MCC Church History & Tradition 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which council in 325 AD condemned Arianism and defined Jesus Christ as consubstantial (homoousios) with the Father?
- Council of Ephesus
- Council of Nicaea (Correct answer)
- Council of Chalcedon
- Council of Constantinople
Correct answer: Council of Nicaea
The Council of Nicaea (325 AD) produced the Nicene Creed, affirming Christ is 'of the same substance' as the Father, directly refuting Arian claims that the Son was a created being.
Question 2: The Edict of Milan (313 AD) issued by Constantine and Licinius primarily accomplished which of the following?
- Made Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire
- Granted religious tolerance throughout the Roman Empire (Correct answer)
- Banned all pagan religious practices
- Established the Pope as head of the Church
Correct answer: Granted religious tolerance throughout the Roman Empire
The Edict of Milan granted religious tolerance to all religions in the empire, ending persecution of Christians, but Christianity did not become the official state religion until 380 AD under Theodosius I.
Question 3: Which schism in 1054 AD permanently divided Christianity into Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox branches?
- The Photian Schism
- The Great Western Schism
- The Great East-West Schism (Correct answer)
- The Donatist Schism
Correct answer: The Great East-West Schism
The Great East-West Schism of 1054 AD resulted from longstanding theological, political, and cultural differences, particularly over papal authority and the Filioque clause, splitting the Church into Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox.
Question 4: St. Augustine of Hippo's work 'The City of God' was written primarily in response to which historical event?
- The Council of Nicaea
- The sack of Rome by the Visigoths in 410 AD (Correct answer)
- The Edict of Milan
- The martyrdom of the early Christians
Correct answer: The sack of Rome by the Visigoths in 410 AD
Augustine wrote 'The City of God' to counter pagan claims that Rome fell because it abandoned its gods for Christianity, instead articulating the distinction between the earthly city and the heavenly City of God.
Question 5: Which apostolic father wrote 'The Didache,' one of the earliest known Christian catechetical documents?
- It is anonymous and written by an unknown author or authors (Correct answer)
- St. Polycarp of Smyrna
- St. Ignatius of Antioch
- St. Clement of Rome
Correct answer: It is anonymous and written by an unknown author or authors
The Didache (Teaching of the Twelve Apostles) is an anonymous text from the late first or early second century, providing early instructions on baptism, the Eucharist, fasting, and community life.
Question 6: The heresy of Pelagianism, condemned by several councils in the early 5th century, primarily denied which Catholic doctrine?
- The divinity of Jesus Christ
- The necessity of divine grace for salvation (Correct answer)
- The authority of the Pope
- The reality of original sin only
Correct answer: The necessity of divine grace for salvation
Pelagius taught that humans could achieve salvation through their own free will and moral effort without the necessity of divine grace, a position condemned as heretical because Catholic teaching holds grace as essential for salvation.
Question 7: Which pope convened the First Vatican Council (Vatican I) in 1869–1870, which defined papal infallibility?
- Pope Leo XIII
- Pope Pius IX (Correct answer)
- Pope Gregory XVI
- Pope Pius XII
Correct answer: Pope Pius IX
Pope Pius IX convened Vatican I, which defined papal infallibility — that the Pope speaks infallibly when defining doctrines of faith and morals ex cathedra — in the dogmatic constitution Pastor Aeternus.
MCC Church History & Tradition 1
Which council in 325 AD condemned Arianism and defined Jesus Christ as consubstantial (homoousios) with the Father?