Decree of Union

The Council of Ferrara-Florence, held from 1438 to 1445, was an ecumenical council where the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches attempted to reconcile their differences and end their schism. The council addressed theological disputes, including the Filioque clause in the Nicene Creed and the doctrine of purgatory.1

An agreement, known as the Decree of Union or the Union of Florence, was signed on July 6, 1439, with the Eastern church accepting the Filioque and other Latin doctrines. However, this reunion proved to be short-lived, as many Eastern delegates repudiated the agreement upon returning to Constantinople. Despite this, the council is significant for its exposition of Catholic doctrines and for temporary union agreements with other Eastern churches. The union was officially proclaimed in Constantinople in 1452, but the fall of the city to the Ottoman Turks in 1453 marked the end of these efforts. Since the failure of this council, there have been no further official attempts to restore unity between Eastern Orthodoxy and Roman Catholicism.123