Creed promulgated
The Creed of this Council
We define that the holy icons, whether in colour, mosaic, or some other material, should be exhibited in the holy churches of God, on the holy vessels and liturgical vestments, on the walls, furnishings, and in houses and along the roads — the icon of our Lord God and Saviour Jesus Christ, that of our immaculate Lady, the holy God-bearer, those of the honourable angels, and those of all saintly holy men. The more frequently they are seen, the more are those who behold them drawn to remember and long for those who serve as models. We pay these icons the tribute of salutation and respectful veneration (timetike proskynesis) — not the full adoration (latreia) in accordance with our faith, which is properly paid only to the divine nature alone.
Definition · No. 1
The Council's Answer
Claim refuted: "“To make an image of Christ is either Nestorian (depicting only his humanity as separable from his divinity) or blasphemous (claiming to capture divinity in matter). The Old Testament forbids images. Christian icon veneration is indistinguishable from pagan idolatry.”" — The Incarnation changes everything. God, who was invisible and incomprehensible, became visible in Christ. His face can be depicted because he has a face. To refuse to depict him is implicitly to deny that he truly became human. Furthermore, the Church has always distinguished veneration (proskynesis) given to icons from worship (latreia) given to God alone. The honor given to an image passes to the prototype.
Creed · No. 2
The Council's Definition, Nicaea II, 787 AD
We define that the holy icons, whether in colour, mosaic, or some other material, should be exhibited in the holy churches of God, on the holy vessels and liturgical vestments, on the walls, furnishings, and in houses and along the roads — the icon of our Lord God and Saviour Jesus Christ, that of our immaculate Lady, the holy God-bearer, those of the honourable angels, and those of all saintly holy men. The more frequently they are seen, the more are those who behold them drawn to remember and long for those who serve as models. We pay these icons the tribute of salutation and respectful veneration (timetike proskynesis) — not the full adoration (latreia) in accordance with our faith, which is properly paid only to the divine nature alone. — Council of Nicaea II, Definition, 787 AD — ratified by c. 367 bishops
Anathema · No. 3
Against Iconoclasm
“To make an image of Christ is either Nestorian (depicting only his humanity as separable from his divinity) or blasphemous (claiming to capture divinity in matter). The Old Testament forbids images. Christian icon veneration is indistinguishable from pagan idolatry.”
Definition · No. 4
Witness — St. John of Damascus (Theological Foundation)
"In former times God, who is without form or body, could never be depicted. But now when God is seen in the flesh conversing with men, I make an image of the God whom I see. I do not worship matter; I worship the Creator of matter who became matter for my sake, who willed to take his abode in matter; who worked out my salvation through matter. Never will I cease honoring the matter which wrought my salvation! I honor it, but not as God. How could God be born out of lifeless things?" — St. John of Damascus, First Apology Against Those Who Attack the Divine Images, §16, c. 730 AD. The precision of the argument: John is not defending a general sacramentality of matter, though that follows. He is making a specific Christological claim. The Incarnation means that God himself took on a particular material form — a specific face, a specific body — that can therefore be depicted without idolatry. The depiction is not of “divinity” in the abstract but of the specific Person who assumed a specific humanity.
Definition · No. 5
Witness — Empress Irene (Imperial Convener)
"Since in general councils it is commanded to follow the ordinances of the Fathers, we think it right to do this in like manner, following the teaching of our holy Fathers. Wherefore with all care and exactness, we define that... the holy icons, whether in colour, mosaic, or some other material, should be exhibited in the holy churches of God and should receive due salutation and honourable reverence — not true latreia, which pertains to the divine nature alone." — Empress Irene, imperial letter convening the council, 787 AD. Irene's convening letter reveals her theological motivation: not pragmatic politics but genuine conviction that iconoclasm was a doctrinal error. Her canonization reflects the Orthodox Church's judgment that her role in restoring icon veneration was a work of genuine piety, despite the personal compromises of her political career.
Definition · No. 6
Witness — Empress Theodora, 843 AD (The Triumph of Orthodoxy)
"On this day the empress Theodora, together with the Patriarch Methodius and the whole synod, restored the veneration of the holy icons in the great church of God and throughout the whole Roman empire; and the pious were filled with joy and exultation... And from that day to this, the Church celebrates the holy Triumph of Orthodoxy on the first Sunday of Holy and Great Lent." — Synaxarion of the Sunday of the Triumph of Orthodoxy. The Triumph of Orthodoxy is understood in the Orthodox tradition not merely as the restoration of images but as the vindication of the entire conciliar tradition: all seven councils as one coherent act of the Church's self-definition. The Synodikon of Orthodoxy, read on this day, proclaims all seven councils together and anathematizes all condemned heresies.
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