council, ecumenical

council, ecumenical [Gr.,=universal], in Christendom, council of church leaders, the decisions of which are accepted by some segment of the church as authoritative, also called general council. Although councils can declare themselves ecumenical, this designation has often been applied retrospectively; even the Roman Catholic Church has no formal decree on the number of ecumenical councils. As with all councils, its canons usually begin with a detailed statement of the common faith. The acceptance of the canons is unequal; thus, Roman Catholics regard them as binding (canonical) only when a pope has subsequently ratified them, and many canons of several councils have never been accepted.

Recognized Councils

The following is the list of the general councils recognized by Roman Catholics (the numbering is the customary one, and the opening year is given): (1) 1 Nicaea, 325; (2) 1 Constantinople, 381; (3) Ephesus, 431; (4) Chalcedon, 451; (5) 2 Constantinople, 553; (6) 3 Constantinople, 680; (7) 2 Nicaea, 787; (8) 4 Constantinople, 869; (9) 1 Lateran, 1123; (10) 2 Lateran, 1139; (11) 3 Lateran, 1179; (12) 4 Lateran, 1215; (13) 1 Lyons, 1245; (14) 2 Lyons, 1274; (15) Vienne, 1311; (16) Constance, 1414; (17) Basel and Ferrara-Florence, 1431, 1438; (18) 5 Lateran, 1512; (19) Trent, 1545; (20) 1 Vatican, 1869; (21) 2 Vatican, 1962 (see separate articles on each council; e.g., Nicaea, First Council of). The Orthodox Eastern Church recognizes the first seven and counts the Trullan Synod of 692 as an ecumenical extension of the Third Council of Constantinople. The first council was the model for the rest.

Purposes of the Councils

The common purpose of the first eight councils was to determine whether specific theological novelties were orthodox or heretical (not orthodox). The rest of the councils, all held in Western Europe, have dealt chiefly with church discipline and morals. Two of them, the Second Council of Lyons and the Council of Ferrara-Florence, were occupied with abortive attempts at reconciliation between East and West. Conciliar theory, which held that an ecumenical council is superior to the pope, played a central role in attempts to heal the Great Schism. Conciliar theory was in its heyday at the Council of Constance (see Schism, Great). The Council of Trent, convened to deal with the Protestant Reformation, was probably the most far-reaching in its effects. Pope John XXIII established as one of the principal themes of the Second Vatican Council the reunion of all Christians with the Church of Rome.

Authority of the Councils

The traditional opinion is that when the bishops of the world unite to define belief in the light of what they have received from their predecessors, God will protect them from error. This is a manifestation of the infallibility of the teaching church, and papal infallibility is compared to it in the definition published by the First Vatican Council (see infallibility). Two famous councils that claimed in vain to be ecumenical are the Robber Council of Ephesus (see Eutyches) and the Council of Pisa during the Great Schism.

Protestants recognize the authority of the first four ecumenical councils, but, as first expressed by Martin Luther, do not regard ecumenical councils and their canons as binding on the conscience. Only when council decisions follow scripture do Protestants consider them authoritative. Nevertheless Protestant observers have officially attended the last two councils. The ecumenical movement among Protestants is not to be confused with an ecumenical council, although they share a similar aim.

Bibliography

See studies by L. Jaeger (tr. 1961), P. Hughes (1961), F. Dvornik (1961), and E. F. Jacobs (rev. ed. 1963).

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Licensed from Columbia University Press

Council

In British culture, a municipality is often referred to as simply the Council without any further attempt by the speaker at making a size or scale designation, as in Council house. It is assumed the listener will already know the specific meaning of the word without further guidance.

Council may refer to:

In politics:

Borough Council, a form of local government in the United Kingdom
City council, a form of local government
Community council, the most local official representative bodies in Scotland and Wales
Council (country subdivision), a local government area in Australia
Council of State, an organ of government in many states¨
Council of Europe, a political, intergovernmental Organization with 47 member countries¨
Council of the European Union (also sometimes: Latin "Consilium"), the final decision making institution in the European Union (EU)
County council, a council that governs a county in the British Isles
Labour council, an association of labour unions or union branches in a given area
Municipal council, a subdivision of France
National Security Council, an executive branch governmental body responsible for coordinating policy on national security issues
Parish council, a form of local government in the United Kingdom
Privy Council, a body that advises the head of state of a nation
Research Council, a government agency responsible for a particular area of research in the United Kingdom
Town council, a democratically elected form of government for small municipalities or parishes
United Nations Security Council, main decision-making body at the United Nations and the de-facto most important organ in international politics.
Workers' council, a council composed of working class or proletarian members
Works council, a "shop-floor" organization representing workers

In other fields:

Arts council, a government or private, non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the arts
Bar council, a professional body that regulates the profession of barristers together with the Inns of Court
Buddhist councils, important historical events in the history of Buddhism
Council (Boy Scouts), a non-profit private corporation within Boy Scouts of America
Ecumenical council, a meeting of the bishops of the whole church convened to discuss and settle matters of Church doctrine and practice
Floyd Council, an American blues musician
Student Council, a student organization present in many elementary schools, middle schools, high schools, colleges and universities
"The Council" (Enterprise episode), a third season episode of Star Trek: Enterprise
Youth Council, an example of youth voice engaged in youth-led decision-making
Another name for Synod in Christian church

In United States geography:

council, ecumenical

council, ecumenical

Recognized Councils

Purposes of the Councils

Authority of the Councils

Bibliography

See also