The Acacians (), also known as the Homoians or Homoeans (), were an Arian sect which played a major role in the Christianization of the Goths in the Danubian provinces of the Roman Empire.
"Though Homoian Arianism derived from the thought both of Eusebius of Caesarea and of Arius, we cannot with confidence detect it before the year 357, when it appears in the Second Sirmian Creed." This was before the convocation of the joint synods of Rimini and Seleucia Isauria in 359.
Supporters
The sect owed its name and political importance to Acacius, Bishop of Caesarea. "Akakius of Caesarea is usually regarded as the leader of the Homoian Arians par excellence. He succeeded Eusebius as bishop of that see in 339 or 340 and remained there for at least twenty-five years. He was clearly a devoted disciple of his predecessor."
R.P.C. Hanson stated, "If we are to determine who among the Homoian Arians was the most influential in the long run, we must choose Ulfilas, Apostle of the Goths." “He translated most of the Bible into Gothic.”
“The Emperor in the East, Valens, … was a fanatical opponent of the pro-Nicenes, as also of the Eunomians, and a supporter of the Homoian creed.”
Homoian Theology
The Homoians were committed to use only Biblical language and declared the Son to be similar () to God the Father, without reference to essence or substance. This is in contrast to the other strands of Christianity at the time which used the concept of "substance" (ousia) to explain the relationship between the Father and Son:
Homo-ousian = Distinct but identical substance
Homoi-ousian = Similar in substance
Neo-Arianism or hetero-ousians = Unlike in substance
“Ulfilas' doctrine exhibits a drastic subordination of the Son to the Father, a fierce emphasis upon the incomparability of the Father … a denial of the divinity of the Holy Spirit and a strong and explicit repudiation of the pro-Nicene doctrine.”
R.P.C. Hanson discusses on pages 592-595 “a shift of emphasis on the part of Germinius as far as doctrine is concerned” which illuminates the disputes in Arian circles at the time. Germinius was “appointed bishop of Sirmium in 351” and regarded by some as “one of the standard-bearers of Arianism.” He wrote:“There is one true God the Father, eternal, almighty; and Christ his only Son and our Lord God … born before all things, in deity, love, majesty, power, glory, love, wisdom, knowledge, like in all things to the Father …”“This profession of faith caused alarm … among other Homoian Arian bishops.” “The Catholic faith declared at Ariminum" read “that the Son is like the Father according to the Scriptures.” Homoians did not want to say that “he is like 'according to substance'” or even “in all respects.” “To adopt such doctrines would be to return to the false teaching of Basil (of Ancyra) condemned at Ariminum.” (See, Homoi-ousianism)
But Germinius defended his views in response to the criticism and wrote:“Christ the Son of God our Lord like in all respects to the Father I ingenerateness excepted. God from God, Light from Light.”Hanson concludes: “Clearly Germinius had by now abandoned Homoian Arianism.”
Background
In order to understand the theological significance of Acacianism as a critical episode in both the logical and historical progress of Arianism, it is needful to recall that the definition of the Homoousion, promulgated at the First Council of Nicaea in 325, rather than putting an end to further discussion, became the occasion for keener debate and for still more confusion of statement in the formulation of theories on the relationship of the Son of God to His Father. Events had already begun to ripen towards a fresh crisis shortly after the advent of Emperor Constantius II to sole power, on the death of his brother Constans in the year 350. The new augustus was a man with a turn for theological debate (Ammianus, XXI, xvi) that soon made him a strong promoter of the Eusebian faction. Roughly speaking, there were at this period only three parties in the Church: the Nicene party, who sympathized for the most part with Athanasius and his supporters; the Eusebian or Court party and their Semi-Arian followers; and, last of all, the Anomoean party which owed its origin to Aetius. In the summer of 357, Ursacius of Singidunum and Valens of Mursa, the advocates of this latter group of dissidents in the West, through the influence which they were enabled to bring to bear upon the Emperor by means of his second wife, Eusebia (Panegyr. Jul. Orat., iii; Ammianus, XXI, vi, 4), succeeded in bringing about a conference of bishops at Sirmium.