- Areas Of Involvement:
- Christianity
- two natures of Christ
- Incarnation
- Related People:
- Abhdisho bar Berikha
Nestorianism
-
What is Nestorianism?
Nestorianism is a Christian sect that originated in Asia Minor and Syria. It emphasizes the independence of the divine and human natures of Christ, suggesting they are two persons loosely united.
Nestorianism began with Nestorius, the bishop of Constantinople, who opposed the title Theotokos ("God-Bearer") for Mary, arguing it compromised Christ's human nature. The Second Council of Ephesus condemned Nestorius and his teachings in 431 CE, followed by the Council of Chalcedon in 451 CE.
Nestorianism was crushed within the Roman Empire but survived outside its borders. The Christian church in Persia adopted it to gain protection from its rulers, who were enemies of the Romans. Today, the modern Nestorian church is represented by the Church of the East, or Persian Church, with most members living in Iraq, Syria, and Iran.
3 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
Who started the Nestorian Christian sect?
The Nestorian Christian sect is associated with Nestorius, who served as the bishop of Constantinople in 428. The roots of the sect stem from his teachings, which emphasized the distinct human nature of Christ. This viewpoint diverged from the accepted doctrine, which held that Christ possessed both divine and human natures united in one person.
Nestorius's views sparked controversy, particularly his objection to the title Theotokos ("God-Bearer") for Mary, which led to his condemnation at the Council of Ephesus in 431. Although Nestorius's teachings were condemned as heresy, it is debatable whether he intentionally taught the views attributed to him. After being deposed as bishop, Nestorius was exiled. Despite facing suppression within the Roman Empire, Nestorianism found refuge in the Christian church in Persia. Today, few adherents remain, with communities scattered across Iraq, India, Iran, Syria, and the Americas.
3 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
What did Nestorians believe about Jesus?
Nestorians, followers of Nestorius, emphasized the full humanity of Jesus, believing in two distinct natures, one human and one divine. Critics thought this view divided Christ into two persons loosely joined by a moral union, with the divine Word associated with a complete, independent man.
Nestorius himself affirmed the perfect unity of Christ and denied the existence of two persons within him, teaching instead a prosopic union where God used manhood for self-manifestation.
The Council of Ephesus in 431 condemned Nestorianism, affirming that the Word became man by uniting flesh and a rational soul in one person. Despite condemnation within the Roman Empire, Nestorianism persisted in Persia and continues today in small groups across Iraq, India, Iran, Syria, and the Americas.
3 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
Why did other Christians disagree with Nestorian beliefs?
Christians disagreed with Nestorianism because it stressed the independence of Christ’s divine and human natures, suggesting they were two loosely united persons. This conflicted with the orthodox belief that Christ is a single person, fully human and fully divine.
Nestorius disputed the use of Theotokos ("God-Bearer") for Mary, arguing it compromised Christ's humanity. Cyril of Alexandria and others saw this as denying the unity of the God-man. The Second Council of Ephesus in 431 condemned Nestorius's teachings, affirming Christ's personhood as God uniting with human flesh and a rational soul.
4 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
What happened to Nestorians after their beliefs were declared heretical?
Nestorianism, which originated in Asia Minor and Syria, emphasizes the independence of the divine and human natures of Christ, effectively suggesting they are two persons loosely united. After the councils of Ephesus (431 ce) and Chalcedon (451 ce) condemned Nestorius and his teachings, the Christian church in Persia adopted Nestorianism to assure its rulers that its religion differed from that of the Romans and to gain protection. Nestorianism was crushed within the Roman Empire but survived outside its borders.
After the Arab conquest of Persia in 637, the caliphate recognized the Church of the East as a separate religious community and granted it legal protection. Though virtually exterminated in the 14th century, Nestorian communities remained in Iraq and Kurdistan.
2 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
Where in the world did Nestorian Christianity spread, and what is its legacy today?
Nestorianism began in Asia Minor and Syria, emphasizing the separation of Christ’s divine and human natures, effectively viewing them as two distinct persons loosely joined. This view was condemned by ecumenical councils in 431 and 451 CE, leading to the formation of a schismatic sect. Nestorianism spread through Persia, with its intellectual center in Nisibis. By the end of the 5th century, it had expanded to Arabia, India, Egypt, and China, reaching as far as eastern Siberia and the Mongol realm.
After the Arab conquest of Persia in 637, the Church of the East was recognized as a separate religious community. However, by the 14th century, the raids of Timur virtually exterminated the church, with Nestorian communities mainly concentrated in Kurdistan. In 1551, some Nestorians reunited with Rome and were called Chaldeans.
Today, the modern Nestorian church, known as the Church of the East, is not strictly Nestorian but reveres Nestorius. Most members reside in Iraq, Syria, and Iran.
3 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Nestorianism, Christian sect that originated in Asia Minor and Syria stressing the independence of the divine and human natures of Christ and, in effect, suggesting that they are two persons loosely united. The schismatic sect formed following the condemnation of Nestorius and his teachings by the ecumenical councils of Ephesus (431 ce) and Chalcedon (451 ce).
Originally, Nestorianism envisaged the divine Word as having associated with itself at the Incarnation a complete, independently existing man. From the orthodox point of view, Nestorianism therefore denied the reality of the Incarnation and represented Christ as a God-inspired man rather than as God-made-man. Since the 5th century all the principal branches of the Christian church have united in condemning Nestorianism and have affirmed that Christ is a single person, at once wholly human and wholly divine.
Christianity in Persia faced intermittent persecution until the Persian Church in 424 formally proclaimed its full independence of Christian churches elsewhere, thereby freeing itself of suspicions about foreign links. Under the influence of Barsumas, the metropolitan of Nisibis, the Persian Church acknowledged Theodore of Mopsuestia, the chief Nestorian theological authority, as guardian of right faith, in February 486. This position was reaffirmed under the patriarch Babai (497–502), and since that time the church has been Nestorian.
" height="20" alt="HEW Logo">
Nestorius had been anathematized at the Second Council of Ephesus in 431 for denouncing the use of the title Theotokos (“God-Bearer”) for Mary, insisting that this compromised the reality of Christ’s human nature. When supporters of Nestorius gathered at the theological school of Edessa, it was closed by imperial order in 489, and a vigorous Nestorian remnant migrated to Persia.
The Persian Church’s intellectual center then became the new school in Nisibis, which carried on the venerable traditions of Edessa. By the end of the 5th century there were seven metropolitan provinces in Persia and several bishoprics in Arabia and India. The church survived a period of schism (c. 521–c. 537/539) and persecution (540–545) through the leadership of the patriarch Mar Aba I (reigned 540–552), a convert from Zoroastrianism, and also through the renewal of monasticism by Abraham of Kashkar (501–586), the founder of the monastery on Mount Izala, near Nisibis.
After the Arab conquest of Persia (637), the caliphate recognized the Church of the East as a millet, or separate religious community, and granted it legal protection. Nestorian scholars played a prominent role in the formation of Arab culture, and patriarchs occasionally gained influence with rulers. For more than three centuries the church prospered under the caliphate, but it became worldly and lost leadership in the cultural sphere. By the end of the 10th century there were 15 metropolitan provinces in the caliphate and 5 abroad, including India and China. Nestorians also spread to Egypt, where monophysite Christianity acknowledged only one nature in Christ. In China a Nestorian community flourished from the 7th to the 10th century. In Central Asia certain Tatar tribes were almost entirely converted, Christian expansion reaching almost to Lake Baikal in eastern Siberia. Western travelers to the Mongol realm found Nestorian Christians well established there, even at the court of the Great Khan, though they commented on the ignorance and superstition of the clergy. When during the 14th century the Church of the East was virtually exterminated by the raids of the Turkic leader Timur, Nestorian communities lingered on in a few towns in Iraq but were concentrated mainly in Kurdistan, between the Tigris River and Lakes Van and Urmia, partly in Turkey and partly in Iran.
In 1551 a number of Nestorians reunited with Rome and were called Chaldeans, the original Nestorians having been termed Assyrians. The Nestorian Church in India, part of the group known as the Christians of St. Thomas, allied itself with Rome (1599) and then split, half of its membership transferring allegiance to the Syrian Jacobite (monophysite) patriarch of Antioch (1653). In 1898 in Urmia, Iran, a group of Nestorians, headed by a bishop, were received in the communion of the Russian Orthodox Church.
The trusted destination for professionals, college students, and lifelong learners.
SUBSCRIBE
The modern Nestorian church is not Nestorian in the strict sense, though it venerates Nestorius and refuses to accept the title Theotokos for the Blessed Virgin. Contemporary Nestorians are represented by the Church of the East, or Persian Church, usually referred to in the West as the Assyrian, or Nestorian, Church. Most of its members live in Iraq, Syria, and Iran.