‘Council Acts’ and the Variations of Conciliar Documentation and Recording Patterns

Abstract

This chapter examines the variations of types of conciliar records and underlying recording practices. The examination distinguishes different textual genres and styles employed for the reporting and recording of conciliar decisions and discussions, such as ‘canons’ holding on to (for the most part disciplinary) rulings; ‘anathemas’; ‘decrees’ (horoi); ‘expositions (ektheseis)’ and ‘creeds’ that formulate the summary judgement of the assembly, frequently on matters of orthodoxy; and the conventional reporting in the form of conciliar letters. Recording not just of decisions but also of discussion in direct speech is sporadic. Significant flexibility in the recording styles can be observed both between councils and even in the same council; it represents purposeful choices by council leaders and secretaries. The chapter argues that these cannot be fully aligned or explained by the need for quasi-legal scrutiny in some disciplinary cases as opposed to doctrinal deliberation on other occasions.