On May 20, the Christian world celebrates the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, the first ecumenical council. It declared that Jesus Christ is God (true God and true man), eternal son of God(homousios = of the same nature as the Father) and made man for our salvation. The divine filiation of Jesus has made us sons in Him and brothers among us, especially Christians.

This has had and continues to have great consequences for history and culture, throughout Christian life, as noted in the document of the International Theological Commission, "Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior: 1700 years since the Ecumenical Council of Nicaea (325-2025)". We limit ourselves here to pointing out some educational implications of the conclusions of the text (cf. nn 121-124).

Above all, the way of beauty. It is said that this celebration "is a pressing invitation for the Church to rediscover the treasure entrusted to her and take advantage of it to share it with joy, in a new impulse, even in a 'new stage of evangelization,'" in the words of Pope Francis. Undoubtedly with educational implications.

The first thing he proposes is "to let ourselves be amazed by the immensity of Christ so that all may be amazed; to rekindle the fire of our love for the Lord Jesus, so that all may burn with love for him. Nothing and no one is more beautiful, more life-giving, more necessary than He," as Dostoevsky said.

Indeed, how is it possible to get used to the fact that God has united himself, in Christ, to humanity in order to bring it to the fullness of the human vocation, and, moreover, in such a way that he has made us beloved children and brothers and sisters in the family of God through the Holy Spirit? 

And so: "Those who have seen the glory(doxa) of Christ can sing it and let doxology become a generous and fraternal advertisement , that is, a kerygma".

Second, realism. It should be noted that the Christian message is far from naïve: it does not overlook evil, nor the complexity of reality, nor does it forget our resistance to God's plans.

The document points out: "To proclaim Jesus as our Salvation from the faith expressed at Nicaea is not to ignore the reality of humanity. It does not turn its back on the sufferings and upheavals that torment the world and that today seem to undermine all hope".

This is so, because it cannot be said that Jesus did not know "the violence of sin and rejection, the loneliness of withdrawal and death"; but from that abyss of evil, "he rose to lead us also in his victory to the glory of the resurrection".

Moreover, the renewed advertisement the salvation worked by Christ, "does not ignore culture and cultures either, on the contrary, even here with hope and charity it listens to them and is enriched by them, invites them to purification and elevates them". 

At the same time, "to enter into such a hope obviously requires a conversion, first of all, on the part of the one who proclaims Jesus with life and word, because it implies a renewal of intelligence according to the thought of Christ".  

For this reason, since Nicaea is "the fruit of a transformation of thought made possible by the event of Jesus Christ", "a new stage of evangelization will only be possible for those who allow themselves to be renewed by this event, for those who allow themselves to be seized by the glory of Christ, which is ever new".

Third, the concrete school of mercy: "To proclaim Jesus as our Salvation from the faith expressed in Nicea means to pay special attention to the least and most vulnerable of our brothers and sisters". It engages us staff and socially: "To proclaim here means "to feed", "to give to drink", "to welcome", "to clothe" and "to go and visit" (Mt 25:34-40)". That is, with the works of mercy, "to radiate the humble glory of faith, hope and charity to those in whom we have no confidence, from whom no one expects anything and who are not loved by the world".

But here we are speaking not only of the one who does the works of mercy, but also of the one who receives them: "Let us make no mistake: these crucified ones of history are Christ among us, in the strongest possible sense: "you did it with me" (Mt 25:40). 

He identifies Himself with them and they with Him: "The Crucified-Risen One knows intimately their sufferings and they know His. They are, therefore, the apostles, teachers and evangelizers of the rich and the healthy". 

Finally, the faith that comes from Nicaea is the Christian faith that is proclaimed in the Creed and lived through the liturgy and the sacraments, and prayer. And it is witnessed by a conduct centered on the fraternity that is founded on Christ. Therefore, "the advertisement will only be fruitful if there is consonance between the form of the message and its content, between the form of Christ and the form of evangelization". This requires following Christ "meek and humble of heart" (Mt 11:29; cf. Mt 5:5) and letting Him act in us to achieve His victory. 

This is not, one concludes, a victory over the adversaries (except Satan). It is not a battle that leaves losers; but a configuration with Christ, who looked with love and compassion, allowing himself to be led by the Spirit of the Father.  

Indeed, because, in the life of Christians, it is true that the messenger is part of a message that always opens up anew to astonishment.