and afterwards Peter complains, somewhat sulkily, that the Pope had never answered him.[1] When the quarrel began Leo made Dominic, Patriarch of Venice,[2] write to Peter. This letter,[3] too, is almost excessively moderate. Dominic is very polite to the "eminent Patriarch of the most high and holy Church of Antioch and great and Apostolic man." He, too, refers to the Petrine succession of the see "which we know to be the sister of our mother the Roman Church." He tells him all about Leo of Achrida's letter, and explains that, if the Latins prefer to use Azyme, they by no means intend to disparage the Eastern use of leaven. "Because we know that the sacred mixture of fermented bread is used and lawfully observed by the most holy and Orthodox Fathers of the Eastern Churches, we faithfully approve of both customs, and confirm both with a spiritual explanation." He thinks that leavened bread typifies the hypostatic union, and Azyme our Lord's purity. One cannot sufficiently admire the reasonableness and toleration of Rome at a time when Cerularius was calling us Jews, and our Holy Eucharist "mud."[4] Dominic's last argument is pathetically meek: "If, then, our offering of Azyme bread is not the Body of Christ, we are all of us cut off from the source of life." Meanwhile, Peter of Antioch had also heard from Constantinople, and he now embarks on a hopeless career as a peacemaker. He answers Dominic quite kindly, although he will not let him be a patriarch, since there can only be five, and he himself is the only person who has a quite certain right to the title.[5] He says that "the most holy Patriarch of Constantinople does not think you to be bad men, nor cut off from the Catholic Church … but he thinks your faith halting in this one point only, in the oblation of Azyme."[6]
- ↑ Will, o.c. p. 228.
- ↑ His official title was "Patriarch of Gradus and Aquileia." These were merged into Venice, and already then he was commonly called Patriarch of Venice. Aquileia was not formally abolished till 1751, by Benedict XIV.
- ↑ Will, o.c. pp. 205–208.
- ↑ This was his favourite amenity—"dry mud" (Will, p. 105).
- ↑ Will, o.c. pp. 208–228. This is the letter quoted above, p. 46, note 2.
- ↑ This shows how completely the question of the Filioque had retired to the background just then.
