The Nestorian Schism

In the year AD 431 at the Council of Ephesus, Cyril, bishop of Alexandria accused Nestorius, bishop of Constantinople of demeaning the status of Mary and preaching heresy in regards to the divine status of Jesus Christ.  The heresy he was accused of would eventually become known as Nestorianism, however, before this Nestorius represented a school of thought associated with the Antiochs.  Although the ensuing divide between the Catholic Church and Nestorian Christian would include a number of theological and dogmatic differences, not all of which can be traced back to Nestorius, he has always been regarded as the figure head of the movement.

The Council of Ephesus was called together to discuss rumors that claimed Nestorius was refusing to give Mary the title of Theotokos and instead was referring to her as Christokos. What this means is that Nestorius did not believe that Mary was the Mother of God, but simply the Mother of Jesus Christ.  This distinction, while it may seem subtle, calls into the question the divine nature of Jesus Christ.  The later title implies a dualist nature, stating that the Jesus of earth was not divine; instead he was mortal and that he has a separate divine nature located in heaven.

Distinctions regarding Jesus’ divinity and status as the son of God have always been theologically and scholarly hard to grasp, and therefore debated.  The Catholic Church often refers to the issue as one of its Mysteries, as demonstrated in the Trinity; three parts but only one God.  However, when Nestorius made the claim that, “retaining Christ’s human nature as distinct and separate from his divine nature was essential to ensure complete salvation” (Wessel 2), he placed Cyril and the Alexandrians in peril.  Since the Alexandrians believed that participating in the Eucharist was their means to salvation, dividing Christ’s nature would have meant that they would be unable to access his divine nature through the human nature of the Eucharist after the act of Transubstantiation (when the Eucharist becomes Christ’s body and blood).  Nestorius argued that it was through ‘emulating’ Christ and not ‘participating’ in him that one can obtain salvation.  Therefore, the subtle change of title drew a sharp line dividing two very distinct theologies.(Wessel 2).

There were to be a number of official Church gatherings to further discuss the issue of Nestorious and the Antioch dogma.  One would take place in 433, known as the Formula of Reunion.  In 436 Nestorius was forced to flee to Egypt, and in 451, at the Council of Chalcedon, he was titled a heretic.

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