First Council of Nicaea

== Agenda ==
The agenda of the synod included the following issues:
# With respect to the [[Arianism|Arian]] question, the large portion of the [[Nicene Creed]] that is devoted to Christ (more than 80%) indicates that the main issue before the Council was about Jesus Christ; not about the Father or about the Holy Spirit. What the main issue was more exactly can be seen by comparing the condemnations at the end of the decree—reflecting Arius' views—with the council's affirmations as contained in the body of the creed:
##While Arius claimed that Jesus Christ was created, the Council concluded, since He was begotten, that He was not made.
##While Arius argued that Jesus Christ was created out of nothing or out of something else, the council affirmed that he was begotten out of the substance (essence) of the Father.
##Since the statement in the creed that Jesus Christ is [[homoousion]] with the Father (of the same substance)<ref>{{Citation|title=Homoousion|url=https://www.thefreedictionary.com/Homoousion|work=The Free Dictionary|access-date=2021-09-29}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, ὁμο-ούσιος|url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0057:entry=o(moou/sios|access-date=2021-09-29|website=www.perseus.tufts.edu}}</ref> does not counter any of Arius' claims, as reflected in the condemnation. The debate was not about what his substance is but out of what substance he was generated. The term ''homo-ousios'' was added only because Emperor Constantine proposed and insisted on its inclusion.<ref>{{cite book|last=Norwich |first= John Julius |title=Byzantium: The Early Centuries |publisher= Guild Publishing |location=London |year= 1988|page=55}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Trinity: The role of Constantine in the Nicene creed|url=https://www.bible.ca/trinity/trinity-history-constantine.htm#:~:text=Constantine%20was%20introduced%20to%20the%20trinity%20debates%20which,they%20viewed%20Jesus%20as%20a%20creature,%20not%20God.|access-date=2021-09-29|website=www.bible.ca}}</ref><ref>Jörg Ulrich. "Nicaea and the West" Vigiliae Christianae 51, no. 1 (1997) p. 15</ref> Both Fortman and Erickson mention that the main issue before the council was "not the unity of the Godhead" but the Son's "full divinity".<ref>Millard J. Erickson, ''God in Three Persons'', pp. 82–85</ref><ref>Edmund J. Fortman, ''The Triune God'', pp. 66–70</ref>
# The date of celebration of Pascha/Easter
# The [[Melitians|Meletian]] schism
# Various matters of church discipline, which resulted in twenty [[Canon (canon law)|canons]]
## Organizational structure of the Church: focused on the ordering of the episcopacy
## Dignity standards for the clergy: issues of ordination at all levels and of suitability of behavior and background for clergy
## Reconciliation of the lapsed: establishing norms for public repentance and penance
## Readmission to the Church of [[Heresy in Christianity|heretics]] and schismatics: including issues of when reordination and/or rebaptism were to be required
## [[Liturgy|Liturgical]] practice: including the place of deacons and the practice of standing at prayer during liturgy<ref>{{harvnb|Davis|1983|pp=63–67}}</ref>