Jerome’s Solution to Schism: Communion with the Chair of Peter

In this episode, Dr. Stephen Boyce walks through St. Jerome’s Letter 15 to Pope Damasus, written while Jerome was living in the Syrian desert amid the divisions of the Antiochene schism. Eastern Christians were divided among rival bishops, while theological controversy surrounded the expression “three hypostases.” Jerome understood the orthodox meaning intended by some who used the phrase, but he feared that its ambiguity could also suggest three divine substances.Rather than deciding the controversy by himself, Jerome appealed to Pope Damasus and the Roman See. He describes Rome as the “chair of Peter,” the rock upon which the Church is built, the house in which the Paschal Lamb is rightly eaten, and the Ark of Noah. Although he follows no leader except Christ, Jerome declares that he communicates with the chair of Peter and asks Damasus to determine which terminology he should use and with whom he should remain in communion at Antioch.This letter provides an important window into Jerome’s understanding of ecclesial unity and the resolution of schism. For Jerome, agreement with the Roman See was not merely an expression of admiration for Rome. He looked to the successor of Peter for an authoritative judgment capable of identifying orthodox communion and bringing clarity to a divided Church.