Philotheus Kokkinos
Encyclopedia
Philotheos Kokkinos was the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople for three periods from November 1353 to 1354, 1354, and 1364 to 1376. He was appointed patriarch in 1353 by the emperor John VI Kantakouzenos
, deposed by John V Palaiologos
in 1354 and then restored by Patriarch Callistus I of Constantinople. He was an anti-unionist who opposed Emperor John V in his intent to negotiate re-union of the churches with Popes
Urban V
and Gregory XI
. He is commemorated on October 8.
life early, becoming a monk
at Mount Sinai
and later he became the abbot
of the Great Lavra on Mount Athos
. At Mount Athos he was a close friend of St. Gregory Palamas
and became a follower and advocate of the form of contemplative prayer, Hesychasm
.
Philotheus was a writer of note, writing works on the theology of the Uncreated Energies of God and attacking the scholastic philosophy
that was then current in the Western church. His most famous work is the Hagiorite Tome, the manifesto of the Mount Athos monks on how the Saint
s partake of the Divine and uncreated Light that the Apostles beheld at the Transfiguration
of Jesus
.
In 1347, Philotheus was consecrated Metropolitan
of Heraclea, in Thrace. Becoming a protege of co-Emperor John VI Kantakouzenos
, Bishop Philotheus spent most of his time in Constantinople.
obtained the abdication of John VI and forced him into a monastery under the name Joseph Christodoulus, he then forced the deposition
of Patr. Philotheus.
In 1364, Callistus stepped aside and helped restore Philotheus to the patriarchal throne. In 1376, Patr. Philotheus was deposed by Emperor Andronikos IV Palaiologos
, when the latter ascended to the imperial throne. Philotheus reposed in exile in 1379.
In 1354. the Ottoman Empire
gained a foothold in Europe, at Gallipoli
, threatening Constantinople from a new side. Threatened anew, John V appealed to the West for help in defending Constantinople against the Turks, proposing, in return, to end the East–West Schism
between Constantinople and Rome. Opposed to re-union on political terms, Philotheus was against the efforts by John V to negotiate with Popes Urban V
and Gregory XI
.
Philotheus pursued an ecclesiastical policy to consolidate under the jurisdiction
of the Constantinople patriarchate the Orthodox churches of the Serbians, Russians, and Bulgarians and to assert a primacy over the entire Eastern Church. He actively intervened in the affairs of Russia such that all the ecclesiastical administrative functions were consolidated under the Metropolitan of Kiev, Cyprian, who resided in Moscow.
and Pope Gregory XI
.
of Gregory Palamas at a local synod
. One notable example of the campaign to enforce the orthodoxy of the Palamist doctrine
was the action taken by patriarch Philotheos to crack down on Demetrios and Prochorus
Cydones. With the support of his younger brother Prochoros, Demetrios Kydones opposed as polytheistic
or pantheistic
the Palamites and their system of Hesychasm
. Applying Aristotelian logic to the Neoplatonic character of Hesychasm, the Kydones brothers accused Palamas of Pantheism
or Polytheism
, only to be condemned themselves by three successive Palamite synods that also canonized Palamas and Hesychasm. The two brothers had continued to argue forcefully against Palamism even when brought before the patriarch and enjoined to adhere to the orthodox doctrine. Finally, in exasperation, Philotheos convened a synod against the two Cydones in April 1368. However, even this extreme measure failed to effect the submission of Cydones and in the end, Prochorus was excommunicated and suspended from the clergy in perpetuity. The long tome that was prepared for the synod concludes with a decree canonizing Palamas who had died in 1359.
John VI Kantakouzenos
John VI Kantakouzenos or Cantacuzenus was the Byzantine emperor from 1347 to 1354.-Early life:Born in Constantinople, John Kantakouzenos was the son of a Michael Kantakouzenos, governor of the Morea. Through his mother Theodora Palaiologina Angelina, he was a descendant of the reigning house of...
, deposed by John V Palaiologos
John V Palaiologos
John V Palaiologos was a Byzantine emperor, who succeeded his father in 1341, at age nine.-Biography:...
in 1354 and then restored by Patriarch Callistus I of Constantinople. He was an anti-unionist who opposed Emperor John V in his intent to negotiate re-union of the churches with Popes
Urban V
Pope Urban V
Pope Urban V , born Guillaume Grimoard, was Pope from 1362 to 1370.-Biography:Grimoard was a native of Grizac in Languedoc . He became a Benedictine and a doctor in Canon Law, teaching at Montpellier and Avignon...
and Gregory XI
Pope Gregory XI
Gregory XI was pope from 1370 until his death.-Biography:He was born Pierre Roger de Beaufort, in Maumont, in the modern commune of Rosiers-d'Égletons, Limousin around 1336. He succeeded Pope Urban V in 1370, and was pope until 1378...
. He is commemorated on October 8.
Early life
Philotheus' early life is not known. He was a native of Thessalonika and is believed to have been born about the year 1300. His mother was a Jewish convert.Early career
He entered a monasticMonasticism
Monasticism is a religious way of life characterized by the practice of renouncing worldly pursuits to fully devote one's self to spiritual work...
life early, becoming a monk
Monk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
at Mount Sinai
Mount Sinai
Mount Sinai , also known as Mount Horeb, Mount Musa, Gabal Musa , Jabal Musa meaning "Moses' Mountain", is a mountain near Saint Catherine in the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt. A mountain called Mount Sinai is mentioned many times in the Book of Exodus in the Torah and the Bible as well as the Quran...
and later he became the abbot
Abbot
The word abbot, meaning father, is a title given to the head of a monastery in various traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not actually the head of a monastery...
of the Great Lavra on Mount Athos
Mount Athos
Mount Athos is a mountain and peninsula in Macedonia, Greece. A World Heritage Site, it is home to 20 Eastern Orthodox monasteries and forms a self-governed monastic state within the sovereignty of the Hellenic Republic. Spiritually, Mount Athos comes under the direct jurisdiction of the...
. At Mount Athos he was a close friend of St. Gregory Palamas
Gregory Palamas
Gregory Palamas was a monk of Mount Athos in Greece and later the Archbishop of Thessaloniki known as a preeminent theologian of Hesychasm. The teachings embodied in his writings defending Hesychasm against the attack of Barlaam are sometimes referred to as Palamism, his followers as Palamites...
and became a follower and advocate of the form of contemplative prayer, Hesychasm
Hesychasm
Hesychasm is an eremitic tradition of prayer in the Eastern Orthodox Church, and some of the Eastern Catholic Churches, such as the Byzantine Rite, practised by the Hesychast Hesychasm is an eremitic tradition of prayer in the Eastern Orthodox Church, and some of the Eastern Catholic Churches,...
.
Philotheus was a writer of note, writing works on the theology of the Uncreated Energies of God and attacking the scholastic philosophy
Scholasticism
Scholasticism is a method of critical thought which dominated teaching by the academics of medieval universities in Europe from about 1100–1500, and a program of employing that method in articulating and defending orthodoxy in an increasingly pluralistic context...
that was then current in the Western church. His most famous work is the Hagiorite Tome, the manifesto of the Mount Athos monks on how the Saint
Saint
A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...
s partake of the Divine and uncreated Light that the Apostles beheld at the Transfiguration
Transfiguration of Jesus
The Transfiguration of Jesus is an event reported in the New Testament in which Jesus is transfigured and becomes radiant upon a mountain. The Synoptic Gospels describe it, and 2 Peter 1:16-18 refers to it....
of Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
.
In 1347, Philotheus was consecrated Metropolitan
Metropolitan bishop
In Christian churches with episcopal polity, the rank of metropolitan bishop, or simply metropolitan, pertains to the diocesan bishop or archbishop of a metropolis; that is, the chief city of a historical Roman province, ecclesiastical province, or regional capital.Before the establishment of...
of Heraclea, in Thrace. Becoming a protege of co-Emperor John VI Kantakouzenos
John VI Kantakouzenos
John VI Kantakouzenos or Cantacuzenus was the Byzantine emperor from 1347 to 1354.-Early life:Born in Constantinople, John Kantakouzenos was the son of a Michael Kantakouzenos, governor of the Morea. Through his mother Theodora Palaiologina Angelina, he was a descendant of the reigning house of...
, Bishop Philotheus spent most of his time in Constantinople.
Patriarchate
In 1354, Philotheus was appointed Patriarch of Constantinople by John VI. In 1355, after John V PalaiologosJohn V Palaiologos
John V Palaiologos was a Byzantine emperor, who succeeded his father in 1341, at age nine.-Biography:...
obtained the abdication of John VI and forced him into a monastery under the name Joseph Christodoulus, he then forced the deposition
Deposition (politics)
Deposition by political means concerns the removal of a politician or monarch. It may be done by coup, impeachment, invasion or forced abdication...
of Patr. Philotheus.
In 1364, Callistus stepped aside and helped restore Philotheus to the patriarchal throne. In 1376, Patr. Philotheus was deposed by Emperor Andronikos IV Palaiologos
Andronikos IV Palaiologos
Andronikos IV Palaiologos was Byzantine Emperor from 1376 to 1379.-Life:...
, when the latter ascended to the imperial throne. Philotheus reposed in exile in 1379.
In 1354. the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
gained a foothold in Europe, at Gallipoli
Gallipoli
The Gallipoli peninsula is located in Turkish Thrace , the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles straits to the east. Gallipoli derives its name from the Greek "Καλλίπολις" , meaning "Beautiful City"...
, threatening Constantinople from a new side. Threatened anew, John V appealed to the West for help in defending Constantinople against the Turks, proposing, in return, to end the East–West Schism
East–West Schism
The East–West Schism of 1054, sometimes known as the Great Schism, formally divided the State church of the Roman Empire into Eastern and Western branches, which later became known as the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church, respectively...
between Constantinople and Rome. Opposed to re-union on political terms, Philotheus was against the efforts by John V to negotiate with Popes Urban V
Pope Urban V
Pope Urban V , born Guillaume Grimoard, was Pope from 1362 to 1370.-Biography:Grimoard was a native of Grizac in Languedoc . He became a Benedictine and a doctor in Canon Law, teaching at Montpellier and Avignon...
and Gregory XI
Pope Gregory XI
Gregory XI was pope from 1370 until his death.-Biography:He was born Pierre Roger de Beaufort, in Maumont, in the modern commune of Rosiers-d'Égletons, Limousin around 1336. He succeeded Pope Urban V in 1370, and was pope until 1378...
.
Philotheus pursued an ecclesiastical policy to consolidate under the jurisdiction
Jurisdiction
Jurisdiction is the practical authority granted to a formally constituted legal body or to a political leader to deal with and make pronouncements on legal matters and, by implication, to administer justice within a defined area of responsibility...
of the Constantinople patriarchate the Orthodox churches of the Serbians, Russians, and Bulgarians and to assert a primacy over the entire Eastern Church. He actively intervened in the affairs of Russia such that all the ecclesiastical administrative functions were consolidated under the Metropolitan of Kiev, Cyprian, who resided in Moscow.
Opposition to union with the See of Rome
During the third tenure starting from 1364, Philotheos opposed the emperor John V in his intent to negotiate with Pope Urban VPope Urban V
Pope Urban V , born Guillaume Grimoard, was Pope from 1362 to 1370.-Biography:Grimoard was a native of Grizac in Languedoc . He became a Benedictine and a doctor in Canon Law, teaching at Montpellier and Avignon...
and Pope Gregory XI
Pope Gregory XI
Gregory XI was pope from 1370 until his death.-Biography:He was born Pierre Roger de Beaufort, in Maumont, in the modern commune of Rosiers-d'Égletons, Limousin around 1336. He succeeded Pope Urban V in 1370, and was pope until 1378...
.
Campaign against the antiPalamites
Philotheus was an advocate of Hesychasm, and aided the cause of the Hesychasts in 1368 by supporting the canonizationGlorification
-Catholicism:For the process by which the Roman Catholic Church or Anglican Communion grants official recognition to someone as a saint, see canonization.-Eastern Orthodox Church:...
of Gregory Palamas at a local synod
Synod
A synod historically is a council of a church, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. In modern usage, the word often refers to the governing body of a particular church, whether its members are meeting or not...
. One notable example of the campaign to enforce the orthodoxy of the Palamist doctrine
Palamism
Palamism or the Palamite theology is the theological synthesis of Gregory Palamas who, in order to maintain that humans can become like God through deification without compromising God's transcendence, distinguished between God's inaccessible essence and the energies through which he becomes known...
was the action taken by patriarch Philotheos to crack down on Demetrios and Prochorus
Prochorus Cydones
Prochorus Cydones, also spelled Prochoros Kydones or Prochorus Cydonius was an Eastern Orthodox monk, theologian, and linguist...
Cydones. With the support of his younger brother Prochoros, Demetrios Kydones opposed as polytheistic
Polytheism
Polytheism is the belief of multiple deities also usually assembled into a pantheon of gods and goddesses, along with their own mythologies and rituals....
or pantheistic
Pantheism
Pantheism is the view that the Universe and God are identical. Pantheists thus do not believe in a personal, anthropomorphic or creator god. The word derives from the Greek meaning "all" and the Greek meaning "God". As such, Pantheism denotes the idea that "God" is best seen as a process of...
the Palamites and their system of Hesychasm
Hesychasm
Hesychasm is an eremitic tradition of prayer in the Eastern Orthodox Church, and some of the Eastern Catholic Churches, such as the Byzantine Rite, practised by the Hesychast Hesychasm is an eremitic tradition of prayer in the Eastern Orthodox Church, and some of the Eastern Catholic Churches,...
. Applying Aristotelian logic to the Neoplatonic character of Hesychasm, the Kydones brothers accused Palamas of Pantheism
Pantheism
Pantheism is the view that the Universe and God are identical. Pantheists thus do not believe in a personal, anthropomorphic or creator god. The word derives from the Greek meaning "all" and the Greek meaning "God". As such, Pantheism denotes the idea that "God" is best seen as a process of...
or Polytheism
Polytheism
Polytheism is the belief of multiple deities also usually assembled into a pantheon of gods and goddesses, along with their own mythologies and rituals....
, only to be condemned themselves by three successive Palamite synods that also canonized Palamas and Hesychasm. The two brothers had continued to argue forcefully against Palamism even when brought before the patriarch and enjoined to adhere to the orthodox doctrine. Finally, in exasperation, Philotheos convened a synod against the two Cydones in April 1368. However, even this extreme measure failed to effect the submission of Cydones and in the end, Prochorus was excommunicated and suspended from the clergy in perpetuity. The long tome that was prepared for the synod concludes with a decree canonizing Palamas who had died in 1359.