Catholic and Armenian churches settle controversy

In Dec. 14, 1996 Reuters reported: “The Roman Catholic and Armenian churches have formally buried a theological controversy that had divided them for almost 1,500 years. Pope John Paul and Karekin I, spiritual leader of the world’s six million Armenian Christians, issued a common declaration yesterday officially ending the controversy over the nature of Jesus Christ. The controversy dates from the sixth century, when the Council of Chalcedon condemned those, including Armenian Christians, who asserted that Christ had only a divine, but not a human nature. The declaration spoke of the dual nature of Christ and said that both sides agreed that controversies in the past “should not continue to influence the life and witness of the church today.”

In Dec. 14, 1996 Reuters reported: “The Roman Catholic and Armenian churches have formally buried a theological controversy that had divided them for almost 1,500 years. Pope John Paul and Karekin I, spiritual leader of the world’s six million Armenian Christians, issued a common declaration yesterday officially ending the controversy over the nature of Jesus Christ. The controversy dates from the sixth century, when the Council of Chalcedon condemned those, including Armenian Christians, who asserted that Christ had only a divine, but not a human nature. The declaration spoke of the dual nature of Christ and said that both sides agreed that controversies in the past “should not continue to influence the life and witness of the church today.”