Historical sources
Brief accounts of Acacius's reign are given in the ''Ecclesiastical Chronicle'' of the Jacobite writer Bar Hebraeus (''floruit'' 1280) and in the ecclesiastical histories of the Nestorian writers Mari (twelfth-century), Amr (fourteenth-century) and Sliba (fourteenth-century). His life is also covered in the ''Chronicle of Seert''.Acacius's patriarchate
Acacius played a key role in the events that led to the takeover of the Church of the East by the Nestorians in the last two decades of the fifth century. A moderate churchman, he was appointed patriarch in 485 by the political enemies of the powerful metropolitanThen the bishops who had fled from Bar Sula met at Seleucia, and consecrated a certain Acacius as their catholicus. WhenBarsauma Barsauma ( syr, ܒܪܨܘܡܐ, ''Barṣaumâ''), nicknamed ''Bar Sawma'', "son of the Lent" in Syriac, was Metropolitan bishop, Metropolitan of Nisibis (East Syrian Ecclesiastical Province), Nisibis in the 5th century, and a major figure in the hi ...of Nisibis and Magna of Fars heard of this, they threatened to kill Acacius like his predecessor unless he accepted their words. And he, terrified, gave in to them, chiefly on account of the old affection that he still felt for them; for he had been a fellow-student ofBarsauma Barsauma ( syr, ܒܪܨܘܡܐ, ''Barṣaumâ''), nicknamed ''Bar Sawma'', "son of the Lent" in Syriac, was Metropolitan bishop, Metropolitan of Nisibis (East Syrian Ecclesiastical Province), Nisibis in the 5th century, and a major figure in the hi ..., Magna and Narsaï in the school of Edessa, and had fled from there with them; and so he did not oppose their plans. He also convened a synod in which he confirmed the faith ofNestorius Nestorius (; in grc, Νεστόριος; 386 – 451) was the Archbishop of Constantinople from 10 April 428 to August 431. A Christian theologian, several of his teachings in the fields of Christology and Mariology were seen as contr .... From that time Nestorianism held sway throughout the East, and fornication became so common among the bishops, the priests, the deacons and the people that Christian babies lay on the rubbish tips and in the streets, and many of them were eaten by dogs, so that Acacius was forced to build houses to accommodate the orphans and to feed the women so that they might bring up the offspring of their lust. In this way, under tragic auspices, the Nestorian faith was established in the East.
At that time Acacius was sent by the king of the Persians as an ambassador to the emperor of the Greeks, and the western bishops met with him. He was asked about the Nestorian heresy, but denied any knowledge of eitherDuring Acacius' catholicosate, the Persian kingNestorius Nestorius (; in grc, Νεστόριος; 386 – 451) was the Archbishop of Constantinople from 10 April 428 to August 431. A Christian theologian, several of his teachings in the fields of Christology and Mariology were seen as contr ...or his heresy, and said that this was just a shameful name given to them by their enemy Aksenaya. On his return to the East, Acacius found thatBarsauma Barsauma ( syr, ܒܪܨܘܡܐ, ''Barṣaumâ''), nicknamed ''Bar Sawma'', "son of the Lent" in Syriac, was Metropolitan bishop, Metropolitan of Nisibis (East Syrian Ecclesiastical Province), Nisibis in the 5th century, and a major figure in the hi ...had already died. Some say that the monks of Tur Abdin mobbed him in the church and killed him with the keys of their cells, while others say that his tomb can be seen in the church of Mar Yaqob in Nisibis.Bar Hebraeus, ''Ecclesiastical Chronicle'' (ed. Abeloos and Lamy), ii. 72–8
See also
* List of patriarchs of the Church of the EastReferences
Sources
* Abbeloos, J. B., and Lamy, T. J., ''Bar Hebraeus, Chronicon Ecclesiasticum'' (3 vols, Paris, 1877) * * * * Brooks, E. W., ''Eliae Metropolitae Nisibeni Opus Chronologicum'' (Rome, 1910) * * Gismondi, H., ''Maris, Amri, et Salibae: De Patriarchis Nestorianorum Commentaria I: Amri et Salibae Textus'' (Rome, 1896) * Gismondi, H., ''Maris, Amri, et Salibae: De Patriarchis Nestorianorum Commentaria II: Maris textus arabicus et versio Latina'' (Rome, 1899) * * *External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Acacius of Seleucia-Ctesiphon Patriarchs of the Church of the East Christians in the Sasanian Empire 5th-century bishops of the Church of the East