Nicene

Nicene refers to Nicaea, an ancient city in Bithynia (present-day İznik, Turkey), and to the doctrinal traditions and documents associated with that city. The most prominent use is connected with the First Council of Nicaea, convened in 325 CE by Emperor Constantine I to settle church disputes about Christology and the nature of the Trinity.

The council produced the original Nicene Creed, which declared that the Son is of the same essence (homoousios) with the Father and affirmed the full divinity of Christ. It rejected Arianism and established a framework for orthodox belief that guided subsequent doctrinal decisions. The creed was later revised and expanded at the Council of Constantinople in 381, resulting in the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, which remains influential in many Christian denominations.

Beyond the creed, the term "Nicene" is used to describe the broader early Christian theological milieu known as the Nicene Fathers, a group of theologians and scholars whose work helped articulate Trinitarian doctrine and Christology during the fourth century. The Nicene tradition marks a pivotal epoch in church history, reflecting both theological developments and political context that shaped Western Christianity.