Pope Gregory III
Roman Catholic Church Eastern Orthodox Church | |
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Other popes named Gregory |
Pope Gregory III (
Election
Gregory was the son of a Syrian named John.
Iconoclasm
Immediately upon his accession, Gregory appealed to
Gregory, in the meantime, demonstrated his opposition to iconoclasm by emphasising his veneration of icons and relics. He repaired or beautified numerous churches, which involved their decoration with icons and images of
Ecclesiastical policy
A temporary lull in the conflict between the
Gregory promoted the Church in
In 732, Gregory banned the consumption of
Lombard threat
Conscious of the ongoing Lombard threat, Gregory undertook and completed the restoration of the
Gregory's opposition to
By the middle of 739, Liutprand was encroaching once again on the Exarchate and threatening Rome. In desperation, Gregory sent ambassadors to
Our affliction moves us to write to you once again, trusting that you are a loving son of St. Peter and of us, and that, from respect for him, you will come and defend the Church of God and His peculiar people, who are now unable to endure the persecution and oppression of the Lombards. They have seized the very means set aside to furnish funds for the lights ever kept burning at St. Peter's tomb, and they have carried off offerings that have been made by you and by those who have gone before you. And because, after God, we have turned to you, the Lombards deride and oppress us. Hence the Church of St. Peter has been stripped and reduced to the last straits. We have put into the mouth of the bearer of this letter, your faithful servant all our woes, which he will be able to unfold to you. Please come at once, to show your love towards St. Peter, and us, his own people.[31]
This time Charles Martel did send an embassy to Rome, and this implicit support, together with the beginnings of fever running through his troops, forced Liutprand to march back to Pavia by the end of August 739.[32] Taking advantage of this withdrawal, Gregory agreed to support Thrasimund II's return to Spoleto. Thrasimund II forced his way back in by December 739 with Roman armed support, but refused to hand over the four captured towns he had promised in exchange for papal support.[33] Learning that Charles Martel was sick, Liutprand once again returned to attacking the Exarchate in 740, forcing Gregory yet again to appeal to the Franks, who again refused to become involved.[34]
Death
Unsuccessful at stopping the Lombard advance, Gregory III died on 28 November 741.
References
- ISBN 9780618252107.
- ^ "Brusher S.J., Joseph. "St. Gregory III", Popes Through the Ages".
- ^ "The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church". Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
- ^ Mann, p. 204
- ^ Levillain, p. 643
- ^ Treadgold, p. 354; Mann, p. 205
- ^ Levillain, p. 644; Mann, p. 206
- ^ Duffy, p. 64; Mann, p. 207
- ^ Mann, p. 208
- ^ Mann, pp. 208–209
- ^ Duffy, p. 63; Mann, p. 210
- ^ Mann, p. 209
- ^ Mann, pp. 210–211
- ^ Mann, pp. 211–212
- ^ Mann, pp. 212–213
- ^ a b Mann, p. 214
- ^ Levillain, p. 644
- ^ Mann, pp. 214–215
- ^ Mershman, Francis. "Sts. Willibald and Winnebald." The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 15. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 18 September 2017
- ISBN 978-0813908113.
- ^ Mann, p. 216
- ^ Treadgold, p. 355; Duffy, p. 63
- ^ Mann, p. 221
- ^ Mann, pp. 216–217
- ^ Treadgold, p. 355; Mann, pp. 217–218
- ^ Duffy, p. 68
- ISBN 9781587680335.
- ^ Mann, pp. 218–219
- ISBN 9780884021162.
- ^ Mann, p. 219
- ^ Mann, pp. 219–220
- ^ Mann, p. 220
- ^ Levillain, p. 644; Mann, p. 222
- ^ Levillain; p. 644; Mann, pp. 221–222
- ^ Mann, p. 223
- ^ Mann, p. 224
Sources
- Levillain, Philippe (2002). The papacy : Gaius-Proxies. New York: Routledge. ISBN 9780415922302.
- Duffy, Eamon (2006). Saints & Sinners: A History of the Popes. New Haven, Conn.: ISBN 9780300115970.
- Treadgold, Warren (1997). A History of the Byzantine State and Society. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press. ISBN 978-0804726306.
- Mann, Horace K. (1914). The Lives of the Popes in the Early Middle Ages. Vol. I: The Popes Under the Lombard Rule, Part 2, 657–795. pp. 203–224.