All the Councils of Church History in Greek & Latin

Order of Contents

With English

Note the volumes in this section by no means contain all the documents of the select, major councils they address.

The Creeds of the Councils

HTML

This is easy to use for the creeds in the original languages opposite an English translation. Scroll down, click on the bolded councils, click ‘English’, click ‘ok’.

ed. Schaff, Philip – The Creeds of Christendom 4th ed. rev. & enlarged (NY: Harper & Brothers, 1896)

vol. 1 955 pp. ToC

This volume gives the historical background on some of the major councils and creeds through Church history up through the 1800’s, including Protestant ones. For the councils’ documents and creeds themselves, see vol. 2.

vol. 2 610 pp. ToC

This is a standard edition of the most important creedal excerpts and select documents of the major early Church councils up through the 6th Ecumenical Council (AD 680), with the English and original languages on opposite columns. Then Roman and Greek councils and creeds from the 1500’s to 1800’s are given.

vol. 3 930 pp. ToC

This volume contains the major protestant confessions since the Reformation up through the 1800’s, with the original languages and English on facing columns.

The Canons of the Councils

HTML

Patristica.net

This is easy to use for the canons in the original languages opposite an English translation. Scroll down, click on the bolded councils, click ‘English’ and the languages you desire for facing columns, then click ‘ok’.

ed. Lambert, William – The Canons of the First Four General Councils of the Church [up to 451] & those of the Early, Local, Greek Synods, in Greek with Latin, with English in Parallel Columns (London: R.D. Dickinson, 1869) 185 pp. ToC

The canons in this volume are not in Schaff. Lambert was an Anglican rector.

This contains the canons for the general councils of Nicea 325, Constantinople 381, Ephesus 431 and Chalcedon 451.

The canons of the Greek synods the volume contains, which were confirmed at these four general councils, include Ancyra 314, Neocaesarea 315, Gangra 340, Antioch 341 and Laodicea 365.

All the Councils in Greek & Latin (with no English)

ed. Mansi, Giovan et al. – Sacrorum Conciliorum Nova et Amplissima Collectio, 51 vols. (1758-1798; Paris: H. Welter, 1903-1927)

Intro

Mansi contains everything published in older editions of the councils (volumes have been added to the series after his death to bring it up to date). For background on Giovanni Domenico Mansi (1692-1769), an Italian prelate, theologian, scholar and historian, see Wikipedia.

Next to the numeral of each linked volume below are the years the volume covers; indented there under follows only a small portion of the councils or synods covered in the volume (up through vol. 28).

The ecumenical and general councils are in bold. The Reformed generally accepted the creedal statements (not necessarily the canons, acts and all the documents) of the first four ecumenical councils (up through Chalcedon in 451), and the main doctinal teachings of five and six (553 & 680), but did not accept those after that (the seventh in 787 approved worshipping with images). After the year 700 below, the general councils the Roman Church recognizes are bolded.

As Mansi was a Romanist, his series does not include Protestant councils and synods. Also, as the Romanists excluded certain canons of various councils from their collections which did not reflect so well on them, so Mansi does not include those canons. They may however be found in Lambert, The Canons of the First Four General Councils of the Church (1869).

Some historians date some of the councils and synods differently. Some councils or synods do appear in volumes of a different date range; if you cannot find the council or synod where you expect, search Councils by Year & Volume, which is exhaustive (it appears).

For figuring out difficult place names, at this time (2024) ChatGPT is best.

Where documents are in Greek, a Latin translation in a parallel column is provided.

If a page of a volume below is not readable, check additional copies of the volumes at Patristica.net, Hathitrust and DocumentaCatholicaOmnia.

The large edition of councils before Mansi, which included much less than Mansi, was that of Labbe, which is fully online at Patristica.net. Labbe’s first edition (1672) had 16 volumes; the second (1730) had 24 volumes. Mansi then published a 6 vol. supplement to Labbe in 1748-1752 (also linked at that webpage), before publishing the fuller collection on this webpage.

English Translations

Excerpts in English of some of the councils’ documents below may be found in the following three publications:

eds. Schaff, Philip & Henry Wace – The Seven Ecumenical Councils: their Canons & Dogmatic Decrees, together with the Canons of All the Local Synods which have received Ecumenical Acceptance being Nicene & Post-Nocene Fathers, Series 2, vol. 14 (NY: 1916) 710 pp. ToC

ed. Kidd, B.J. – Documents Illustrative of the History of the Church, vol. 1, 2, 3 (London: SPCK, 1920) Kidd gives excerpts for:

vol. 1

Carthage VII (256), Elvira (300)

vol. 2

Nicea (325), Alexandria (339), Gangra (340), Antioch (341), Sardica (343), Antioch (344), Ancyra (358), Constantinople (370-380), Constantinople (381), Milan (390), Hippo (393), Carthage (424), Mar Dadiso (424), Constantinople (448), Chalcedon (451), Orange (529)

vol. 3

Lateran (649), Hertford (673), Hatfield (680), 6th Ecumenical (681), Nicea II (787), Lateran (1059), Clermont (1095), Clarendon (1164), Lyons (1274), Vienne (1311), Pisa (1409), Constance (1415-1418), Florence (1439)

Denzinger, Heinrich – The Sources of Catholic Dogma, 13th ed., trans. Roy Deferrari (St. Louis: B. Herder, 1957) 750 pp. ToC Denzinger, a Romanist, gives excerpts for:

– Illiberi (300-306), Arles (314), Nicea (325), Serdica (343-344), Rome (382), Constantinople (381), Carthage (397)
– Toledo (400 & 447), Mileum II (416), Carthage XVI (418), Ephesus (431), Chalcedon (451), Arles (475)
– Orange II (529), Constantinople II (553), Braga II (561)
– Lateran (649), Toledo (675), Rome (680), Constantinople III (680-681), Toledo XV (685), Toledo XVI (693)
– Nicea II (787), Frankfurt (794), Friuli (796)
– Ticinus (850), Quiersy (853), Valence III (855), Rome (860 & 863), Constantinople IV (869-872)
– Rome (993)
– Rome (1060), Rome VI (1079), Benevento (1091)
– Lateran (1102), Guastalla (1106), Lateran I (1123), Lateran II (1139), Sens (1140 or 1141), Reims (1148), Lateran III (1179), Verona (1184)
– Lateran IV (1215), Lyons I (1245), Lyons II (1274)
– Vienne (1311-1312)
– Constance (1414-1418), Florence (1438-1445)
– Lateran V (1512-1517), Trent (1545-1563)
– Vatican I (1869-1870)

Indices

Alphabetic Index of Councils for vols. 1-35 (1-1724) in vol. 36a This PDF is easier to read.
Alphabetic Index of Councils for vols. 36-46 (1272-1902) in vol. 36a

Councils by Year & Volume

Detailed ToC to Every Volume in vol. 36a, for vols. 1-42. See the Supplement (p. 323 ff.) for years 358-1797 in vols. 17-46

Volumes

Intro Essays on Councils

1. 1-304

NT, Lives of Popes, Oriental 160, Caesaria 179, Rome 192, Asia 197, African 217, Alexandria 235, Ephesus 245, Antioch 253, Italy 253, Iconium 256, Alexandria 263, Cirta 303

2. 305-346

Carthage 306, Alexandria 308, Rome 313, Ancyra 314, Arles 314, Neocaesaria 314, Seleucia 314, Nicea 325, Constantinople 336, Antioch 341, Milan 344

3. 347-409

Milan 347, Sardica 347, Donatists 350, Arians 353, Semi-Arians 358, Anomoeans 361, Alexandria 363, Caesaria of Cappadocia 370, Laodicea 372, Milan 375, Novatians 375, Constantinople 381, Carthage 389, Hippo 393, Alexandria 399, Toledo 400, 407, African VII 409

4. 410-431

Carthage 411, Cirta 412, Carthage vs. Pelagians 412, 416, 417, Donatists 414, Rome 417, African 424, Hippo 426, Alexandria 430, Ephesus 431

5. 431-441

Ephesus 431, Constantinople 432, Anazarbus 435, Alexandria 439, Antioch 440, Ephesus 440, Vaison 442

6. 441-451

Rome 444, French 446, Spanish 447, Ephesus 448, Constantinople I 448, Brittain 449, Constantinople III 450, Chalcedon 451, Milan 451

7. 451-492

Alexandria 451, Bituricum 454, Thessalonica 457, Arles 463, Antioch 472, Lyon 475, Laodicea 478, African 484, Rome 487, Constantinople 491-492

8. 492-536

Rome 495, Constantinople 496, Rome VI 504, Aurelianum I 511, Constantinople 515, 518, 520, Valentinum Spain 524, Larissa 530, Carthage 534, Jerusalem 536

9. 536-590

Syria 536, Antioch 540, Constantinople 543, 547, African 550, Constantinople II 553, Paris II 555, Paris III 557, Lyon II 567, Paris IV 573, Nestorians 576, Toledo 581, Constantinople 587, Metz 590

10. 590-653

French 590, African 594, Toledo 597, Sens 601, Rome 606, 610, Paris 615, Charnay 619, Alexandria 630, 633, Toledo 636, 638, Rome 641, African 646, Rome 649, Toledo 653

11. 653-687

Toledo 655, French 657, Clippiacum 659, Monothelites 665, Rome 667, Toledo 675, Anglican 677, Milan 679, Constantinople III 680, Arles 682, Toledo 684, French 686, Armenia 687

12. 687-787

Toledo 688, Anglo-Saxon 692, Utrecht 697, Anglican 700, Rome 705-707, Constantinople 711, Utrecht 720, Jerusalem 726, Rome 731, German 742, German III 747, Iconoclasts 754, Rome 757, German 759, Worms 764, Jerusalem 767, Worms 770, Venice 775, Rome 780, Spain 783, Nicea II 787

13. 787-802

Nicea II 787, Worms 787, Ratisbon 792, Frankfurt 794, Anglican 797, Rome 799, Altino 802, Aachen 802

14. 803-854

Ratisbon 803, Constantinople 806, Aachen 809, Reims II 813, Compiègne 816, Anglican 820, Compiègne 823, Rome 826, Paris 829, Hamburg 832, London 833, Le Mans 839, Constantinople 842, 846, Lyon 848, Redon 850, Rome 853, Constantinople 854

15. 855-868

Rome 855, Worms 857, Langres 859, French 860, Milan 862, Rome 863, Soissons III 866, Caphartuta 868

16. 869-871

Constantinople IV 869, Metz 869, Attigny 870, Cologne 870, Vienna 870, Duziacum 871

17.1 872-884

Compiegne 872, Cologne 873, Duziacum II 874, Cologne 877, Rome II & III 879, Ravenna 882

17.2 Capitularies of French Kings, vol. 1

18.1 885-967

Italy 885, Cologne 887, Ticinum 888, Worms 890, Anglican 892, France 896, Rome 900, Ravenna 904, Barcelona 907, Fontem Coopertum 911, Constantinople 920, Tours 925, Altheim 931, Poitiers 936, Milan 942, Verdun 947, Augusta 952, Tardenois 961, Rome 964, Verona 967

18.2 Capitularies of French Kings, vol. 2

19. 967-1070

Ravenna 967, Anglican 969, Bath 973, Rome 979, 983, Landau 988, Reims 991, 993, Rome 996, Poitiers 999, German 1000, Tremon 1005, Como 1010, Reims 1015, German 1020, Arras 1025, Vienna 1030, Coxan 1035, Urgell 1040, Narbonne France 1045, Paris 1050, Tours 1055, 1060, Ecija 1065, Winchester 1070

20. 1070-1109

London 1070, France 1072, Anglican 1074, Ancyra 1076, London 1078, Burgos 1080, Berbian 1085, Narbonne 1090, 1095 Anglican, Ancyra 1100, Florence 1105, London 1109

21. 1109-1166

Ferrara 1109, Clermont 1110, Syria 1115, Naples 1120, Lateran I 1123, London 1125, Clermont 1130, Leon 1135, Lateran II 1139, Constantinople 1140, Bourges 1145, Salzburg 1150, Constantinople 1155, Anagni 1160, Herbipolis 1166

22. 1166-1225

Le Mans 1166, Paris 1170, Salamanca 1175, Lateran III 1179, Verona 1184, Anglican 1190, Paris 1196, London 1200, Antioch 1205, Arles 1210, Lateran IV 1215, Rome 1220, Sens 1225

23. 1225-1268

Cologne 1225, Rouen 1230, Reims 1235, Silvanectus 1240, Lyon I 1243, Othon 1245, Oxford 1250, Copriniacum 1255, Arles 1260, London 1265, Wrocław 1267

24. 1269-1299

Angers 1269, Lyon II 1274, Arles 1275, Béziers 1280, Constantinople 1285, Ébreuil 1290, Spain 1296, Rouen 1299

25. 1300-1344

Bayeux 1300, Saint-Omer 1305, Béziers 1310, Vienne 1311-1312, Salmur 1315, Adon 1320, Alcala 1325, Marciac 1330, Tarragona 1335, Nicosia 1340, Rouen 1342

26. 1344-1409

Magdeburg 1344, Padua 1350, Toledo 1355, Lambeth 1362, Magdeburg 1370, Benevento 1378, Barcelona 1386, PAris 1394, Vasteras 1400, Britain 1405, Pisa 1409

27. 1409-1415

Seville 1412, London 1413, Constance 1414, Canterbury 1415

28. 1415-1430

Nono 1415, Salzburg 1420, Copenhagen 1425, Paris 1429,

29. 1431-1434

Basel-Ferrara-Florence 1431-1449

30. 1431-1439

31.1 1440-1454

31.2 Council of Florence (above) is Finished

32. 1438-1549

Lateran V 1512-1517

33. 1545-1565