The Lateran Synod of 649 and the Council of Constantinople of 680-81: Concord and Divergence
The first part of the lecture will discuss the extraordinary anomalies in the acts of both these councils. In both cases there are serious problems, exceeding those of other comparable councils, over the extent to which the published acts correspond to the actual proceedings. Or, in the case of the Lateran Synod, were the proceedings accurate but the mode in which the council was conducted utterly without precedent? From there this lecture will proceed to the theological competence of each of these councils. The Lateran Synod received excellent guidance from the Greek monks, particularly Maximus the Confessor, who were in Rome at the time. In contrast, the Definition of 681 should startle us with its wilful misunderstanding of its opponents and its inadequate treatment of the one subject in Christ. At the same time, the patristic citations were so carelessly chosen as to add confusion rather than light. How did a council that lasted for ten months produce so inept a definition?
The lecture is a part of the conference From Ctesiphon to Toledo: A Comparative View on Early Church Councils in East and West.
Please note that external guests need to register for events. If you are an external guest, please send an email to guclu-menzee@ceu.edu by October 11 at the latest. We will request a visitor card for you, which you can pick up from the reception desk when you arrive for the event.
You can also attend the lecture on zoom:
The zoom link: https://ceu-edu.zoom.us/j/92585236672?pwd=bk5hbFJVS3NvVm5BM09JV0VaZDVFQ…
Meeting ID: 925 8523 6672
Passcode: 562996