The Truth About the Council of Nicea (325 Ad) | Church History

In the fourth century, a famous Alexandrian priest by the name of Arius claimed that Christ was divine insomuch as he is greater than us but not equal to the Father in essence. Arius said that there was a time when the Son was not. He disseminated his ideas with the use of songs which charm the hearts of many Christians. This caused immense turmoil and disturbed the peace of the Church and the empire. Consequently, Constantine called for a council of 318 bishops to settle the matter in Nicaea in 325 AD. In Nicaea, the faith of Arius was anathematized, and the Creed was written down until the clause of “We believe in the Holy Spirit.” Nicaea upheld the consubstantiality of the Son with the Father before all ages and that He is true God from true God in every sense. This did not settle the matter as the successors of Constantine would waver between Nicaean orthodoxy and Arianism. Athanasius was a learned deacon, a disciple of Anthony the Great and a Alexander of Alexandria who assisted the latter in combatting Arianism at the council of Nicaea. Later, he would become patriarch of Alexandria who would suffer exile five times at the hands of successors of Constantine. Whether before his elevation to the patriarchal throne, in exile or in his see, Athanasius spared no effort to write and educate his people through his theological writings some of which are  Against the Arians, On the Incarnation, Against the Heathens, The Four Letters of Serapion or spiritual texts and hagiographies such as The Life of Antony.