Ο οικουμενικός πατριάρχης Άγιος Αθανάσιος Α' και η διδασκαλία του προς τους κατοίκους της Μικράς Ασίας κατά το 1303

Abstract

The Patriarch of Constantinople Athanasios I, who was later on canonizedby the Church, was born c. 1235 at Adrianople. As a novice on Mount Athoshe was a disciple of Nicephorus the Hesychast. He died in Constantinoplebetween 1310 and 1323. Although a number of biographical details have survivedand a few studies have been recently devoted to the subject, the life andteaching of Saint Athanasios have come down to us marred by confusion andcontradictions. The simplicity and austerity of his character annoyed his contemporaryhistorians and officials who as a rule have judged him with severity.His determination regarding the literal application of scriptural and patristicteaching, provoked many adverse reactions as well among the clergy and hierarchy.Patriarch Athanasios I in collaboration with Emperor Andronicus II (1282-1328) worked for the restoration of the ecumenicity of the patriarchate throughthe strengthening of Orthodox tradition and faith. Te emperor employed thepatriarch’s appeals for «return to the faith» and «repentence» as the axis of apolicy which tended to empower Sacerdotium rather than Imperium in theByzantine domains. Andronicus’s policy, which as a rule was carried on by hissuccessors, secured the survival of the Orthodox flock, regardless of ethnicorigin, even after the fall of Constantinople. The patriarch’s interest was not