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{{Short description|Letter written by Heraclius}}
The '''Ecthesis''' ({{langx|el|Ἔκθεσις}}) is a letter published in 638 CE by the [[Byzantine]] emperor [[Heraclius]] which defined [[monotheletism]] as the official imperial form of [[Christianity]].

==Background==
[[File:Sophronius of Jerusalem, Menologion of Basil II.png|right|thumb|Sophronius of Jerusalem was instrumental in overturning Patriarch Sergius' first attempt at solving the monophysite question.]]
The ''Ecthesis'' was another attempt by the Byzantine emperors to heal the divisions in the [[Christian Church]] over the disputes over the nature of [[Jesus Christ]]. In 451 the [[Council of Chalcedon]] had ruled that Christ did not possess one divine nature, but instead possessed two distinct natures, one fully divine and one fully human, with both acting in harmony together. This ruling was consistently rejected by the [[Non-Chalcedonians]], who were against the idea of the two natures, maintaining that the humanity and divinity of Christ were united in one nature.<ref name="JB249">Bury 2005, p. 249</ref> Throughout the 6th century, the Byzantine Emperors either covertly encouraged this group ([[Anastasius I (emperor)|Anastasius I]]), or actively persecuted them ([[Justin II]]).

By the beginning of the 7th century, the court and the religious hierarchy at [[Constantinople]] were by and large firmly in the Chalcedonian camp. However, this put them at odds with the majority Non-Chalcedonians in [[Egypt]], [[Syria]], [[Mesopotamia]] and [[Armenia]].<ref name="JB249"/> Such a division was dangerous in an empire that was under threat from the Persian [[Sassanids]], especially as the Non-Chalcedonians considered their schismatic brethren to be more of a threat than any foreign invader. Consequently, the emperors at Constantinople were always seeking some method of rapprochement to heal the breach in the church, and thereby prevent the empire's enemies from taking advantage of the internal divisions.

With the reign of Heraclius, he and the [[Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople|Patriarch]] [[Sergius I of Constantinople|Sergius]] had attempted to find common ground between the Chalcedonians and the Non-Chalcedonians by issuing the doctrine of the single energy of Christ during the mid 630s. It did gain some acceptance initially, with [[Pope Honorius I]] giving his written assent, though it is clear that he considered the problem one of terminology, not theology.<ref>Bury 2005, p. 252</ref> However, this compromise position was firmly opposed by the [[Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem|Patriarch of Jerusalem]], [[Sophronius of Jerusalem|Sophronius]], and the doctrine was repudiated at the [[synod]] of Cyprus.

==Release of the ''Ecthesis''==
Yet Patriarch Sergius refused to give in, and in 638 he and Heraclius released a slightly amended formula, called the ''Ecthesis''. In this revision, the question of the energy of Christ was not relevant. Instead, it promoted the belief that while Christ possessed two natures, he had only a single will.<ref>Norwich 1990, p. 309</ref>  This notion of Monotheletism, the Doctrine of the Single Will as proscribed in the ''Ecthesis'' was sent as an edict to all four eastern metropolitan sees. A copy was posted in the narthex of [[Hagia Sophia]], and when Sergius died in December 638, it looked as if Heraclius might actually achieve his goal, with the eastern patriarchs agreeing to the formula, and gaining many adherents across the east, including [[Cyrus of Alexandria]] and [[Arkadios II]] of Cyprus.

But during 638 in Rome, [[Pope Honorius I]] who was thought by many to have supported monothelitism died. His successor [[Pope Severinus]] condemned the ''Ecthesis'' outright, and so was forbidden his seat until 640. His successor [[Pope John IV]] also rejected the doctrine completely, leading to a major schism between the eastern and western halves of the orthodox church. When news reach Heraclius of the Pope's condemnation, he was already old and ill, and the news only hastened his death, declaring with his dying breath that the controversy was all due to Sergius, and that the Patriarch had pressured him to give his unwilling approval to the ''Ecthesis''.<ref>Norwich 1990, p. 310</ref>

==Aftermath==
This was the final attempt to win over the Non-Chalcedonians to union with the Chalcedonians by means of a theological compromise. The areas that were largely Non-Chalcedonian were soon overrun by the [[Islamic]] armies that poured in from the sands of Arabia in 634. The new conquerors allowed the Non-Chalcedonians to practice their faith in peace, which suited them since they no longer had the need to bend their beliefs to the Byzantine hierarchy (but they still had to provide the [[jizya]]). Since the areas that remained to the empire were largely Chalcedonian, the need to reach a theological compromise soon disappeared.

Yet the Byzantine emperors were still not finished with the doctrine of Monotheletism. [[Constans II (Byzantine Empire)|Constans II]], the grandson of Heraclius was not a supporter of Monotheletism, and was determined to end the dispute with the west. Consequently, he ordered that all discussion about the Monothelite doctrine was to cease and that all theological positions were to be as before the Monothelite controversy erupted, issuing his [[Type of Constans|''Typos'']] in 648 to this effect.<ref>Norwich 1990, p. 317</ref> This directive was ignored in the west, as the ''Ecthesis'' was condemned by the [[Lateran Council of 649]]. This infuriated emperor Constans who ordered the arrest and trials of [[Pope Martin I]] and [[Maximus the Confessor]]. The persecutions of the zealous prosecutors only ended with the death of Constans in 668, and Monothelitism was officially condemned at the [[Third Council of Constantinople]] (the Sixth [[Ecumenical Council]], 680–681) in favor of [[Dyothelitism]], which put to rest the issue of the ''Ecthesis''.

==References==
{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}

==Sources==
* {{Cite CE1913|wstitle=Monothelitism and Monothelites}}
* Bury, John B., ''A history of the later Roman empire from Arcadius to Irene'', Volume 2 (1889) [2005]
* Norwich, John J., ''Byzantium: The Early Centuries'' (1988) [1990]
* {{Cite book|last=Ostrogorsky|first=George|year=1956|title=History of the Byzantine State|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Bt0_AAAAYAAJ|publisher=Basil Blackwell|place=Oxford}}
* {{Cite book|last=Meyendorff|first=John|author-link=John Meyendorff|year=1989|title=Imperial unity and Christian divisions: The Church 450-680 A.D.|series=The Church in history|volume=2|location=Crestwood, NY|publisher=St. Vladimir's Seminary Press|isbn=9780881410563|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6J_YAAAAMAAJ}}
* {{Cite book|last=Hovorun|first=Cyril|year=2008|title=Will, Action and Freedom: Christological Controversies in the Seventh Century|location=Leiden-Boston|publisher=BRILL|isbn=978-9004166660|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OcKasEOTR38C}}

{{Catholicism||collapsed}} 
{{History of the Roman Catholic Church|collapsed}}
{{History of Catholic theology|uncollapsed}}

[[Category:Christianity in the Byzantine Empire]]
[[Category:Christology]]
[[Category:7th-century Christian texts]]
[[Category:638]]
[[Category:Heraclius]]