Hagia Sophia in Nicaea

Hagia Sophia in Nicaea (modern-day Iznik in Turkey)

 

Hagia Sophia, Nicaea/Iznik

About halfway on our drive from Istanbul to Bursa, we passed through the ancient Roman city of Nicaea, modern-day Iznik in Turkey.  For Christians worldwide, the name should ring a bell because this is where the first Ecumenical Council was held, which gave us the Nicene Creed.


Hagia Sophia Little Mosque in İznik

The Hagia Sophia Little Mosque in İznik, also known as İznik Ayasofya Camii, in İznik, Turkey (ancient Roman City of Nicaea) served as a Byzantine Church, Ottoman Mosque after 1331, and later in 1923 as a museum and more recently in 2011 part museum part mosque in the past few years, embodying the city's rich historical tapestry.


It was originally built during the reign of Emperor Justinian the Great (r. 527-565 AD) as a Byzantine Church called Hagia Sophia, named after the imposing Hagia Sophia in Constantinople, albeit built on a far more modest scale. 

Hagia Sophia Mosque in Iznik/Nicaea
After the Ottoman conquest of Nicaea in 1331, under Orhan Gazi (the second ruler of the Ottoman Empire, r. 1324-1362 AD), the church was converted into a mosque and renamed Hagia Sophia Mosque (or Ayasofya Camii), following a common Ottoman practice of converting prominent Byzantine Churches into Mosques. The structure was modified with the addition of a mihrab (to indicate the direction to pray facing Mecca) and a minaret (for the muezzin to call the faithful to pray 5 times a day). 


Incidentally, Orhan Gazi catapulted the fledgling Ottoman state into a powerful dynasty when he captured several key Byzantine cities in northwest Anatolia, including Bursa (1326) and Nicaea (1331). During his reign, the formal organisation of the Ottoman state started with the introduction of the first Ottoman currency and the establishment of administrative and military systems, including the Janissariy guard - a lethal fighting force, laying the groundwork for Ottoman military success. He strengthened ties with the Byzantines through his marriage to Theodora, the daughter of Byzantine Emperor John VI Kantakouzenos, and gained a foothold in Europe with the capture of Gallipoli, providing a springboard into the Balkans.


During the founding of the Republic of Turkey in 1923, the Hagia Sophia Mosque in İznik was repurposed as a museum, reflecting a broader trend of secularisation under Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.


More recently in 2011, the building was officially reclassified as a mosque by the Turkish authorities - tourists are allowed to visit when prayers are not being conducted.


First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea

Even to the present day, historians are unclear about where exactly the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea was held in 325 AD.

Red herring #1

The name "Hagia Sophia" (meaning "Holy Wisdom") may have given rise to the confusion suggesting that the site of the First Ecumenical Council was held in Hagia Sophia Iznik. Once you line up the dates, it is clear that Hagia Sophia in Nicaea, erected in the sixth century by Emperor Justinian the Great (r. 527-565 AD), would not have existed at the time of the Council of Nicaea conducted in 325 AD, some two hundred years before its construction.

Aerial view of the ruins of the basilica dedicated to Saint Neophytos
In 2014, Archaeologists discovered ruins of a basilica dedicated to Saint Neophytos, an early Christian martyr who was killed in 303 CE during the Christian persecutions under Roman Emperor Diocletian (r. 284-305 AD), submerged in the Iznik lake, formed by an Earthquake in 740 AD
It is believed that the church was built on the site where he was martyred sometime after the First Council of Nicaea, once again underscoring the importance of Nicaea in the early history of the Church.


Here are some highlights of the first three important Ecumenical Councils of the Christian Church that were essential in defining core Christian doctrines, combating heresies, and shaping the organizational structure of the early Church. Their outcomes continue to influence both Eastern and Western Christian traditions.

  • Emperor Constantine I (aka Constantine the Great, r. 306-337 AD)  conducted the First Ecumenical Council in 325 AD in Nicaea (modern-day İznik, Turkey) to address the Arian heresy proposed by Arius (priest from Alexandria, Egypt. c. 250-336 AD), that doubted whether Jesus Christ was truly begotten of God the Father, making him true God and true man at the same time.
    • This resulted in the formulation of the Nicene Creed, affirming the divinity of Jesus Christ and his consubstantiality (being of the same substance) with the Father.  
    • Standardized the date of Easter distinct from the Jewish Passover and 
    • Established 20 canons on church administration.  

  • Emperor Theodosius I (aka Theodosius the Great,r. 379-395 AD) conducted the Second Ecumenical Council in 381 AD in Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul, Turkey) to address Arianism heresies that persisted even after Nicaea, and the rise of Apollinarianism proposed by Apollinaris the Younger, Bishop of Laodicea in Syria, in 360 AD which denied the full humanity of Christ.  
    • It expanded and reaffirmed the Nicene Creed
    • Emphasized the divinity of the Holy Spirit, leading to the doctrine of the Trinity.  

  • Emperor Theodosius II (r. 402-450 AD) conducted the Third Ecumenical Council in 431 AD in Ephesus (modern-day Selçuk, Turkey) to resolve the Nestorian controversy, proposed by Nestorius of Antioch, Patriarch of Constantinople (c. 386-451 AD), in 428 AD, which argued that Christ had two separate persons (divine and human) and opposed calling Mary the Theotokos ("God-bearer" or "Mother of God").  
    • Declared Nestorianism a heresy and affirmed Mary’s title as Theotokos
    • Emphasized the unity of Christ’s divine and human natures - stating that Jesus is true God and true Man at the same time. 
    • Reaffirmed the Nicene faith and condemned any additions or changes to the Nicene Creed.

Reference

Wallace, J. W. (2019, March 26). Historic heresies related to the nature of Jesus. Cold Case Christianity. Retrieved November 24, 2024, from https://coldcasechristianity.com/writings/historic-heresies-related-to-the-nature-of-jesus/
Location: Mahmut Çelebi, Kılıçaslan Cd. No:163, 16860 İzni̇k/Bursa, Türkiye

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