Copyright © By Dr. Adel Elsaie, Book Title: "Please Revise the Bible, Again"

3.8 Nestorians

 

This sect was founded by Nestorius who had likely been  born of Persian parents. He studied at Antioch before becoming a monk at the nearby Euprepius Monastery and a presbyter (priest) shortly thereafter. He acquired a great reputation for asceticism, orthodoxy and eloquence. He was nominated to the See of Constantinople by Theodosius II in 428. He died shortly after the Council of Chalcedon in 451. The Patriarchate of Constantinople was a highly esteemed position but it was also burdened with political dangers.

Just as the first Ecumenical council started because of the theological crisis between Arius and Athanasius, third council in Ephesus in 431 started due to another crisis between Nestorius, the See of Constantinople, and Cyril, the See of Alexandria.

Cyril was the leading antagonist to Nestorius. He was born in Alexandria to Greek pagan parents around 375. Cyril was destined at an early age for an ecclesiastical career. His uncle, Theophilus, was Patriarch of Alexandria and convened the Synod of the Oak in 403 C.E. where Cyril assisted him. He succeeded his uncle to the See of Alexandria in 412 and retained it until his death in 444. Cyril, in many ways, was a shrewd politician. He sought the backing of the Roman Church to rally supporters.

The crisis centered on the identity of the Virgin Mary. Nestorius did not really believe in the trinity, and taught that Jesus was the Christ and the Messiah. Accordingly, he believed that the Virgin Mary was the mother of the Christ and the Messiah. God-bearer or the mother of god first appears in written sources in a letter written in 324 by Bishop Alexander of Alexandria. But these terms were unacceptable to Nestorius. On the advice of Cyril, the teachings of Nestorius were condemned. Cyril held his own synod in Alexandria that same year. All the parties agreed to settle the dispute through a general council.

Theodosius, who had appointed Nestorius to the patriarchate, was not convinced that Nestorius was guilty of heresy and was reluctant to call for a general council. He reluctantly conceded to Cyril's request on November 30, 430 partly as a result of the unrest which was going on in the city. He issued a letter calling for a council and ordered all Metropolitans of the empire to meet in Ephesus, 431. The Bishop of Ephesus is so anti-Nestorius.

The East Roman emperor Theodosius II (408-450) and the West Roman emperor Valentianus III (425-455) convened this third Ecumenical Council. These two emperors were not really interested in religion or complicated theology. They were young and fun loving. Theodosius II devoted himself wholly to his hobbies, and tyrannically levied taxes on his subjects to pay for his extravagant way of life. It is no wonder that Theodosius was completely under the influence of his power hungry elder sister Pulcheria, who opposed Nestorius. Pulcheria acted as a regent for her brother, for some time, and publicized herself as a virgin. After her brother’s death, she had his rival murdered. As for the West Roman Empire, Valentianus was controlled by his mother, and ultimately was assassinated.

Nestorius refused to appear in the council before his supporters, the oriental bishops, arrived. In the absence of Nestorius, the supporters of Cyril moved quickly to depose him. They finally pronounced a formal statement against Nestorius. Meanwhile, outside there was a crowd gathered, eagerly anticipating the outcome. It is worthy to note that there were demonstrations of women in Ephesus supporting the position of Cyril. When the decision of Nestorius' deposition was announced to the gathered crowd, the women formed a procession to show their support. These women of Ephesus who expressed a special veneration for Mary were following an older tradition and devotion of another virgin and mother, Artemis (Diana) of the Ephesians, the Virgin Goddess of the moon and childbirth, the daughter of Zeus, and the twin sister of Apollo,

 

Acts 19:28 “When they heard this, they were enraged and shouted, "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!”

 

This council declared that the Virgin Mary is “God’s bearer” or “Mother of God.” The council stated that what Mary bore, was not a human closely united with God, but a single and undivided entity who is God and man at the same time. One attendant who expressed reservation on the title “God’s bearer” was condemned for making a big deal of contrast between Jesus the God and Jesus the man. The council of Ephesus led to a lasting division between the East and the West. The Christians in east Syria and Mesopotamia, living mainly in the Persian Empire and outside the Byzantine borders, felt unable to accept that definition of Mary. While in the West, it was believed that the Church of the East divided Christ into two different entities.

 

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