Sergius I ( el, Σέργιος Α΄, ''Sergios I'' ; d. 9 December 638 in

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...

) was the

Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople The ecumenical patriarch ( el, Οἰκουμενικός Πατριάρχης, translit=Oikoumenikós Patriárchēs) is the archbishop of Constantinople ( Istanbul), New Rome and '' primus inter pares'' (first among equals) among the heads of ...

from 610 to 638. He is most famous for promoting Monothelite

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global popula ...

, especially through the ''

Ecthesis The Ecthesis ( el, Ἔκθεσις) is a letter published in 638 CE by the Byzantine emperor Heraclius which defined monotheletism as the official imperial form of Christianity. Background The ''Ecthesis'' was another attempt by the Byzantine empe ...

''. Sergius was born of Syrian Jacobite heritage. He first came to power as

Patriarch of Constantinople The ecumenical patriarch ( el, Οἰκουμενικός Πατριάρχης, translit=Oikoumenikós Patriárchēs) is the archbishop of Constantinople (Istanbul), New Rome and '' primus inter pares'' (first among equals) among the heads of th ...

in 610. He was also a known supporter of Emperor

Heraclius Heraclius ( grc-gre, Ἡράκλειος, Hērákleios; c. 575 – 11 February 641), was Eastern Roman emperor from 610 to 641. His rise to power began in 608, when he and his father, Heraclius the Elder, the exarch of Africa, led a revol ...

, crowning Heraclius as emperor himself in 610. Sergius also provided support to Heraclius throughout his campaign against the Persians. Sergius also played a prominent role in the defense of

against the combined Avar- Persian- Slavic forces during their invasion of Constantinople in 626. Sergius' connections to both political and religious authorities gave him to his influence in both the religious and political communities to further

Monoenergism Monoenergism ( el, μονοενεργητισμός) was a notion in early medieval Christian theology, representing the belief that Christ had only one "energy" (''energeia''). The teaching of one energy was propagated during the first half o ...

as the primary formula of

Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...

within the church. This was met with much opposition, especially from that of the

Chalcedonian Chalcedonian Christianity is the branch of Christianity that accepts and upholds theological and ecclesiological resolutions of the Council of Chalcedon, the Fourth Ecumenical Council, held in 451. Chalcedonian Christianity accepts the Christ ...

supporters,

Maximus the Confessor Maximus the Confessor ( el, Μάξιμος ὁ Ὁμολογητής), also spelt Maximos, otherwise known as Maximus the Theologian and Maximus of Constantinople ( – 13 August 662), was a Christian monk, theologian, and scholar. In his ea ...

and Sophronius. In response to their resistance to accept the ideas of

, Sergius responded with the ''Ecthesis'', a formula which forbade discussing the idea that the Person of Christ had one or two energies in favour of

Monothelitism Monothelitism, or monotheletism (from el, μονοθελητισμός, monothelētismós, doctrine of one will), is a theological doctrine in Christianity, that holds Christ as having only one will. The doctrine is thus contrary to dyothe ...

being the idea that the Person of Christ had two natures that were united by a single will. The ''Ecthesis'' was signed by Heraclius in 638, the same year that Sergius died. The ''Ecthesis'' would only be seen as an accepted doctrine for two years; the death of

Pope Honorius I Pope Honorius I (died 12 October 638) was the bishop of Rome from 27 October 625 to his death. He was active in spreading Christianity among Anglo-Saxons and attempted to convince the Celts to calculate Easter in the Roman fashion. He is chie ...

resulted in a significant reduction in

support. The ''Ecthesis'' was condemned in 640 by

Pope John IV Pope John IV ( la, Ioannes IV; died 12 October 642) was the bishop of Rome from 24 December 640 to his death. His election followed a four-month vacancy. He wrote to the clergy of Ireland and Scotland to tell them of the mistakes they were ma ...

. Additionally, both Sergius and Pope Honorius were condemned as heretics by the church in 680-681 by the

Third Council of Constantinople The Third Council of Constantinople, counted as the Sixth Ecumenical Council by the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Churches, as well by certain other Western Churches, met in 680–681 and condemned monoenergism and monothelitism as heretic ...

Early career

It is believed that Sergius was already of some importance prior to being chosen as the patriarch of Constantinople. Sergius was a deacon in Haghia Sophia in addition to be a guardian of the harbor. Sergius became the patriarch of Constantinople on 18 April 610. Following the traditions of the Patriarch of Constantinople, it was Sergius who crowned

Emperor in October of 610 and baptized Heraclius' daughter. Sergius also counseled Heraclius after the death of his wife Eudokia and prior to his marriage to Martina, Heraclius' niece. As such, Sergius developed a close relationship with the Emperor, a connection that would serve him later on. In 614, the Persian army seized Jerusalem, in process damaging the

Church of the Holy Sepulchre The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, hy, Սուրբ Հարության տաճար, la, Ecclesia Sancti Sepulchri, am, የቅዱስ መቃብር ቤተክርስቲያን, he, כנסיית הקבר, ar, كنيسة القيامة is a church i ...

and capturing the

True Cross The True Cross is the cross upon which Jesus was said to have been crucified, particularly as an object of religious veneration. There are no early accounts that the apostles or early Christians preserved the physical cross themselves, althoug ...

, originally discovered by the Empress Helena. A counterattack was initiated against the Persians in 622 by Heraclius. Sergius provided the necessary wealth for the campaign to succeed through the funds of the church. Sergius succeeded at this by reporting funds in the form of Church revenues and vessels. It is even said that the bronze ox from the Forum Tauri was melted down to help provide materials for coinage. Sergius can also be credited with saving Constantinople's status as the capital of the

Eastern Roman Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantino ...

. Constantinople had been suffering throughout the campaign against the Persians as grain was the primary source of food for the city and Egypt, the provider, had been lost. Heraclius believed that moving the capital to Carthage would make it easier to provide the population with food. Attempting to save the Empire enough money to allow Constantinople to remain the capital, Sergius traded the free bread citizens received in the city, a practice from older Roman times, as the government could no longer afford this, an idea that didn't logically work. By 622, Sergius' abilities were well recognized by Heraclius. As a result, Heraclius assigned Sergius the care of both his son Theotokos and Constantinople. In 626 during the absence of the Emperor's campaign against Sassanid Persia, the Avars and Sassanid Persians, aided by large number of allied Slavs, laid siege to Constantinople. Along with the magister militum Bonus, he had been named regent and was in charge of the city's defense. He led a litany to the Hodegetria icon just before the final attack of the Avars, and right after completing it a huge storm crushed the invading fleet, saving Constantinople. It is reported that Sergius carried the Icon of the Mother of God around the city walls of Constantinople. The storm was credited as a miracle from the

Mother of God ''Theotokos'' ( Greek: ) is a title of Mary, mother of Jesus, used especially in Eastern Christianity. The usual Latin translations are ''Dei Genitrix'' or '' Deipara'' (approximately "parent (fem.) of God"). Familiar English translations ar ...

, though Sergius was credited with persuading her to the point of involvement. It was rumoured that a previous hymn of the

Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops via ...

was composed in honour of this battle and of Sergius.

Monothelitism

Background

With the victory over the Persians, rifts in the religious society began to emerge again between

Monophysite Monophysitism ( or ) or monophysism () is a Christological term derived from the Greek (, "alone, solitary") and (, a word that has many meanings but in this context means "nature"). It is defined as "a doctrine that in the person of the inca ...

and

beliefs. Both

and Sergius planned to adopt a form of 'Monenergism'. The hope was that their religious formula would be able to connect the different religious beliefs and provide a sense of unity within the empire. Sergius promulgated the belief that

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...

had two natures but one will, known as

. It was hoped that the idea would appeal to both Chalcedonians and to Monophysite followers in the empire as it fused basic principles taken from both realms of practice. Initially, Sergius had success, converting the Patriarchs Athanasius and Cyrus of Alexandria and Antioch respectively. It was not until 633 that Heraclius's

began to receive resistance from the Chaldeconians, primarily from the monks Sophronius and

. In 633, Sophronius had left for Africa to dispute the doctrine that Cyrus has put upon the Egyptians. To this end, Sergius sent his archdeacon Peter to a synod in Cyprus in 634, hosted by Archbishop Arkadios II and with additional representatives from

. The anti-Monoenergist side in Jerusalem, championed by Maximus and Sophronius, sent to this synod Anastasius Apocrisiarius pupil of Maximus, George of Resh'aina pupil of Sophronius, and two of George's own pupils, and also eight bishops from Palestine. When the two sides were presented to the emperor, the emperor switched to

and so with Sergius. It was also at this point around 633 that Sergius sought to stress the importance of Monothelitism to Pope Honorius. Sergius' letter to Honorius informed the Pope of the significance of the union achieved in Alexandria and for an agreement in how Christ's will should be viewed. Honorius ultimately agreed with the Sergius' belief, impressed at Sergius' ability to gain theological agreement in the eastern Churches, and confessed to Christ having only one will but two natures as well in his reply to Sergius. Honorius retracts from this position to a degree in a following letter to Sergius, believed to be a result of the Synodical Letter from Sophronius to Honorius.

The ''Ecthesis''

Sergius sought to create a formula that would be able to fully please both the Chalcedonians and the

Monophysites Monophysitism ( or ) or monophysism () is a Christological term derived from the Greek (, "alone, solitary") and (, a word that has many meanings but in this context means "nature"). It is defined as "a doctrine that in the person of the incar ...

. The eventually forbade discussion on whether Christ had one or two energies within him and instead insisted that the Lord had two different natures incarnated within a single will and body. Sergious would lead to call this statement the ''

'', or Exposition. These beliefs were in similar accordance to the beliefs of Hominus. This furthered Sergius' formula in realms of both Chalcedonian and Monophysite practice. It can be argued that Hominus did not quite understand the point of Sergius' formula, but it is accepted that he supported it regardless. Still, the ''Ecthesis'' was not well received by all Chalcedonians; Sophronius viewed it poorly, to the point that he published a decree against it. Emperor Heraclius too was hesitant to sign off on Sergious' work. While Sergius had finished the ''Ecthesis'' in 636, it was not signed into approval by Heraclius until 638, the same year as Sergius' death. The ''Ecthesis'' of 638 CE was issued by Emperor Heraclius with the agreement of Sergius. This document defined

as the official imperial form of

, and it would remain very controversial in the next years after its implementation.

Effects of the ''Ecthesis''

The initial effects of the ''

'' were strongly felt throughout religious society. Sergius' successor, Pyrrhus, who Sergius had handpicked to take over, declared his confidence in

belief as the official imperial doctrine. Furthermore, the majority of the subsequent Eastern successors were of

faith, furthering the spread of

doctrine.

belief had been severely reduced and the remainder of its practice was in a critical state. This would all change the following year in a very contrasting way.

Death and denunciation

Sergius died in December of 638, only months after Heraclius had instated the ''Ecthesis''. Despite the strong initial spread to Monothelitism belief, 640 brought an abrupt end to this. A series of events happened in short order following 638. First, the new pope, Severinus, showed strong resistance to accepting Monothelitism belief. His successor,

, was an even stronger opponent of the practice. Finally, following the death of Heraclius in 641, both the subsequent Emperors

Constantine III Constantine III may refer to: * Constantine III (Western Roman Emperor), self-proclaimed western Roman Emperor 407–411 * Heraclius Constantine, Byzantine Emperor in 641 * Constans II, Byzantine emperor 641–668, sometimes referred to under this ...

and

Constans II Constans II ( grc-gre, Κώνστας, Kōnstas; 7 November 630 – 15 July 668), nicknamed "the Bearded" ( la, Pogonatus; grc-gre, ὁ Πωγωνᾶτος, ho Pōgōnãtos), was the Eastern Roman emperor from 641 to 668. Constans was the last ...

were of orthodox practice and appeared to have removed the ''

'' as the official imperial doctrine, by request of

. This effectively crushed the remaining foundation of

doctrine as Orthodox teachings appeared to quickly restore back throughout the Empire. By 680, all Monothelite support had faded and Orthodox belief was in full order again. The resulting Roman Easter synod of 680 concluded that Christ had two wills and that all who had opposed this belief were to be condemned as heretics. Monothelitism was finally declared a

heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important relig ...

at the

(the Sixth Ecumenical Council), AD 680–681, and both Patriarch Sergius and Pope Honorius were declared to be heretics. Honorius remains the only condemned pope to this day. As quoted from the council: "…Honorius some time Pope of Old Rome, as well as the letter of the latter to the same Sergius, we find that these documents are quite foreign to the apostolic dogmas, to the declarations of the holy Councils, and to all the accepted Fathers, and that they follow the false teachings of the heretics…" The Council lasted a total of eighteen sessions in declaring the

of Sergius, the first being in November 680 and the last being in September 681.Hussey, 1986

References

Sources

*Alexander, Suzanne Spain. "Heraclius, Byzantine Imperial Ideology, and the David Plates." Speculum. 52.2 (1977): 218–222. Print. * *

Allen, Pauline Pauline Allen, (born 23 February 1948) is an Australian scholar of early Christianity. She is Research Professor of Early Christian Studies and the Director of the Centre for Early Christian Studies at the Australian Catholic University. Honour ...

, and Bronwen Neil. Maximus the Confessor and his Companions Documents from Exile. 1. New York, New York: Oxford University Press, 2002. Print. *Ekonomou, Andrew J. Byzantine Rome and the Greek Popes: Eastern Influences on ... , Parts 590–752. 1.Plymouth, UK: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 2007. Print. *Brock, Sebastian P., "An Early Syriac Life of Maximus the Confessor", Analecta Bollandiana 91 (1973): 299–346. Web. *Hussey, J.M. The Orthodox Church in the Byzantine Empire. 1. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press, 1986. eBook. *L. and C., Concilia, Tom. "The Sentence Against the Monothelites. Session XIII.." NPNF2-14. The Seven Ecumenical Councils 680. col. 943.Christian Classics Ethereal Library. Web. 16 Oct 2013. http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf214. *Louth, Andrew. Maximus the Confessor. 1. London: Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2005. 7-16. eBook. *Rose, Hugh James. A New General Biographical Dictionary, Volume 12. 12. London: Bell & Co Cambridge, 1857. 8. Web. *Runciman, Steven. The Byzantine Theocracy: The Weil Lectures, Cincinnati. Cambridge, Britain: Cambridge University Press, 1977. 54–61. Print. *Ullmann, Walter. A Short History of the Papacy in the Middle Ages. 2. New Fetter Lane, London: Methuem & Co. LTD, 1972. Print. *Vauchez, André. Encyclopedia of the Middle Ages. 2012. Cambridge, Britain: James Clarke & Co, 2002. Print. http://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780227679319.001.0001/acref 9780227679319-e-2620?rskey=egvat3&result=1. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sergius 01 Of Constantinople 638 deaths 7th-century patriarchs of Constantinople 7th-century Christian theologians Byzantine regents Avar–Byzantine wars People declared heretics by the first seven ecumenical councils Year of birth unknown