Podcast Episode 13
5th Ecumenical Council
with Dr. Paul Blowers & host Nick Walters
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This Week in Christian History is produced by the students of Mississippi College in collaboration with the Center for Christian History and the Blue & Gold Media team. Each episode features an interview with Nick Walters, founder of the Center for Christian History, a long-form Deep Dive with a leading subject matter expert, and two historical highlights drawn from the same week in Christian history. The purpose of the series is to introduce listeners to the people, events, and ideas that have shaped Christian experience across two millennia.
This week’s Deep Dive features Dr. Paul Blowers, one of the foremost scholars of early Christianity. His academic profile may be found at https://ecs.academia.edu/PaulBlowers
. Dr. Blowers discusses the beginning of the Second Council of Constantinople on May 5, 553, later recognized as the Fifth Ecumenical Council. Convened under Emperor Justinian I, the council addressed intense theological debates, particularly controversies surrounding the Three Chapters and the ongoing effort to preserve unity within the church. The opening of this council marks one of the most significant moments in the development of Christian doctrine, and Dr. Blowers helps frame why its beginnings matter for understanding the wider history of the early church.
The episode also includes two historical highlights from this week in Christian history.
May 10, 1508 – One of the most notable features of a visit to St. Peter’s Basilica is the Sistine Chapel, famous as the place where papal conclaves elect new popes. Michelangelo’s artwork on the chapel’s ceiling remains among the greatest achievements in art history. Yet the project nearly stalled when Michelangelo fell far behind schedule. On May 10, 1508, Pope Julius II ordered him to resume work immediately or face punishment. This moment shows the pressures placed upon artists in the Renaissance and the importance of the project to the papacy.
May 11, 1926 – J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis first met at the Eagle and Child Pub in Oxford, England. This meeting initiated a friendship that would eventually form the core of the literary group known as the Inklings, whose members included some of the most influential Christian writers of the twentieth century. Many of these authors taught at Oxford University, and their novels, essays, poetry, and imaginative fiction contain themes shaped deeply by the Christian faith. Their first meeting on this date marks the beginning of a literary fellowship that influenced global literature and Christian thought for generations.
