First Council of Nicaea
The First Council of Nicaea (/naɪˈsiːə/ ny-SEE-ə; Ancient Greek: Σύνοδος τῆς Νικαίας, romanized: Sýnodos tês Nikaías) was a council of Christian bishops convened in the Bithynian city of Nicaea (now İznik, Turkey) by the Roman Emperor Constantine I. The Council of Nicaea met from May to the end of July 325.
| First Council of Nicaea | |
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The Council of Nicaea, with Arius depicted as defeated by the council, lying under the feet of Emperor Constantine. | |
| Date | May to August AD 325 |
| Accepted by | |
Next council | First Council of Constantinople |
| Convoked by | Emperor Constantine I |
| President | Hosius of Corduba and Pope Alexander I of Alexandria |
| Attendance |
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| Topics | Arianism, the nature of Christ, celebration of Passover, ordination of eunuchs, prohibition of kneeling on Sundays and from Easter to Pentecost, validity of baptism by heretics, lapsed Christians, sundry other matters. |
Documents and statements | Original Nicene Creed, 20 canons, and a synodal epistle |
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This ecumenical council was the first of many efforts to attain consensus in the church through an assembly representing all Christendom. Hosius of Corduba may have presided over its deliberations. Its main accomplishments were settlement of the Christological issue of the divine nature of God the Son and his relationship to God the Father, the construction of the first part of the Nicene Creed, mandating uniform observance of the date of Easter, and promulgation of early canon law.