Epiphanius of Constantinople

Epiphanius (died June 5, 535) was the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from February 25, 520 to June 5, 535, succeeding John II Cappadocia.

Biography

The Byzantine Empire was now rising to great splendour through the victories of its generals, Belisarius and Narses. Idolatry was universally suppressed, pagan books were burnt and images destroyed, the professors of the old religion imprisoned and flogged. At Constantinople the zeal of Justinian I for a church policy was shown during the patriarchate of Epiphanius by laws (e.g. in 528 and 529) regulating episcopal elections and duties. These enactments, and the passivity of Epiphanius and his clergy, show the absence as yet for exclusively clerical legislation for the spirituality.^[1]

The first conspicuous office of Epiphanius was the charge of the catechumens at Constantinople. In 519, the year before his election, he was sent with John II and count Licinius to Macedonia to receive the documents "libellos," or subscriptions of those who wished reunion with the Catholic Church, at the request of the apocrisiarius of Dorotheus, bishop of Thessalonica.^[1]

On 25 February 520, he was elected bishop by the Byzantine Emperor Justin I, with the consent of bishops, monks, and people. He is described in the letter of the synod of Constantinople to Pope Hormisdas as "holding the right faith, and maintaining a fatherly care for orphans".^[2]

He accepted the conditions of peace between East and West concluded by his predecessor, Patriarch John II with Pope Hormisdas; ratifying them at a council at Constantinople, where he accepted also the decrees of Chalcedon. Dioscorus, agent of Hormisdas at Constantinople, writes of his fair promises, but adds, "What he can fulfil we don't know. He has not yet asked us to communion".^[3] Four letters remain of Epiphanius to Hormisdas, telling him of his election, sending him his creed, and declaring that he condemned all those whose name the pope had forbidden to be recited in the diptychs.^[1]

Epiphanius adopted the symbol of Nicaea, the decrees of Ephesus, Constantinople, and Chalcedon, and the letters of pope Leo I in defence of the faith. His second letter was accompanied by a chalice of gold surrounded with precious stones, a patina of gold, a chalice of silver, and two veils of silk, which he presented to the Roman church. In order to make the peace general, he advised the pope not to be too rigorous in exacting the extrusion of the names of former bishops from diptychs. His excuse for the bishops of Pontus, Asia, and the East is composed in very beautiful language. The answers of Hormisdas are given in the Acts of the Council of Constantinople held under Mennas, in which he states his trust in the prudence and experience of Epiphanius, and recommends lenity towards the returning, severity to the obdurate. Epiphanius is to complete the reunion himself.^[4]

The severe measures by which Justin was establishing the supremacy of the Catholics in the East were arousing Theodoric the Great, the Ostrogothic and Arian master of Italy, to retaliation in the West. Pope John I, the successor of Hormisdas, became alarmed; and in 525, at the demand of Theodoric, proceeded to Constantinople to obtain the revocation of the edict against the Arians and get their churches restored to them (Marcellinus Comes).^[5]

Great honor was paid to pope John in the eastern capital. The people went out twelve miles to receive him, bearing ceremonial tapers and crosses. The emperor Justin prostrated himself before him, and wished to be crowned by his hand. The patriarch Epiphanius invited him to perform Mass; but the pope, mindful of the traditional policy of encroachment, refused to do so until they had offered him the first seat. With high solemnity he said the office in Latin on Easter Day, communicating with all the bishops of the East except Patriarch Timothy of Alexandria, the declared enemy of Chalcedon.^[6]

In 531 the dispute between Rome and Constantinople was revived by the appeal of Stephen, metropolitan of Larissa, to Pope Boniface II, against the sentence of Epiphanius. Stephen was eventually deposed, notwithstanding his appeal.^[1]

Epiphanius died after an episcopate of 14 years and 3 months.^[7] All that is known of him is to his advantage. Besides his letters to Hormisdas, we have the sentence of his council against Severus of Antioch and Peter Mongus.^[8] Forty-five canons are attributed to him.^[9]

References

↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Sinclair 1911.
↑ Sinclair 1911 cites Patr. Lat. lxiii. 483.
↑ Sinclair 1911 cites Patr. Lat. 482.
↑ Sinclair 1911 cites Labbe, Concil. iv. 1534, 1537, 1545, 1546, 1555, ed. 1671; Patr. Lat. lxiii. 497, 507, 523.
↑ Sinclair 1911 cites Chron. ann. 525; Labbe, Concil. iv. 1600.
↑ Sinclair 1911 cites Baron. 525, 8, 10; Pagi, ix. 349, 351; AA. SS. May 27; Schröckh, xvi. 102, xviii. 214-215; Edward Gibbon, iii. 473; Milman, Lat. Christ. i. 302.
↑ Sinclair 1911 cites Theophanes anno 529.
↑ Sinclair 1911 cites Patr. Gk. lxxxvi. 783-786.
↑ Sinclair 1911 cites Assemani, Bibl. Orient. 619.

Attribution

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Sinclair, W. M. (1911). "Epiphanius, patriarch of Constantinople". In Wace, Henry; Piercy, William C. Dictionary of Christian Biography and Literature to the End of the Sixth Century (third ed.). London: John Murray.

Orthodox Church titles
Preceded by John II Cappadocia	Patriarch of Constantinople 520–535	Succeeded by Anthimus I

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 Photios II Benjamin Maximus V Athenagoras Demetrius Bartholomew

^† in exile at Nicaea