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The '''Patriarch of
Constantinople''' is the '''Ecumenical Patriarch''', the "first among equals" in the
Eastern Orthodox Communion. In this capacity he serves as spiritual leader and primary spokesperson for the
Communion (hence "first"), but has no official
authority over the
Patriarchs or over the other fifteen of the sixteen
autocephalous Eastern Orthodox churches (hence "among equals").
His titular position is
Patriarch of the
Orthodox Church of Constantinople, one of the sixteen autocephalous Churches, and he is one of the original four Eastern Orthodox patriarchs. In his role as head of the Orthodox Church of Constantinople, he additionally holds the title '''Archbishop of
Constantinople,
New Rome'''. He should not be confused with the
Latin Patriarch of Constantinople.
As
Constantine the Great had made
Byzantium "New Rome" in
330, it was reasonable that its bishop, once the humble suffragan of
Heraclea, would become second only to the Bishop of Old
Rome. For many centuries Roman
popes opposed this ambition, not because anyone thought of disputing their first place, but because they were unwilling to change the old order of the
hierarchy. In
381, however, the
First Council of Constantinople declared that: "The Bishop of Constantinople shall have the primacy of honour after the Bishop of Rome, because it is New Rome" (can. iii).
Popes
Damasus and
Gregory the Great refused to confirm this
canon, a very unusual and
controversial step, as
Ecumenical Councils were considered binding on all Christian churches. Nonetheless, the position of Constantinople continued to grow under the patronage of the
Byzantine emperor.
The
Council of Chalcedon in
451 established
Constantinople as a
patriarchate with
jurisdiction over
Asia Minor and
Thrace and gave it the second place after Rome (can. xxviii).
Pope Leo I refused to admit this canon, claiming it was invalid since it was made in the absence of his
legates, again a controversial position.
Within
Roman Catholic administration, it was not until the Roman Catholic
Fourth Lateran Council in
1215 that the
Latin Patriarch of Constantinople was recognized as having such status; in
1439 the
Council of Florence (not recognized by the Orthodox Church as ecumenical) gave it to the Greek patriarch.
After the
fall of Constantinople, the
Ottoman Sultan claimed the right of appointment, but the modern
Turkish state simply requires the Patriarch to be a Turkish citizen and allows the
Synod of Constantinople to elect him.
The current Patriarch is
Patriarch Bartholomew I.
==See also==
*
List of Constantinople patriarchs
*
Patriarch
==External links==
*
Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
*
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/byzantium/texts/byzpatcp.html
*
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04301a.htm
*
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11549a.htm
*
http://www.hostkingdom.net/orthodox.html
