Barlaam of Seminara: Difference between revisions
Content deleted Content added
m →The Triads: Minor separation of erroneously joined words "be polytheistic" in sentence beginning, "Barlaam viewed this doctrine." |
|||
| (119 intermediate revisions by 84 users not shown) | |||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
{{Short description|Italian scholar}} |
|||
'''Barlaam of Seminara''' ('''Bernardo Massari''', as a layman),<ref>http://clt.unical.it/Doc_Varie/Ricerche/Dialettologia/TrumperLaCalabriaNellaDimensioneSpazioTemporale.pdf</ref><ref>Christopher Kleinhenz et al., ''Medieval Italy. An encyclopedia'', I., Routledge, 1993, p. 97: "Barlaam the Calabrian (Bernardo Massari, c. 1290-1348 or c. 1350)."</ref> ca. 1290-1348, or '''Barlaam of Calabria''' was a southern [[Italian people|Italian]] scholar ([[Aristotelianism|Aristotelian]] [[scholasticism|scholastic]]) and clergyman of the 14th century. [[Renaissance Humanism|Humanist]], [[philologist]], and [[theologian]]. He brought an accusation of [[heresy]] against [[Gregory Palamas]] for the latter's defence of [[Hesychasm]] (the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]]'s mystical teaching on prayer). Three Orthodox [[synod]]s ruled against him and in Palamas's favor (two "Councils of [[Hagia Sophia|Sophia]]" in June and August 1341, and a "Council of [[Blachernae]]" in 1351). |
|||
{{Infobox theologian |
|||
| ⚫ | |||
| image = Barlaam, Carrying a Should.jpg |
|||
| caption = Barlaam crosses a river, from the workshop of Diebold Lauber (1469) |
|||
| ⚫ | |||
| birth_place = [[Seminara]], [[Calabria]], [[Kingdom of Naples]] |
|||
| death_date = June 1, 1348 |
|||
| death_place = [[Gerace]], Kingdom of Naples |
|||
| tradition_movement = [[Barlaamism]] |
|||
| main_interests = [[Philology]] |
|||
| notable_ideas = Rejection of [[Hesychasm]] |
|||
| education = [[University of Constantinople]] |
|||
| ⚫ | |||
'''Barlaam of Seminara''' ('''Bernardo Massari''', as a layman),<ref>[http://clt.unical.it/Doc_Varie/Ricerche/Dialettologia/TrumperLaCalabriaNellaDimensioneSpazioTemporale.pdf John B. Trumper, "La Calabria nella sua dimensione spazio temporale" (Calabria in its space-time dimension) (in Italian)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100414162528/http://clt.unical.it/Doc_Varie/Ricerche/Dialettologia/TrumperLaCalabriaNellaDimensioneSpazioTemporale.pdf |date=2010-04-14 }}</ref><ref>Christopher Kleinhenz et al., ''Medieval Italy. An encyclopedia'', I., Routledge, 1993, p. 97: "Barlaam the Calabrian (Bernardo Massari, c. 1290-1348 or c. 1350)."</ref> c. 1290–1348, or '''Barlaam of Calabria''' ({{langx|el|Βαρλαὰμ Καλαβρός}}) was a [[Basilian monks|Basilian monk]], theologian and [[Humanism|humanistic]] scholar born in southern [[Italy]]. He was a scholar and clergyman of the 14th century, as well as a [[Renaissance Humanism|humanist]], [[philologist]] and [[theologian]]. |
|||
When [[Gregory Palamas|Gregorios Palamas]] defended [[Hesychasm]] (the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]]'s mystical teaching on prayer), Barlaam accused him of [[heresy]]. Three Eastern Orthodox [[synod]]s ruled against him and in Palamas's favor (two Councils of [[Hagia Sophia|Sophia]] in June and August 1341, and a Council of [[Blachernae]] in 1351). |
|||
| ⚫ | |||
Barlaam was born in what is now the commune of [[Seminara]], [[Calabria]]. Despite the general belief that Barlaam converted to Orthodox Christianity, Martin Jugie argues that he was in fact baptized and brought up in the Orthodox tradition.<ref>Jugie, Martin. "Barlaam, est-il ne catholique? EO, 39 (1940) 100-125.</ref> |
|||
| ⚫ | |||
Barlaam was born in what is now the ''comune'' of [[Seminara]], [[Calabria]], in a [[Greek language|Greek-speaking]] [[Eastern Orthodoxy|Eastern Orthodox]] environment.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sgarbi |first=Marco |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=81yYEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA323 |title=Encyclopedia of Renaissance Philosophy |date=2022 |publisher=Springer Nature |isbn=978-3-319-14169-5 |pages=323 |language=en}}</ref> He was an [[Griko people|ethnic Greek]].<ref>Jugie, Martin (1940) "Barlaam, est-il ne catholique?." ''Échos d'Orient'', '''39''' (197) : 100-125. Available on-line at: [http://www.persee.fr/doc/rebyz_1146-9447_1940_num_39_197_2953 Persee.fr]</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Vakalopoulos |first=Apostolos |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0fkcAAAAYAAJ |title=Origins of the Greek Nation: The Byzantine Period, 1204-1461 |date=1970 |publisher=Rutgers University Press |isbn=978-0-8135-0659-3 |pages=235 |language=en |quote=They were the monk Barlaam (Bernardo) , of Greek descent , from Seminara in Calabria...}}</ref><ref name=":0" /> |
|||
==Early career== |
==Early career== |
||
[[File:Gerace, Petrarca e Boccaccio.JPG|thumb|Plaque for Barlaam in Gerace]] |
|||
| ⚫ | Bernardo moved to [[Constantinople]] in the 1320s, where he soon gained entrance into ecclesiastical and political circles, especially those around the emperor [[Andronicus III Palaeologus]], who gave him a teaching position at the university. He was |
||
| ⚫ | Bernardo moved to [[Constantinople]] in the 1320s, where he soon gained entrance into ecclesiastical and political circles, especially those around the emperor [[Andronicus III Palaeologus]], who gave him a teaching position at the university. He was tonsured a monk at the monastery of Sant'Elia di Capassino and given the name Barlaam.<ref>Giovanni Fiore da Cropani, ''Della Calabria illustrata'', III., Rubbettino, 1999. See also: [[Eugenio Garin]], "History of Italian Philosophy", vibs, 2008.</ref> |
||
Eventually, he was made the [[Hegumen]] (abbot) of the Monastery of Our Savior, and two confidential missions on behalf of the emperor were entrusted to him. |
Eventually, he was made the [[Hegumen]] (abbot) of the Monastery of Our Savior, and two confidential missions on behalf of the emperor were entrusted to him. |
||
Colin Wells characterizes Barlaam |
Historian [[Colin Wells (historian)|Colin Wells]] characterizes Barlaam as "brilliant but sharp-tongued", describing him as "thoroughly versed in the classics, an astronomer, a mathematician, as well as a philosopher and a theologian.<ref name=":0" /> However, according to Wells, "this formidable learning was coupled with an arrogant, sarcastic manner, so caustic at times that he put off even friends and allies."<ref name=":0">{{cite book |last=Wells |first=Colin |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IVn0TBrvGyYC&q=Barlaam+Constantinople+arrogant |title=Sailing from Byzantium: how a lost Empire shaped the world |publisher=Random House, Inc. |year=2006 |isbn=9780553901719 |page=47 |quote=The Byzantine humanist who triggered the Hesychast controversy was a brilliant but sharp-tongued Greek from southern Italy named Barlaam... thoroughly versed in the classics, an astronomer, a mathematician, as well as a philosopher and a theologian. Unfortunately for him, this formidable learning was coupled with an arrogant, sarcastic manner, so caustic at times that he put off even friends and allies. Born around 1290 in Calabria in southern Italy, Barlaam came to Constantinople in 1320.}}</ref> |
||
During the years 1333–1334, Barlaam undertook to negotiate the union of churches with the representatives of [[Pope John XXII]]. For this occasion he wrote twenty-one treatises against the Latins in which he opposed [[papal primacy]] and the [[filioque]] doctrine. |
During the years 1333–1334, Barlaam undertook to negotiate the union of churches with the representatives of [[Pope John XXII]]. For this occasion he wrote twenty-one treatises against the Latins in which he opposed [[papal primacy]] and the [[filioque]] doctrine. Emperor Andronicus III sent Barlaam on important diplomatic missions to [[Robert, King of Naples|Robert the Wise]] in Naples and to [[Philip VI of France|Philip VI]] in Paris. In 1339, he was sent to the exiled [[Pope Benedict XII]] at [[Avignon]] to suggest a crusade against the Turks and to discuss the union of churches, but he was not successful in this endeavour. On this occasion he met [[Petrarch]]. |
||
Emperor Andronicus III sent Barlaam on important diplomatic missions to [[Robert, King of Naples|Robert the Wise]] in Naples and to [[Philip VI of France|Philip VI]] in Paris. In 1339, he was sent to the exiled [[Pope Benedict XII]] at [[Avignon]] to suggest a crusade against the Turks and to discuss the union of churches, but he was not successful in this endeavour. On this occasion he met [[Petrarch]]. |
|||
Returning to Constantinople, Barlaam worked on commentaries on [[Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite]] under the patronage of [[John VI Kantakouzenos]]. |
Returning to Constantinople, Barlaam worked on commentaries on [[Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite]] under the patronage of [[John VI Kantakouzenos]]. |
||
===Early conflict between Barlaam and Palamas=== |
===Early conflict between Barlaam and Palamas=== |
||
Around 1336, Gregory Palamas received copies of treatises written by Barlaam against the Latins, condemning their insertion of the [[Filioque]] into the [[Nicene Creed]]. |
Around 1336, Gregory Palamas received copies of treatises written by Barlaam against the Latins, condemning their insertion of the [[Filioque]] into the [[Nicene Creed]]. Palamas took issue with Barlaam's argument in support of it, since Barlaam declared that efforts at demonstrating the nature of God (specifically, the nature of the Holy Spirit) should be abandoned, because God is ultimately unknowable and undemonstrable to humans. Thus, Barlaam asserted that it was impossible to determine from whom the Holy Spirit proceeds. According to Sara J. Denning-Bolle, Palamas viewed Barlaam's argument as "dangerously agnostic". In his response titled "Apodictic Treatises", Palamas insisted that it was indeed demonstrable that the Holy Spirit proceeded from the Father but not from the Son.<ref name="Denning-Bolle">{{cite book |title=Dialogue Between an Orthodox and a Barlaamite |author=Saint Gregory Palamas |publisher=Global Academic Publishing |year=1999|page=3|isbn=9781883058210 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CqljFEGjWJEC&pg=PA3}}</ref> A series of letters ensued between the two but they were unable to resolve their differences amicably. |
||
==The Hesychast controversy== |
==The Hesychast controversy== |
||
{{main|Hesychast controversy}} |
{{main|Hesychast controversy}} |
||
{{see also |
{{see also|Palamism}} |
||
In contrast to Palamas' teaching that the "glory of God" revealed in various episodes of [[Judaism|Jewish]] and [[Christianity|Christian]] [[Bible|Scripture]] (e.g., the [[burning bush]] seen by [[Moses]], the [[Tabor Light|Light]] on [[Mount Tabor]] at the [[Transfiguration of Jesus|Transfiguration]]) was in fact the uncreated [[Energies of God]] (i.e., the [[Divine grace|grace]] of God), Barlaam held that they were ''created'' effects, because no part of God whatsoever could be directly perceived by humans. The Orthodox interpreted his position as denying the renewing power of the [[Holy Spirit]], which, in the words of various Orthodox hymns, "made [[apostles]] out of fishermen" (i.e., makes saints even out of uneducated people). In his anti-hesychastic works Barlaam held that knowledge of worldly wisdom was necessary for the perfection of the monks and denied the possibility of the vision of the divine life. |
In contrast to Palamas' teaching that the "glory of God" revealed in various episodes of [[Judaism|Jewish]] and [[Christianity|Christian]] [[Bible|Scripture]] (e.g., the [[burning bush]] seen by [[Moses]], the [[Tabor Light|Light]] on [[Mount Tabor]] at the [[Transfiguration of Jesus|Transfiguration]]) was in fact the uncreated [[Energies of God]] (i.e., the [[Divine grace|grace]] of God), Barlaam held that they were ''created'' effects, because no part of God whatsoever could be directly perceived by humans. The Eastern Orthodox interpreted his position as denying the renewing power of the [[Holy Spirit]], which, in the words of various Eastern Orthodox hymns, "made [[Apostles in the New Testament|apostles]] out of fishermen" (i.e., makes saints even out of uneducated people). In his anti-hesychastic works Barlaam held that knowledge of worldly wisdom was necessary for the perfection of the monks and denied the possibility of the vision of the divine life. |
||
===Barlaam's attack on Hesychasm=== |
===Barlaam's attack on Hesychasm=== |
||
Steven Runciman reports that, infuriated by Palamas' attacks against him, Barlaam vowed to humiliate Palamas by attacking the Hesychast teaching for which Palamas had become the chief proponent. Barlaam visited Thessalonica, where he made the acquaintance of monks who followed the Hesychast teachings. Runciman describes these monks as ignorant and lacking a real understanding of the Hesychast teaching. Barlaam issued a number of treatises mocking the absurdity of the practices which he reported included, "miraculous separations and reunions of the spirit and the soul, of the traffic which demons have with the soul, of the difference between red lights and white lights, of the entry and departure of the intelligence through the nostrils with the breath, of the shields that gather together round the navel, and finally of the union of Our Lord with the soul, which takes place in the full and sensible certitude of the heart within the navel." Barlaam said that the monks had claimed to see the divine essence with bodily eyes, which he viewed as sheer Messalianism. When asked about the light which they saw, the monks told him that it was neither of the superessential Essence nor an angelic essence nor the Spirit itself, but that the spirit contemplated it as another hypostasis. Barlaam commented snidely, "I must confess that I do not know what this light is. I only know that it does not exist."<ref |
Steven Runciman reports that, infuriated by Palamas' attacks against him, Barlaam vowed to humiliate Palamas by attacking the Hesychast teaching for which Palamas had become the chief proponent. Barlaam visited [[Thessalonica]], where he made the acquaintance of monks who followed the [[Hesychast]] teachings. Runciman describes these monks as ignorant and lacking a real understanding of the Hesychast teaching. Barlaam issued a number of treatises mocking the absurdity of the practices which he reported included, "miraculous separations and reunions of the spirit and the soul, of the traffic which demons have with the soul, of the difference between red lights and white lights, of the entry and departure of the intelligence through the nostrils with the breath, of the shields that gather together round the navel, and finally of the union of Our Lord with the soul, which takes place in the full and sensible certitude of the heart within the navel." Barlaam said that the monks had claimed to see the divine essence with bodily eyes, which he viewed as sheer Messalianism. When asked about the light which they saw, the monks told him that it was neither of the superessential Essence nor an angelic essence nor the Spirit itself, but that the spirit contemplated it as another hypostasis. Barlaam commented snidely, "I must confess that I do not know what this light is. I only know that it does not exist."<ref>(Runciman, 1986), p. 141.</ref> |
||
According to Runciman, Barlaam's attack struck home. He had shown that, in the hands of monks who were inadequately instructed and ignorant of the true Hesychast teaching, the psycho-physical precepts of Hesychasm could produce "dangerous and ridiculous results". To many of the Byzantine intellectuals, Hesychasm appeared "shockingly anti-intellectual" Barlaam nicknamed the Hesychasts "Omphaloscopoi" (the navel-gazers); the nickname has coloured the tone of most subsequent Western writing about the Byzantine mystics. However, Barlaam's triumph was short-lived. Ultimately, the Byzantines had a deep respect for mysticism even if they didn't understand it. And, in Palamas, Barlaam found an opponent who was more than his equal in knowledge, intellect and expository skills.<ref name=Runciman142>{{cite book |title=The Great Church in captivity: a study of the Patriarchate of Constantinople from the eve of the Turkish conquest to the Greek War of Independence |first=Steven |last=Runciman |publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1986 |page=142 |url= |
According to Runciman, Barlaam's attack struck home. He had shown that, in the hands of monks who were inadequately instructed and ignorant of the true Hesychast teaching, the psycho-physical precepts of Hesychasm could produce "dangerous and ridiculous results". To many of the Byzantine intellectuals, Hesychasm appeared "shockingly anti-intellectual" Barlaam nicknamed the Hesychasts "Omphaloscopoi" (the navel-gazers); the nickname has coloured the tone of most subsequent Western writing about the Byzantine mystics. However, Barlaam's triumph was short-lived. Ultimately, the Byzantines had a deep respect for mysticism even if they didn't understand it. And, in Palamas, Barlaam found an opponent who was more than his equal in knowledge, intellect and expository skills.<ref name="Runciman142">{{cite book |title=The Great Church in captivity: a study of the Patriarchate of Constantinople from the eve of the Turkish conquest to the Greek War of Independence |first=Steven |last=Runciman |publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1986 |page=142 |isbn=9780521313100 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Vm5OGIBgoHMC&pg=PA142}}</ref> |
||
===The Triads=== |
===The Triads=== |
||
In response to Barlaam's attacks, Palamas wrote nine treatises entitled "Triads For The Defense of Those Who Practice Sacred Quietude". The treatises are called "Triads" because they were organized as three sets of three treatises. |
In response to Barlaam's attacks, Palamas wrote nine treatises entitled "Triads For The Defense of Those Who Practice Sacred Quietude". The treatises are called "Triads" because they were organized as three sets of three treatises. |
||
The Triads were written in three stages. The first triad was written in the second half of the 1330s and are based on personal discussions between Palamas and Barlaam although Barlaam is never mentioned by name.<ref |
The Triads were written in three stages. The first triad was written in the second half of the 1330s and are based on personal discussions between Palamas and Barlaam although Barlaam is never mentioned by name.<ref>(Denning-Bolle, 1999), p. 5.</ref> |
||
Gregory's teaching was affirmed by the superiors and principal monks of Mt. Athos, who met in synod during 1340–1. In early 1341, the monastic communities of Mount Athos wrote the Hagioritic Tome under the supervision and inspiration of Palamas. Although the Tome does not mention Barlaam by name, the work clearly takes aim at |
Gregory's teaching was affirmed by the superiors and principal monks of Mt. Athos, who met in synod during 1340–1. In early 1341, the monastic communities of Mount Athos wrote the Hagioritic Tome under the supervision and inspiration of Palamas. Although the Tome does not mention Barlaam by name, the work clearly takes aim at Barlaam's views. The Tome provides a systematic presentation of Palamas' teaching and became the fundamental textbook for Byzantine mysticism.<ref>{{cite book |title=Merriam-Webster's encyclopedia of world religions |publisher=Merriam-Webster, Inc |year=1999|page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780877790440/page/836 836] |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780877790440|url-access=registration }}</ref> |
||
Barlaam also took exception to the doctrine held by the Hesychasts as to the uncreated nature of the light, the experience of which was said to be the goal of Hesychast practice, regarding it as [[Christian heresy|heretical]] and [[blasphemy|blasphemous]]. It was maintained by the Hesychasts to be of divine origin and to be identical to [[Tabor Light|the light]] which had been manifested to Jesus' disciples on [[Mount Tabor, Israel|Mount Tabor]] at the [[Transfiguration of Jesus|Transfiguration]].<ref>Parry (1999), p. 231</ref> Barlaam viewed this doctrine of "uncreated light" to be [[Polytheism|polytheistic]] because as it postulated two eternal substances, a visible and an invisible God. Barlaam accuses the use of the [[Jesus Prayer]] as being a practice of [[Bogomilism]].<ref name=HistoricalTimeline/> |
Barlaam also took exception to the doctrine held by the Hesychasts as to the uncreated nature of the light, the experience of which was said to be the goal of Hesychast practice, regarding it as [[Christian heresy|heretical]] and [[blasphemy|blasphemous]]. It was maintained by the Hesychasts to be of divine origin and to be identical to [[Tabor Light|the light]] which had been manifested to Jesus' disciples on [[Mount Tabor, Israel|Mount Tabor]] at the [[Transfiguration of Jesus|Transfiguration]].<ref>Parry, Ken and David Melling, ed.s, ''The Blackwell Dictionary of Eastern Christianity'' (Malden, Massachusetts: Blackwell Publishing, 1999), p. 231. {{ISBN|0-631-23203-6}}.</ref> Barlaam viewed this doctrine of "uncreated light" to be [[Polytheism|polytheistic]] because as it postulated two eternal substances, a visible and an invisible God. Barlaam accuses the use of the [[Jesus Prayer]] as being a practice of [[Bogomilism]].<ref name=HistoricalTimeline/> |
||
The second triad quotes some of Barlaam's writings directly. In response to this second triad, Barlaam composed the treatise "Against the Messalians" linking the hesychasts to the [[Messalians]] and thereby accusing them of heresy. In "Against the Messalians", Barlaam attacked Gregory by name for the first time.<ref name=HistoricalOverview>{{cite web |
The second triad quotes some of Barlaam's writings directly. In response to this second triad, Barlaam composed the treatise "Against the Messalians" linking the hesychasts to the [[Messalians]] and thereby accusing them of heresy. In "Against the Messalians", Barlaam attacked Gregory by name for the first time.<ref name="HistoricalOverview">{{cite web|title=Gregory Palamas: An Historical Overview |url=http://www.monachos.net/content/patristics/studies-fathers/61-gregory-palamas-an-historical-overview?title=Gregory_Palamas:_An_Historical_Overview |access-date=2010-12-27 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927014640/http://www.monachos.net/content/patristics/studies-fathers/61-gregory-palamas-an-historical-overview?title=Gregory_Palamas%3A_An_Historical_Overview |archive-date=2011-09-27 }}</ref> Barlaam derisively called the Hesychasts ''omphalopsychoi'' (men with their souls in their navels) and accused them of the heresy of [[Messalianism]], also known as [[Bogomilism]] in the East.<ref name="HistoricalTimeline">1. His teaching about the light on Mt. Tabor, which he claimed was created. |
||
| ⚫ | 2. His criticisms of the Jesus Prayer, which he accused of being a practise of the Bogomils; also charged it with not proclaiming Christ as God. [http://www.monachos.net/content/patristics/studies-fathers/63-gregory-palamas-historical-timeline Gregory Palamas: Historical Timeline – Appendix I: Timeline: Barlaam and the Councils of 1341 from Baron Meyendorff] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120607235426/http://www.monachos.net/content/patristics/studies-fathers/63-gregory-palamas-historical-timeline |date=2012-06-07 }}</ref><ref>(Denning-Bolle, 1999), p. 4.</ref> According to Meyendorff, Barlaam viewed "any claim of real and conscious experience of God as Messalianism".<ref name="Messalianism">{{cite book |title=Gregory Palamas |first=Saint Gregory |last1=Palamas |first2=John |last2=Meyendorff |publisher=Paulist Press |year=1983 |page=4|isbn=9780809124473 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8jcjtUbwptwC&q=Palamas+Messalianism&pg=PA4}}</ref><ref>"accusing Gregory Palamas of Messalianism" ([http://www.apostoliki-diakonia.gr/en_main/catehism/theologia_zoi/themata.asp?cat=hist&contents=contents.asp&main=EH_texts&file=12.htm Antonio Carile, ''Η Θεσσαλονίκη ως κέντρο Ορθοδόξου θεολογίας - προοπτικές στη σημερινή Ευρώπη''] [Thessaloniki as a center of Orthodox theology - prospects in Europe today] (Thessaloniki 2000, pp. 131-140), English translation provided by the Apostoliki Diakonia of the Church of Greece).</ref><ref>Notes on the Palamite controversy and related topics by John S. Romanides The Greek Orthodox Theological Review, Volume VI, Number 2, Winter, 1960-61. Published by the Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Theological School Press, Brookline, Massachusetts. Available on-line at: [http://www.romanity.org/htm/rom.15.en.notes_on_the_palamite_controversy.01.htm Romanity.org]</ref> |
||
2. His criticisms of the Jesus Prayer, which he accused of being a practise of the Bogomils; also charged it with not proclaiming Christ as God. |
|||
Gregory Palamas: Historical Timeline |
|||
Appendix I:Timeline: Barlaam and the Councils of 1341 from Baron Meyendorff [http://www.monachos.net/content/patristics/studies-fathers/63-gregory-palamas-historical-timeline]</ref> According to Meyendorff, Barlaam viewed "any claim of real and conscious experience of God as Messalianism".<ref name=Messalianism>{{cite book |title=Gregory Palamas |first`=Saint Gregory |last1=Palamas |first2=John |last2=Meyendorff |publisher=Paulist Press |year=1983 |page=4|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=8jcjtUbwptwC&pg=PA4&lpg=PA4&dq=Palamas+Messalianism#v=onepage&q=Palamas%20Messalianism&f=false}}</ref> |
|||
| ⚫ | <ref>"accusing Gregory Palamas of Messalianism" ([http://www.apostoliki-diakonia.gr/en_main/catehism/theologia_zoi/themata.asp?cat=hist&contents=contents.asp&main=EH_texts&file=12.htm Antonio Carile, ''Η Θεσσαλονίκη ως κέντρο Ορθοδόξου θεολογίας - προοπτικές στη σημερινή Ευρώπη'' (Thessaloniki 2000, pp. 131-140), English translation provided by the Apostoliki Diakonia of the Church of Greece |
||
In the third Triad, Palamas refuted Barlaam's charge of Messalianism by demonstrating that the Hesychasts did not share the antisacramentalism of the Messalians nor did they claim to physically see the essence of God with their eyes.<ref name=Messalianism/> According to John Meyendorff, "Gregory Palamas orients his entire polemic against Barlaam the Calabrian on the issue of the Hellenic wisdom which he considers to be the main source of Barlaam’s errors."<ref>Fr. John Meyendorf |
In the third Triad, Palamas refuted Barlaam's charge of Messalianism by demonstrating that the Hesychasts did not share the antisacramentalism of the Messalians nor did they claim to physically see the essence of God with their eyes.<ref name=Messalianism/> According to John Meyendorff, "Gregory Palamas orients his entire polemic against Barlaam the Calabrian on the issue of the Hellenic wisdom which he considers to be the main source of Barlaam’s errors."<ref name="Meyendorf">Fr. John Meyendorf, ''Byzantine Theology: Historical trends and doctrinal themes'', 2nd ed. (Bronx, NY: Fordham University Press, 1987). {{ISBN|978-0-8232-0967-5}}</ref> |
||
===Hesychast councils at Constantinople=== |
===Hesychast councils at Constantinople=== |
||
It became clear that the dispute between Barlaam and Palamas was irreconcilable and would require the judgment of an episcopal council. A series of six patriarchal councils was held in Constantinople on 10 June 1341, August 1341, 4 November 1344, 1 February 1347, 8 February 1347, and 28 May 1351 to consider the issues.<ref>[http://www.monachos.net/content/patristics/studies-fathers/63-gregory-palamas-historical-timeline Gregory Palamas: Historical Timeline]</ref> |
It became clear that the dispute between Barlaam and Palamas was irreconcilable and would require the judgment of an episcopal council. A series of six patriarchal councils was held in Constantinople on 10 June 1341, August 1341, 4 November 1344, 1 February 1347, 8 February 1347, and 28 May 1351 to consider the issues.<ref>[http://www.monachos.net/content/patristics/studies-fathers/63-gregory-palamas-historical-timeline Gregory Palamas: Historical Timeline] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120607235426/http://www.monachos.net/content/patristics/studies-fathers/63-gregory-palamas-historical-timeline |date=2012-06-07 }}</ref> |
||
The dispute over Hesychasm came before a synod held at Constantinople in May 1341 and presided over by the emperor [[Andronikos III Palaiologos|Andronicus III]]. The assembly, influenced by the veneration in which the writings of [[Pseudo-Dionysius]] were held in the Eastern Church, condemned Barlaam, who [[recant]]ed. The ecumenical patriarch insisted that all of Barlaam's writings be destroyed and thus no complete copies of Barlaam's treatise "Against Messalianism" have survived.<ref name=Denning-Bolle/> |
The dispute over Hesychasm came before a synod held at Constantinople in May 1341 and presided over by the emperor [[Andronikos III Palaiologos|Andronicus III]]. The assembly, influenced by the veneration in which the writings of [[Pseudo-Dionysius]] were held in the Eastern Church, condemned Barlaam, who [[recant]]ed. The ecumenical patriarch insisted that all of Barlaam's writings be destroyed and thus no complete copies of Barlaam's treatise "Against Messalianism" have survived.<ref name=Denning-Bolle/> |
||
Barlaam's primary supporter Emperor Andronicus III died just five days after the synod ended. Although Barlaam initially hoped for a second chance to present his case against Palamas, he soon realised the futility of pursuing his cause, and left for Calabria where he converted to the |
Barlaam's primary supporter Emperor Andronicus III died just five days after the synod ended. Although Barlaam initially hoped for a second chance to present his case against Palamas, he soon realised the futility of pursuing his cause, and left for Calabria where he converted to the Latin Church and was appointed Bishop of [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Locri-Gerace|Gerace]].<ref name=HistoricalOverview/> |
||
==Later career== |
==Later career== |
||
After leaving Constantinople, Barlaam was received into the Latin Church at Avignon in 1342 and was [[consecration|consecrated]] Bishop of [[Gerace]].<ref name=Runciman142 |
After leaving Constantinople, Barlaam was received into the Latin Church at Avignon in 1342 and was [[consecration|consecrated]] Bishop of [[Gerace]].<ref name=Runciman142/> |
||
In 1346, he was appointed Papal Ambassador to Constantinople but, his mission having ended in failure, he returned to Gerace where he died in 1348 |
In 1346, he was appointed Papal Ambassador to Constantinople but, his mission having ended in failure, he returned to Gerace where he died in 1348.<ref name=Runciman142/> |
||
== |
==Legacy== |
||
[[Image:Gregor Palamas.jpg|thumb| |
[[Image:Gregor Palamas.jpg|thumb|Gregory Palamas, with whom Barlaam engaged in his most famous theological controversy.]] |
||
Barlaam, by his upbringing and philosophy, spanned the gap between the Christian East and West. Though he was never able to synthesize both traditions in a satisfactory manner, he did end up influencing both. The [[ |
Barlaam, by his upbringing and philosophy, spanned the gap between the Christian East and West. Though he was never able to synthesize both traditions in a satisfactory manner, he did end up influencing both. The [[Zealots of Thessalonica]] were influenced by Barlaam's teachings, and his arguments affected the dogmatic definition of Hesychasm in the Eastern Church. A master of the [[Greek language]], he taught [[Petrarch]] some rudiments of Greek. |
||
Critics see Barlaam's elevation of philosophy above theology as being the reason for his condemnation by the Eastern Church: |
Critics see Barlaam's elevation of philosophy above theology as being the reason for his condemnation by the Eastern Church: |
||
<blockquote>Barlaam overestimated the significance of philosophy |
<blockquote>Barlaam overestimated the significance of philosophy for theology, asserting that only through philosophy could humanity arrive at perfection. He thus denied the renewing power of the Holy Spirit, which makes saints even out of uneducated people, as it made the fishermen apostles. Being a humanist, Barlaam placed emphasis on created means of salvation (e.g., philosophy and knowledge) and reduced the role of the grace of the Holy Spirit.<ref name="er">''Encyclopedia of Religion'', 2nd edition (Macmillan Reference Books, 2005, {{ISBN|978-0-02-865733-2}}), s.v. "Barlaam of Calabria."</ref></blockquote> |
||
According to Fr. [[John Meyendorff]], "Gregory Palamas orients his entire polemic against Barlaam the Calabrian on the issue of the 'Hellenic wisdom' which he considers to be the main source of Barlaam’s errors."<ref |
According to Fr. [[John Meyendorff]], "Gregory Palamas orients his entire polemic against Barlaam the Calabrian on the issue of the 'Hellenic wisdom' which he considers to be the main source of Barlaam’s errors."<ref name = Meyendorf/> To this day, the issues which Barlaam raised are treated by Eastern Orthodox theologians: |
||
http://www.pravoslavnaolomouc.cz/ODK/CIOT/theo/mebyth.htm, accessed 2007-06-013.</ref> To this day, the issues which Barlaam raised are treated by Orthodox theologians: |
|||
<blockquote>Barlaam's views |
<blockquote>Barlaam's views – that we cannot really know Who the Holy Spirit is exactly (an outgrowth of which is [[agnosticism]]), that the ancient Greek philosophers are superior to the Prophets and the Apostles (since reason is above the vision of the Apostles), that the light of the Transfiguration is something which is created and can be undone, that the hesychastic way of life (i.e. the purification of the heart and the unceasing noetic prayer) is not essential – are views which express a supra-scholastic and, subsequently, a secularised point of view of theology. Saint Gregory Palamas foresaw the danger that these views held for Orthodoxy and through the power and energy of the Most Holy Spirit and the experience which he himself had acquired as a successor to the Holy Fathers, he confronted this great danger and preserved unadulterated the Orthodox Faith and Tradition.<ref>Metropolitan [[Hierotheos (Vlachos)]]. ''Orthodox Spirituality: A Brief Introduction'', (Birth of the Theotokos Monastery, Levadia, Greece. 1994, {{ISBN|978-960-7070-20-3}}), http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/inquirers/hierotheos_difference.aspx, accessed 2007-06-13.</ref></blockquote> |
||
== |
==See also== |
||
* [[Gregory Acindynus]] |
* [[Gregory Acindynus]] |
||
* [[Byzantine scholars in the Renaissance]] |
* [[Byzantine scholars in the Renaissance]] |
||
* [[ |
* [[Essence–energies distinction]] |
||
* [[Hesychasm]] |
* [[Hesychasm]] |
||
* [[Light of Tabor]] |
* [[Light of Tabor]] |
||
== |
==References== |
||
{{Reflist}} |
{{Reflist|30em}} |
||
== |
==Bibliography== |
||
'''Works by Barlaam''' |
'''Works by Barlaam''' |
||
* Giannelli, Ciro. "Un progetto di Barlaam per l'unione delle chiese." In ''Miscellanea Giovanni Mercati'', vol. 3, "Studi e Testi," no. 123. Vatican City, 1946. See pages 157–208 for excerpts from his writings. |
* Giannelli, Ciro. "Un progetto di Barlaam per l'unione delle chiese." In ''Miscellanea Giovanni Mercati'', vol. 3, "Studi e Testi," no. 123. Vatican City, 1946. See pages 157–208 for excerpts from his writings. |
||
* Migne, J.-P., ed. ''[[Patrologia Graeca]]'', vol. 151. Paris, 1857. Includes excerpts from the ''Discourse to Pope Benedict XII'' and the ''Advisory Discourse''. |
* Migne, J.-P., ed. ''[[Patrologia Graeca]]'', vol. 151. Paris, 1857. Includes excerpts from the ''Discourse to Pope Benedict XII'' and the ''Advisory Discourse''. |
||
* Schiro, Giuseppe, ed. ''Barlaam Calabro: Epistole greche''. Palermo, 1954 |
* Schiro, Giuseppe, ed. ''Barlaam Calabro: Epistole greche''. Palermo, 1954 |
||
*[[John Chamber (academic)|John Chamber]], ''Barlaam monachi logistice'' (1600), a critical translation of the ''Logistica'' |
|||
'''Works About Barlaam''' |
'''Works About Barlaam''' |
||
| Line 93: | Line 107: | ||
* Jugie, Martin. "Barlaam de Seminara." In ''Dictionnaire d'histoire et de géographie ecclésiastiques'', vol. 6, cols. 817–834. Paris, 1932. |
* Jugie, Martin. "Barlaam de Seminara." In ''Dictionnaire d'histoire et de géographie ecclésiastiques'', vol. 6, cols. 817–834. Paris, 1932. |
||
* Meyendorff, John. "Un mauvais théologien de l'unité au quatorzième siècle: Barlaam le Calabrais." In ''L'église et les églises'', 1054–1954, vol. 2, pp. 47–65. Chevetogne, 1955. |
* Meyendorff, John. "Un mauvais théologien de l'unité au quatorzième siècle: Barlaam le Calabrais." In ''L'église et les églises'', 1054–1954, vol. 2, pp. 47–65. Chevetogne, 1955. |
||
* "Barlaam the Calabrian" from ''Science and Its Times''. Thomson Gale, |
* "Barlaam the Calabrian" from ''Science and Its Times''. Thomson Gale, 2005–2006. |
||
== |
==External links== |
||
* [http://www.monachos.net/library/index.php/patristics/specific-fathers/63-gregory-palamas-historical-timeline Gregory Palamas: Historical Timeline] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190321231416/http://www.monachos.net/library/index.php/patristics/specific-fathers/63-gregory-palamas-historical-timeline |date=2019-03-21 }} |
|||
* [http://www.monachos.net/library/Gregory_Palamas_-_Historical_Appendices Timeline: Barlaam and the Councils of 1341 and 1351] |
|||
* [http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/inquirers/frjr_notes1.aspx#11 Notes on the Palamite Controversy and Related Topics-Part I] by Fr. [[John Romanides]] |
* [http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/inquirers/frjr_notes1.aspx#11 Notes on the Palamite Controversy and Related Topics-Part I] by Fr. [[John Romanides]] |
||
* [http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/inquirers/frjr_notes2.aspx Notes on the Palamite Controversy and Related Topics-Part II] |
* [http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/inquirers/frjr_notes2.aspx Notes on the Palamite Controversy and Related Topics-Part II] |
||
* [http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/inquirers/meycorr.pdf The Humanist Quest for a Unity of Knowledge and the Orthodox Metaphysics of Light] by Bishop Auxentios of Photiki |
* [http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/inquirers/meycorr.pdf The Humanist Quest for a Unity of Knowledge and the Orthodox Metaphysics of Light] by Bishop Auxentios of Photiki |
||
* [http://www.monachos.net/library/Gregory_Palamas:_Knowledge,_Prayer,_and_Vision Knowledge, Prayer, and Vision] by St. Gregory Palamas |
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080803041114/http://www.monachos.net/library/Gregory_Palamas:_Knowledge,_Prayer,_and_Vision Knowledge, Prayer, and Vision] by St. Gregory Palamas |
||
* [http://www.beliefnet.com/study_groups/studygroup_message_list.asp?studyGroupID=4170&discussionID=212638 A Knowledge Beyond Knowing: Barlaam’s Objection to Apodictic Theology] |
|||
{{Authority control}} |
|||
{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. --> |
|||
| ⚫ | |||
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES = |
|||
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = |
|||
| ⚫ | |||
| PLACE OF BIRTH = |
|||
| DATE OF DEATH = 1348 |
|||
| PLACE OF DEATH = |
|||
| ⚫ | |||
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barlaam Of Seminara}} |
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barlaam Of Seminara}} |
||
[[Category:1290 births]] |
[[Category:1290 births]] |
||
[[Category:1348 deaths]] |
[[Category:1348 deaths]] |
||
[[Category:People from the |
[[Category:People from the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria]] |
||
[[Category:Italian Renaissance humanists]] |
[[Category:Italian Renaissance humanists]] |
||
[[Category:Greek Renaissance humanists]] |
[[Category:Greek Renaissance humanists]] |
||
[[Category: |
[[Category:14th-century Italian Roman Catholic theologians]] |
||
[[Category: |
[[Category:Greek Roman Catholics]] |
||
[[Category: |
[[Category:People excommunicated by Eastern Orthodox Church bodies]] |
||
[[Category:Converts to Roman Catholicism from Eastern Orthodoxy]] |
[[Category:Converts to Roman Catholicism from Eastern Orthodoxy]] |
||
[[Category: |
[[Category:Former Greek Orthodox Christians]] |
||
[[Category:14th-century |
[[Category:14th-century Byzantine monks]] |
||
[[Category:14th-century |
[[Category:14th-century Italian Roman Catholic priests]] |
||
[[Category:14th-century |
[[Category:14th-century Eastern Orthodox clergy]] |
||
[[Category:Medieval Thessalonica]] |
[[Category:Medieval Thessalonica]] |
||
[[Category: |
[[Category:Anti-Hesychasm]] |
||
[[Category:Criticism of Eastern Orthodox Church]] |
|||
[[Category:Ambassadors to the Byzantine Empire]] |
|||
[[bg:Варлаам Калабрийски]] |
|||
[[Category:14th-century Byzantine writers]] |
|||
[[de:Barlaam von Kalabrien]] |
|||
[[el:Βαρλαάμ Καλαβρός]] |
|||
[[es:Barlaam de Seminara]] |
|||
[[fr:Barlaam le Calabrais]] |
|||
[[it:Barlaam di Seminara]] |
|||
[[la:Barlaam Calaber]] |
|||
[[ro:Varlaam Calabrezul]] |
|||
[[ru:Варлаам Калабрийский]] |
|||
[[scn:Barlaam di Calabbria]] |
|||
[[uk:Варлаам Калабрійський]] |
|||
Latest revision as of 12:22, 24 October 2024
Barlaam of Seminara | |
|---|---|
 Barlaam crosses a river, from the workshop of Diebold Lauber (1469) | |
| Born | 1290 |
| Died | June 1, 1348 Gerace, Kingdom of Naples |
| Education | University of Constantinople |
| Theological work | |
| Tradition or movement | Barlaamism |
| Main interests | Philology |
| Notable ideas | Rejection of Hesychasm |
Barlaam of Seminara (Bernardo Massari, as a layman),[1][2] c. 1290–1348, or Barlaam of Calabria (Greek: Βαρλαὰμ Καλαβρός) was a Basilian monk, theologian and humanistic scholar born in southern Italy. He was a scholar and clergyman of the 14th century, as well as a humanist, philologist and theologian.
When Gregorios Palamas defended Hesychasm (the Eastern Orthodox Church's mystical teaching on prayer), Barlaam accused him of heresy. Three Eastern Orthodox synods ruled against him and in Palamas's favor (two Councils of Sophia in June and August 1341, and a Council of Blachernae in 1351).
Early life
[edit]Barlaam was born in what is now the comune of Seminara, Calabria, in a Greek-speaking Eastern Orthodox environment.[3] He was an ethnic Greek.[4][5][6]
Early career
[edit]
Bernardo moved to Constantinople in the 1320s, where he soon gained entrance into ecclesiastical and political circles, especially those around the emperor Andronicus III Palaeologus, who gave him a teaching position at the university. He was tonsured a monk at the monastery of Sant'Elia di Capassino and given the name Barlaam.[7]
Eventually, he was made the Hegumen (abbot) of the Monastery of Our Savior, and two confidential missions on behalf of the emperor were entrusted to him.
Historian Colin Wells characterizes Barlaam as "brilliant but sharp-tongued", describing him as "thoroughly versed in the classics, an astronomer, a mathematician, as well as a philosopher and a theologian.[6] However, according to Wells, "this formidable learning was coupled with an arrogant, sarcastic manner, so caustic at times that he put off even friends and allies."[6]
During the years 1333–1334, Barlaam undertook to negotiate the union of churches with the representatives of Pope John XXII. For this occasion he wrote twenty-one treatises against the Latins in which he opposed papal primacy and the filioque doctrine. Emperor Andronicus III sent Barlaam on important diplomatic missions to Robert the Wise in Naples and to Philip VI in Paris. In 1339, he was sent to the exiled Pope Benedict XII at Avignon to suggest a crusade against the Turks and to discuss the union of churches, but he was not successful in this endeavour. On this occasion he met Petrarch.
Returning to Constantinople, Barlaam worked on commentaries on Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite under the patronage of John VI Kantakouzenos.
Early conflict between Barlaam and Palamas
[edit]Around 1336, Gregory Palamas received copies of treatises written by Barlaam against the Latins, condemning their insertion of the Filioque into the Nicene Creed. Palamas took issue with Barlaam's argument in support of it, since Barlaam declared that efforts at demonstrating the nature of God (specifically, the nature of the Holy Spirit) should be abandoned, because God is ultimately unknowable and undemonstrable to humans. Thus, Barlaam asserted that it was impossible to determine from whom the Holy Spirit proceeds. According to Sara J. Denning-Bolle, Palamas viewed Barlaam's argument as "dangerously agnostic". In his response titled "Apodictic Treatises", Palamas insisted that it was indeed demonstrable that the Holy Spirit proceeded from the Father but not from the Son.[8] A series of letters ensued between the two but they were unable to resolve their differences amicably.
The Hesychast controversy
[edit]In contrast to Palamas' teaching that the "glory of God" revealed in various episodes of Jewish and Christian Scripture (e.g., the burning bush seen by Moses, the Light on Mount Tabor at the Transfiguration) was in fact the uncreated Energies of God (i.e., the grace of God), Barlaam held that they were created effects, because no part of God whatsoever could be directly perceived by humans. The Eastern Orthodox interpreted his position as denying the renewing power of the Holy Spirit, which, in the words of various Eastern Orthodox hymns, "made apostles out of fishermen" (i.e., makes saints even out of uneducated people). In his anti-hesychastic works Barlaam held that knowledge of worldly wisdom was necessary for the perfection of the monks and denied the possibility of the vision of the divine life.
Barlaam's attack on Hesychasm
[edit]Steven Runciman reports that, infuriated by Palamas' attacks against him, Barlaam vowed to humiliate Palamas by attacking the Hesychast teaching for which Palamas had become the chief proponent. Barlaam visited Thessalonica, where he made the acquaintance of monks who followed the Hesychast teachings. Runciman describes these monks as ignorant and lacking a real understanding of the Hesychast teaching. Barlaam issued a number of treatises mocking the absurdity of the practices which he reported included, "miraculous separations and reunions of the spirit and the soul, of the traffic which demons have with the soul, of the difference between red lights and white lights, of the entry and departure of the intelligence through the nostrils with the breath, of the shields that gather together round the navel, and finally of the union of Our Lord with the soul, which takes place in the full and sensible certitude of the heart within the navel." Barlaam said that the monks had claimed to see the divine essence with bodily eyes, which he viewed as sheer Messalianism. When asked about the light which they saw, the monks told him that it was neither of the superessential Essence nor an angelic essence nor the Spirit itself, but that the spirit contemplated it as another hypostasis. Barlaam commented snidely, "I must confess that I do not know what this light is. I only know that it does not exist."[9]
According to Runciman, Barlaam's attack struck home. He had shown that, in the hands of monks who were inadequately instructed and ignorant of the true Hesychast teaching, the psycho-physical precepts of Hesychasm could produce "dangerous and ridiculous results". To many of the Byzantine intellectuals, Hesychasm appeared "shockingly anti-intellectual" Barlaam nicknamed the Hesychasts "Omphaloscopoi" (the navel-gazers); the nickname has coloured the tone of most subsequent Western writing about the Byzantine mystics. However, Barlaam's triumph was short-lived. Ultimately, the Byzantines had a deep respect for mysticism even if they didn't understand it. And, in Palamas, Barlaam found an opponent who was more than his equal in knowledge, intellect and expository skills.[10]
The Triads
[edit]In response to Barlaam's attacks, Palamas wrote nine treatises entitled "Triads For The Defense of Those Who Practice Sacred Quietude". The treatises are called "Triads" because they were organized as three sets of three treatises.
The Triads were written in three stages. The first triad was written in the second half of the 1330s and are based on personal discussions between Palamas and Barlaam although Barlaam is never mentioned by name.[11]
Gregory's teaching was affirmed by the superiors and principal monks of Mt. Athos, who met in synod during 1340–1. In early 1341, the monastic communities of Mount Athos wrote the Hagioritic Tome under the supervision and inspiration of Palamas. Although the Tome does not mention Barlaam by name, the work clearly takes aim at Barlaam's views. The Tome provides a systematic presentation of Palamas' teaching and became the fundamental textbook for Byzantine mysticism.[12]
Barlaam also took exception to the doctrine held by the Hesychasts as to the uncreated nature of the light, the experience of which was said to be the goal of Hesychast practice, regarding it as heretical and blasphemous. It was maintained by the Hesychasts to be of divine origin and to be identical to the light which had been manifested to Jesus' disciples on Mount Tabor at the Transfiguration.[13] Barlaam viewed this doctrine of "uncreated light" to be polytheistic because as it postulated two eternal substances, a visible and an invisible God. Barlaam accuses the use of the Jesus Prayer as being a practice of Bogomilism.[14]
The second triad quotes some of Barlaam's writings directly. In response to this second triad, Barlaam composed the treatise "Against the Messalians" linking the hesychasts to the Messalians and thereby accusing them of heresy. In "Against the Messalians", Barlaam attacked Gregory by name for the first time.[15] Barlaam derisively called the Hesychasts omphalopsychoi (men with their souls in their navels) and accused them of the heresy of Messalianism, also known as Bogomilism in the East.[14][16] According to Meyendorff, Barlaam viewed "any claim of real and conscious experience of God as Messalianism".[17][18][19]
In the third Triad, Palamas refuted Barlaam's charge of Messalianism by demonstrating that the Hesychasts did not share the antisacramentalism of the Messalians nor did they claim to physically see the essence of God with their eyes.[17] According to John Meyendorff, "Gregory Palamas orients his entire polemic against Barlaam the Calabrian on the issue of the Hellenic wisdom which he considers to be the main source of Barlaam’s errors."[20]
Hesychast councils at Constantinople
[edit]It became clear that the dispute between Barlaam and Palamas was irreconcilable and would require the judgment of an episcopal council. A series of six patriarchal councils was held in Constantinople on 10 June 1341, August 1341, 4 November 1344, 1 February 1347, 8 February 1347, and 28 May 1351 to consider the issues.[21]
The dispute over Hesychasm came before a synod held at Constantinople in May 1341 and presided over by the emperor Andronicus III. The assembly, influenced by the veneration in which the writings of Pseudo-Dionysius were held in the Eastern Church, condemned Barlaam, who recanted. The ecumenical patriarch insisted that all of Barlaam's writings be destroyed and thus no complete copies of Barlaam's treatise "Against Messalianism" have survived.[8]
Barlaam's primary supporter Emperor Andronicus III died just five days after the synod ended. Although Barlaam initially hoped for a second chance to present his case against Palamas, he soon realised the futility of pursuing his cause, and left for Calabria where he converted to the Latin Church and was appointed Bishop of Gerace.[15]
Later career
[edit]After leaving Constantinople, Barlaam was received into the Latin Church at Avignon in 1342 and was consecrated Bishop of Gerace.[10]
In 1346, he was appointed Papal Ambassador to Constantinople but, his mission having ended in failure, he returned to Gerace where he died in 1348.[10]
Legacy
[edit]
Barlaam, by his upbringing and philosophy, spanned the gap between the Christian East and West. Though he was never able to synthesize both traditions in a satisfactory manner, he did end up influencing both. The Zealots of Thessalonica were influenced by Barlaam's teachings, and his arguments affected the dogmatic definition of Hesychasm in the Eastern Church. A master of the Greek language, he taught Petrarch some rudiments of Greek.
Critics see Barlaam's elevation of philosophy above theology as being the reason for his condemnation by the Eastern Church:
Barlaam overestimated the significance of philosophy for theology, asserting that only through philosophy could humanity arrive at perfection. He thus denied the renewing power of the Holy Spirit, which makes saints even out of uneducated people, as it made the fishermen apostles. Being a humanist, Barlaam placed emphasis on created means of salvation (e.g., philosophy and knowledge) and reduced the role of the grace of the Holy Spirit.[22]
According to Fr. John Meyendorff, "Gregory Palamas orients his entire polemic against Barlaam the Calabrian on the issue of the 'Hellenic wisdom' which he considers to be the main source of Barlaam’s errors."[20] To this day, the issues which Barlaam raised are treated by Eastern Orthodox theologians:
Barlaam's views – that we cannot really know Who the Holy Spirit is exactly (an outgrowth of which is agnosticism), that the ancient Greek philosophers are superior to the Prophets and the Apostles (since reason is above the vision of the Apostles), that the light of the Transfiguration is something which is created and can be undone, that the hesychastic way of life (i.e. the purification of the heart and the unceasing noetic prayer) is not essential – are views which express a supra-scholastic and, subsequently, a secularised point of view of theology. Saint Gregory Palamas foresaw the danger that these views held for Orthodoxy and through the power and energy of the Most Holy Spirit and the experience which he himself had acquired as a successor to the Holy Fathers, he confronted this great danger and preserved unadulterated the Orthodox Faith and Tradition.[23]
See also
[edit]- Gregory Acindynus
- Byzantine scholars in the Renaissance
- Essence–energies distinction
- Hesychasm
- Light of Tabor
References
[edit]- ^ John B. Trumper, "La Calabria nella sua dimensione spazio temporale" (Calabria in its space-time dimension) (in Italian) Archived 2010-04-14 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Christopher Kleinhenz et al., Medieval Italy. An encyclopedia, I., Routledge, 1993, p. 97: "Barlaam the Calabrian (Bernardo Massari, c. 1290-1348 or c. 1350)."
- ^ Sgarbi, Marco (2022). Encyclopedia of Renaissance Philosophy. Springer Nature. p. 323. ISBN 978-3-319-14169-5.
- ^ Jugie, Martin (1940) "Barlaam, est-il ne catholique?." Échos d'Orient, 39 (197) : 100-125. Available on-line at: Persee.fr
- ^ Vakalopoulos, Apostolos (1970). Origins of the Greek Nation: The Byzantine Period, 1204-1461. Rutgers University Press. p. 235. ISBN 978-0-8135-0659-3.
They were the monk Barlaam (Bernardo) , of Greek descent , from Seminara in Calabria...
- ^ a b c Wells, Colin (2006). Sailing from Byzantium: how a lost Empire shaped the world. Random House, Inc. p. 47. ISBN 9780553901719.
The Byzantine humanist who triggered the Hesychast controversy was a brilliant but sharp-tongued Greek from southern Italy named Barlaam... thoroughly versed in the classics, an astronomer, a mathematician, as well as a philosopher and a theologian. Unfortunately for him, this formidable learning was coupled with an arrogant, sarcastic manner, so caustic at times that he put off even friends and allies. Born around 1290 in Calabria in southern Italy, Barlaam came to Constantinople in 1320.
- ^ Giovanni Fiore da Cropani, Della Calabria illustrata, III., Rubbettino, 1999. See also: Eugenio Garin, "History of Italian Philosophy", vibs, 2008.
- ^ a b Saint Gregory Palamas (1999). Dialogue Between an Orthodox and a Barlaamite. Global Academic Publishing. p. 3. ISBN 9781883058210.
- ^ (Runciman, 1986), p. 141.
- ^ a b c Runciman, Steven (1986). The Great Church in captivity: a study of the Patriarchate of Constantinople from the eve of the Turkish conquest to the Greek War of Independence. Cambridge University Press. p. 142. ISBN 9780521313100.
- ^ (Denning-Bolle, 1999), p. 5.
- ^ Merriam-Webster's encyclopedia of world religions. Merriam-Webster, Inc. 1999. p. 836.
- ^ Parry, Ken and David Melling, ed.s, The Blackwell Dictionary of Eastern Christianity (Malden, Massachusetts: Blackwell Publishing, 1999), p. 231. ISBN 0-631-23203-6.
- ^ a b 1. His teaching about the light on Mt. Tabor, which he claimed was created. 2. His criticisms of the Jesus Prayer, which he accused of being a practise of the Bogomils; also charged it with not proclaiming Christ as God. Gregory Palamas: Historical Timeline – Appendix I: Timeline: Barlaam and the Councils of 1341 from Baron Meyendorff Archived 2012-06-07 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b "Gregory Palamas: An Historical Overview". Archived from the original on 2011-09-27. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
- ^ (Denning-Bolle, 1999), p. 4.
- ^ a b Palamas, Saint Gregory; Meyendorff, John (1983). Gregory Palamas. Paulist Press. p. 4. ISBN 9780809124473.
- ^ "accusing Gregory Palamas of Messalianism" (Antonio Carile, Η Θεσσαλονίκη ως κέντρο Ορθοδόξου θεολογίας - προοπτικές στη σημερινή Ευρώπη [Thessaloniki as a center of Orthodox theology - prospects in Europe today] (Thessaloniki 2000, pp. 131-140), English translation provided by the Apostoliki Diakonia of the Church of Greece).
- ^ Notes on the Palamite controversy and related topics by John S. Romanides The Greek Orthodox Theological Review, Volume VI, Number 2, Winter, 1960-61. Published by the Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Theological School Press, Brookline, Massachusetts. Available on-line at: Romanity.org
- ^ a b Fr. John Meyendorf, Byzantine Theology: Historical trends and doctrinal themes, 2nd ed. (Bronx, NY: Fordham University Press, 1987). ISBN 978-0-8232-0967-5
- ^ Gregory Palamas: Historical Timeline Archived 2012-06-07 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Encyclopedia of Religion, 2nd edition (Macmillan Reference Books, 2005, ISBN 978-0-02-865733-2), s.v. "Barlaam of Calabria."
- ^ Metropolitan Hierotheos (Vlachos). Orthodox Spirituality: A Brief Introduction, (Birth of the Theotokos Monastery, Levadia, Greece. 1994, ISBN 978-960-7070-20-3), http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/inquirers/hierotheos_difference.aspx, accessed 2007-06-13.
Bibliography
[edit]Works by Barlaam
- Giannelli, Ciro. "Un progetto di Barlaam per l'unione delle chiese." In Miscellanea Giovanni Mercati, vol. 3, "Studi e Testi," no. 123. Vatican City, 1946. See pages 157–208 for excerpts from his writings.
- Migne, J.-P., ed. Patrologia Graeca, vol. 151. Paris, 1857. Includes excerpts from the Discourse to Pope Benedict XII and the Advisory Discourse.
- Schiro, Giuseppe, ed. Barlaam Calabro: Epistole greche. Palermo, 1954
- John Chamber, Barlaam monachi logistice (1600), a critical translation of the Logistica
Works About Barlaam
- Christou, Panagiotis C. "Barlaam." In Threskeutikē kai ēthikē enkuklopaideia, vol. 3, cols. 624–627. Athens, 1963.
- Jugie, Martin. "Barlaam de Seminara." In Dictionnaire d'histoire et de géographie ecclésiastiques, vol. 6, cols. 817–834. Paris, 1932.
- Meyendorff, John. "Un mauvais théologien de l'unité au quatorzième siècle: Barlaam le Calabrais." In L'église et les églises, 1054–1954, vol. 2, pp. 47–65. Chevetogne, 1955.
- "Barlaam the Calabrian" from Science and Its Times. Thomson Gale, 2005–2006.
External links
[edit]- Gregory Palamas: Historical Timeline Archived 2019-03-21 at the Wayback Machine
- Notes on the Palamite Controversy and Related Topics-Part I by Fr. John Romanides
- Notes on the Palamite Controversy and Related Topics-Part II
- The Humanist Quest for a Unity of Knowledge and the Orthodox Metaphysics of Light by Bishop Auxentios of Photiki
- Knowledge, Prayer, and Vision by St. Gregory Palamas
Categories:
- 1290 births
- 1348 deaths
- People from the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria
- Italian Renaissance humanists
- Greek Renaissance humanists
- 14th-century Italian Roman Catholic theologians
- Greek Roman Catholics
- People excommunicated by Eastern Orthodox Church bodies
- Converts to Roman Catholicism from Eastern Orthodoxy
- Former Greek Orthodox Christians
- 14th-century Byzantine monks
- 14th-century Italian Roman Catholic priests
- 14th-century Eastern Orthodox clergy
- Medieval Thessalonica
- Anti-Hesychasm
- Criticism of Eastern Orthodox Church
- Ambassadors to the Byzantine Empire
- 14th-century Byzantine writers