The Eastern Orthodox church was deeply involved in the controversies over the Trinity, the lapsed, and the Donatists in the patristic period However, even in the Byzantine Empire the harmony desired by both church and state did not always occur. For one thing, the church continued to be involved in theological controversies.
The Monophysites, who believed Christ had only a divine nature, never accepted the definition of Chalcedon, which held that Christ had both human and divine natures, and continued to resist it. Efforts to reconcile them to the church by popes, the patriarchs of Constantinople, and assorted emperors failed Emperor Justinian, who thought he had discovered a way to create peace in the church without abandoning Chalcedon, called an additional council in 553 The council met in Constantinople but only succeeded in making matters worse The conflict continued.
At the urging of the emperor, Patriarch Sergius of Constantinople (d 638) tried to find a way of explaining the nature of Christ that would be acceptable to both Monophysites and supporters of Chalcedon. He held that Christ had two natures (human and divine) but only one will. This idea came to be called monotbelitism, from the Greek words for "one will." What he meant by "one will" is unclear, but people interpreted him to mean that the divine will took the place of the human Opponents raised the same arguments against his position as were raised against Apollinaris earlier Sergius's teachings gained the support of Pope Honorius (d 638). A long and bitter debate resulted. However, the Muslim conquest of Egypt and Syria where the Monophysites were strongest left the emperor without reason for trying to bring those who disagreed back
CHAOS, DARKNESS, AND EMERGING ORDER (500 - IOOOc e )
into the church. The Council of Constantinople (680-681) condemned mon- othelitism and labeled Pope Honorius a heretic (one who rejects the true faith). 5
Another controversy started in the eighth century that was particularly important in the East, it concerned the use of icons (drawings or paintings of Christ, the Virgin Mary, or saints) as aids to worship in churches. The early church had no problem with the use of these images. They had become very popular among average Christians. Through the ages some leading bishops had expressed concern that icons could lead the masses into idolatry but had not forbade their use.
Several eighth-century Byzantine emperors moved against the use of icons. In 754 Constantine V called a council that outlawed their use. The West generally ignored the law forbidding images. The East was torn apart and for years conflict raged between iconoclasts (destroyers of images) and iconodules (worshipers of images). One defender of images was the monk Saint John of Damascus (ca. 675—749). John argued that images were found in the Bible. Even more importantly, the incarnation and the Eucharist were physical means through which the divine was made present. If that were the case, then the images used in the church could not be bad The icons were thus "books" for the uneducated who were lifted by the images to the invisible world for which they stood
Eventually the iconodules won out in the East. A council meeting at Ni- caea in 787 restored the use of images, although they had to be painted in low relief with no features standing out. Icons have remained a very important part of worship in the Eastern church and are considered "windows into heaven" through which the faithful may experience contact with the divine. The Western church allowed statues of religious persons as part of its worship practices, which was unacceptable to the East. The problem of possible idolatry with the use of icons or statues in worship would reappear in the Reformation.
John of Damascus made another significant contribution to the Eastern church in his well-regarded Fount of Wisdom. The Fount is not a work of original theology but is a summary of Christian theology until the time of John of Damascus. It presents the teachings of the Greek fathers on major doctrines such as the Trinity, creation, the incarnation, the Virgin Mary, angels, and the Eucharist. The book was used extensively in the Eastern church without comment. The East believed there was no need to elaborate beyond what John had said. In the West it also would influence a number of thinkers.
An important conflict occurred in the ninth century between East and West over the Filiocjue. The original Nicene Creed had said that the Spirit came from the Father. The Filiocjue adds "and the Son" to this. The indication is that the Spirit came from both the Father and the Son This idea seems to have
CHRISTIANITY IN THE MIDDLE AGES
originated in Spain and made its way to the royal court of Charlemagne. When some Frankish Benedictine monks recited the creed with the Filiocjue in their monastery on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem, the Orthodox were outraged They demanded to know who had given the Franks the right to alter the creed The theologians associated with Charlemagne's court took up the battle The situation worsened because of the rivalry between the Byzantine Empire and the Franks.
In the long run, the West kept the Filiocjue in its version of the Nicene Creed, but the East rejected the new addition. The pope then started using the Apostles' Creed to avoid offending either the Byzantines or the Franks The Apostles' Creed thus became the most commonly used creed in the West. The conflict also heightened the schism that had been developing in the church The East and the West stood farther apart than ever.
After the iconoclast controversy, the Eastern church experienced very little internal conflict. As far as the Orthodox church was concerned, the first seven councils of the church had defined Christian doctrine and presented a workable church structure. These are called the Seven Ecumenical Councils and are the only ones recognized in the East. 6 Saint John had given an adequate summary of the teachings of the fathers in the Fount of Wisdom. Nothing else needed to be said. External pressure on the Byzantine Empire also contributed to a trend to resist theological changes. Some scholars argue that the Orthodox church did not continue to develop its theology after the eighth century. Instead, its energy went into creating a rich, deep, and meaningful liturgy. 7