The Orthodox Faith adheres to an ecclesiastical principle called conciliarity.

This means the Church is governed and functions according to that which is believed “everywhere, always, and by all,” to quote my patron Saint Vincent of Lérins.

Or, to quote Saint James the Brother of God, to believe what “seems good to the Holy Spirit and to us” (cf. Acts of the Apostles 15).

Conciliarity and ecumenical consensus are not, however, something that is ever forced upon the people of God in the Church. These are not top-down pronouncements (as you might find in Rome and within various sects of mainline Protestantism).

No, it is always necessary that the people respond to any teaching or judgments of the Church and her Bishops with a solemn and unanimous “amen.”

This is why the congregation responds throughout the Divine Liturgy with an “amen” as well, and this is not a bare and empty liturgical word. It carries authority and power within the Church.

Therefore, there can be no such thing as an ecumenical council, for example, without the response and acceptance of the entire Orthodox Church. Ecumenical councils are not convened; they are recognized, and always after the fact. They are recognized by the solemn and unanimous “amen” of the Holy Spirit speaking through the faithful people of God.

In fact, every gathering of heretics or schismatics to alter and/or destroy the Orthodox Faith have begun with declarations of self-claimed ecumenicity or authority, and not with the humility of seeking the voice of the Holy Spirit in God’s people everywhere and always.