Theotokos
Doctrine · On the Mother of God · from 431
Mary is Mother of God, because the one she bore is God the Word made flesh.
The word is about her Son. Ephesus held that to refuse it is to divide Christ in two, which is why a title of Mary settled a question of Christology.
Held it
- 430 — Cyril of Alexandria (Defends). Argues that the flesh born of Mary is the Word own, so that whoever refuses her the title refuses the union. The Seven Ecumenical Councils (NPNF series 2 vol. 14) · Ephesus (431), the Twelve Anathemas of Cyril, anathema 1
- 431 — The Council of Ephesus (Defines). Receives Cyril letter and its anathemas, and the title with them. The Seven Ecumenical Councils (NPNF series 2 vol. 14) · Ephesus (431), the Twelve Anathemas of Cyril, anathema 1
- 431 — The Twelve Anathemas of Cyril (Formulates). The text in which the title is bound. The Seven Ecumenical Councils (NPNF series 2 vol. 14) · Ephesus (431), the Twelve Anathemas of Cyril, anathema 1
- 451 — The Council of Chalcedon (Defines). Writes the title into the Definition: born of the Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, according to the manhood. The Seven Ecumenical Councils (NPNF series 2 vol. 14) · Chalcedon (451), the Definition of Faith
In the disputes
- The Nestorian controversy A quarrel about a title of Mary that was a quarrel about her Son.
First stated in this form after The Seven Ecumenical Councils (NPNF series 2 vol. 14) · Ephesus (431), the Twelve Anathemas of Cyril, anathema 1.