the title Theotokos to the confession that Emmanuel is truly God.
the Emmanuel is very God, and that therefore the Holy Virgin is the Mother of God
Passage context and translation
Cyril's first anathema, reproduced among the Ephesian documents, grounds Theotokos in the identity of the one born from Mary: Emmanuel, truly God. This is Cyril's anathema, not a standalone council creed.
Before the excerpt
If anyone will not confess that
After the excerpt
(Θεοτόκος), inasmuch as in the flesh she bore the Word of God made flesh
Chalcedon defines:
Chalcedon's definition confesses one Christ in two natures without confusion, change, division, or separation.
in two natures, unconfusedly, immutably, indivisibly, inseparably [united]
Passage context and translation
The definition confesses one and the same Christ in two natures while preserving both their distinction and their union in one person. Oriental Orthodox churches do not receive Chalcedon, even though later dialogues have identified significant shared Christological convictions.
Before the excerpt
This one and the same Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son [of God] must be confessed to be
After the excerpt
and that without the distinction of natures being taken away by such union
The fifth council declares:
Constantinople II's fourth anathema rejects dividing the incarnation between two personal subjects.
there is only one Person, to wit: our Lord Jesus Christ, one of the Holy Trinity
Passage context and translation
The fourth anathema rejects accounts of the incarnation that leave the Word and the man Jesus as two personal subjects; its positive clause names the one personal subject.
Before the excerpt
the union of God the Word is made with the flesh animated by a reasonable and living soul, and that such union is made synthetically and hypostatically
After the excerpt
As a matter of fact the word ‘union’ has many meanings
The sixth council confesses:
Constantinople III explicitly teaches two natural wills and two natural operations in the one Christ.
in him are two natural wills and two natural operations
Passage context and translation
The council's Definition of Faith rejects Monothelitism by confessing that Christ's complete divinity and humanity include two natural wills and operations united in his one person. The prior wording in this record came from Pope Agatho's letter earlier on the linked page.
Before the excerpt
defining all this we likewise declare that
After the excerpt
indivisibly, inconvertibly, inseparably, inconfusedly, according to the teaching of the holy Fathers.