Pope Adeodatus II ( 621–17 June 676), sometimes called Deodatus, was the

bishop of Rome The pope is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the pope was the sovereign or head of sta ...

from 672 to his death on 17 June 676. He devoted much of his papacy to improving churches and fighting

monothelitism Monothelitism, or monotheletism was a theological doctrine in Christianity that was proposed in the 7th century, but was ultimately rejected by the sixth ecumenical council. It held Christ as having only one will and was thus contrary to dyoth ...

Rise

Born in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

in c. 621, Adeodatus was the son of a man named Jovinianus. He became a

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

monk of the Roman cloister of

St Erasmus Erasmus of Formia, also known as Saint Elmo (died ), was a Christian saint and martyr. He is venerated as the patron saint of sailors and abdominal pain. Erasmus or Elmo is also one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, saintly figures of Christian relig ...

on the

Caelian Hill The Caelian Hill ( ; ; ) is one of the famous seven hills of Rome. Geography The Caelian Hill is a moderately long promontory about long, to wide, and tall in the park near the Temple of Claudius. The hill overlooks a plateau from wh ...

. He became

Pope The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...

on 11 April 672 in succession to

Vitalian Pope Vitalian (; died 27 January 672) was the bishop of Rome from 30 July 657 to his death in 672. His pontificate was marked by the dispute between the papacy and the imperial government in Constantinople over Monothelitism, which Rome condemne ...

. His

election An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold Public administration, public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative d ...

was ratified by the

exarch of Ravenna The Exarchate of Ravenna (; ), also known as the Exarchate of Italy, was an administrative district of the Byzantine Empire comprising, between the 6th and 8th centuries, the territories under the jurisdiction of the exarch of Italy (''exarchus ...

within weeks, as required during the period of Byzantine papacy.

Pontificate

Adeodatus II's pontificate is extremely obscure. It coincided with a surge of passionate interest in

Pope Martin I Pope Martin I (, ; between 590 and 600 – 16 September 655), also known as Martin the Confessor, was the bishop of Rome from 21 July 649 to his death 16 September 655. He had served as Pope Theodore I's ambassador to Constantinople, and was pap ...

and

Maximus the Confessor Maximus the Confessor (), also spelled Maximos, otherwise known as Maximus the Theologian and Maximus of Constantinople ( – 13 August 662), was a Christianity, Christian monk, theologian, and scholar. In his early life, Maximus was a civil se ...

, who were known for resisting the support of the

Eastern Roman emperors The foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD marks the conventional start of the Eastern Roman Empire, which Fall of Constantinople, fell to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. Only the emperors who were recognized as legitimate rulers and exercised s ...

for

Monothelism Monothelitism, or monotheletism was a theological doctrine in Christianity that was proposed in the 7th century, but was ultimately rejected by the sixth ecumenical council. It held Christ as having only one will and was thus contrary to dyothe ...

. In light of this, Pope Adeodatus rejected the synodical letters sent to him by Patriarch

Constantine I of Constantinople Constantine I of Constantinople (Greek: Κωνσταντῖνος; died 9 August 677) was the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from 675 to 677. He is listed as a saint, feast day 29 July. He was preceded by John V of Constantinople. He was ...

. Because of this, his name was excluded from the

diptych A diptych (, ) is any object with two flat plates which form a pair, often attached by a hinge. For example, the standard notebook and school exercise book of the ancient world was a diptych consisting of a pair of such plates that contained a ...

s in Constantinople. Adeodatus was active in improving monastic discipline and in the repression of

Monothelitism Monothelitism, or monotheletism was a theological doctrine in Christianity that was proposed in the 7th century, but was ultimately rejected by the sixth ecumenical council. It held Christ as having only one will and was thus contrary to dyoth ...

and gave

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

the right to choose its

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. During his pontificate, the Basilica of St. Peter was built at the eighth milestone of the Via Portuensis. St. Erasmus was also reconstructed. Elected as Pope on 11 April 672, Adeodatus II did not get involved in political events and disengaged himself from the events at the time surrounding

. Pope Adeodatus II devoted his reign to the restoration of churches in disrepair. He protected the Abbey of St. Peter and St. Paul (known as St. Augustine's Abbey), exempted

Marmoutier Abbey, Tours Marmoutier Abbey — also known as the Abbey of Marmoutier or Marmoutiers — was an early monastery outside Tours, Indre-et-Loire, France. In its later days it followed the Benedictine order as an influential monastery with many dependencies. H ...

(Abbey of St.

Martin of Tours Martin of Tours (; 316/3368 November 397) was the third bishop of Tours. He is the patron saint of many communities and organizations across Europe, including France's Third French Republic, Third Republic. A native of Pannonia (present-day Hung ...

) from the authority of the Holy See, and led improvements to St. Erasmus' monastery. He is sometimes called saint and 26 June is given as his feast day, but this is disputed. Adeodatus II's papacy did not contribute by a large amount to society. He died on 17 June 676 and was succeeded by Donus.

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Adeodatus 02 676 deaths Papal saints Italian popes Popes of the Byzantine Papacy 7th-century archbishops 7th-century Christian saints Benedictine popes Italian Benedictines Popes 7th-century popes 621 births Burials at St. Peter's Basilica