*May 20, 325 A.D.
The First Council of Nicaea was opened by Constantine the Great (288-377), the first Roman emperor to profess Christianity. It was the first ecumenical council of bishops held at Nicaea in Asia Minor (modern Turkey). The purpose was to resolve disputes in the church - primarily those concerned with Arianism - an ancient heresy which denies the divinity of Jesus Christ.
Historian Lars Brownworth wrote: (Arianism) started in Egypt when a young priest named Arius started teaching that Christ was not fully divine and was therefore inferior to God the Father. Such a teaching struck at the heart of the Christian faith, denying its main tenet, which held that Christ was the incarnate word of God, but Arius was a brilliant speaker, and people began to flock to hear him speak. The church was caught completely off guard and threatened to splinter into fragments.”
However, the Christian Church was not a monolithic institution. Various factions and practices had taken root over the years, and Constantine saw the need for a unity of doctrine and a clearer organization for the church's hierarchy. In response he called a universal council. The prime result was the Nicene Creed; the only ecumenical creed accepted by all of Christendom (Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, Protestant, etc). God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit were described as “of the same substance.” The Greek word used was “homoousios.”
On to today's lottery
Also on May 20 - 450 years ago: The Book That Invented the World.
The first atlas was published at an Antwerp, Belgium print shop in 1570. It was large, handsome, and expensive, with the grandiose title of "Theatrum Orbis Terrarum, or in English, "Theater of the Orb of the World." It was produced by cartographer Abraham Ortelius, and was one of the most popular books of the era.
Asking a Medieval person to imagine the world and their place on it would demand a radically different sort of cognitive map than one a modern person might rely on. This affects pragmatic matters (of navigation and so forth), but also what could be termed poetic ones as well.
Never before had all cartographic knowledge been compiled together; never before could a reader imagine the totality of the Earth so completely. Within the folio were some 53 beautifully illustrated and colored maps based on the illustrations of 87 cartographers (who were all duly given credit), including the most up-to-date work of Gerardus Mercator. With his comprehensive Atlas, Ortelius gave the Medieval world not disenchantment, but a differing enchantment - a sense of the sheer magnitude of the planet.
Despite obvious errors to the modern eye, measurement rather than metaphor became a priority. Ortelius had invented the world.
Meanwhile, in Florida:
India and Bangladesh brace for the strongest storm ever recorded in the Bay of Bengal.
Yes! And our private health care system has done an amazing job of taking care of the sick, too. Free enterprise works.— Kurt Fagerburg (@kurtfagerburg) May 20, 2020
H/t: American Digest
