Pope Agatho

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For the Pope of Alexandria of the same name, see Pope Agatho of Alexandria.

Eastern Roman Empire
Previous post(s)Cardinal-Deacon (676–77)
Sainthood
Feast day
Venerated in
AttributesHolding a long cross
PatronagePalermo

Pope Agatho (574 – 10 January 681) served as the

Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. He is said to have been the longest lived Pope ever.[4]

Early life

Little is known of Agatho before his papacy but he may have been among the many Sicilian clergy in Rome at that time, due to the Caliphate's attacks on Sicily in the mid-7th century.[5] He served several years as treasurer of the church of Rome. He succeeded Donus in the pontificate.[6]

Papacy

Mosaic of Saint Sebastian, added to San Pietro in Vincoli c. AD 680, and therefore contemporaneous with Agatho's reign

Shortly after Agatho became pope, Bishop

Theodore of Canterbury, who had carved up Wilfrid's diocese and appointed three bishops to govern the new sees. At a synod which Pope Agatho convoked in the Lateran to investigate the affair, it was decided that Wilfrid's diocese should indeed be divided, but that Wilfrid himself should name the bishops.[7]

The major event of his pontificate was the

schism that separated the two sides, wrote to Pope Donus suggesting a conference on the matter, but Donus was dead by the time the letter arrived. Agatho was quick to seize the olive branch offered by the Emperor. He ordered councils held throughout the West so that legates could present the universal tradition of the Western Church. Then he sent a large delegation to meet the Easterners at Constantinople.[7]

The legates and patriarchs gathered in the imperial palace on 7 November 680. The

Christ was of two wills, divine and human. Patriarch George of Constantinople accepted Agatho's letter, as did most of the bishops present. The council proclaimed the existence of the two wills in Christ and condemned Monothelitism, with Pope Honorius I being included in the condemnation. When the council ended in September 681 the decrees were sent to the Pope, but Agatho had died in January. The Council had not only ended Monothelism, but also had healed the schism.[7]

Agatho also undertook negotiations between the Holy See and Constantine IV concerning the interference of the Byzantine court in

consecration.[7]

Age

Church records state that Agatho served as pope as a centenarian, dying between the ages of 106–107.[9][10] However, recent research has cast doubt on his age, with many people claiming that Pope Agatho and the monk "Agathon" are two different people.[11]

Veneration

Anastatius says that the number of his miracles procured him the title of Thaumaturgus. He died in 681, having held the pontificate about two and one-half years.

feast day in Western Christianity is on 10 January.[13] Eastern Christians, including Eastern Orthodox and the Eastern Catholic Churches, commemorate him on 20 February.[14]

References

  1. ^ a b Encyclopedia Britannica. 6 January 2021. Retrieved 27 June 2021.
  2. ^ Mann, Horace. "Pope St. Leo II." The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 9. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 12 September 2017
  3. ISBN 9780191044793
    . Retrieved 26 June 2018.
  4. ^ https://www.pillarcatholic.com/p/the-aging-see-of-peter
  5. ISBN 9781317678175
    .
  6. ^ a b Butler, Alban. "St. Agatho, Pope", The Lives of the Saints, Vol. I, 1866. Butler spells the name of Agatho's predecessor as "Domnus"; according to "Pope Donus" in the Catholic Encyclopedia, this is an alternative spelling of "Donus".
  7. ^ a b c d Joseph Brusher, S.J., Popes Through the Ages Archived 6 February 2006 at the Wayback Machine.
  8. ISBN 9780567043931
    .
  9. ^ "Father Richard Kunst: Why Bad Popes Have Been Good for the Church – Papal Artifacts". Retrieved 26 March 2024.
  10. ^ "A look at the oldest popes of history, including Francis". Aleteia — Catholic Spirituality, Lifestyle, World News, and Culture. 16 December 2021. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
  11. ^ "A look at the oldest popes of history, including Francis". aleteia.org. Aleteia SAS. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
  12. ^ Ott, Michael. "Pope St. Agatho." The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. 12 September 2017
  13. ^ "Agatho". Oxford Reference. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
  14. ^ "The Great Synaxaristes of the Orthodox Church – February". Holy Apostles Convent. Archived from the original on 28 June 2018. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
Wikisource has the text of the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia article Pope St. Agatho.
Catholic Church titles
Preceded by Pope
678–681 		Succeeded by
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