Meletius Smotrytsky
You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in Polish. (December 2021) Click [show] for important translation instructions.
|
Meletius Smotrytsky | |
---|---|
Roman Catholic Church Patriarchate of Constantinople | |
Metropolis | Ruthenian Uniate Church Kiev, Galicia and all Rus' |
Diocese | Hierapolis (titular) Polotsk |
In office | 1631–1634 1620–1629 |
Predecessor | João da Rocha Herman Zahorskyj |
Successor | Antonio Tasca Joasaph |
Orders | |
Ordination | October 1620 (bishop) by Theophanes III (Jerusalem) |
Rank |
|
Personal details | |
Born | Maksym Herasymovych Smotrytsky c. 1577 Eastern Orthodox |
Alma mater | Ostroh Academy Vilnius University (1600) |
Meletius Smotrytsky (
General
Born in
In 1608, Meletius returned to Vilnius where he became a member of a local fraternity. Under his pen name Theophile Ortologue[citation needed] he wrote his famous polemic "Thrynos".[2] Sometime in 1615-18 Smotrytsky was a teacher of Church Slavonic and Latin in the newly established Kyiv Fraternity School.[citation needed] Subsequently, he became one of its first rectors. In 1616, he published a Ruthenian translation of "Teacher's Gospel... of Calisto" and in 1615 in Cologne he published a Greek-language grammar.[citation needed] In 1618, Smotrytsky returned to Vilnius where at the Holy Spirit Monastery he took vows as a monk and assumed the name Miletius. There, in the city of Vievis, he participated in publishing Dictionary of the Slavic Language (1618)[citation needed]. Later, in 1619, he published Slavonic Grammar with Correct Syntax.[2]
In 1620, Meletius Smotrytsky became the Archbishop of Polotsk (Metropolitan of Kyiv),[2] bishop of Vitebsk and Mstyslaw.[citation needed] Around that time he published several anti-Union (see Union of Brest) works for which he was persecuted by the Polish authorities. During 1624 Smotrytsky traveled to Constantinople, Egypt, Palestine, after which in 1625 he returned to Kyiv.
Eventually, by 1627. he sided with followers of the Union with Rome and became the
Conversion to Catholicism
Catholic and Orthodox authors have long debated Smotrytsky's reasons for abandoning Orthodoxy and converting to the Uniate Church. Uniate Catholics have argued that the conversion was a miracle based on the intercession of Martyr
As Uniate Bishop
Following the adoption of the Union Smotrytsky was a huge advocate of complete reunification of the Church. He hid the fact that he had already converted to the Union. His attitude, however, began to raise suspicions among the clergy. While retaining his popularity among the priests and faithful in
Archbishop of Hierapolis
Smotrytsky could not remain archbishop of Polotsk, as the cathedral was already planted the Uniate Church. Josyf Velamyn Rutsky even suggested granting him the title of Bishop of Halych. Finally, on June 5, 1631,
Canonization discussion
During Josaphat Kuntsevych's beatification in 1637, Meletius Smotrytsky's beatification was also discussed because he was a persecutor of the union but changed his position to an ardent defender. Perhaps in order to popularize his candidacy for sainthood, in 1666 James Drought published a biography. The priest was after 1648 in Rome and where it could persuade the relevant authorities to consider the Smotrytsky beatification. Descriptions of supernatural events that took place after the death of Smotrytsky were given by his last confessor. According to his account he was dying to ask you to insert his hand in the coffin of Pope Urban VIII letter informing him of the receipt for the Archbishop of Hierapolis. Uniate monks but forgot about it the first time, and put a letter in the coffin just a few hours after the death of the priest. Then the hand of the deceased had to move and firmly grasp the document. His removal from the hand of the deceased was supposed to be possible only when he stood over the body, Metropolitan of Kyiv and demanded the return of the letter. In a later version of the description of the event Kortycki put the information allegedly monks put in the coffin of the letter Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem, but this was completely ignored. Kortycki also asserted that before the funeral of a hand holding a letter miraculously renewed, giving the impression of living. Metropolitan Rutski confirmed that the following events actually took place, and even wrote about them for the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith in August 1634. On December 19, 1634 this congregation held a meeting during which it was decided that Smotrycki was murdered, and should be canonized as a martyr. The matter was discussed again in July 1635, and in October of the same year, a representative of the Congregation speaking to Rutsky to ask for a copy of the description posthumous miracle. In 1635 a Basilian monk named Isaiah, who was also a participant in the Smotrytsky's funeral, said the Onoratio Visconti, papal nuncio in Warsaw, that the deceased bishop kept in a coffin two lists - the papal and patriarchal. While the ultimate message of the Congregation stated that Smotrycki finally "rejected" letter of Patriarch theophany, doubts in this regard could be one of the reasons why the canonization process Smotryckiego was suspended.
Grammar
Smotrytsky is best known for his "Slavonic Grammar with Correct Syntax" (Грамматіки славєнскиѧ правилноє Сvнтаґма, 1619), which codified what is now known as "Modern Church Slavonic" or, more specifically, "Meletian Church Slavonic". It was the sole handbook for grammar in Belarusian, Russian and Ukrainian lands, and had an enormous impact on the development of these languages. Smotrytsky's work also contributed greatly to the study of Church Slavonic texts throughout Eastern Europe. The 1619 grammar was first reprinted in 1721 and many times over later on.
Smotrytsky's work for Slavic grammar can be compared by its impact with that of Dionysius Thrax for Greek and that of Aelius Donatus and Priscian for Latin.
Works
- Θρηνος to iest Lament iedyney S. powszechney apostolskiey Wschodniey Cerkwie ... - Wilno, 1610.
- Ґrammatіki Slavenskiya correctament Svntaґma ... Eve, 1619. Reprint: Kiev: Naukova Dumka, 1979. online version (scanned). Apologia. - Lions, 1628.
- Αντιγραφη (Antigrafi) / / Monuments of polemical literature. - St. Petersburg., 1903. - Pr. 3 (Russian east. Library, Vol 19). Verificatia niewinności / / AYUZR. - Part 1. - T. 7.
- Lyament in squalid svіta on zhalostnoє prestavlenіє svyatolyubivogo and oboї dobrodіtelі Bhagat husband Bozі velebnogo Mr. ottsya Leontіya Karpovich arhіmandrita obschіa obitelі at tserkvі Soshestvіya Brotherhood of the Holy Spirit Orthodox Church Vіlenskogo grecheskogo / / Pam'yatki bratskih shkіl on Ukraїnі. - K., 1988.
- Collected works of Meletij Smortyc'kyj / ISBN 0-916458-20-2.
- The Jevanhelije učytelnoje of Meletij Smotryc'kyj / ISBN 0-916458-21-0.
References
- ISBN 9781107002524.
- ^ a b c Smotrytsky, Meletii, Encyclopedia of Ukraine
- ^ Andrej Nikolaevič Mouravieff (1842). A History of the Church of Russia. J. H. Parker. p. 179.
- 3asadkevich N. Meletii Smotritsky, as a scholar. - Odessa, 1883.
- Short VS creative way Meletija Smotritsky. - Minsk, 1987.
- Nіchik V. Litvinov, VD, Stratіy YM Gumanіstichnі i reformatsіynі іdeї on Ukraїnі. - K., 1991.
- Osa A. Meletii Smotritsky, Archbishop of Polotsk. - K., 1912.
- Prokoshin E. Meletii Smotritsky. - Minsk, 1966.
- Jaremenko PK Meletіy Smotritsky. Zhittya i tvorchіst. - K., 1986.
- Frick, David A. Meletij Smotryc’kyj. Cambridge/Mass. 1995.
- Horbatsch, Olexa (ed.). Meletij Smotryc’kyj: Hrammatiki Slavenskija Pravilnoe Syntagma. Jevje 1619. Kirchenslavische Grammatik (Erstausgabe). Frankfurt am Main 1974.
- Pugh, Stefan M. Testament to Ruthenian. A linguistic analysis of the Smotryc’kyj variant. Cambridge/Mass. 1996.
- Vinokur, G.O. The Russian Language: A Brief History,Translated by M.A. Forsyth and edited by J. Forsyth. Cambridge University Press, 1971.