The Council of Ephesus is the most significant dogmatic milestone in the history of Mariology. By defining Mary as Theotokos (Mother of God), the third Ecumenical Council confirmed not only Mary’s fidelity but also the full divinity of Jesus Christ. The Marian definition of Ephesus is, primarily, a truth about Christ.

Collection:

Doctrina Pontificia IV: Documents Marian, nn. 17-18

Council:

Third Ecumenical Council, Ephesus

Date:

June 22, 431

Topic:

Mary as Theotokos (Mother of God)

Presidency:

St. Cyril of Alexandria (legate of Pope Celestine I)

Context: The Nestorian Heresy

Nestorius, Patriarch of Constantinople, refused to call Mary Theotokos, proposing instead Christotokos (Mother of Christ). He argued that Mary gave birth to human Jesus, not God. This position effectively implied a division within the unique subject of Christ—a Christ-man and a Christ-God, only associated but not identical.

Original Greek Text, nn. 17-18:

«Homologoumen ton Kyrion hemon Iesoun Christon, ton Huion tou Theou ton monogene, teleion Theon kai teleion anthropon ek psyches logikes kai somatos, progennethentha ek tou Patros pro ton aionon kata ten theoteta, ep’ eschaton de ton hemeron, ton auton, di’ hemas kai dia ten hemeteran soterian, ek Marias tes Parthenou kata ten anthropoteta»

We confess that our Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, God perfect and man perfect, of rational soul and body, generated from the Father before all ages according to divinity, and in the last days, the same, for us and for our salvation, from the Virgin Mary according to humanity.

The Definition of Theotokos

«Ei tis ouk homologei Theon einai kata aletheian ton Emmanouel, kai dia touto Theotokon ten Hagian Parthenon (genna gar sarkikos ton Logon ek Theou gegennemenon)… anathema esto»

If anyone does not confess that Emmanuel is truly God and that by this the Holy Virgin is Mother of God (for she gave birth to the Word made flesh from God)… let him be anathema.

The Acclamation of Ephesus

When the definition was proclaimed, the people of Ephesus, who had been waiting outside the basilica, acclaimed the Council and its bishops with torches and flowers. This spontaneous acclamation by the faithful is one of the most moving moments in Christian history: the sensus fidelium confirming the magisterium.

Significance for Mariology

The definition of Theotokos has three inseparable dimensions:

• Christological: Christ is one divine subject, the eternal Word incarnate, not two distinct subjects.
• Mariological: Mary is truly Mother of the eternally incarnated Word, not just of human Jesus.
• Soteriological: If Christ is not truly God and truly man, salvation is impossible.

The Lumen Gentium, Chapter VIII of Vatican II, reiterates this teaching: Mary is called the “Mother of God and Redeemer” (Mater Dei ac Redemptoris).

Additional Reading:

• Explore Mariology
• Read Lumen Gentium, Chapter VIII
• Study Redemptoris Mater
• Learn about Post-Graduate Studies in Mariology

Post-Graduate Studies in Mariology:

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Also see:

• The 4 Marian Dogmas: what they are and what the Church defines
• Theotokos: what does “Mother of God” mean, and why is it a dogma?