Notitiae Episcopatuum

Last updated

The Notitiae Episcopatuum (singular: Notitia Episcopatuum) are official documents that furnish Eastern countries the list and hierarchical rank of the metropolitan and suffragan bishoprics of a church.

Contents

In the Roman Church (the -mostly Latin Rite- 'Western Patriarchate' of Rome), archbishops and bishops were classed according to the seniority of their consecration, and in Africa according to their age. In the Eastern patriarchates, however, the hierarchical rank of each bishop was determined by the see he occupied.

Thus, in the Patriarchate of Constantinople, the first Metropolitan was not the longest ordained, but whoever happened to be the incumbent of the See of Caesarea; the second was the Archbishop of Ephesus, and so on. In every ecclesiastical province, the rank of each Suffragan (see) was thus determined, and remained unchanged unless the list was subsequently modified.

The hierarchical order included first of all the Patriarch; then the 'greater Metropolitans', i.e., those who had archdioceses with suffragan sees; next 'Autocephalous Metropolitans', who had no suffragans, and were directly subject to the Patriarch; next other Archbishops, although not functionally differing from autocephalous metropolitans, whose sees occupied hierarchical rank inferior to theirs, and were also immediately dependent on the Patriarch; then 'simple', i.e. exempt bishops, neither Archbishop nor suffragan; and lastly suffragan bishops, who depended on a (Greater) Metropolitan Archbishopric.

It is not known by whom this very ancient order was established, but it is likely that, in the beginning, metropolitan sees and simple exempt bishoprics must have been classified according to the date of their respective foundations, this order being modified later on for political and religious considerations.

The principal documents (by church) are :

Patriarchate of Constantinople

All these Notitiae are published in:

The later works are only more or less modified copies of the Notitia of Leo VI, and therefore do not present the true situation, which was profoundly changed by the Islamic invasions of the region. After the capture of Constantinople by the Turks in 1453, another Notitia was written, portraying the real situation (Gelzer, Ungedruckte Texte der Notitiae episcopatuum 613–37), and on it are based nearly all those that have been written since. The term Syntagmation is now used by the Greeks for these documents.

Patriarchate of Antioch

We know of only one Notitia episcopatuum for the Church of Antioch, viz. that drawn up in the sixth century by Patriarch Anastasius (see Vailhe in Échos d'Orient, X, pp. 90–101, 139–145, 363–8).

Patriarchates of Jerusalem and Alexandria

The Patriarchate of Jerusalem has no such document, nor has that of Alexandria, although for the latter Gelzer has collected documents that may help remedy the deficiency (Byzantische Zeitschrift, II, 23–40). De Rougé (Géographie ancienne de la Basse-Egypte, Paris, 1891, 151–61) has published a Coptic document that has not yet been studied. For the Bulgarian Church of Achrida, see Gelzer, Byzantische Zeitschrift, II, 40–66, and Der Patriarchat von Achrida (Leipzig, 1902). Other churches having Notitiae are Cypriot Orthodox Church, Serbian Orthodox Church, Russian Orthodox Church and Georgian Orthodox Church.

Related Research Articles

Gordoservon or Gordoserbon or Gordoserba was an early medieval Byzantine city, and a bishopric, suffragan of the Metropolis of Nicaea, in the region of Bithynia, Asia Minor. It is mentioned in several ecclesiastical sources from the period between the 7th and the 9th century. Most notably, the city is mentioned in the acts of the Council of Trullo (691-692), as a seat of bishop Isidore, who attended the council.

Euchaita was a Byzantine city and diocese in Helenopontus, the Armeniac Theme, and an important stop on the Ancyra-Amasea Roman road. In Ottoman times, Euchaita was mostly depopulated, but there was a remnant village known as Avhat or Avkat. Today the Turkish village Beyözü, in the Anatolian province of Çorum, partly lies on the ruins.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metropolis of Patras</span>

The Metropolis of Patras is a metropolitan see of the Church of Greece in the city of Patras in Achaea, Greece. The see traces its origins to its patron saint, Saint Andrew, in the 1st century. Historically, it has been one of the two pre-eminent sees of the Peloponnese along with the See of Corinth. The see has been part of the Greek Orthodox Church, except for the period where the city was part of the Principality of Achaea and a Latin see was installed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mosynopolis</span>

Mosynopolis, of which only ruins now remain in Greek Thrace, was a city in the Roman province of Rhodope, which was known until the 9th century as Maximianopolis (Μαξιμιανούπολις) or, to distinguish it from other cities of the same name, as Maximianopolis in Rhodope.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mürefte</span>

Mürefte is a village in the district of Şarköy, Turkey, on the Sea of Marmara about 51 km southwest of Tekirdağ. After the population exchange some Megleno-Romanian families were settled.

Polystylus is the name of an ancient town and bishopric in the late Roman province of Macedonia Secunda, whose metropolis was Philippi. Its name is given in this form in the Catholic Church's list of titular sees. A 1911 article by Sophrone Pétridès called it Polystylum.

Heinrich Gelzer was a German classical scholar. He wrote also on Armenian mythology. He was the son of the Swiss historian Johann Heinrich Gelzer (1813–1889). He became Professor of classical philology and ancient history at the University of Jena, in 1878. He wrote a still-standard work on Sextus Julius Africanus. He worked out the chronology of Gyges of Lydia, from cuneiform evidence, in an 1875 article.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aperlae</span> Ancient Lycian town

Aperlae or Aperlai was an ancient city on the southern coast of ancient Lycia. It did not play any significant role in history or politics, yet its lifespan of 1,300 years is worth note.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cyaneae</span> Human settlement

Cyaneae, also spelled Kyaneai or Cyanae, was a town of ancient Lycia, or perhaps three towns known collectively by the name. Leake observes that in some copies of Pliny it is written Cyane; in Hierocles and the Notitiae Episcopatuum it is Cyaneae.

Acalissus or Akalissos was a town of ancient Lycia, an early bishopric, and remains a titular see of the Roman Catholic Church. Coins were minted at Acalissus, some of which are housed at numismatic collections.

Arneae or Arneai was a small city of ancient Lycia mentioned by Capito in his Isaurica. It is located near Ernes, in the interior of Lycia where archaeological remains have been found.

Mastaura was a town in ancient Lycia and is not to be confused with Mastaura (Caria).

Comama was a town in the late Roman province of Pamphylia Secunda. It has been called Pisidian, not as being in `Pisidia, but as founded on what was the Pisidian frontier of the Roman Empire.

The Metropolis of Larissa and Tyrnavos is a Greek Orthodox metropolitan see in Thessaly, Greece.

Claneus or Klaneos or Klaneous was an ancient city and bishopric in Asia Minor.

Hieron (in Caria) was an ancient city and former bishopric in ancient Caria, Asia Minor, which remains a Latin Catholic titular see as Hieron.

The Stauropolis is the former metropolitan see of Caria in Asia Minor within the Patriarchate of Constantinople. It remains a titular see of the Roman Catholic Church.

Bindaios, also Binda, was a town of ancient Pisidia inhabited during Roman and Byzantine times. Under the name Binda, it became the seat of a bishop.

The Diocese of Lilybaeum was a diocese of the Roman Catholic church until the 9th century, when it was suppressed. It was revived as a titular see in 1966.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caesarea (Mazaca)</span> Ancient city in Asia-Minor, capital of the Kingdom of Cappadocia

Caesarea, also known historically as Mazaca, was an ancient city in what is now Kayseri, Turkey. In Hellenistic and Roman times, the city was an important stop for merchants headed to Europe on the ancient Silk Road. The city was the capital of Cappadocia, and Armenian and Cappadocian kings regularly fought over control of the strategic city. The city was renowned for its bishops of both the Greek Orthodox and Armenian Apostolic churches. After the Battle of Manzikert where the Byzantine Empire lost to the incoming Seljuk Empire, the city was later taken over by the Sultanate of Rum and became reconfigured over time with the influences of both Islamic and, later, Ottoman architecture.

References

  1. Gelzer 1900.
  2. Ostrogorsky 1959, p. 52-53.

Editions

Bibliography