Ecclesiastical Councils
Gregory I. Halfond
The history of conciliarism during the first millennium is also story episcopal corporatism. During this period, hundreds councils assembled throughout Latin West. Primarily regional meetings, these defy easy generalizations as regards their priorities and agendas influence on religious policy practice. Despite diversity, however, they constituted an institutional mechanism for bishops to craft rules whose authority was predicated chiefly consensus legislators. Collectively, contributed a growing body ecclesiastical norms, which had yet be fully delineated or codified. While promulgating policies immediate context, consciously grounded work in authoritative precedent, reaffirming both shared corporate identity role continuation apostolic tradition.
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