Download Filioque

The Collapse of Christian
Europe
Third Phase: The Crusades
The Crusades aroused suspicion and
ultimately violence between the East and
West as Latins (Franks) established
kingdoms in the East.
 Ultimately, the final break between East
and West was the fourth Crusade for
which only recently (2001) Pope John Paul
II apologized.

Origins of the Crusades

The rise of the Seljuk Turks, who captured
Jerusalem in 1070, worried the Byzantine
Empire.

They appealed to the Roman west for assistance
as they reported the persecution of Christians
and desecration of holy places.

The West was eager to help for a number of
reasons, including piety, wealth and land.
Pope Urban II

In 1095, Pope Urban II at the Council of
Claremont in France declared a general
indulgence to all who would take up a
“holy pilgrimage” against the Islamic
infidels.
– He demonized Islam: demon worshippers
– Accused Muslims of atrocities (forced
circumcision, destruction of churches, bizarre
tortures)
Indulgence

Crusaders would wear the sign of the
cross on their armor/garments.

Whoever died on the pilgrimage would
have “immediate remission of sin” and
have a martyr’s entrance into heaven.

They could keep what they conquered as
the “spoils of Egypt.”
Major Crusades

First (1096): Knights from France, England and Germany recaptured
Jerusalem in 1099 and established the “Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem.”

Second (1147-49): Louis VII of France and Conrad III of the Holy Roman
Empire attempted to regain territory in Asia Minor but were decimated and
Saladin recaptured all lost territory except for Tyre.

Third (1189-92): Emperor Frederick, Philip II of France and Richard I of
England failed to regain Jerusalem though they retook Cyprus and held Acre
on the coast of Palestine.

Fourth (1202-04): The crusaders stopped at Constantinople, sacked it and
established a Latin kingdom which existed untill 1261.

Fifth (1228-1244): Regained Jerusalem and then lost it again. By 1291 all
Crusader lands in the East were lost (Acre was the last Crusader city).
The First Crusade
Disastrous Crusades

“Peasant’s Crusade”—immediately after Urban
II’s speech in Claremont, a grassroots movement
headed for the East of 10,000 men. Ultimately,
they were annihilated by the Turks outside of
Constantinople.

“Children’s Crusade” (1212)—20,000 children
journeyed to the East. Many died on the way,
but those who reached Marseilles in France were
offered free passage to Palestine. Instead they
were drowned or enslaved in Tunisia or Egypt.
Other Significant Crusades

The expulsion of Islam from the Spanish peninsula in
1492.

Extension of Christianity into the Baltic region.
– Danish Crusade into Prussia
– Swedish Crusade into Lithuania.

Constant Persecution of the Jews in Europe in the
context of this crusading spirit.

Crusades Against Heretics in regions of Western Europe.
Net Effect of Crusades

Crusades changed Muslim perceptions of Christians who were now
perceived negatively as land-hungry and cruel barbarians very
different from themselves.

Crusades encouraged commercial activity to the East, but ultimately
it was Muslim scholars who influenced the West more through Spain
and Sicily.

Crusades brought confusion to the Byzantine empire and hastened
its demise as well as distracting Western European rulers from their
real problems at home. The militarism of the Crusades weakened
the Byzantine Empire.

The Crusades enhanced the prestige as well as spiritual and political
power of the Papacy.
Relation of Byzantine and Roman
Churches Early in the Crusades
Byzantine at times supported the Crusaders
though the Crusaders often thought they were
betrayed by them.
 Crusaders installed Latin Patriarchs at Antioch
and Jerusalem.
 Local believers did not accept the Latin Patriarch
and there was a local schism in the church at
Antioch.
 Rival bishops claimed the same throne and the
division between East and West was clear—two
hostile congregations existed in the same city.

The Fourth Crusade (1201-1204)
It was originally designed to conquer Jerusalem
through an invasion of Egypt. Instead, it sacked
Constantinople and set up a Latin Kingdom.
 In 1198, Pope Innocent III called for a new
crusade—western Europe ignored him. But
some Germans, French and Italians were
interested.
 The Crusaders approached Venice for assistance.
 Venice agreed to build ships to transport 33,000
Crusaders and 4,500 horses at a set price, but
only 12,000 Crusaders came to Venice.

Problem
The Crusaders, however, could not pay the
Venetians for the boats and the Venetians
barricaded them on the island of Lido.
 Venice proposed that the Crusaders attack Zara
in Dalmatia (under the protection of Hungary) to
acquire the needed money and as partial
payment since Venice claimed the city as its
own. Some refused, but the Papal legate
endorsed the proposal.
 Innocent III, however, excommunicated the
Crusaders for their attack on the city of Zara.

Constantinople
The deposed Emperor Issac II Angelus’ son,
Alexius, conspired with the Crusaders to topple
the new Emperor Alexis III.
 He promised money, restoration of communion
with Rome through submission to its primacy,
and to join the Crusade to Egypt.
 The Crusaders went from Zara to Constantinople
though some soldiers refused to participate.
 The fleet arrived in June, 1203 and installed
Alexius as Emperor (Alexius IV).

Problem





Alexius IV melted valuable icons in order to extract gold and
silver. This was desecration in the eyes of the public.
Crusaders were responsible for the “Great Fire” that destroyed
1/5 of Constantinople in 1204.
Alexius IV was assassinated and in reprisal the Crusaders
sacked the city for three days. Roman clergy encouraged the
Crusaders by telling them that “the Greeks were worse than
Jews.”
A new Latin Kingdom in Constantinople was divided between
Venice and the Germans. None of them ever made it to the
Holy Land.
They also installed a Latin Patriarch of Constantinople—but
both the kingdom and Patriarch were regained by the Greeks
in 1261.
Innocent III to the Crusaders
"You vowed to liberate the Holy Land but you rashly
turned away from the purity of your vow when you
took up arms not against Saracens but Christians…
The Greek Church has seen in the Latins nothing
other than an example of affliction and the works of
Hell, so that now it rightly detests them more than
dogs.”
In both 2001 and 2004, Pope John Paul II expressed
regret and distress over the incident.
The Psychology of 1204




Westerns do not recognize how deep the psychological
hurt is over the sack of Constantinople in 1204.
It engendered or confirmed intense national hatred—
indignation against western aggression and sacrilege.
Both East and West looked upon each other as “profane”
and ungodly.
Barlaam of Clabria told a papal court in 1339: “what
separates the Greeks from you is not so much a
difference in dogma as the hatred of the Greeks for the
Latins brought on by the wrongs they have suffered.”
The Great Schism: 858-1204










East
Greek Language
Classical Culture
Original Nicene Creed
Icons
Mystical Emphasis
A Cappella Music
Patriarch Petrarchy
Leavened Bread
Vernacular Liturgy
Communion/Theosis










West
Latin Language
Germanic Culture
Filioque Addition
Statues and Altars
Legal Emphasis
Musical Instruments
Roman Primacy
Unleavened Bread
Latin Liturgy
Penance/Forgiveness
Attempt at Reunion I:
Council of Lyons (1274)

Emperor Michael VIII (1259-1282), who
recovered Constantinople in 1261, took
the initiative for union.
– Michael wanted support from Pope Gregory X
against Charles of Anjou who ruled Sicily.

A Council met in 1274 in Lyons, France.
– Orthodox representatives agreed to recognize
 Papal claims, and
 Filioque
Reunion Rejected
The clergy and laity, of both
Constantinople and Bulgaria, fiercely
opposed the conditions of reunion.
 The Emperor’s sister said: “Better that
that my brother’s Empire should perish
than the purity of the Orthodox faith.”
 The union was formally repudiated by
Michael’s successor and Michael was
denied a Christian burial for his apostasy.

Pope Nicholas III




He sought compliance to the Council of Lyon through
legates sent to Constantinople in 1278.
Nicholas wrote to his legates: “unity of faith does not
permit diversity in its confessors or in
confession…especially in the chanting of the
symbol…The Roman church, after due deliberation,
desires that the symbol be chanted uniformly with the
addition of the filioque by both Latins and Greeks.”
Also: “the patriarch and rest of the clergy of every
fortress, village, or any other place, all and each singly,
recognize, accept, and confess with a sworn oath the
truth of the faith and primacy of the Roman church.”
Further the Greek clergy were to seek from Rome the
reconfirmation of their offices.
Attempt at Reunion II:
Council of Florence (1438-1439)

This was attended by Emperor John VIII (14251448) and the Patriarch of Constantinople as
well as representatives (or proxies) of all the
Eastern Patriarchs.
– Even Isidore, Metropolitan of Kiev and all Russia,
attended the Council.
It had the potential of a truly ecumenical council
(even according to Eastern standards).
 There were intense theological debates and
discussions, and a genuine attempt was made at
reunion.

Occasion of the Council
The Byzantine Empire had been severely
weakened by the Latin Crusades and Kingdom of
1204-1261.
 Byzantium endured two major civil wars in the
1320s and in the 1350s.
 The Turks conquered Serbia and Bulgaria. They
established a capital in Adrianople in 1365.
 In 1387 Byzantium became a vassal of the
Turks.

Agreement at the Council

Mutuality was rooted in two primary concerns:
– Consensus on doctrine
– Respect for legitimate rites and traditions of each.

The Agreement:
– The East accepted filioque
– The East accepted the doctrine of purgatory
– East and West accepted diversity on Eucharistic
bread, though unleavened bread was encouraged.
– The East accepted papal claims to primacy (though
the language is rather ambiguous).
Failed Reunion

While the last two Emperors (John VIII and Constantine
XI—the 80th from Constantine) maintained the
agreement and were supported by Patriarchs of
Constantinople (though not formally declared till 1452)
– popular piety rejected it (one Patriarch fled the city in fear)
– most monks opposed it
The hero of Orthodoxy was Mark of Ephesus (died
1444). He defended Orthodoxy at the Council, refused
to sign it, and opposed it upon his return to his episcopal
See. He led the opposition to the Council (even suffering
imprisonment).
 Grand Duke Lucas Notaras remarked: “I would rather
see the Muslim turban in the midst of the city than the
Latin cross.”

Russia Rejects the Union

Isidore, Metropolitan of Kiev and all of Russia, signed the
union decree.
– Previously, Isidore had been an envoy to the West.
– Isidore was appointed by the Patriarch of Constantinople in 1437
despite the selection of Jonas (a Russian) by a synod of Russian
bishops and Grand Prince Basil II.

Isidore returned to Moscow in 1441.
– Isidore led a procession into the city with the Latin cross, prayed
for Pope Eugenius before the Patriarch of Constantinople, and
read the proclamation of union.
– Isidore was appointed a Cardinal in the Western church.
– Grand Prince Basil rejects the union along with the Russian
clergy.
– In 1448, Basil appoints his own Metropolitan elected by Russian
bishops.
The Fall of Constantinople (1453)






Despite the “union,” the West did not offer any military
assistance to the Constantinople.
After a seven week siege, the Turks entered the city on
May 29.
The last Christian service was held at Hagia Sophia that
morning—Roman Catholics and Orthodox both present.
The Emperor received communion that morning and
then died on the walls of the city as he led his army in
defense of Constantine’s city.
Hagia Sophia became a mosque—today it is a museum.
The Turks installed a new Patriarch (Gennadios
Scholarius) in the city and his first act was to renounce
the Union.
Russian Autocephalcy




From 988 to 1237, the Russian Metropolitans (bishops)
were almost wholly Greek and selected by
Constantinople.
From 1237 to 1332, the Russian Metropolitans were half
Greek and half Russian—but still selected by
Constantinople.
– Kiev was sacked by the Mongols in 1240 and the
center of Russian Christianity moved north.
From 1332 to 1448, the Russian Metropolitans were all
Greek.
From to 1448 till the present, however, the Russian
Metropolitans were Russian—and selected without
reference to Constantinople.
– Russia had rejected the union of the Council of
Florence and regarded Constantinople as apostate.
– Suspicion, and even hostility, would characterize the
relationship between Moscow and the Greek Orthodox
Church for several centuries.
St. Sergius of Radonezh
(1314-1392)





The pattern of his life follows that of St. Anthony in the desert
of Egypt.
Despite noble birth, he lived and dressed as a peasant. “I
came to see a prophet,” said one visitor, “and you show me a
beggar.”
The Monastery of the Holy Trinity was founded in the vast
woods outside of Moscow.
– He became an explorer, colonist and missionary
40 other monasteries were founded during Sergius’ lifetime
and evangelized the northern parts of Russia.
Sergius also encouraged the Grand Dukes of Russia and was a
spiritual advisor to them. The Muscovite princes defeated the
Mongols for the first time in a major battle at Kulikovo (1380).
Sergius had blessed the Russian Prince Dmitry Donskoy prior
to the battle.
Third Rome?
I wish to add a few words on the present Orthodox
Empire of our ruler; he is on earth the sole Emperor
(Tsar) of the Christians, the leader of the Apostolic
Church which stands no longer in Rome or in
Constantinople, but in the blessed city of Moscow. She
alone shines in the whole world brighter than the
sun…All Christian Empires are fallen and in their stead
stands alone the Empire of our ruler in accordance with
the Prophetical books. Two Romes have fallen, but the
third stands and a fourth there will not be.
Philotheus of Pskov to Tsar Basil III (1510)
Third Rome?
While the Moscow Metropolitan became a
Patriarch in 1589, the See has never ranked
higher than the Petrarchy which is established in
the Ecumenical councils.
 The Orthodox church as a whole has never
recognized Moscow as a “third Rome” in the
sense of a legal successor to the Emperor and
Patriarch of Constantinople.
 Instead it is part of the embedded eccesiology of
Orthodox that no single bishop has legal primacy
but only ranks of “honor.”

The Hesychast Controversy
This was a controversy in which the West
played no role. In fact, the West regarded
the debate as one of the “speculative” or
meaningless debates of Eastern
mysticism.
 However, it is central to understanding the
nature of Eastern mysticism and its
understanding of God.

Mystical Theology
The roots of Eastern mysticism are found in the
Alexandrians (Clement and Origen from 200250) but also in the Cappodocian Fathers
(Gregory of Nyssa in particular).
 This root is apophatic theology—the way of
negation but also the way of union.
 The way of negation provides an open door for
union with God—a mystical knowledge of God.
 This combination of negation and union is called
“hesychast” (Greek word that means “quiet”).

– A hesychast is one who devotes himself to inner
recollection and prayer.
“The Prayer of the Heart”
St. Marcarius of Egypt (300-390) stressed the
“prayer of the heart” where heart refers to the
whole person—body and soul.
 Three stages of prayer—attained by the grace of
God.

– Prayer of the lips—the recitation
– Prayer of the intellect—the recollection/reflection
– Prayer of the heart—the power of dwelling in the
heart as if spontaneously offered by the whole person
when the prayer fills the whole consciousness
The Jesus Prayer
“Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on
me [a sinner].”
 It was used as early as Diadochus of Photice
(450s) and popularized by St. John Climacus of
Mount Sinai (579-649).
 By the 13th century, this prayer was linked with
certain physical practices that were designed to
further concentration

– Head bowed
– Chin resting on the chest
– Eyes fixed on the heart
Grace For Union
For Hesychasts the Jesus prayer is a means to
an end—it is a gracious gift of God through
which believers may experience union with God.
 St. Symeon the New Theologian (949-1022)
speaks continually of the “divine light” or the
“fire uncreated and invisible, without beginning
and immaterial.”
 Hesychasts believed the light so experienced is
identical with the transfiguring light that the
disciples experience in Jesus’ Transfiguration.

Orthodoxy: Greek or Mystical?
Barlaam the Calabarian, influenced by Greek
classicism, argued that God can only be known
or experienced indirectly.
 He believed that the Hesychasts had violated the
principle of apophatic theology and reduced
their “Jesus prayer” to a materialistic mechanism
for capturing the divine light.
 He accused them of making God a material
object—something created human beings could
see with their own eyes.

The Problem

How can one reconcile apophatic theology
with mystical theology?
– If God is only known through negation, how
can God be directly experienced?

St. Gregory Palamas (1296-1359),
Archbishop of Thessalonica, was the great
defender of the Hesychasts.
Important Distinctions

Distinction between the Essence of God and the Energies
(work) of God.

Humanity was made for communion and theosis—it
belongs to human nature to experience God.

This creaturely status includes the human body as part
of the whole person.

The Incarnation means the God has “made the flesh an
inexhaustible source of sanctification.” Christ took
human flesh and saved the whole human, and the whole
person (body and soul) prays to God.
Resolving the Tension




St. Basil of Ceasarea: “We know God from His energies,
but we do not claim that we draw near to His essence.
For his energies come down to us, but His essence
remains unapproachable.”
God, through his energies, reveals himself but the
energies are not something separate from God but God
in action.
The energies (the grace of God) is the personal
communion between God and humanity—a direct
relationship.
Thus, we know God in his energies, but not in his
essence. By theosis (involving mystical communion) we
experience the eschatological transfiguration of the soul
(encountering the divine light).
Eastern Mysticism

it It safeguards:
– God’s Transcedence (we do not become identified
with the essence or being of God); therefore, it is not
a form of pantheism.
– Human deification (theosis) where human can fulfill
the vocation for which God create humanity.

This mysticism is also:
– Christological—Jesus grounds this union with God.
– Sacramental—the sacraments are a means to this
union
– Ecclesial—the liturgy is the comunal experience of this
union.
Babylonian Captivity (1309-1374)

France’s Philip IV kidnapped Boniface VIII
(1294-1303), and ultimately ensured the election
of a French Archbishop as Clement V (1305-14).

In 1309, Clement V settled in Avignon rather
than Rome.

All seven Popes at Avignon were French and
most of the Cardinals had French sees.
The Avignon Papacy





Benedict XI, 1303-1304
Clement V, 1305-1314
John XXII, 1316-1334
(Taught it was heresy to
teach that Jesus or
apostles were poor)
Secular view of papacy
Devised 200 new
methods to raise money
Avignon Papacy

Due to the lack of revenues from the Papal States in Italy, the
Papacy sought to increase monetary interests in other ways.

Church taxation was increased. Edward III of England commented
that the Pope was supposed “to lead the Lord’s sheep to pasture,
not to fleece them.”

On a single day in 1328, the Avignon Papacy excommunicated 5
archbishops, 30 bishops and 46 abbots for defaulting on their
ecclesiastical taxes.

This encouraged corruption and institutional insensitivity as the
Papacy grew wealthier.

Some sees were left vacant so that the money would go directly to
the Papacy rather than through the hands of another official.
The Great Schism
Gregory XI (1370-78) returned the papacy to
Rome in 1377 and died two months later.
 The new Pope, Urban VI, was Italian. The
French cardinals declared his election invalid and
elected Clement VII as a rival Pope. Urban VI
then installed his own curia.
 Urban VI was recognized by the Holy Roman
Empire (Germany), England, Netherlands,
Poland and Portugal.
 Clement VII was recognized by France, Castile,
Aragon, Scotland, Austria and Luxembourg.

The Conciliar Movement
Called to resolve problem of two popes
 Council of Pisa convened 1409

– Called on two popes to resign
– Appointed Alexander V, who died
– Appointed John XXIII, no spirituality
– Italian pope Gregory XII refused to resign
– French pope Benedict XIII refused to resign

Now three popes!
Time Line for Three Popes
Council of Constance, 1414-15








Broader base of support
Ordered all three popes deposed
Arrested and imprisoned John XXIII
Gregory XII resigned
Emperor Sigismund asked Benedict
Benedict refused, 1417 deposed
Council elected Martin V
Condemned and executed John Hus
Condemnation of Jan Hus
Councilarism

Council of Constance (1414-15) asserted the authority of
Councils over Popes.
– “This holy Council of Constance…declares…that it has its
authority immediately from Christ, and that all men of every
rank and condition, including the Pope himself, [are] bound to
obey it in matters concerning the Faith, the abolition of the
schism, and the reformation of the Church of God.”
– They elected a new Pope (Martin V) and all agreed to it.
– They dictated that Councils should held in five, then seven and
then every ten years.
– However, it took no action to reform the church, particularly
papal taxations.
Council of Basel, 1431-1449
Called by Martin’s successor, Eugenius IV
 To deal with unresolved matter of reform
 Met for 20 fruitless years
 Eugenius resented council authority

– Pulled out, set up rival council at Ferrara
– Later moved to Florence

Council elected a rival pope
Council of Ferrara-Florence
Many members of Basel Council joined
 Dealt with reunion of Greek & Latin churches –
pronounced but not recognized
 French king called council at Bourges

– Charles VII
– Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges, 1438
– Made French church autonomous
Pragmatic Sanction of Mainz, 1439
 Concordat of 1482 freed Spanish church

New Papal Authority
By the Council of Basel (1431-49), the councilarists
believed that the church should be governed by a
perpetual council.
 However, the Pope called a rival council in Florence
(1438-45) on the pretense of union with the Byzantine
church.
 By 1460, Pope Pius II issued a Papal bull that forbade
appeals above the Pope to the authority of any future
council.
 The church was left unreformed: at all levels (regular,
secular, lower clergies) the church experienced
corruption (e.g., simony, immorality, exploitation,
absenteeism, pluralism, use of “pardoners”).

Unresolved issues
Who controls church? Pope or council?
 What about church reform?
 Church-state relations?
 Individual Christian freedom & security
 But – one pope located again in Rome
 Only one remaining alternative: Revolt!
