One of the many synods held principally to settle the troubles caused by the Arian heresy, probably in 343. Ninety-four Catholic bishops and seventy-six bishops favoring Arianism were present. Failling to reach an agreement, the eastern bishops withdrew and convened at Philippopolis, where they promulgated a new creed and an encyclical, dating it from Sardica (modern Sofia). Several bishops were excommunicated as a result. The Catholic bishops investigated the cases of Athanasius, Marcellus, and Asclepas and pronounced them innocent. Though the council drew up several canons, it failed in its principal object.