Pachomius II of Constantinople

Pachomius II
Pachomius II
Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople
Church	Church of Constantinople
Installed	22 February 1584
Term ended	February 1585
Predecessor	Jeremias II
Successor	Theoleptus II
Previous post(s)	Metropolitan of Caesarea

Pachomius II Patestos (Template:Lang-el) was Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from 1584 to 1585.^[1] He is sometimes considered an usurper.

Life

16th-century Greek sources show an extended bias against Pachomius: he is labeled as "dissolute" by Pseudo-Dorotheos and Leontios Eustrakios stated that he "inflicted immeasurable grief upon the Christians".^[2]

Pachomius was native of Lesbos.^[3] He was a man of great education, a scholar, and he served as a teacher of philosophy and mathematics of Sultan Mehmed III. Around 1580 he became rector of the Patriarchal Church in Constantinople. On about 1583 or 1584, thanks to the support of his brother, who was a wealthy merchant, he bought his election to the Metropolitanate of Caesarea. However, Patriarch Jeremias II Tranos, who as Patriarch had the right to validate any Metropolitan's appointment, refused to confirm and consecrate him.^[4]

Pachomius led a group of Greek prelates who tried to overthrow Jeremias, accusing the latter of having supported a Greek uprising against the Ottoman Empire, to have baptized a Muslim and to be in correspondence with the Papacy. ^[2] Jeremias II was arrested and beaten, and three trials followed: the first charge was proven false, but the last resulted in his deposition on 22 February 1584. With a personal decision Sultan Mehmed III appointed Pachomius as Patriarch of Constantinople. The appointment was due not only to Pachomius's personal relationship with the Sultan, but also to a promise to increase the annual tax paid by the Church to the Ottoman state.^[4]

During Pachomius' patriarchate, a synod was held in Constantinople with the participation of Patriarch Sophronius IV of Jerusalem, which condemned the Gregorian calendar and exiled the former Patriarch Jeremias II, whom it charged not to have been opposed enough to the new calendar.

Same bishops tried to overthrow Pachomius, offering to Sultan Murad III the great amount of 40,000 florins. The Sultan however received the same amount from friends of Pachomius and kept him in place. Pachomius remained unpopular with most of his flock; when he was due to pay the increased annual gift he had promised to the Sultan, he tried to collect it from the Orthodox faithful, who refused their help. To obtain money Pachomius sold church properties, but he nevertheless failed to gather the promised amount.^[2] Pachomius also failed to address the ongoing polemic launched against him by the deacon of Jeremias II, Nikephoros, who considered his election as illegal. Finally Pachomius was deposed by a meeting of prelates on 26 or 27 February 1585, and the Sultan did not oppose to the synodal decision. Pachomius was succeeded by Theoleptus II, who had leagued with him in overthrowing Jeremias the year before.^[2]

A year later Pachomius was acquitted of the charges and was sent to Egypt and Cyprus to collect donations. During his travel Pachomius was charged of immoral behavior,^[4] and he returned to Constantinople, where he worked and continued to pose problems. He was finally exiled in Wallachia, where he died.

Notes

^ Kiminas, Demetrius (2009). The Ecumenical Patriarchate. Wildside Press LLC. p. 38,46. ISBN 978-1-4344-5876-6.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Gudziak, Borys A. (2001). Crisis and reform : the Kyivan Metropolitanate, the Patriarchate of Constantinople, and the genesis of the Union of Brest. Cambridge, Mass: Ukrainian Research Institute, Harvard University. pp. 30–31. ISBN 0-916458-92-X.
^ "Παχώμιος Β´". Ecumenical Patriarchate. Retrieved 11 Sep 2011.Template:Link language
^ ^a ^b ^c Moustakas Konstantinos. "Pachomius II of Constantinople". Encyclopaedia of the Hellenic World, Asia Minor. Retrieved 11 Sep 2011.

[Kiminas-1] Kiminas, Demetrius (2009). The Ecumenical Patriarchate. Wildside Press LLC. p. 38,46. ISBN 978-1-4344-5876-6.

[Gudziak-2] Gudziak, Borys A. (2001). Crisis and reform : the Kyivan Metropolitanate, the Patriarchate of Constantinople, and the genesis of the Union of Brest. Cambridge, Mass: Ukrainian Research Institute, Harvard University. pp. 30–31. ISBN 0-916458-92-X.

[EP-3] "Παχώμιος Β´". Ecumenical Patriarchate. Retrieved 11 Sep 2011.Template:Link language

[EHW-4] Moustakas Konstantinos. "Pachomius II of Constantinople". Encyclopaedia of the Hellenic World, Asia Minor. Retrieved 11 Sep 2011.

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v t e Bishops of Byzantium and Patriarchs of Constantinople
Bishops of Byzantium (Roman period, 38–330 AD)	Andrew Stachys Onesimus Polycarpus I Plutarch Sedecion Diogenes Eleutherius Felix Polycarpus II Athenodorus Euzois Laurence Alypius Pertinax Olympianus Marcus I Philadelphus Cyriacus I Castinus Eugenius I Titus Dometius Rufinus Probus Metrophanes Alexander
Archbishops of Constantinople (Roman period, 330–451 AD)	Alexander Paul I Eusebius Macedonius I Eudoxius Evagrius Demophilus Maximus I Gregory I Nectarius John I Chrysostom Arsacius Atticus Sisinnius I Nestorius Maximianus Proclus Flavian Anatolius
Patriarchs of Constantinople (Byzantine period, 451–1453 AD)	Anatolius Gennadius I Acacius Fravitta Euphemius Macedonius II Timothy I John II Epiphanius Anthimus I Menas Eutychius John III John IV Cyriacus II Thomas I Sergius I Pyrrhus Paul II Peter Thomas II John V Constantine I Theodore I George I Paul III Callinicus I Cyrus John VI Germanus I Anastasius Constantine II Nicetas I Paul IV Tarasius Nicephorus I Theodotus I Antony I John VII Methodius I Ignatios Photios I Stephen I Antony II Nicholas I Εuthymius I Stephen II Tryphon Theophylact Polyeuctus Βasil I Αntony III Nicholas II Sisinnius II Sergius II Eustathius Alexius Michael I Constantine III John VIII Cosmas I Eustratius Nicholas III John IX Leo Michael II Cosmas II Nicholas IV Theodotus II Neophytus I Constantine IV Luke Michael III Chariton Theodosius I Basil II Nicetas II Leontius Dositheus George II John X Michael IV^† Theodore II^† Maximus II^† Μanuel I^† Germanus II^† Methodius II^† Manuel II^† Arsenius^† Nicephorus II^† Germanus III Joseph I John XI Gregory II Athanasius I John XII Nephon I John XIII Gerasimus I Isaias John XIV Isidore I Callistus I Philotheus Macarius Nilus Antony IV Callistus II Matthew I Euthymius II Joseph II Metrophanes II Gregory III Athanasius II
Patriarchs of Constantinople (Ottoman period, 1453–1923 AD)	Gennadius II Isidore II Joasaph I Sophronius I Mark II Symeon I Dionysius I Raphael I Maximus III Nephon II Maximus IV Joachim I Pachomius I Theoleptus I Jeremias I Joannicius I Dionysius II Joasaph II Metrophanes III Jeremias II Pachomius II Theoleptus II Matthew II Gabriel I Theophanes I Meletius I Neophytus II Raphael II Cyril I Timothy II Gregory IV Anthimus II Cyril II Athanasius III Neophytus III Parthenius I Parthenius II Joannicius II Cyril III Paisius I Parthenius III Gabriel II Parthenius IV Dionysius III Clement Methodius III Dionysius IV Gerasimus II Athanasius IV James Callinicus II Neophytus IV Gabriel III Neophytus V Cyprianus Athanasius V Cyril IV Cosmas III Jeremias III (Callinicus III) Paisius II Seraphim I Neophytus VI Cyril V Callinicus IV (III) Seraphim II Joannicius III Samuel Meletius II Theodosius II Sophronius II Gabriel IV Procopius Neophytus VII Gerasimus III Gregory V Callinicus V (IV) Jeremias IV Cyril VI Eugenius II Anthimus III Chrysanthus Agathangelus Constantius I Constantius II Gregory VI Anthimus IV Anthimus V Germanus IV Meletius III Anthimus VI Cyril VII Joachim II Sophronius III Joachim III Joachim IV Dionysius V Neophytus VIII Anthimus VII Constantine V Germanus V Meletius IV
Patriarchs of Constantinople (Turkish period, since 1923 AD)	Gregory VII Constantine VI Basil III Photius II Benjamin Maximus V Athenagoras Demetrius Bartholomew
^† in exile at Nicaea Christianity portal