February 1169-1177 A.D. Michale III of Anchialus—Constantinople’s 117th; Rome’s Continuing Claims of Caesaro-Papal
Supremacy
Michael III of Constantinople
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Seal of Michael III
Michael III of Anchialus (Greek: Μιχαὴλ Γ´) was Patriarch of Constantinople from January 1170 to March 1178.
Michael was appointed
patriarch by the Byzantine emperor Manuel I Komnenos, culminating what had been a highly distinguished intellectual and
administrative career.[1] Before becoming Patriarch, Michael III had held a progression of important
church administrative offices, including referendarios, epi tou sakelliou, and protekdikos, the last of which was in charge of the tribunal
which adjudicated claims for asylum within the Great Church. The most
important of his appointments before receiving the Patriarchal throne was the
office of hýpatos tōn philosóphōn (ὕπατος τῶν φιλοσόφων, "chief of the philosophers"), a title
given to the head of the imperial University of Constantinople in the 11th-14th centuries.[2]In this role he condemned the neoplatonist philosophers, and encouraged study of Aristotle's work on the natural
sciences as an antidote.[3] As Patriarch, Michael III continued to deal with the theological issue of
the relation between the Son and the Father in the Holy Trinity. The issue
was created due to the explanation that one Demetrius of Lampi (in Phrygia) gave to the phrase of the Gospel of John «ὁ Πατήρ μου μείζων μου ἐστίν», which means my Father
is bigger than me (John,
XIV.29). Michael acted as the Emperor's chief spokesman on this issue. Michael
also ordered a review of Eastern Orthodox ecclesiastical and imperial laws and
decrees by Theodore Balsamon known as the "Scholia" (Greek: Σχόλια) (c. 1170).
Michael's patriarchy was
marked by the Emperor Manuel's attempts to forge a union with the Catholic Church.
Continuing a longstanding papal policy, Alexander III demanded recognition of their religious authority
over all Christians everywhere, and wished themselves to reach superiority over
the Byzantine Emperor; they were not at all willing to fall into a state of
dependence from one emperor to the other.[4] Manuel, on the other side, wanted an official recognition of his secular
authority over both East and West.[5] Such conditions would not be accepted by either side. Even if a pro-western
Emperor such as Manuel agreed to it, the Greek citizens of the Empire would
have rejected outright any union of this sort, as they did almost three hundred
years later when the Orthodox and Catholic churches were briefly united under
the Pope. In existing correspondence Michael presents a deeply courteous but
unbending position on the authority of his Church. The correspondence also show
a good working relationship with the Emperor.
Some of Michael III's
correspondence with Manuel I survive,[6] as does his inaugural address as hýpatos.[7] Other documents including correspondence with Pope Alexander III have been attributed to him, though they are more
likely later apocryphal creations
of the 13th century.[8] Michael III can also take credit for acting as patron to the young Michael Choniates, who composed an encomium in his honour, still extant.[9]
References
7. Jump up^ R. Browning, "A New Source on
Byzantine-Hungarian Relations", Balkan Studies, 2 (1961), pp. 173-214
Sources
- J.M. Hussey. The Orthodoox Church in the Byzantine Empire. Oxford: University Press, 1986.
- Kurtz, Johann Heinrich (1860). "Dogmatic Controversies, 12th and 14th Centuries". History of the Christian Church to the Reformation. T. & T. Clark.
- Paul Magdalino. The Empire of Manuel Komnenos. Cambridge: University Press, 1993.
- Kazhdan, Alexander, ed. (1991), Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-504652-6
|
Preceded by
Luke Chrysoberges |
Patriarch
of Constantinople
1170–1178 |
Next:
Chariton |
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