Theoleptos of Philadelphia (, ca. 1250–1322) was a

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

, Metropolitan of Philadelphia (1283/4–1322) and

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...

theologian.

Life

Theoleptos was born in

Nicaea Nicaea (also spelled Nicæa or Nicea, ; ), also known as Nikaia (, Attic: , Koine: ), was an ancient Greek city in the north-western Anatolian region of Bithynia. It was the site of the First and Second Councils of Nicaea (the first and seve ...

ca. 1250. He married but left his wife in 1275 to become a monk. He spent time in the monastic community of

Mount Athos Mount Athos (; ) is a mountain on the Athos peninsula in northeastern Greece directly on the Aegean Sea. It is an important center of Eastern Orthodoxy, Eastern Orthodox monasticism. The mountain and most of the Athos peninsula are governed ...

, where he became impregnated with the mystical traditions of Orthodox monasticism, so that the 14th-century bishop and theologian

Gregory Palamas Gregory Palamas (; ; – 1357/1359) was a Byzantine Greek theologian and Eastern Orthodox cleric of the late Byzantine period. A monk of Mount Athos (modern Greece) and later archbishop of Thessalonica, he is famous for his defense of hesyc ...

regarded him as a forerunner of his own mystical doctrine of

Hesychasm Hesychasm () is a contemplative monastic tradition in the Eastern Christian traditions of the Eastern Orthodox Church and Eastern Catholic Churches in which stillness (''hēsychia'') is sought through uninterrupted Jesus prayer. While rooted in ...

. Theoleptos was a strong opponent of the union of the Eastern Orthodox and

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

Churches which was agreed at the

Council of Lyons The Council of Lyon may refer to a number of synods or councils of the Roman Catholic Church, held in Lyon, France or in nearby Anse. Previous to 1313, a certain Abbé Martin counted twenty-eight synods or councils held at Lyons or at Anse. Some o ...

in 1274, and was imprisoned by the Byzantine emperor

Michael VIII Palaiologos Michael VIII Palaiologos or Palaeologus (; 1224 – 11 December 1282) reigned as Byzantine emperor from 1261 until his death in 1282, and previously as the co-emperor of the Empire of Nicaea from 1259 to 1261. Michael VIII was the founder of th ...

(r. 1259–82). After the death of Michael VIII, however, his successor

Andronikos II Palaiologos Andronikos II Palaiologos (; 25 March 1259 – 13 February 1332), Latinization of names, Latinized as Andronicus II Palaeologus, reigned as Byzantine emperor from 1282 to 1328. His reign marked the beginning of the recently restored em ...

(r. 1282–1328) reversed course; Theoleptos was released and became metropolitan bishop of Philadelphia (present-day

Alaşehir Alaşehir () is a municipality and district of Manisa Province, Turkey. Its area is 971 km2, and its population is 104,717 (2022). It is situated in the valley of the Kuzuçay ( Cogamus in antiquity), at the foot of the Bozdağ Mountain ( Moun ...

in Turkey) in 1283 or 1284. Theoleptos remained in his see for forty years until his death, and played a decisive role in the affairs of the city during this period, most notably leading the city's successful defence against a

Turkish Turkish may refer to: * Something related to Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities in the former Ottoman Empire * The w ...

attack in 1310. Theoleptos opposed the reconciliation of the official Church with the

Arsenite In chemistry, an arsenite is a chemical compound containing an arsenic oxyanion where arsenic has oxidation state +3. Note that in fields that commonly deal with groundwater chemistry, arsenite is used generically to identify soluble AsIII anions ...

faction in 1310, resulting in a schism between himself and the

Patriarchate of Constantinople The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople (, ; ; , "Roman Orthodox Patriarchate, Ecumenical Patriarchate of Istanbul") is one of the fifteen to seventeen autocephalous churches that together compose the Eastern Orthodox Church. It is headed ...

that lasted until ca. 1319. Theoleptos maintained close ties with the influential Choumnos family: the statesman and scholar

Nikephoros Choumnos Nikephoros Choumnos (, 1253 – 16 January 1327) was a Byzantine scholar and official of the early Palaiologan period, one of the most important figures in the flowering of arts and letters of the so-called "Palaiologan Renaissance". He is notab ...

composed an

eulogy A eulogy (from , ''eulogia'', Classical Greek, ''eu'' for "well" or "true", ''logia'' for "words" or "text", together for "praise") is a speech or writing in praise of a person, especially one who recently died or retired, or as a term o ...

on Theoleptos' death, while the metropolitan served as spiritual advisor to Nikephoros' daughter, Irene Choumnaina, the founder and abbotess of the

Monastery of Christ Philanthropos A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which may ...

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

. It is through his correspondence with her that his theological views are best known. Some of Theoleptos' writings are found in the ''

Philokalia The ''Philokalia'' (, from ''philia'' "love" and ''kallos'' "beauty") is "a collection of texts written between the 4th and 15th centuries by spiritual masters" of the mystical hesychast tradition of the Eastern Orthodox Church. They were or ...

'', but most of his writings remain unpublished. The writings of Theoleptos are a great contribution for the modern understanding of Byzantine mysticism and theology just prior to the

Hesychast controversy The hesychast controversy was a theological dispute in the Byzantine Empire during the 14th century between supporters and opponents of Gregory Palamas. While not a primary driver of the Byzantine Civil War of 1341, it influenced and was in ...

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Life

References

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Further reading