The fourth ecumenical council confesses Christ in two natures, without confusion or separation; the churches that refuse the definition become the Oriental Orthodox communion.
Tagged: Councils Catholic Christian Eastern Orthodox Oriental Orthodox
The Event
- Date
- 451 (exact)
- Era
- Patristic; Standard ecumenical periodization
- Location
- Chalcedon; today Kadıköy, Istanbul, Turkey
- Traditions
- Christianity
- Streams
- Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox
- Key figures
- Leo of Rome, Dioscorus, Marcian
- Key texts
- Chalcedonian Definition, Leo's Tome
How the Tradition Tells It
Chalcedon's definition is the point of division itself: the Oriental Orthodox churches confess a miaphysite formula and regard the council as a departure, while Chalcedonian churches receive it as the standard of Christology.
Connections
- Council of Ephesus; followed
Doctrines in Play
Primary Sources
- The Chalcedonian Definition
- Leo of Rome, Tome
- Acts of the Council of Chalcedon
Secondary Sources
- Kelly, Early Christian Doctrines (Harper, 1978)
- Pelikan, The Christian Tradition, vols. 1–5 (Chicago, 1971–1989)
Provenance: HIST-0018; confidence 0.95; accessed 2026-10-26.
Related on This Site
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- Council of Ephesus History Event
- Council of Jerusalem History Event
- First Council of Constantinople History Event
- First Council of Nicaea History Event
- Second Council of Constantinople History Event
- Second Council of Nicaea History Event
- Third Council of Constantinople History Event