Arianism A movement in the early church that distinguished the divinity of God the Father from the divinity of Christ by arguing that Jesus was a created being. The movement derived from the teachings of Arius. In the early fourth century ad, the church was still debating the nature of Christ and his relationship to God the Father. Arius taught that Christ was a created being—the first one created by God the Father. This view made Christ subordinate to the Father and set off what is often called the “Arian controversy.” Church leaders opposed Arianism because they felt it denied full divinity to Jesus. The debate over Arianism raged throughout the fourth century, but the now-orthodox view that Christ was co-equal and co-eternal with the Father was strongly defended by the Cappadocian fathers: Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nazianus, and Gregory of Nyssa. The orthodox view was ultimately accepted as the official position of the Church at the Council of Constantinople in 381. After this, Arianism gradually died out. For more information, see these articles: Church Fathers; Eusebius of Caesarea; Incarnation.
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