Date Available
7-29-2013
Year of Publication
2013
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Document Type
Master's Thesis
College
Arts and Sciences
Department/School/Program
History
First Advisor
Dr. David M. Olster
Abstract
The Disputatio cum Pyrrho purports to be a transcript of the 645 debate that took place in North Africa. The text initially addresses Monotheletism, the theology of the Constantinopolitan church that held that the Christ had a single will, then Monoenergism, which held that Christ possessed a single operation and which had in the 620’s and 630’s been the official position of the Constantinopolitan church, but which by 645 had been rejected and replaced by Monotheletism. Pyrrhus, the exiled, former Patriarch of Constantinople, represents the Monothelete and Monoenergist positions and Maximus the Confessor opposes them. Throughout the dialogue, Maximus repeatedly and overwhelmingly demonstrates the correctness of his position, eventually forcing Pyrrhus to renounce his position and to travel to Rome to receive absolution from the Pope. Traditionally scholars have accepted the authenticity of this document, and few have critically examined the claims the text makes about itself. The present study brings this authenticity into question, and reexamines the authorship, date, and purpose of the document, employing textual critiques and comparing the document with historical events later in the seventh century.
Recommended Citation
Strickler, Ryan W., "A Dispute in Dispute: Forgery, Heresy, and Sainthood in Seventh-Century Byzantium" (2013). Theses and Dissertations--History. 9.
https://uknowledge.uky.edu/history_etds/9
