Macedonius I of Constantinople
Archbishop of Constantinople
Installed	342
Term ended	360
Personal details
Denomination	Christianity

Macedonius (Greek: Μακεδόνιος; died after 360) was a Greek^[1] bishop of Constantinople from 342 up to 346, and from 351 until 360. He inspired the establishment of the Pneumatomachi (also called Macedonians), a sect later declared heretical.

Biography

After Bishop Alexander's death in 336, his orthodox followers supported Paul I of Constantinople. On the other hand, the Arians rallied round Macedonius. The former was ordained bishop, but did not hold his bishopric long. The Semi-Arian emperor Constantius II came to Constantinople, convened a synod of Arian bishops, banished Paul I, and, to the disappointment of Macedonius, translated Eusebius of Nicomedia to the vacant see. This was thought to have been in 338.^[2]

Eusebius's death in 341 restarted hostilities between the partisans of Paul and Macedonius. Paul returned, and was introduced into the Irene church of Constantinople; Arian bishops immediately ordained Macedonius in St. Paul's church. So violent did the tumult become that Constantius sent his general Hermogenes to eject Paul for a second time. His soldiers met with open resistance; the general was killed and his body dragged through the city.^[3]

Constantius at once left Antioch and punished Constantinople by depriving the people of half their daily allowance of corn. Paul was expelled; Macedonius was severely blamed for his part in these disturbances, and for allowing himself to be ordained without imperial sanction; but over all the Arians triumphed. Macedonius was permitted to officiate the church in which he had been consecrated. Paul went to Rome, and he and Athanasius of Alexandria and other orthodox bishops expelled from their sees were sent back by Pope Julius I with letters rebuking those who had deposed them. Philip the prefect executed the fresh orders of the emperor in hurrying Paul into exile to Thessalonica, and in reinstating Macedonius, but not without bloodshed.^[4]

Macedonius held the see for about six years, while letters and delegates, the pope and the emperors, synods and counter-synods, were debating and disputing the treatment of Paul and Athanasius. In 349 the alternative of war offered by Constans, emperor of the West, induced Constantius to reinstate Paul; and Macedonius had to retire to a private church. The murder of Constans in 350 placed the East under the sole control of Constantius, and Paul was at once exiled. Imperial edicts followed, which permitted the Arians to claim to be the dominant faction in the church.^[5]

Macedonius is said to have signalled his return to power by acts which, if truly reported, brand him as a cruel bigot. The Novatianists suffered perhaps even more fearfully than the orthodox and some of them were stung into a desperate resistance: those of Constantinople removing the materials of their church to a distant suburb of the city; those at Mantinium in Paphlagonia daring to face the imperial soldiers sent to expel them from their home. "The exploits of Macedonius," says Socrates Scholasticus, "on behalf of Christianity, consisted of murders, battles, incarcerations, and civil wars".^[6]

An act of presumption finally lost him the imperial favor in 358. The Sepulchre containing the body of Constantine I was in danger of falling to pieces, and Macedonius determined to remove them. The question was made a party one. The orthodox assailed as sacrilege "the disinterment of the supporter of the Nicene faith," the Macedonians pleaded the necessities of structural repair. When the remains were conveyed to the church of Acacius the Martyr, the excited populace met in the church and churchyard; so frightful a carnage ensued that the place was filled with blood and slaughtered bodies.^[7] Constantius's anger was great against Macedonius because of the slaughter, but even more because he had removed the body without consulting him.^[5]

When Macedonius presented himself at the council of Seleucia in 359, it was ruled that being under accusation it was not proper for him to remain (Socr. ii. 40). His opponents, Acacius, Eudoxius, and others, followed him to Constantinople, and, availing themselves of the emperor's indignation, deposed him in 360 on the ground of cruelty and canonical irregularities. Macedonius retired to a suburb of the city, and died there.^[5]

He is said to have elaborated the views with which his name is connected in his retirement. The "Macedonians", his followers, did not believe in the divinity of the Holy Spirit.

References

^ "Macedonius - Greek bishop [flourished 4th century]". britannica.com. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
^ Fuller 1911 cites Socr. ii. 7.
^ Fuller 1911 cites Socr. ii. 13.
^ Fuller 1911 cites Socr. ii. 16.
^ ^a ^b ^c Fuller 1911.
^ Fuller 1911 cites Socr. ii. 38
^ Fuller 1911 cites Socr. II. 38.

Attribution

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Fuller, J. M. (1911). "Macedonius, bp. of Constantinople". In Wace, Henry; Piercy, William C. (eds.). Dictionary of Christian Biography and Literature to the End of the Sixth Century (3rd ed.). London: John Murray. Fuller cites:
- Socrates Scholasticus, H. E. ii. 7, 13, 16, 38, 40, etc.
- Fuller advises for authorities, consult the scattered notices in Socrates, Sozomen; Hefele, Conciliengeschichte, i.; the usual Church histories and HOLY GHOST in D. C. B. (4-vol. ed. 1882).

Titles of the Great Christian Church Preceded byPaul I Archbishop of Constantinople 342–346 Succeeded byPaul I Archbishop of Constantinople 351–360 Succeeded byEudoxius

v t e Bishops of Byzantium and Patriarchs of Constantinople
Bishops of Byzantium (Roman period, 38–330 AD)	Andrew Stachys Onesimus Polycarpus I Plutarch Sedecion Diogenes Eleutherius Felix Polycarpus II Athenodorus Euzois Laurence Alypius Pertinax Olympianus Marcus I Philadelphus Cyriacus I Castinus Eugenius I Titus Dometius Rufinus Probus Metrophanes Alexander
Archbishops of Constantinople (Roman period, 330–451 AD)	Alexander Paul I Eusebius Macedonius I Eudoxius Evagrius Demophilus Maximus I Gregory I Nectarius John I Chrysostom Arsacius Atticus Sisinnius I Nestorius Maximianus Proclus Flavian Anatolius
Patriarchs of Constantinople (Byzantine period, 451–1453 AD)	Anatolius Gennadius I Acacius Fravitta Euphemius Macedonius II Timothy I John II Epiphanius Anthimus I Menas Eutychius John III John IV Cyriacus II Thomas I Sergius I Pyrrhus Paul II Peter Thomas II John V Constantine I Theodore I George I Paul III Callinicus I Cyrus John VI Germanus I Anastasius Constantine II Nicetas I Paul IV Tarasius Nicephorus I Theodotus I Antony I John VII Methodius I Ignatios Photios I Stephen I Antony II Nicholas I Εuthymius I Stephen II Tryphon Theophylact Polyeuctus Βasil I Αntony III Nicholas II Sisinnius II Sergius II Eustathius Alexius Michael I Constantine III John VIII Cosmas I Eustratius Nicholas III John IX Leo Michael II Cosmas II Nicholas IV Theodotus II Neophytus I Constantine IV Luke Michael III Chariton Theodosius I Basil II Nicetas II Leontius Dositheus George II John X Michael IV^† Theodore II^† Maximus II^† Μanuel I^† Germanus II^† Methodius II^† Manuel II^† Arsenius^† Nicephorus II^† Germanus III Joseph I John XI Gregory II Athanasius I John XII Nephon I John XIII Gerasimus I Isaias John XIV Isidore I Callistus I Philotheus Macarius Nilus Antony IV Callistus II Matthew I Euthymius II Joseph II Metrophanes II Gregory III Athanasius II
Patriarchs of Constantinople (Ottoman period, 1453–1923 AD)	Gennadius II Isidore II Joasaph I Sophronius I Mark II Symeon I Dionysius I Raphael I Maximus III Nephon II Maximus IV Joachim I Pachomius I Theoleptus I Jeremias I Joannicius I Dionysius II Joasaph II Metrophanes III Jeremias II Pachomius II Theoleptus II Matthew II Gabriel I Theophanes I Meletius I Neophytus II Raphael II Cyril I Timothy II Gregory IV Anthimus II Cyril II Athanasius III Neophytus III Parthenius I Parthenius II Joannicius II Cyril III Paisius I Parthenius III Gabriel II Parthenius IV Dionysius III Clement Methodius III Dionysius IV Gerasimus II Athanasius IV James Callinicus II Neophytus IV Gabriel III Neophytus V Cyprianus Athanasius V Cyril IV Cosmas III Jeremias III (Callinicus III) Paisius II Seraphim I Neophytus VI Cyril V Callinicus IV (III) Seraphim II Joannicius III Samuel Meletius II Theodosius II Sophronius II Gabriel IV Procopius Neophytus VII Gerasimus III Gregory V Callinicus V (IV) Jeremias IV Cyril VI Eugenius II Anthimus III Chrysanthus Agathangelus Constantius I Constantius II Gregory VI Anthimus IV Anthimus V Germanus IV Meletius III Anthimus VI Cyril VII Joachim II Sophronius III Joachim III Joachim IV Dionysius V Neophytus VIII Anthimus VII Constantine V Germanus V Meletius IV
Patriarchs of Constantinople (Turkish period, since 1923 AD)	Gregory VII Constantine VI Basil III Photius II Benjamin Maximus V Athenagoras Demetrius Bartholomew
^† in exile at Nicaea Christianity portal