Caesaropapism
Caesaropapism /ˌsiːzəroʊˈpeɪpɪzəm/ is the idea of combining the social and political power of secular government with religious power, or of making secular authority superior to the spiritual authority of the Church; especially concerning the connection of the Church with government. Although Justus Henning Böhmer (1674–1749) may have originally coined the term caesaropapism (Cäseropapismus),[1] it was Max Weber (1864–1920) who wrote that "a secular, caesaropapist ruler ... exercises supreme authority in ecclesiastic matters by virtue of his autonomous legitimacy."[2] According to Weber, caesaropapism entails "the complete subordination of priests to secular power."[3]
In an extreme form, caesaropapism is where the
Eastern Church
Caesaropapism's chief example is the authority that the
However, Caesaropapism "never became an accepted principle in Byzantium."
During a speech at the St. Procopius Unionistic Congress in 1959, John Dvornik stated, "...the attitude of all Orthodox Churches toward the State, especially the Russian Church is dictated by a very old tradition which has its roots in early Christian political philosophy... the Christian Emperor was regarded as the representative of God in the Christian commonwealth, whose duty was to watch not only over the material, but also the spiritual welfare of his Christian subjects. Because of that, his interference in Church affairs was regarded as his duty."[13]
Following the
At the same time, however, so great was the suffering of the
Caesaropapism was most notorious in the
Tsar Ivan's level of caesaropapism far exceeded that of the Byzantine Empire
The
Seeking to convince
This declaration, sparked an immediate controversy among the Russian Eastern Orthodox, many of whom (including many notable and respected
Later, some of these bishops reconciled with Sergius, but many still remained in opposition to the "official Church" until the election of Patriarch Alexius I in 1945.
Western Church
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Anglican Communion
During the dispute between
Where by divers sundry old authentic histories and chronicles it is manifestly declared and expressed that this realm of England is an empire, and so hath been accepted in the world, governed by one supreme head and king, having the dignity and royal estate of the imperial crown of the same.[20]
The next year Parliament passed the
The only supreme head in earth of the Church of England called Anglicana Ecclesia, and shall have and enjoy annexed and united to the imperial crown of this realm.[21]
The
During the reign of
When Elizabeth I restored royal supremacy, she replaced the title "Supreme Head" with that of "Supreme Governor", a conciliatory change to moderate English Catholics and Protestants.
According to Nicholas Sanders, however, "The Queen lays down for her clergy a rule of life, outside of which they dare not move, not only in those things which Protestants call indifferent, but in all matters of Faith, discipline, and doctrine, in virtue of that supreme spiritual power with which she is invested: she suspends her bishops when she pleases, she grants a license to preach, either to those who are ordained according to her rite or to simple laymen, in the same way at her pleasure reduces those whom she will to silence. To show her authority in these things, she occasionally, from her closet, addresses her preacher, and interrupts him in the presence of a large congregation, in some such way as this: 'Mr. Doctor, you are wandering from the text, and talking nonsense. Return to your subject.'"[22]
Since then, the monarchs of England, of Great Britain, and of the United Kingdom have claimed the "Supreme Governor" status as well as the title of
Despite his continued persecution of both Catholic
The
Even though King James II and his exiled heirs remained Catholics, their overthrow divided the
Since 1948, the
In popular culture
- The Catholic Church in England. This, in return, causes the Cardinal to Excommunicate the King and to covertly arrange a regime change war. Intriguingly, however, once a chastened and humiliated King John grudgingly accepts the independence of the English Church from the State and surrenders his Crown to Cardinal Pandulf, the latter immediately gives the crown back and then becomes a valuable ally in defending England against the very same invasion by Prince Louis of Francehe had previously arranged.
- The alleged 17th-century ballad The Vicar of Bray.
- The conflict between Tsar Ivan the Terrible and Metropolitan Philip is shown onscreen in Sergei Eisenstein's 1944 film Ivan the Terrible.
- Academy Award–winning 1966 feature film starring Paul Scofield and a 1988 television movie starring Charlton Heston.
- In the BBC The Bishop's Gambit", which first aired on 20 February 1986, satirizes the damage that the control wielded over the Church of England by politicians and the British civil servicecontinues to have on who gets appointed to the Hierarchy.
- The conflict between Tsar Ivan the Terrible and Metropolitan Philip is the primary theme of Pavel Lungin's 2009 film Tsar.
See also
References
- ^ Kenneth Pennington, "Caesaropapism," The New Catholic Encyclopedia: Supplement 2010 (2 Vols. Detroit: Gale Publishers 2010) 1.183–185 Archived 2013-10-29 at the Wayback Machine
- ^
ISBN 9780804750950. Retrieved 2017-02-02.
Weber's formal definition of caesaropapism in Economy and Society reads as follows: 'a secular, caesaropapist ruler... exercises supreme authority in ecclesiastic matters by virtue of his autonomous legitimacy.
- ^
ISBN 9780804750950. Retrieved 2017-02-02.
Caesaropapism entails 'the complete subordination of priests to secular power,' and it essentially means that church matters have become part of political administration ... .
- ^ Cross, F.L.; Livingstone, E.A. (1983), Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (2nd ed.), Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 218
- ^ Douglas, J.D. (1978), The New International Dictionary of the Christian Church (revised ed.), Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, p. 173
- ^ a b Encyclopædia Britannica, vol. II, 1985, pp. 718–719
- ^ Latourette, Kenneth Scott (1975), A History of Christianity to A.D. 1500, vol. I (revised ed.), San Francisco: Harper & Row, pp. 283, 312
- ^ Schaff, Philip (1974), History of the Christian Church: Nicene and Post-Nicene Christianity: A.D. 311–600, vol. II (5th ed.), Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Publishing Company, p. 135
- Ware, Timothy(1980), The Orthodox Church (revised ed.), New York: Penguin Books, p. 50
- ^ Meyendorff, John (1983), Byzantine Theology: Historical Trends and Doctrinal Themes (rev. 2nd ed.), New York: Fordham University Press, p. 6
- ^ Dawson, Christopher (1956), The Making of Europe (2nd ed.), New York: Meridian Books, pp. 109–110
- ^ Meyendorff, John (1983), Byzantine Theology: Historical Trends and Doctrinal Themes (rev. 2nd ed.), New York: Fordham University Press, p. 5
- ^ Hélène Iswolsky (1960), Christ in Russia: The History, Tradition, and Life of the Russian Church, The Bruce Publishing Company, Milwaukee. Page 80.
- ^ Charles A. Frazee (2006), Catholics and Sultans: The Church and the Ottoman Empire1453-1923, Cambridge University Press. Pages 5-45.
- Angelus Press. Page 278.
- ^ Bainton, Roland H. (1966), Christendom: A Short History of Christianity, vol. I, New York: Harper & Row, p. 119
- ^ Constantine de Grunwald (1960), Saints of Russia, The Macmillan Company, New York. Pages 104-124.
- ^ Billington, James H. (1966), The Icon and the Axe: An Interpretive History of Russian Culture, New York: Random House, p. 67
- ^ James Cracraft (1971), The Church Reform of Peter the Great, Stanford University Press. Pages 112-302.
- ^ The opening words of the Act in restraint of Appeals, 1533
- ^ Excerpt from The Act of Supremacy (1534)
- ^ Philip Caraman (1960), The Other Face: Catholic Life under Elizabeth I, Longman, Green, and Co. Page 65.
- Attribution
- This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Protestantism". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. (not fully exploited)
External links
- The dictionary definition of caesaropapism at Wiktionary