, also known by the Latin mnemonic ("there are two"), is a letter written in 494 by

Pope Gelasius I Pope Gelasius I was the bishop of Rome from 1 March 492 to his death on 19 November 496. Gelasius was a prolific author whose style placed him on the cusp between Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages.The title of his biography by Walter Ullma ...

Byzantine Emperor This is a list of the Byzantine emperors from the foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD, which marks the conventional start of the Eastern Roman Empire, to its fall to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. Only the emperors who were recognized as le ...

Anastasius I Dicorus Anastasius I Dicorus ( grc-gre, Ἀναστάσιος, Anastásios; – 9 July 518) was List of Byzantine emperors, Eastern Roman emperor from 491 to 518. A career civil servant, he came to the throne at the age of 61 after being chosen by t ...

on the relationship between religious and secular officials.

Description

is a letter written in 494 by

which expressed the Gelasian doctrine. According to commentary in the ''

Enchiridion symbolorum The ''Enchiridion'' (full title: ''Enchiridion symbolorum, definitionum et declarationum de rebus fidei et morum'') is a compendium of all the basic texts on Catholic dogma and morality since the Apostolic Age. It has been in use since 1854, and ...

'', the letter is "the most celebrated document of the ancient Church concerning the two powers on earth." The Gelasian doctrine articulates a Christian theology about division of authority and power. All Medieval theories about division of power between priestly spiritual authority and secular temporal authority were versions of the Gelasian doctrine. According to the Gelasian doctrine, secular temporal authority is inferior to priestly spiritual authority since a priestly spiritual authority is responsible for the eternal condition of both a secular temporal authority and the subjects of that secular temporal authority but "implies that the priestly authority is inferior to the secular authority in the secular domain."

Dualistic principle of Church and State

This letter established the dualistic principle that would underlie all Western European political thought for almost a

millennium A millennium (plural millennia or millenniums) is a period of one thousand years, sometimes called a kiloannum (ka), or kiloyear (ky). Normally, the word is used specifically for periods of a thousand years that begin at the starting point (ini ...

. Gelasius expressed a distinction between two principles governing the world, which Gelasius called the "sacred authority of bishops" (') and the "royal power" (').

''Potestas'' and ''auctoritas''

These two principles—' lending justification to ', and ' providing the executive strength for '—were, Gelasius said, to be considered independent in their own spheres of operation, yet expected to work together in harmony.

Sovereign immunity

This doctrine remains in force in international politics, even though most absolute monarchies have been replaced by constitutional monarchies or republics.

Citations

References

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External links

* {{Commons category-inline, Doctrine of the Two Swords Legal immunity Religion and politics 5th-century works 490s Documents of Pope Gelasius I