Photius. He also warmly praises these Legates. Photius's letter is a very long one.[1] He, too, misrepresents the whole business, protests his obedience to the Pope: "In order to prove our obedience to your fatherly love in all things," &c.,[2] and greatly praises Rodoald and Zachary: "Indeed the Legates of your fatherly Holiness are men illustrious by their prudence, virtue, and manifold wisdom, who honour him who sent them by their manners as much as did the disciples of Christ."[3] In short, he hopes that it will now be all right.
Meanwhile Ignatius also carried out his purpose of appealing directly to the Pope. He managed to send his friend the Archimandrite Theognostus[4] to Rome with a letter beginning: "Ignatius, tyrannically deposed and much tried, and his fellow-sufferers, ten Metropolitans, fifteen Bishops, and many Archimandrites, Priests, and Monks, to our lord, the most holy and blessed Patriarch of all Sees, the successor of the Prince of the Apostles, the Œcumenical Popes[5] Nicholas, and to the most holy Bishops under him[6] and to all the most wise Church of the Romans, health in the Lord."[7] His letter is short compared with the long rhapsody of Photius. He exposes his case and ends: "Do you also, most holy lord, show to me your lovingkindness and say with the great Paul: Who is weak and I am not weak?[8] Remember the great Patriarchs, your predecessors, Fabian, Julius, Innocent, Leo,[9] in short all who fought for truth against injustice, and rise up as our avenger, since we are so unworthily mishandled."
On the eve of Whitsunday a party of soldiers came to seize Ignatius; the Government wanted to cut off his right hand and blind him; but he just escaped and hid himself. Michael III
- ↑ Quoted by Herg. i. pp. 439–460.
- ↑ L.c. p. 452.
- ↑ L.c. p. 457.
- ↑ He was "Archimandrite of the Laura of Old Rome" at Constantinople, one of the many Latin monasteries in the East.
- ↑ This is an example of the use of the title by other people, whereas the Popes never used it themselves, see p. 43, n. 3.
- ↑ The episcopi suburbicarii.
- ↑ The letter in Herg. i. 460–461.
- ↑ I.e., the disgrace of Ignatius's deposition would reflect on the Pope himself, unless he tried to prevent it.
- ↑ Some of the most famous instances of Popes who had received appeals from the East.
