Metrophanes of Byzantium

"Metrophanes I" redirects here. There was also a Metrophanes I, Metropolis of Rhodes.
Saint

Metrophanes
Bishop of Byzantium
Died314
Venerated inEastern Orthodox Church
Roman Catholic Church
FeastJune 4
Saint

Metrophanes
Bishop of Byzantium
Installed306
Term ended314
PredecessorProbus
SuccessorSt. Alexander
Personal details
DenominationEarly Christianity

Saint Metrophanes (Greek: Μητροφάνης; died 314) was the 26h bishop of Byzantium according to tradition, holding the office from c. 306 to 314.[1] He is the first bishop supported by historical sources.[2] In fact, there is no mention of any organized Christian community in Byzantium before him.[3]

There is a tradition that the Emperor Constantine I bestowed upon him the honorary title of Patriarch; however, Byzantium did not become the capital of the Empire until 330 (when it was renamed Constantinople), and the see was not elevated to a patriarchate until 451. According to Gelasius of Cyzicus, Metrophanes was alive during the first Ecumenical Council (325), but could not partake due to his age and ill health, so he sent instead Alexander, whom he destined as his successor.[1] Metrophanes was most likely already dead by then.[4][5] Socrates writes that Alexander succeeded Metrophanes sometime before 319.[6]

Metrophanes has been canonized a saint, and is revered in both the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church. His feast day is June 4.

His father was Dometius and his brother Probus. Both were also appointed Bishops of Byzantium before him.[7]

  1. ^ a b "Κατάλογος Οικουμενικών Πατριαρχών - Οικουμενικό Πατριαρχείο" [List of Ecumenical Patriarchs] (in Greek). 2019. Retrieved 2024-07-25.
  2. ^ Dvornik, Francis (1958). The Idea of Apostolicity in Byzantium and the Legend of the Apostle Andrew (PDF). Harvard University Press. p. 157ff. ISBN 978-0-88402-004-2.
  3. ^ Limberis, Vasiliki (2002). Divine Heiress: The Virgin Mary and the Making of Christian Constantinople. Routledge. pp. 10–15. ISBN 978-1-134-86279-5.
  4. ^ Walter, Christopher (1970). "The Names of the Council Fathers at Saint Sozomenus, Cyprus (planches)". Revue des études byzantines. 28 (1): 189–206. doi:10.3406/rebyz.1970.1435.
  5. ^ Graindor, Paul; Grégoire, Henri (1944). Byzantion: Revue Internationale Des Études Byzantines. Vol. 16. Fondation Byzantine. p. 25.
  6. ^ Socrates of Constantinople, Historia Ecclesiastica, I, 37. "The thirtieth year of Constantine's reign was completed... At that time that Alexander, who had some time before succeeded Metrophanes, presided over the church at Constantinople."
  7. ^ Bishops/Patriarchs of Constantinople Byzantine Studies Page, Fordham University