By Chaldean Patriarchate
September 27, 2025
September 27, 2025
His beatitude Patriarch Cardinal Louis Raphael Sako, participated in the conference held by the Assyrian Church of the East to commemorate the 1700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea (325 AD, in the Catholic university of Erbil from 27-29 September . The conference was presided by His Holiness Mar Awa III, Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East. The opening session was attended by the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region, Mr. Masrour Barzani, as well as many leaders of Christian churches in Iraq, and some delegations and scholars from outside Iraq.
Here is the speech of Patriarch Sako
This year (2025), Christian churches commemorate the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea. This is an opportunity to reflect on its doctrinal and ecumenical Significance, as a cornerstone of Christian doctrine across the Catholic, Orthodox, and many Protestant traditions. The council was convened in Nicaea (Turkey) in 325 AD by Emperor Constantine I (d. 22 May 379) and was attended by over 300 bishops from throughout the Roman Empire. The Church of the East adopted the Nicene Creed at the Synod of Patriarch Isaac in 410 AD, about 85 years later, with some Syriac linguistic retouching.
Nicaea: Steps towards Church Unity
The significance of the Council of Nicaea lies in its creed and its determination of the date for Easter celebration. The Church’s doctrine was seriously threatened by the teachings of Arius, a priest from Alexandria, who proclaimed that the Son of God was a created being, subordinate to the Father. This point of view undermines the essence of the Christian faith.
The fathers of the council recognized the threat of Arius’ teachings to the Christian faith. They declared that Christ is “of the same substance as God” (homoousios), which is a carefully chosen theological term to affirm His equality with the Father. They preserved the mystery of the Incarnation and the doctrine of the Trinity: fundamental truths of Christianity. This creed was expanded in 381 at the Second Ecumenical Council held in Constantinople, to include a comprehensive profession of the divinity of the Holy Spirit. Thus, the final form of the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, as it is called, affirmed the full divinity of the Trinity: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, one God in three persons.
The two councils defined the Christians faith in simple and evident theological terms. This formulation established the unity of the Church, that both Eastern and Western Churches still profess this creed officially in their liturgy at Mass every Sunday, during baptism, and in catechism.
Later, a difference emerged when the Western Church added this phrase: “the Holy Spirit proceeds from both the Father and the Son” (Filioque), while the Orthodox Churches retained only “from the Father”. The Chaldean Church, have included the same phrase “from the Father” in the second Anaphora of Theodore, Bishop of Mopsuestia (†428).
The council included a method to calculate the date of Easter (Passover) based on lunar calendar, on the first Sunday, at the full moon following the start of Spring season, making the earliest possible Easter date to be March 22nd and the latest April 25th.
Today, Christians are divided; the Western churches use the Gregorian calendar, adopted in 1582, while the Orthodox churches follow the Julian calendar.
Currently, the Church is facing new challenges, such as secularism and relativism, in addition, to being divided in celebrating Easter. Therefore, commemorating the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea should not be just a formal gathering to highlight a historical document; but should involve returning to the Nicene Creed as a common ground for ecumenical dialogue, aiming to unify Easter Sunday on a fixed date, as a Christian testimony, and a commitment to walk together towards unity and full communion. Unity does not mean merging all churches into one, but rather in finding an acceptable model for ecumenical cooperation, since our faith is one and we share the same sacraments.
The Message of Nicaea to the Churches of Iraq
This conference should not be merely a “show” gathering for Iraqi Churches, but rather a serious opportunity to unite their stances by taking bold / brave and practical steps to achieve that.
The Council of Nicaea should illuminate our paths back to the true spirit / logic of the Church spirit / logic of faith, love, hope, mission, and service,. To overcome this division we need to free ourselves from being committed to any political group whose policies are known to be discriminatory against Christians, as well as those of religious and ethnic fanaticism. Let us leave nationalism for secularists.. We, clergymen should be loyal to God, focusing on our mission and service, by keeping it as a priority.
The message of Nicaea today is to unite and work together, so that we will be able to reinforce our presence, our future, and our full rights in Iraq and the region, where Christianity originated, rooted, and spread.
All churches and ethnicities are respected, but this does not prevent us from working together. Let us start to unify Easter Sunday at least in Iraq.
As the largest church in the country, , the Chaldean Church, honestly, extends its hand to those who are willing to work together sincerely on establishing a new council: to be named as “the Council of Iraqi Patriarchs and Bishops” for the purpose of defending Iraqis and Christians their Dignity, rights, restoring their security and putting an end to their suffering.
The proposed council: respects the identity of each church; fosters team work; bears witness to our unity; and will ensure that our presence remains as a flame that never goes out be preserved by future generations.
