Pope Eugene II
Encyclopedia
Pope Eugene II, pope
(824–827) was a native of Rome
and was chosen to succeed Paschal I
. Another candidate, Zinzinnus, was proposed by the plebeian faction, and the presence of Lothair I
, son of the Frankish emperor Louis the Pious
was necessary in order to maintain the authority of the new pope. Lothair took advantage of this opportunity to redress many abuses in the papal administration, to vest the election of the pope in the nobles, and to confirm the statute that no pope should be consecrated until his election had the approval of the Frankish emperor.
The late pope had attempted to curb the rapidly increasing power of the Roman nobility, who, to strengthen their positions against him, had turned for support to the Franks
. When Paschal died these nobles made strenuous efforts to replace him with a candidate of their own; and despite the fact that the clergy put forward a candidate likely to continue the policy of Paschal the nobles were successful in their attempt. They secured the consecration of Eugene, who was the archpriest of St Sabina on the Aventine
, although by a decree of the Roman Council of 769, under Stephen IV
, they had no right to a real share in a papal election. Their candidate is stated, in earlier editions of the Liber Pontificalis
to have been the son of Boemund; but in the recent and better editions his father's name is not given. Whilst archpriest of the Roman Church he is credited with having fulfilled most conscientiously the duties of his position and after he became pope he beautified his ancient church of St. Sabina with mosaics and with metal work bearing his name, which were still intact as late as the 16th century. Eugene is described by his biographer as simple and humble, learned and eloquent, handsome and generous, a lover of peace, and wholly occupied with the thought of doing what was pleasing to God
.
, were recalled, and their property was restored to them. A Constitutio Romana
was then agreed upon between the pope and the emperor in 824 which both advanced the imperial pretensions in the city of Rome but also checked the power of the nobles. This constitution included the statute that no pope should be consecrated until his election had the approval of the Frankish emperor.
Seemingly before Lothair left Rome, there arrived ambassadors from Emperor Louis, and from the Greeks concerning the image question. At first the Byzantine-Roman Emperor, Michael II
, showed himself tolerant towards the image-worshippers, and their great champion, Theodore the Studite
, wrote to him to exhort him "to unite us [the Church of Constantinople] to the head of the Churches of God, Rome, and through it with the three Patriarchs" and in accordance with ancient custom to refer any doubtful points to the decision of Old Rome. But Michael soon forgot his tolerance, bitterly persecuted the image worshippers, and endeavoured to secure the co-operation of Louis the Pious. He also sent envoys to the pope to consult him on certain points connected with the worship of images. Before taking any steps to meet the wishes of Michael, Louis sent to ask the pope's permission for a number of his bishops to assemble, and make a selection of passages from the Fathers to elucidate the question the Greeks had put before them. The leave was granted, but the bishops who met at Paris
in 825 were incompetent for their work. Their collection of extracts from the Fathers was a mass of confused and ill-digested lore, and both their conclusions and the letters they wished the pope to forward to the Greeks were based on a complete misunderstanding of the decrees of the Second Council of Nicæa. They do not appear to have accomplished much as nothing at any rate is known of their consequences.
A council which assembled at Rome in the reign of Eugene passed several enactments for the restoration of church discipline, took measures for the foundation of schools and chapter
s, and decided against priests wearing a secular dress or engaging in secular occupations. Eugene also adopted various provisions for the care of the poor and of widows and orphans, and on that account received the name of "father of the people". He died on the August 27, 827.
In 826 Eugene held an important council at Rome of 62 bishops, in which 38 disciplinary decrees were issued. One or two of its decrees are noteworthy as showing that Eugene had at heart the advance of learning. Not only were ignorant bishops and priests to be suspended till they had acquired sufficient learning to perform their sacred duties, but it was decreed that, as in some localities there were neither masters nor zeal for learning, masters were to be attached to the episcopal palaces, cathedral churches and other places, to give instruction in sacred and polite literature. To help in the work of the conversion of the North, Eugene wrote commending St. Ansgar, the Apostle of the Scandinavians
, and his companions "to all the sons of the Catholic Church". Coins of this pope are extant bearing his name and that of Emperor Louis. It is supposed, for no document records the fact, that, in accordance with the custom of the time, he was buried in St. Peter's Basilica
.
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
(824–827) was a native of Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
and was chosen to succeed Paschal I
Pope Paschal I
Pope Saint Paschal I was pope from January 25, 817 to February 11, 824. A native of Rome and son of Bonosus, he was raised to the pontificate by the acclamation of the clergy, shortly after the death of Pope Stephen IV, and before the sanction of the emperor Louis the Pious had been obtained - a...
. Another candidate, Zinzinnus, was proposed by the plebeian faction, and the presence of Lothair I
Lothair I
Lothair I or Lothar I was the Emperor of the Romans , co-ruling with his father until 840, and the King of Bavaria , Italy and Middle Francia...
, son of the Frankish emperor Louis the Pious
Louis the Pious
Louis the Pious , also called the Fair, and the Debonaire, was the King of Aquitaine from 781. He was also King of the Franks and co-Emperor with his father, Charlemagne, from 813...
was necessary in order to maintain the authority of the new pope. Lothair took advantage of this opportunity to redress many abuses in the papal administration, to vest the election of the pope in the nobles, and to confirm the statute that no pope should be consecrated until his election had the approval of the Frankish emperor.
Election
He was elected pope on June 6, 824, after the death of Paschal I.The late pope had attempted to curb the rapidly increasing power of the Roman nobility, who, to strengthen their positions against him, had turned for support to the Franks
Franks
The Franks were a confederation of Germanic tribes first attested in the third century AD as living north and east of the Lower Rhine River. From the third to fifth centuries some Franks raided Roman territory while other Franks joined the Roman troops in Gaul. Only the Salian Franks formed a...
. When Paschal died these nobles made strenuous efforts to replace him with a candidate of their own; and despite the fact that the clergy put forward a candidate likely to continue the policy of Paschal the nobles were successful in their attempt. They secured the consecration of Eugene, who was the archpriest of St Sabina on the Aventine
Santa Sabina
The Basilica of Saint Sabina at the Aventine is a titular minor basilica and mother church of the Roman Catholic Dominican order in Rome, Italy. Santa Sabina lies high on the Aventine Hill, beside the Tiber, close to the headquarters of theKnights of Malta....
, although by a decree of the Roman Council of 769, under Stephen IV
Pope Stephen III
Pope Stephen III was pope from August 1 or August 7, 768 to January 24, 772. He was a native of Sicily.He came to Rome during the pontificate of Gregory III and gradually rose to high office in the service of successive popes....
, they had no right to a real share in a papal election. Their candidate is stated, in earlier editions of the Liber Pontificalis
Liber Pontificalis
The Liber Pontificalis is a book of biographies of popes from Saint Peter until the 15th century. The original publication of the Liber Pontificalis stopped with Pope Adrian II or Pope Stephen V , but it was later supplemented in a different style until Pope Eugene IV and then Pope Pius II...
to have been the son of Boemund; but in the recent and better editions his father's name is not given. Whilst archpriest of the Roman Church he is credited with having fulfilled most conscientiously the duties of his position and after he became pope he beautified his ancient church of St. Sabina with mosaics and with metal work bearing his name, which were still intact as late as the 16th century. Eugene is described by his biographer as simple and humble, learned and eloquent, handsome and generous, a lover of peace, and wholly occupied with the thought of doing what was pleasing to God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
.
Frankish Influences
The election of Eugene II was a triumph for the Franks, and they subsequently resolved to improve their position. Emperor Louis the Pious accordingly sent his son Lothair to Rome to strengthen the Frankish influence. The Roman nobles who had been banished during the preceding reign, and who had fled to FranceFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, were recalled, and their property was restored to them. A Constitutio Romana
Constitutio Romana
The Constitutio Romana was drawn up between King Lothair I of Italy , co-emperor with his father, Louis the Pious, since 817, and Pope Eugene II and confirmed on 11 November 824. At the time the election of Eugene was being challenged by Zinzinnus, the candidate of the Roman populace...
was then agreed upon between the pope and the emperor in 824 which both advanced the imperial pretensions in the city of Rome but also checked the power of the nobles. This constitution included the statute that no pope should be consecrated until his election had the approval of the Frankish emperor.
Seemingly before Lothair left Rome, there arrived ambassadors from Emperor Louis, and from the Greeks concerning the image question. At first the Byzantine-Roman Emperor, Michael II
Michael II
Michael II , surnamed the Amorian or the Stammerer , reigned as Byzantine emperor from December 820 to his death on 2 October 829, and the first ruler of the Phrygian or Amorian dynasty....
, showed himself tolerant towards the image-worshippers, and their great champion, Theodore the Studite
Theodore the Studite
Theodore the Studite was a Byzantine Greek monk and abbot of the Stoudios monastery in Constantinople. He played a major role in the revivals both of Byzantine monasticism and of classical literary genres in Byzantium...
, wrote to him to exhort him "to unite us [the Church of Constantinople] to the head of the Churches of God, Rome, and through it with the three Patriarchs" and in accordance with ancient custom to refer any doubtful points to the decision of Old Rome. But Michael soon forgot his tolerance, bitterly persecuted the image worshippers, and endeavoured to secure the co-operation of Louis the Pious. He also sent envoys to the pope to consult him on certain points connected with the worship of images. Before taking any steps to meet the wishes of Michael, Louis sent to ask the pope's permission for a number of his bishops to assemble, and make a selection of passages from the Fathers to elucidate the question the Greeks had put before them. The leave was granted, but the bishops who met at Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in 825 were incompetent for their work. Their collection of extracts from the Fathers was a mass of confused and ill-digested lore, and both their conclusions and the letters they wished the pope to forward to the Greeks were based on a complete misunderstanding of the decrees of the Second Council of Nicæa. They do not appear to have accomplished much as nothing at any rate is known of their consequences.
A council which assembled at Rome in the reign of Eugene passed several enactments for the restoration of church discipline, took measures for the foundation of schools and chapter
Chapter (religion)
Chapter designates certain corporate ecclesiastical bodies in the Roman Catholic, Anglican and Nordic Lutheran churches....
s, and decided against priests wearing a secular dress or engaging in secular occupations. Eugene also adopted various provisions for the care of the poor and of widows and orphans, and on that account received the name of "father of the people". He died on the August 27, 827.
In 826 Eugene held an important council at Rome of 62 bishops, in which 38 disciplinary decrees were issued. One or two of its decrees are noteworthy as showing that Eugene had at heart the advance of learning. Not only were ignorant bishops and priests to be suspended till they had acquired sufficient learning to perform their sacred duties, but it was decreed that, as in some localities there were neither masters nor zeal for learning, masters were to be attached to the episcopal palaces, cathedral churches and other places, to give instruction in sacred and polite literature. To help in the work of the conversion of the North, Eugene wrote commending St. Ansgar, the Apostle of the Scandinavians
Scandinavians
Scandinavians are a group of Germanic peoples, inhabiting Scandinavia and to a lesser extent countries associated with Scandinavia, and speaking Scandinavian languages. The group includes Danes, Norwegians and Swedes, and additionally the descendants of Scandinavian settlers such as the Icelandic...
, and his companions "to all the sons of the Catholic Church". Coins of this pope are extant bearing his name and that of Emperor Louis. It is supposed, for no document records the fact, that, in accordance with the custom of the time, he was buried in St. Peter's Basilica
St. Peter's Basilica
The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter , officially known in Italian as ' and commonly known as Saint Peter's Basilica, is a Late Renaissance church located within the Vatican City. Saint Peter's Basilica has the largest interior of any Christian church in the world...
.