Greek Popes
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Greek Popes
This is a list of Greek popes. Most were pope before or during the Byzantine Papacy (537–752). It does not include all the Sicilian and Syrian popes of Greek extraction from that period. Pre-537 * Pope Telesphorus (126–137) *Pope Hyginus (138–140) * Pope Eleutherius (174–189) * Pope Anterus (235–236) *Pope Stephen I (254–257) * Pope Sixtus II (257–258) *Pope Zosimus (417–418) 537–753 *Pope Theodore I (642–649) * Pope Conon (686-687) *Pope John VI (701–705) *Pope John VII (705–707) *Pope Zachary (741–752) Post-753 *Pope Innocent VIII (1484–1492) *Pope Julius II Pope Julius II (; ; born Giuliano della Rovere; 5 December 144321 February 1513) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 1503 to his death, in February 1513. Nicknamed the Warrior Pope, the Battle Pope or the Fearsome ... (1503–1513) See also * List of popes by nationality {{Catholic Church in Greece ...
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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 pope was the sovereign or head of state of the Papal States, and since 1929 of the much smaller Vatican City state. From a Catholic viewpoint, the primacy of the bishop of Rome is largely derived from his role as the apostolic successor to Saint Peter, to whom Petrine primacy, primacy was conferred by Jesus, who gave Peter the Keys of Heaven and the powers of "binding and loosing", naming him as the "rock" upon which the Church would be built. The current pope is Leo XIV, who was elected on 8 May 2025 on the second day of the 2025 papal conclave. Although his office is called the papacy, the ecclesiastical jurisdiction, jurisdiction of the episcopal see is called the Holy See. The word "see" comes from the Latin for 'seat' or 'chair' (, refe ...
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Pope Theodore I
Pope Theodore I (; died 14 May 649) was the bishop of Rome from 24 November 642 to his death on 14 May 649. His pontificate was dominated by the struggle with Monothelitism. Early career According to the ''Liber Pontificalis'', Theodore was a Greek man from Jerusalem whose father, Theodore, had been a bishop in the city; he is the only pope to have been a native of that city. He was among the many Syrian clergy who fled to Rome following the Muslim conquest of the Levant. He was made a cardinal deacon possibly around 640 and a full cardinal by Pope John IV. Pontificate Theodore I's election was supported by the exarch of Ravenna, who governed Italy in the name of the emperor in Constantinople. He was installed on 24 November 642, succeeding John IV. The main focus of his pontificate was the continued struggle against the heretical Monothelites. He refused to recognize Paul II as the patriarch of Constantinople because Paul's predecessor, Pyrrhus I, had not been correctly ...
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Pope Innocent VIII
Pope Innocent VIII (; ; 1432 – 25 July 1492), born Giovanni Battista Cybo (or Cibo), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 29 August 1484 to his death, in July 1492. Son of the viceroy of Naples, Cybo spent his early years at the Neapolitan court. He became a priest in the retinue of Cardinal Calandrini, half-brother to Pope Nicholas V (1447–55); Bishop of Savona under Pope Paul II; and with the support of Cardinal Giuliano Della Rovere he was made a cardinal by Pope Sixtus IV. After intense politicking by Della Rovere, Cybo was elected pope in 1484. King Ferdinand I of Naples had supported Cybo's competitor, Rodrigo Borgia. The following year, Pope Innocent supported the barons in their failed revolt. During his papacy, Pope Innocent issued a papal bull on witchcraft named Summis desiderantes affectibus. In March 1489, Cem, the captive brother of Bayezid II, the sultan of the Ottoman Empire, came into Innocent's custody. Viewing his br ...
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Pope Julius II
Pope Julius II (; ; born Giuliano della Rovere; 5 December 144321 February 1513) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 1503 to his death, in February 1513. Nicknamed the Warrior Pope, the Battle Pope or the Fearsome Pope, it is often speculated that he had chosen his papal name not in honor of Pope Julius I but in emulation of Julius Caesar. One of the most powerful and influential popes, Julius II was a central figure of the High Renaissance and left a significant cultural and political legacy. As a result of his policies during the Italian Wars, the Papal States increased their power and centralization, and the office of the papacy continued to be crucial, diplomatically and politically, during the entirety of the 16th century in Italy and Europe. In 1506, Julius II established the Vatican Museums and initiated the rebuilding of the St. Peter's Basilica. The same year he organized the famous Swiss Guard for his personal protection and commanded a su ...
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Pope Zachary
Pope Zachary (; 679 – March 752) was the bishop of Rome from 28 November 741 to his death in March 752. He was the last pope of the Byzantine Papacy. Zachary built the original church of Santa Maria sopra Minerva, forbade the traffic of slaves in Rome, negotiated peace with the Lombards, and sanctioned Pepin the Short's usurpation of the Frankish throne from Childeric III. Zachary is regarded as a capable administrator and a skillful and subtle diplomat in a dangerous time. Early career Zachary was born into a family of Greek origin, in the Calabrian town of Santa Severina. He was most probably a deacon of the Roman Church and as such signed the decrees of the Roman council of 732. He was selected to succeed Gregory III as pope on 3 December or 5 December 741. Pontificate Gregory III's alliance with the Lombard Duchy of Spoleto put papal cities at risk when the dukes of Spoleto and Benevento rebelled. Zachary turned to King Liutprand the Lombard directly. Out of re ...
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Pope John VII
Pope John VII (; c. 650 – 18 October 707) was the bishop of Rome from 1 March 705 to his death on 18 October 707. He was an ethnic Greek, one of the Byzantine popes, but had better relations with the Lombards, who ruled much of Italy, than with Emperor Justinian II, who ruled the rest. Family John was an ethnic Greek, a native of Rossano in Calabria. His father, John (c. 620 – 686), was the curator of the Palatine Hill for the Byzantine emperor. This makes John the first pope to be the son of a Byzantine official.Kelly, J. N. D. ''The Oxford Dictionary of Popes''. Oxford University Press, 1986, p. 84. His mother was called Blatta (c. 627 – 687). Pontificate John VII was selected to succeed John VI, another Greek, on 1 March 705. He had good relations with the Lombards, who then ruled much of Italy. However, his relations with Emperor Justinian II were far from smooth. Papal relations with Byzantium had soured over the Quinisext Council of 692. Scholarly debate contests ...
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Pope John VI
Pope John VI (; 65511 January 705) was the bishop of Rome from 30 October 701 to his death on 11 January 705. John VI was a Greeks, Greek from Ephesus who reigned during the Byzantine Papacy. His papacy was noted for military and political breakthroughs on the Italian Peninsula. He was succeeded by Pope John VII after a vacancy of less than two months.Ekonomou, 2007, p. 246. The body of the pope was buried in Old St. Peter's Basilica. Greek papacy A Greeks, Greek from Ephesus, John VI succeeded Pope Sergius I, Sergius I. His papal selection before 1059, selection occurred after a sede vacante, vacancy of less than seven weeks. John assisted Exarch Theophylactos, who had been sent to Italy by Emperor Tiberius III, and prevented him from using violence against the Romans. John VI's interventions prevented Theophylactos from being injured, having come to Rome to "cause trouble for the pontiff".Ekonomou, 2007, p. 270. In 704, after being expelled, yet again, from his see, the elder ...
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Pope Conon
Pope Conon (; died 21 September 687) was the bishop of Rome from 21 October 686 to his death on 21 September 687. He had been put forward as a compromise candidate, there being a conflict between the two factions resident in Rome — the military and the clerical. He consecrated the Irish missionary St Kilian and commissioned him to preach in Franconia. Background According to the ''Liber pontificalis'', Conon was a Greek, the son of an officer from the Thracesian Theme. He was educated in Sicily, where his father may have been posted during the stay of Constans II, and was later ordained a priest at Rome. He may have been among the many Sicilian clergy in Rome, at that time, due to Muslim raids on Sicily in the mid-7th century. Papacy Conon's age, venerable appearance, and simple character caused the clergy and soldiery of Rome, who were in disagreement, to put aside their respective candidates and to elect him as pope. Andrew J. Ekonomou says that due to an "increasing inf ...
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Pope Zosimus
Pope Zosimus was the bishop of Rome from 18 March 417 to his death on 26 December 418. He was born in Mesoraca, Calabria. Zosimus took a decided part in the protracted dispute in Gaul as to the jurisdiction of the See of Arles over that of Vienne, Isère, Vienne, giving energetic decisions in favour of the former, but without settling the controversy. His fractious temper coloured all the controversies in which he took part, in Gaul, Africa and Italy, including Rome, where at his death the clergy were very much divided. Family background According to the ''Liber Pontificalis'', Zosimus was a Greeks, Greek and his father's name was Abramius. Historian Adolf von Harnack deduced from this that the family was of Jewish origin, but this has been rejected by Louis Duchesne. Pontificate The consecration of Zosimus as bishop of Rome took place on 18 March 417. The festival was attended by Bishop Patroclus of Arles, who had been raised to that see in place of Bishop Heros of Arles, who ha ...
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Pope Stephen I
Pope Stephen I ( ) was the Bishop of Rome from 12 May 254 to his death on 2 August 257.Mann, Horace (1912). "Pope St. Stephen I" in ''The Catholic Encyclopedia''. Vol. 14. New York: Robert Appleton Company. He was later Canonization, canonized as a saint and some accounts say he was killed while celebrating Mass in the Catholic Church, Mass. Early life Stephen was born in Rome but had Greeks, Greek ancestry. He served as archdeacon of Pope Lucius I, who appointed Stephen his successor. Pontificate Following the Decian persecution of 250–251, there was disagreement about how to treat those who had lapsed from the faith. Stephen was urged by Bishop Faustinus of Lyon to take action against Marcian, the Novatianist bishop of Arles, who Novatianism, denied penance and communion to the lapsed who repented. The controversy arose in the context of a broad pastoral problem. During the Decian persecution some Christians had purchased certificates attesting that they had made the requis ...
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Pope Anterus
Pope Anterus (, , romanized: ''Antheros'') was the bishop of Rome from 21 November 235 until his death on 3 January 236.Shahan, Thomas (1907). "Pope St. Anterus" in ''The Catholic Encyclopedia''. Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Life Anterus was the son of Romulus, born in Petilia Policastro, Calabria, Italy. He is thought to have been of Greek origin, and his name may indicate that he was a freed slave. He succeeded Pope Pontian, who had been deported from Rome to Sardinia, along with the antipope Hippolytus. He created one bishop, for the city of Fondi. Some scholars believe Anterus was martyred, because he ordered greater strictness in searching into the acts of the martyrs, exactly collected by the notaries appointed by Pope Clement I. Other scholars doubt this and believe it is more likely that he died in undramatic circumstances during the persecutions of Emperor Maximinus the Thracian. He was buried in the papal crypt of the Catacomb of Callixtus, on the Ap ...
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