The Photian Schism; Cyril & Methodius and the Conversion of the Slavs; The End of Michael III and the Rise of Basil I & the Macedonian Dynasty

Mission to Slavs

• Photian Schism

• Rhos, Khazars (Byzantine allies) declined

• Starting missionary activity with Khazars

• Great Moravia…eventually became Byzantine Christians

• Led by Constantine the philosopher and brother

• Work with slavic language, mission connected with their culture unlike previous ones

• Petronas was successful in maintaining military stability

• Council for trinity ideas

• Bulgaria as independent but in Byzantine “sphere of influence”

Basil 1

• Macedonian

• Married Eudokia

• Overthrowing Amorians — illegal?

• Trying to get legitimacy, military opposition

• Some success in Italy

• Success in Asia Minor

• Pro-Photios religiously, ending the schism

• Reorganizing law codes, Procheiron

Patriarch Photios:

• Very politically involved

• Also education and literature

• His Lexicon dictionary

• Letters are important historically

• Contact with Arabs

• Saint

Photios Defines Patriarch Powers

• Teaching

• Understanding and adapting older ideas

• On high rank with emperor

Photios Charges Rome

• Filioque — Holy Spirit from father AND son

• Against pope, arguing for just the son

Theodore on Ecclesiastical Pentarchy

• Bishop authority

• Deciding

Poor Man and Future Emperor

• Government had public roofed areas in Constantinople for poor to sleep under

• Basil

Inheritances and Guardians for Young

• Wills

• Age of discretion…20 for boys and 18 for girls

• Or just when they’re ready for property

Vita of Methodius

• Slavic conversion to Christianity

• Alphabet → new slavic literature

• Connection of writing to religion

Initial Bulgar Opposition to Conversion

• Eventually did convert

• Conflict

Byzantines and Rhos at Western Court

Theophilus

Swedish origin

Photios on 1st Rhos Attacks

Didn’t know the people, sudden

Very scary

Literacy in the Byzantine World

• Much more widespread after 800s

• Leaders/higher classes were usually literate

• Cyril

• St. Stephen learning letters as a young child

Photian Schism: Photius and Ignatius

• Ignatius still had support

• Photius’ letter to Nicholas 1 (Pope)

• Nicholas had to acknowledge Photius…would do it for land

• Nicholas — Pope as main authority, trying to find power outside Rome

• Photius: backed by moderates

• Extremist rebellion: Ignatius as Patriarch

• Photius synod: No to Ignatius

• Photius trying to regulate monasteries (extremists)

• Pope still wouldn’t acknowledge, trying to get more info → sent people to speak with Ignatius

• Council to decide who’s patriarch

• Ignatius thought he was patriarch, only Pope could get rid of him

• Deposed by council, improper election originally (papal legots)

• Nicholas said legots had exceeded authority, rejected council → Rome synod

  • Recognizing Ignatius, deposing Photius

  • Territory bribe for votes?

• Reinforcing papal authority to Michael 3

Photian Schism: Other Christian Struggles

• Missionary conversion of Bulgarians

• Boris wanted to take advantage of schism

• Letter to Pope

  • Then regulations

  • No Patriarch for them

• Bulgarians: Pro-Rome

• Greek and Latin missionary competition for Bulgarians

• Photius letters → both churches diverging in practice of faith

Photian Schism: Filoque Clause and Other Divergence

• Holy spirit from father

• AND son?

• Photius disagreed

• Also celibacy controversy

• Bread controversy

• Supremacy of Pope

• Local synod: condemned holy spirit new ideas, deposed Nicholas 1

• → ← → ←

Competition → Apostles

• Slavic conversion…East or West?

• Chzech area

• Greek brothers Cyril (Constantine) and Methodius

• From Thesalonica, Byzantine city in Slavic area (knew dialects)

• Delegation from Ratislav: conversion of slavs in their own language

• Against latin and german conversion → Popular, all Christians knew

• Wanted to avoid more German oppression

• Byzantines were willing to use other language, just pro-conversion

• Cyril and Methodius created new written slavic language (alphabet) to go to Moravia

  • Borrowing Greek and Hebrew letters

  • Cyrillic alphabet…could have been finalized by followers

• Translating Christian works

• Old Church slavonic

• Faced German pushback…pro-Latin

• Needed Pope help, Boris was pro-papacy

• Hadrian 2 approved slavic language

• Germans undoing Methodius’ work, reconversion in Latin

• Followers left after Methodius’ death

• Bulgarians and Boris were pro-Byzantium…liked language and didn’t love pope

• Byzantine decentralization for churches

• St. Clement: new Balkan Christian school → Ochrid center for translation

• Idea of Byzantium being diffused through conversion efforts…but still Bulgarian threat