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Justinian I became emperor in the year 527 and may be considered the last, great ruler in the Roman tradition before the political transformation that shook Byzantium in the eight century. He is credited for resurrecting the glory of imperial Rome in the Eastern Empire, and he is responsible for many advances in architecture, the fine arts, and civil law.
Greek, the language of the East, was the original language of almost the entire New Testament. The pope remained the supreme authority in the Church. Furthermore, the Church in the East developed very differently from the Church in the West. The Church later was seen as a power that surpassed all nat’l boundaries or allegiances. The political environment in the East gave rise to a manner of rule called caesaropapsim- sovereign temporal ruler extends his authority to ecclesiastical and theological matters. This practice soon overshadowed the papal authority in the Church.
Codex Justinianus was compiled under Emperor Justinian I and was the collection and systemization of all Roman law as it had developed from his predecessors put together for the purpose of legal uniformity throughout the empire.
Monophysitism was a heresy that remained prevalent throughout Justinian’s reign as emperor. His wife was Empress Theodora and was a Christian. The notion of Christ’s dual nature was supposedly resolved in the Council of Chalcedon in 451. The first council that was not recognized by any of the Churches of the Eastern Christian Tradtition was called the “Old Oriental Churches.” Pope St. Silverius was elected pope in 536, but was exiled because of a conspiracy that involved Theodora and Vigilius, a Monophysite who rose to great power in the Church. Due to Theodora’s influence on Justinian, he was unable to investigate the case; which then led to the continual exile of St. Silverius and his eventual death.
After Justinian died in 565, the empire fell apart. His activities and conquests left Rome nearly bankrupt, and the territory of the empire was too fast for any one man to rule. In 661, King Chosroes and his Persian army marched against Byzantium. In 614, his son- in- law Shaharbarz took Jerusalem. Many Christians lost their lives. Emperor Heraclius was emperor at the time of the Persian attack. He had no men nor the funds to resist the Persian army. After negotiating with the Patriarch of Constantinople, Heraclius was able to get enough funds to defeat the Persians and liberate Jerusalem. His campaign is sometimes called the “Byzantine Crusade” ending with his invasion of Persia in 627. Heraclius was victorious and returned to Jerusalem in 629.
In the year 881, the Bulgar Slavs were victorious against Byzantium, and the empire was left without a strong leader. Emperor Leo V and his two successors, Michael II and Theophilius continued the policy of iconoclasm. Leo V also continued the persecutions.
In this chapter, two distinct forms of Christianity came into being. The relationship between East and West was shattered by the Great Schism. In the Church’s perspective, the major difference between Eastern and Western Christianity primarily ivolves the teaching authority and jurisdiction of the papacy est. by Christ through his Apostle, St. Peter.
During the eighth and ninth centuries, the deep- rooted, growing divergence between East and West began to surface clearly as the different languages, cultures, geography, and conceptions of political and religious power that had long divided the East and West became more noticeable. Both united under the same sacramental Christianity.
The Great Schism is considered one of the saddest chapters in the history of the Church. East and West began to grow farther apart, due to theological disputes and different conceptions of government and hierarchy. Caesaropapism also served as a point of tension with the two sides. There are five schisms. There are two basic kinds of Eastern Churches: Orthodox and Catholic. Catholic churches are in communication with Rome, while Eastern Orthodox Churches are not. The practice is based on the liturgical practices of the Apostles and the Fathers of the Church.
The Feast of the Triumph of Orthodoxy marked the ending of the reign of iconoclasm. Empress Theodora and Blessed Methodius turned the tables for the iconophiles, finally reviving the veneration and use of icons in the Eastern Orthodox Church.
Constantine V succeeded Leo III as emperor and continued iconoclasm. His biggest obstacle while ruling was the monks, who strongly opposed Constantine’s action to continue iconoclasm. He conducted the Council of Hiereia in 754 which focused on iconoclasm and excluded all iconophiles as well as Rome and the West.
Theophanes the Greek was a well known iconographer, born on Crete around 1330. He took interest in religious literature and art, and lived his life painting icons for various churches in Russia; an example would be his works in the Cathedral of the Annunciation in Moscow.
St. John of Damascus was a great defender of icons and known as an iconophile- one who promotes the proper use of icons; Gk. for “lover of icons”.
Leo VI succeeded Constantine V as emperor, but he did not end the continuation of iconoclasm. He died in 780, leaving his wife Irene to take power of the empire. Empress Irene was secretly and iconophile and was able to persuade Pope Adrian I to convene the Seventh Ecumenical Council, or the Second Council of Nicea. After a month of convening, people were able to venerate icons once more and two types of adoration were distinguished: dulia- an icon may be venerated through the acts of respect and honor, and latria- God alone is worthy of absolute adoration.
The First Iconoclasm occured under the rule of Emperor Leo III, who prohibited the veneration of icons to please and impress other religions. He was excommunicated by Pope St. Gregory III and died in 741.
The Iconoclastic Controversy was a movement in the Eastern Empire, headed by the emperor that denied the holiness of religious icons. During the eighth and ninth centuries, use of the images were prohibited but later restored in 843. The controversy is split into several parts: The First Iconoclasm, Iconophile recovery, the Second Iconoclasm, and the Triumph of Iconophiles. The word iconoclast translates to the Gk. word eikonoclastes meaning “image breaker.”
Charlemagne, or Charles, was a son of Pepin (French name is Charlemagne). His English name is Charles the Great but his Latin name is Carolus Magnus. He was a strong leader and ruthless warrior who combined his military excellence with extraordinary political ability. Charlemagne was solely Christian, drawing the laws from the Church for his own civic legislature. Officials of the Church served in Charlemagne’s civil posts, and were his diplomats at times. He appointed missi dominici- servants who were investigators to maintain control of his empire. Though he was a devout Catholic, he treated some people cruelly, such as the people of Saxony.
Charlemagne was crowned emperor in 800 during Christmas Day Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica. He gained a new title :”King of the Franks and Lombards.” The Byzantium was hesitant to recognize Charlemagne as ruler, but they later named him Basileus (king) of the West. Charlemagne made use of capital punishment. He emphasized the importance of education and artistic excellence. Intellect began to grow and this period became known as the Carolingian Renaissance. Alcuin (ca. 740-804) was a Carolingian scholar who covered the Bible, theological tradition, Latin grammar and several mathematical tracts.
A flat, two- dimensional picture of Christ, the Virgin Mary, or one of the saints which is used as an aid for Christian acts of piety.
The Filioque Controversy was about clearing a theological point. The words “the son of man” (filioque) were added to the Nicene- Constantinopolitan Creed in 589. The new Toledo creed merely clarified an ancient belief in both East and West, namely, that the Holy Spirit proceeded from the Father and the Son. The acceptance of filioque was not taken by the Greeks even though it was imposed on them in the Councils of Lyons and of Florence.
Pope Stephen II succeeded St. Zachary expected protection from Pepin in exchange for complete support of the Carolingians. He repeated the anointing of Pepin and his two sons to emphasize their credibility. Pope St. Stephen also threatened to condemn anyone who disobeyed them. This action showed that the Church could be bestow secular authority to kings. Pepin ended up securing Rome, as well as Ravenna and Perugia; which would later become known as the Papal States. The papal states would last until Italy unified itself as a nation- state in 1870. Popes were able to enjoy the independence from the Byzantine Empire, but corruption arose in the Church hierarchy.
Papacy The Carolingians were named after Charles Martel, who est. the dynasty, and whose official title was “Mayors of the Palace”. Pepin the Short (741-767) was the son of Charles Martel and was considered a brute. He was the only heir to the Carolingian dynasty after his brother became a monk and succeeded his father in 751, after being anointed by St. Boniface.
Emperor Michael III elevated Photius, a layman but an ambitious scholar, to Patriarch of Constantinople. A conspiracy arose and Michael III and Photius were excommunicated from the Church. Photius charged the papacy with tampering with the Nicene Creed through its use of the Filioque clause, and tried to stir a popular uprising against Rome. In the Eighth Ecumenical Council, Photius was removed and Ignatius was reinstated. He had so much power among the people, whom he used against Rome.
Before becoming patriarch, he lived as a monk in seclusion in monastary in the East. He was appointed patriarch. He rejected many western practices, and closed Latin parishes in Constantinople.
Eastern Emperor Constantine IX wanted to heal the fissure, especially because he needed help from the West against the Normans. He burned the excommunications papers and Patriarch Michael Cerularius returned. The Patriarch of Constantinople was later known as the “Ecumenical Patriarch”.
The Great Schism was the finally split between the eastern and western Churches. The doctrinal dispute over the Filioque, the crowning of Charlemagne as emperor of the West, the issues of authority raised in the Photian schism, and the reforming tendancies under the leadership of the papacy in the West all came into focus. In addition, Byzantium increased its military strength, and wanted to achieve a greater degree of independence.