Constantine and the Da Vinci Code...

Where in this little section, does Dan Brown lie?

Is it the part about the voting in Niscea (sp?) of Jesus's divinity?

Could someone please verify this little mess for me?

you should read the Da Vinci Hoax.... great book and a good and interesting read.

Originally posted by Romanakis
Where in this little section, does Dan Brown lie?

Is it the part about the voting in Niscea (sp?) of Jesus's divinity?

Could someone please verify this little mess for me?

I assume that you are referring to Arianism?
If that is the case, Dan Brown didn't lie in his book. This is why it makes good reading and trips up a lot of people. There is some fact amongst the fiction, and the Council of Nicea would seem to be amongst the factual part of his work.

Basically, before the Council of Nicea, there was a confusion amongst Christians over wether or not Jesus was divine or eternal. One group, led by a priest called Arius, believed that Jesus was a creation of God and was therefore not divine - "There was a time when the Son was not".

For this view, Arius was removed from his post by the Bishop of Alexandria and rioting ensued. In the process, many Eastern bishops signed up to Arius' doctrine. The Council of Nicea was called to settle the controversy.
But things didn't start out well for those who believed in Christ's divinity - one of the bishops, Eusebius of Nicomedia deduced "logically" that the Son of God was a created creature and the event began in uproar.

It was decided to create a "creed" that would end the argument once and for all. Finally, after 6 weeks, the Council came up with:

[Jesus was] "from the substance of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, very God from very God, begotten not made, of the same substance as the Father..."

Constantine himself, suggested the key word of the creed, homoousius, meaning "of the same substance." Arius preferred the word homoiousius, meaning "of similar substance." All but three bishops signed the creed - although there are some who state that when first asked to sign, quite a significant number declined and they had to be coerced.

Arius was one of the three who refused to sign. He and the other two non-signatories were then banished.

Originally posted by Leveller


I assume that you are referring to Arianism?
If that is the case, Dan Brown didn't lie in his book. This is why it makes good reading and trips up a lot of people. There is some fact amongst the fiction, and the Council of Nicea would seem to be amongst the factual part of his work.

Basically, before the Council of Nicea, there was a confusion amongst Christians over wether or not Jesus was divine or eternal. One group, led by a priest called Arius, believed that Jesus was a creation of God and was therefore not divine - "There was a time when the Son was not".

For this view, Arius was removed from his post by the Bishop of Alexandria and rioting ensued. In the process, many Eastern bishops signed up to Arius' doctrine. The Council of Nicea was called to settle the controversy.
But things didn't start out well for those who believed in Christ's divinity - one of the bishops, Eusebius of Nicomedia deduced "logically" that the Son of God was a created creature and the event began in uproar.

It was decided to create a "creed" that would end the argument once and for all. Finally, after 6 weeks, the Council came up with:

[Jesus was] "from the substance of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, very God from very God, begotten not made, of the same substance as the Father..."

Constantine himself, suggested the key word of the creed, homoousius, meaning "of the same substance." Arius preferred the word homoiousius, meaning "of similar substance." All but three bishops signed the creed - although there are some who state that when first asked to sign, quite a significant number declined and they had to be coerced.

Arius was one of the three who refused to sign. He and the other two non-signatories were then banished.

Thanks a lot for clearing that up. Could you please tell me where you got this info? I'd like to read more about it.