Theoleptus I of Constantinople

Theoleptus I
Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople
Church	Church of Constantinople
Installed	mid 1513
Term ended	December 1522
Predecessor	Pachomius I
Successor	Jeremias I
Personal details
Died	December 1522
Previous post	Metropolitan of Iannina

Theoleptus I (Greek: Θεόληπτος Α΄) was Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from 1513 to 1522.^[1]

Life

Theoleptus was native of Crete or Epirus and lived as monk beside Pachomius I, who appointed him Metropolitan of Iannina.^[2] When Pachomius died due to poisoning, Theoleptus moved immediately to Adrianople where he found favour with Sultan Selim I.^[3]^:199 After the payment of the usual fee for any patriarchal appointment, the Sultan appointed him as Patriarch of Constantinople. Afterwards Theoleptus went to Constantinople for the formal election and enthronement in mid-1513.^[4]

In September 1520 his patron, Sultan Selim, died, and so Theoleptus' position was weakened. The first rumors began to arise, which later led to formal charges of leading an immoral private life. The Holy Synod decided that he should stand for trial, but he died, in December 1522, before the judgment.^[5]

Patriarchate

The power of the Patriarch of Constantinople increased with the Ottoman–Mamluk War (1516–1517) and the consequent annexation of Syria, Palestine and Egypt by Sultan Selim I,^[3]^:176-7 as the Patriarchates of Alexandria, Antioch and Jerusalem were incorporated to Ottoman Empire. These patriarchates retained their religious autonomy, but were de facto subjected to the influence of the Patriarch of Constantinople, who was near the Sultan and was his deputy as civil ruler of all Eastern Orthodox Christians in the Empire in accordance with the millet system. This influence of Constantinople increased during the next centuries, especially with regards to appointments. With the conquest of Palestine and the fall of Jerusalem in 1517 to Selim, Theoleptus obtained from the Sultan the right to maintain the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.^[2]

Theoleptus established good relations since 1516 with the Grand Prince of Moscow Vasili III, whose mother was a niece of the last Byzantine emperor, Constantine XI. The Grand Duchy of Moscow became in that age the most powerful independent Orthodox kingdom. In 1518 Theoleptus sent the scholar Maximus the Greek to Russia.^[3]^:327

In about 1520, Sultan Selim, who desired a forced conversion of all Christians to Islam, ordered a take-over of the Christian churches because there was no firman to protect them. Theoleptus, thanks to his good relations with the Sultan, and thanks to a lawyer named Xenakis, was successful in opposing the order, persuading the Sultan that the churches of Constantinople surrendered during the 1453 fall of Constantinople, being thus spared and retained for Christian worship. Even though no firman could be exhibited due to a fire at the Patriarchate, three old Janissaries, who lived during the 1453 events, swore to that effect on the Koran and were believed.^[3]^:189

As Patriarch, Theoleptus re-shaped the ecclesiastic organization of the dioceses of Adrianople, Samos and into Wallachia.^[2]

Notes

↑ Kiminas, Demetrius (2009). The Ecumenical Patriarchate. Wildside Press LLC. p. 38. ISBN 978-1-4344-5876-6.
1 2 3 "Theoliptos I". Ecumenical Patriarchate. Retrieved 23 August 2011.
1 2 3 4 Runciman, Steven (1985). The Great Church in captivity. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-31310-0.
↑ B.G.Niebuhr, I.Bekker, ed. (1849) [1584]. "Historia Politica et Patriarchica Constantinopoleos". Corpus scriptorum historiae byzantinae, Volume 49. Bonn. pp. 151–2. (Latin)
↑ R. Janin (1956). "Costantinople, Patriarcat grec". Dictionnaire d'histoire et de géographie ecclésiastiques 13. Paris: Letouzey et Ané. 677. (French)

External links

Historia politica et patriarchica Constantinopoleos, Cap XVIII: P. Theoleptus, (trans. Martin Crusius, 1584) Primary source. (Greek) and (Latin)

Bishops of Byzantium and Patriarchs of Constantinople

Bishops of Byzantium (to 330 AD)	Andrew Stachys Onesimus Polycarpus I Plutarch Sedecion Diogenes Eleutherius Felix Polycarpus II Athenodorus Euzois Laurence Alypius Pertinax Olympianus Marcus I Philadelphus Cyriacus I Castinus Eugenius I Titus Dometius Rufinus Probus Metrophanes Alexander

Archbishops of Constantinople (330–451 AD)	Alexander Paul I Eusebius Macedonius I Eudoxius Evagrius Demophilus Maximus I Gregory I Nectarius John I Chrysostom Arsacius Atticus Sisinnius I Nestorius Maximianus Proclus Flavian Anatolius

Patriarchs of Constantinople Byzantine period (451–1453 AD)	Anatolius Gennadius I Acacius Fravitta Euphemius Macedonius II Timothy I John II Epiphanius Anthimus I Menas Eutychius John III John IV Cyriacus II Thomas I Sergius I Pyrrhus Paul II Peter Thomas II John V Constantine I Theodore I George I Paul III Callinicus I Cyrus John VI Germanus I Anastasius Constantine II Nicetas I Paul IV Tarasius Nicephorus I Theodotus I Antony I John VII Methodius I Ignatios Photios I Stephen I Antony II Nicholas I Εuthymius I Stephen II Tryphon Theophylact Polyeuctus Βasil I Αntony III Nicholas II Sisinnius II Sergius II Eustathius Alexius Michael I Constantine III John VIII Cosmas I Eustratius Nicholas III John IX Leo Michael II Cosmas II Nicholas IV Theodotus II Neophytus I Constantine IV Luke Michael III Chariton Theodosius I Basil II Nicetas II Leontius Dositheus George II John X Michael IV^† Theodore II^† Maximus II^† Μanuel I^† Germanus II^† Methodius II^† Manuel II^† Arsenius^† Nicephorus II^† Germanus III Joseph I John XI Gregory II Athanasius I John XII Nephon I John XIII Gerasimus I Isaias John XIV Isidore I Callistus I Philotheus Macarius Nilus Antony IV Callistus II Matthew I Euthymius II Joseph II Metrophanes II Gregory III Athanasius II

Patriarchs of Constantinople Ottoman period (1453–1923 AD)	Gennadius II Isidore II Joasaph I Sophronius I Mark II Symeon I Dionysius I Raphael I Maximus III Nephon II Maximus IV Joachim I Pachomius I Theoleptus I Jeremias I Joannicius I Dionysius II Joasaph II Metrophanes III Jeremias II Pachomius II Theoleptus II Matthew II Gabriel I Theophanes I Meletius I Neophytus II Raphael II Cyril I Timothy II Gregory IV Anthimus II Cyril II Athanasius III Neophytus III Parthenius I Parthenius II Joannicius II Cyril III Paisius I Parthenius III Gabriel II Parthenius IV Dionysius III Clement Methodius III Dionysius IV Gerasimus II Athanasius IV James Callinicus II Neophytus IV Gabriel III Neophytus V Cyprianus Athanasius V Cyril IV Cosmas III Jeremias III (Callinicus III) Paisius II Seraphim I Neophytus VI Cyril V Callinicus IV (III) Seraphim II Joannicius III Samuel Meletius II Theodosius II Sophronius II Gabriel IV Procopius Neophytus VII Gerasimus III Gregory V Callinicus V (IV) Jeremias IV Cyril VI Eugenius II Anthimus III Chrysanthus Agathangelus Constantius I Constantius II Gregory VI Anthimus IV Anthimus V Germanus IV Meletius III Anthimus VI Cyril VII Joachim II Sophronius III Joachim III Joachim IV Dionysius V Neophytus VIII Anthimus VII Constantine V Germanus V Meletius IV

Patriarchs of Constantinople Modern period (since 1923 AD)	Gregory VII Constantine VI Basil III Photius II Benjamin Maximus V Athenagoras Demetrius Bartholomew

^† in exile at Nicaea

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Monday, February 15, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.