Photios I of Constantinople

Not long after his condemnation, Photios had reingratiated himself with Basil, and became tutor to the Byzantine emperor's children. From surviving letters of Photios written during his exile at the Skepi monastery, it appears that the ex-patriarch brought pressure to bear on the Byzantine emperor to restore him. Ignatios's biographer argues that Photios forged a document relating to the genealogy and rule of Basil's family, and had it placed in the imperial library where a friend of his was a librarian. According to this document, the Byzantine emperor's ancestors were not mere peasants as everyone believed but descendants of the Arsacid dynasty of Armenia.^[26] True or not, this story does reveal Basil's dependence on Photios for literary and ideological matters. Following Photios's recall, Ignatios and the ex-patriarch met, and publicly expressed their reconciliation. When Ignatios died on October 23, 877, it was a matter of course that his old opponent replaced him on the patriarchal throne three days later. Shaun Tougher asserts that from this point on Basil no longer simply depended on Photios, but in fact he was dominated by him.^[27]

Photios now obtained the formal recognition of the Christian world in a

During the altercations between Emperor Basil I and his heir

Basil died in 886 injured while hunting, according to the official story. Warren T. Treadgold believes that this time the evidence points to a plot on behalf of Leo VI, who became emperor, and deposed Photios, although the latter had been his tutor.

Photios continued his career as a writer throughout his exile, and Leo probably rehabilitated his reputation within the next few years; in his Epitaphios on his brothers, a text probably written in 888, the Emperor presents Photios favorably, portraying him as the legitimate archbishop, and the instrument of ultimate unity, an image that jars with his attitude to the patriarch in the previous year.[36] Confirmation that Photios was rehabilitated comes upon his death: according to some chronicles, his body was permitted to be buried in Constantinople. In addition, according to the anti-Photian biographer of Ignatius, partisans of the ex-patriarch after his death endeavored to claim for him the "honor of sainthood". Furthermore, a leading member of Leo's court, Leo Choirosphaktes, wrote poems commemorating the memory of several prominent contemporary figures, such as Leo the Mathematician and the Patriarch Stephen, and he also wrote one on Photios.^[37] Shaun Tougher notes, however, that "yet Photios's passing does seem rather muted for a great figure of Byzantine history [...] Leo [...] certainly did not allow him back into the sphere of politics, and it is surely his absence from this arena that accounts for his quiet passing."^[38]

Veneration

After his death, Photius began to be venerated as saint in environs of Constantinople. His name features in a manuscript of the Typicon of the Great Church of Constantinople dated to the middle of the tenth century, where he is referred to a saint with a day of commemoration of February 6.^[39] According to Dvornik, Photius must have been venerated as a saint in the second half of the tenth century at the very latest.^[40]

The contemporary Eastern Orthodox Church venerates Photius as a saint, with his feast day being February 6.^[41][42]

Assessments

Photios is one of the most famous figures not only of 9th-century Byzantium but of the entire history of the Byzantine Empire. One of the most learned men of his age, and revered – even by some of his opponents and detractors – as the most prolific theologian of his time, he has earned his fame due to his part in ecclesiastical conflicts, and also for his intellect and literary works.^[43][44]

Analyzing his intellectual work, Tatakes regards Photios as "mind turned more to practice than to theory". He believes that, thanks to Photios, humanism was added to Orthodoxy as a basic element of the national consciousness of the medieval Byzantines, returning it to the place it had had in the early Byzantine period. Tatakes also argues that, having understood this national consciousness, Photios emerged as a defender of the Greek nation and its spiritual independence in his debates with the Western Church.^[45] Adrian Fortescue regards him as "one of the most wonderful men of all the middle ages", and stresses that "had [he] not given his name to the great schism, he would always be remembered as the greatest scholar of his time".^[46] Yet, Fortescue is equally adamant of his condemnation of Photios' involvement in the Schism: "And yet the other side of his character is no less evident. His insatiable ambition, his determination to obtain and keep the patriarchal see, led him to the extreme of dishonesty. His claim was worthless. That Ignatius was the rightful patriarch as long as he lived, and Photius an intruder, cannot be denied by any one who does not conceive the Church as merely the slave of a civil government. And to keep this place Photius descended to the lowest depth of deceit."^[47]

Writings

Bibliotheca

The most important of the works of Photios is his Bibliotheca or Myriobiblon, a collection of extracts and abridgements of 280 volumes of previous authors (usually cited as Codices), the originals of which are now to a great extent lost. The work is especially rich in extracts from historical writers.^[17]

To Photios, we are indebted for almost all we possess of Ctesias, Memnon of Heraclea, Conon, the lost books of Diodorus Siculus, and the lost writings of Arrian. Theology and ecclesiastical history are also very fully represented, but poetry and ancient philosophy are almost entirely ignored. It seems that he did not think it necessary to deal with those authors with whom every well-educated man would naturally be familiar. The literary criticisms, generally distinguished by keen and independent judgment, and the excerpts vary considerably in length. The numerous biographical notes are probably taken from the work of Hesychius of Miletus.^[17]

Some older scholarship speculated that the Bibliotheca was compiled in

The Lexicon (Λέξεων Συναγωγή), published later than the Bibliotheca, was probably in the main the work of some of his pupils. It was intended as a book of reference to facilitate the reading of old classical and sacred authors, whose language and vocabulary were out of date. For a long time, the only manuscripts of the Lexicon were the Codex Galeanus, which passed into the library of Trinity College, Cambridge^[17] and Berolinensis graec. oct. 22, both of which were incomplete. But in 1959, Linos Politis of the University of Thessaloniki discovered a complete manuscript, codex Zavordensis 95, in the Zavorda Monastery (Greek: Ζάβορδα) in Grevena, Greece, where it still resides.^[51]

His most important theological work is the Amphilochia, a collection of some 300 questions and answers on difficult points in Scripture, addressed to Amphilochius, archbishop of Cyzicus. Other similar works are his treatise in four books against the

Photios is also the writer of two "mirrors of princes", addressed to Boris-Michael of Bulgaria (Epistula 1, ed. Terzaghi) and to Leo VI the Wise (Admonitory Chapters of Basil I).[53]

Photios' epitome of Philostorgius' Church History is the principal source for the work, which is now lost.

The first English translation, by Holy Transfiguration Monastery, of the "Mystagogy of the Holy Spirit" by Photios was published in 1983.^[54] Another translation was published in 1987 with a preface by Archimandrite (now Archbishop) Chrysostomos of Etna.^[55]

See also

• Byzantine philosophy
• Filioque clause
• University of Magnaura
• Bibliotheca (Photius)
• Bibliotheca (Pseudo-Apollodorus)

Notes

References

Citations

1. ^ "Photius the Great, Patriarch of Constantinople". Online Chapel. The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. Retrieved 10 June 2016.
2. ^ ^{a b} Fr. Justin Taylor, essay "Canon Law in the Age of the Fathers" (published in Jordan Hite, T.O.R., & Daniel J. Ward, O.S.B., "Readings, Cases, Materials in Canon Law: A Textbook for Ministerial Students, Revised Edition" [Collegeville, MN: The Liturgical Press, 1990]), p. 61
3. ISBN 978-0-91658626-3. Retrieved 2014-01-03. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help
   )
4. ^ Louth 2007, Chapter Seven: "Renaissance of Learning: East and West", p. 159; Mango 1980, p. 168.
5. ^ Treadgold 1983, p. 1100
6. ^ Jenkins 1987, Chapter Thirteen: "Ignatius, Photius, and Pope Nicholas I", p. 168.
7. ^ ^{a b c d} Cross & Livingstone 2005, "Photius".
8. ^ Durant 1972, p. 529.
9. ^ Chisholm 1911, p. 484.
10. ^ Photios. Epistola II, CII, 609; Tougher 1997, p. 68.
11. ^ Tougher 1997, p. 68.
12. ^ Gren 2002, p. 110: "Something of it, though, has been saved for posterity in the extracts made later by the Greek Byzantine patriarch Photios..."
13. ^ Dunlop 1954, p. 194; Fortescue 2001, Chapter IV: "The Schism of Photius", pp. 146–147.
14. ^ ^{a b} Tatakes & Moutafakis 2003, p. 102.
15. ^ Mango 1980, pp. 168–169; Treadgold 1983, p. 1100.
16. ^ Vlasto, A. P. (1970). The Entry of the Slavs into Christendom: An Introduction to the Medieval History of the Slavs. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 33.
17. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Chisholm 1911, p. 483.
18. ^ Plexidas 2007, "Introduction", p. 17; Shepard 2002, p. 235.
19. ^ Norwich 1991, pp. 63–64
20. ^ Janin, Raymond (1953). La Géographie Ecclésiastique de l'Empire Byzantin. 1. Part: Le Siège de Constantinople et le Patriarcat Oecuménique. 3rd Vol. : Les Églises et les Monastères. Paris: Institut Français d'Etudes Byzantines.
21. ^ Tougher 1997, p. 69
22. ^ Dvornik 1948, pp. 39–69.
23. ^ Dvornik 1948, pp. 70–90.
24. ^ Fortescue 2001, pp. 147–148; Louth 2007, p. 171; Tougher 1997, p. 69.
25. ^ Chadwick 2003, Chapter 3: "Early Christian Diversity: The Quest for Coherence", p. 146.
26. ^ Treadgold 1997, Chapter Fourteen: "External Gains, 842–912", p. 457.
27. ^ Tougher 1997, pp. 70–71.
28. ISBN 978-0-415-92230-2
    . Retrieved 25 March 2024.
29. ISBN 978-0-521-66102-7
    . Retrieved 25 March 2024.
30. ^ Green 2006, pp. 123–168.
31. ^ Treadgold 1997, p. 460.
32. ^ Vlyssidou 1997, p. 33.
33. ^ Treadgold 1997, p. 461.
34. ^ "The Errors of the Greeks Condemned in Three General Councils". 17 January 2018.
35. ^ Tougher 1997, pp. 73–76, 84.
36. ^ Tougher 1997, pp. 85–86.
37. ^ Tougher 1997, pp. 87–88.
38. ^ Tougher 1997, p. 88.
39. ^ Mateos, Juan, ed. (1962). Le Typicon de la Grande Église. Vol. 1. Rome: Pontifical Oriental Institute. pp. 228–229.
40. ^ Dvornik 1948, p. 389.
41. ^ "Saint Photius, Patriarch of Constantinople". www.oca.org. Archived from the original on April 18, 2023. Retrieved April 14, 2023.
42. ^ "Saints and Feasts: Photios, Patriarch of Constantinople". Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. Archived from the original on April 14, 2024. Retrieved April 14, 2023.
43. ^ Louth 2007, Chapter Seven: "Renaissance of Learning: East and West", p. 171.
44. ^ Tougher 1997, p. 68.
45. ^ Tatakes & Moutafakis 2003, p. 103.
46. ^ Fortescue 2001, p. 138.
47. ^ "CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Photius of Constantinople".
48. ^ Jokisch 2007, pp. 365–386.
49. ^ Jokisch 2007, pp. 365–386; Lemerle 1986, p. 40.
50. ^ Lemerle 1986, pp. 26–27.
51. ^ "The Lexicon of Photius" by Roger Pearse, January 15, 2011.
52. ^ Chisholm 1911, pp. 483–484.
53. ^ Paidas 2005, passim.
54. ISBN 0-943670-00-4
    .
55. ISBN 0-916586-88-X
    .
56. ^ Mango 1980, p. 169; Plexidas 2007, "Introduction", p. 15.
57. ^ Symeon Metaphrastes (?). Chronicle, PG 109, 732 BC; Plexidas 2007, "Introduction", p. 15.
58. ^ Lang 1988, p. 54.
59. ^ Charanis 1963, pp. 27–28.
60. ^ Adontz 1950, p. 66.
61. ^ Lemerle 1986, p. 159; Plexidas 2007, "Introduction", p. 16.

Primary sources

Recent years have seen the first translations into English of a number of primary sources about Photios and his times.

• Featherstone, Jeffrey Michael and Signes-Codoñer, Juan (translators). Chronographiae quae Theophanis Continuati nomine fertur Libri I-IV (Chronicle of Theophanes Continuatus Books I-IV, comprising the reigns of Leo V the Armenian to Michael III), Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, 2015.
• Kaldellis, A. (trans.). On the reigns of the emperors (the history of Joseph Genesios), Canberra: Australian Association for Byzantine Studies; Byzantina Australiensia 11, 1998.
• Ševčenko, Ihor (trans.). Chronographiae quae Theophanis Continuati nomine fertur Liber quo Vita Basilii Imperatoris amplectitur (Chronicle of Theophanes Continuatus comprising the Life of Basil I), Berlin: De Gruyter, 2011.
• Wahlgren, Staffan (translator, writer of introduction and commentary). The Chronicle of the Logothete, Liverpool University Press; Translated Texts for Byzantinists, vol. 7, 2019.
• Wortley, John (trans.). A synopsis of Byzantine history, 811-1057 (the history of
  John Scylitzes
  , active 1081), Cambridge University Press, 2010.

Secondary sources

• Adontz, Nicholas (1950). "Role of the Armenians in Byzantine Science". Armenian Review. 3 (3): 55–73.
• Chadwick, Henry (2003). East and West: The Making of a Rift in the Church: From Apostolic Times until the Council of Florence. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  ISBN 978-0-19-926457-5
  .
• OCLC 17186882
  .
• Cross, Frank Leslie; Livingstone, Elizabeth A. (2005). The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  ISBN 0-19-280290-9
  .
• Dorfmann-Lazarev, Igor (2004). Arméniens et Byzantins à l'Époque de Photius: Deux Débats Théologiques Après le Triomphe de l'Orthodoxie. Vol. 609 (Subsidia Tomus 117). Louvain, Belgium: Éditions Peeters (Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium).
  ISBN 90-429-1412-2
  .
• Dunlop, Douglas Morton (1954). The History of the Jewish Khazars. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press.
• Durant, Will (1972). The Age of Faith. New York: Simon and Schuster.
• Dvornik, Francis (1948). The Photian Schism: History and Legend. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• ISBN 0-9715986-1-4
  .
• Green, Timothy (2006). "Failure of a Mission? Photius and the Armenian Church".
  doi:10.2143/MUS.119.1.2011771
  .
• Gren, Erik (2002). Orientalia Suecana, Volumes 51–52. Stockholm, Sweden: Almquist & Wiksell Periodical Company.
• ISBN 0-8020-6667-4
  .
• Jokisch, Benjamin (2007). Islamic Imperial Law: Harun-al-Rashid's Codification Project. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter.
  ISBN 978-3-11-019048-9
  .
• Lang, David Marshall (1988). The Armenians: A People in Exile. London: Unwin Paperbacks.
  ISBN 9780044402893
  .
• Lemerle, Paul (1986). Byzantine Humanism. Canberra: Australian Association for Byzantine Studies.
• Louth, Andrew (2007). Greek East and Latin West: The Church, AD 681–1071. Crestwood, NY: St Vladimir’s Seminary Press.
  ISBN 978-0-88141-320-5
  .
• Mango, Cyril A. (1980). Byzantium: The Empire of New Rome. New York, NY: Charles Scribner's Sons.
  ISBN 0-684-16768-9
  .
• Norwich, John Julius (1991). Byzantium: The Apogee. London: BCA.
• Paidas, Konstantinos D. S. (2005). He Thematike ton Byzantinon "Katoptron Hegemonos" tes Proimes kai Meses Byzantines Periodo (398–1085). Symbole sten Politike Theoria ton Byzantinon (in Greek). Athens, Greece.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
• Plexidas, Ioannis (2007). The Prince of Photios (in Greek). Athens: Armos.
  ISBN 978-960-527-396-5
  .
• Shepard, Jonathan (2002). "Spreading the Word: Byzantine Missions". In Cyril A. Mango (ed.). The Oxford History of Byzantium. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  ISBN 0-19-814098-3
  .
• Tatakes, Vasileios N.; Moutafakis, Nicholas J. (2003). Byzantine Philosophy. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, Incorporated.
  ISBN 0-87220-563-0
  .
• Taylor, Fr. Justin (1990), essay "Canon Law in the Age of the Fathers" (published in "Readings, Cases, Materials in Canon Law: A Textbook for Ministerial Students, Revised Edition" [Collegeville, MN: The Liturgical Press] by Jordan Hite, T.O.R., & Daniel J. Ward, O.S.B.)
• Tougher, Shaun (1997). The Reign of Leo VI (886–912): Politics and People. Leiden: Brill.
  ISBN 978-90-04-10811-0
  .
• Treadgold, Warren T. (October 1983). "Review: Patriarch Photios of Constantinople: His Life, Scholarly Contributions, and Correspondence together with a Translation of Fifty-Two of His Letters by Despina Stratoudaki White; The Patriarch and the Prince: The Letter of Patriarch Photios of Constantinople to Khan Boris of Bulgaria by Despina Stratoudaki White; Joseph R. Berrigan, Jr".
  JSTOR 2853829
  .
• ISBN 0-8047-2630-2
  .
• Vlyssidou, Vassiliki N. (1997). "About the Deposition of Patriarch Nicholas Mystikos (907)". Byzantine Symmeikta (in Greek). 11: 23–36. Archived from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2008-07-23.
•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Photius". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 21 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 483–484.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Photios I of Constantinople.

• Saint Photios the Great Orthodox Icon and Synaxarion (February 6)
• Patriarch Photios of Constantinople Life and translations of his works
• The Excerpta of Photius Photios's summary of Books 9–16 of Memnon of Heraclea's history of Heraclea Pontica
• The Myrobiblion at Tertullian.Org
• Catholic Encyclopedia – Photius
• Greek Opera Omnia by Migne Patrologia Graeca with analytical indexes
• Saint Photius the Great, Mystagogy of the Holy Spirit (English translation)
• Ongoing English Translation of the Lexicon
• Photii biblioteca ex recensione Immanuelis Bekkeri, Berolini typis et impensis Ge. Reimeri, 1824–25, vol. 1, vol. 2.
• Works by Photios I of Constantinople at LibriVox (public domain audiobooks)

Titles of Chalcedonian Christianity
Preceded by Ignatios	Patriarch of Constantinople 858–867	Succeeded by Ignatios
	Patriarch of Constantinople 877–886	Succeeded by Stephen I