Saint Joseph the Hymnographer ( el, Όσιος Ιωσήφ ο Υμνογράφος) was a Greek monk of the ninth century. He is one of the greatest liturgical poets and hymnographers of the Eastern Orthodox Church. He is also known for his confession of the Orthodox Faith in opposition to Iconoclasm.
As a poet he is often confused with Joseph, the Archbishop of Thessalonica and brother of Theodore the Studite, who were one generation older than he was, so that in many cases, attribution of specific hymns to him is uncertain.
Life
He was born around 816 AD in Sicily of devout parents, Plotinus and Agatha. Joseph's family had to flee from Sicily due to the Arab invasion of the island. According to the hagiographer Theophanes they went to Peloponnese. At the age of fifteen he was tonsured a monk at the Latomos Monastery of Thessalonica. About 840 the bishop of Thessalonica ordained him a hieromonk (priest-monk). While visiting Thessalonica the distinguished
Gregory of Dekapolis
Saint Gregory of Dekapolis or Gregory Dekapolites ( el, Όσιος Γρηγόριος ο Δεκαπολίτης; before 797 – 20 November 842 or earlier) was a 9th-century Byzantine monk, notable for his miracle-working and his travels across th ...
was so impressed with Joseph, because of his rare character, that he invited him to join his
Stoudios Monastery
The Monastery of Stoudios, more fully Monastery of Saint John the Forerunner "at Stoudios" ( grc-gre, Μονή του Αγίου Ιωάννη του Προδρόμου εν τοις Στουδίου, Monē tou Hagiou Iōannē tou Prodromou en to ...
Leo V the Armenian
Leo V the Armenian ( gr, Λέων ὁ ἐξ Ἀρμενίας, ''Leōn ho ex Armenias''; 775 – 25 December 820) was the Byzantine emperor from 813 to 820. A senior general, he forced his predecessor, Michael I Rangabe, to abdicate and assumed ...
and Theophilos, Joseph was sent by Gregory to Rome following an invitation of
Pope Leo III
Pope Leo III (died 12 June 816) was bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 26 December 795 to his death. Protected by Charlemagne from the supporters of his predecessor, Adrian I, Leo subsequently strengthened Charlemagne's position b ...
in 841. While en route, Joseph was captured by slave-trading pirates and sold as a
slave
Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
in Crete. In slavery St. Nicholas appeared to Joseph and asked him to sing in the name of God. Nicholas then said to him: "Arise and follow me!" Joseph found freedom soon after his vision. He could finally return to Constantinople after more than one year in slavery in Crete. Theophanes is not clear, when Joseph returned to Constantinople, but he mentioned in one paragraph a triumphal return after the death of Theophilos and the restoration of the icons, but also after the recent death of Gregory of Decapolis.
Monastic foundations
According to the temporal reconstruction of the early ''vitae'' by Daniel Stiernon, Joseph founded a monastery dedicated to his deceased mentor, Gregory of Dekapolis, in 855. Joseph started with an inclosure together with his and Gregory's disciple John at St. Antipas. After the latter's death in 850, he spent some years in a kind of sanctuary dedicated to St. John Chrysostom, where he continued his ascetic labors and attracted followers. Joseph transferred the relics taken from Gregory's corpse, together with those from their disciple named John, and placed them in a sanctuary of his monastery's church dedicated to St. Bartholomew the Apostle.
Exile and recognition as an anachorete and saint
In 858, he was exiled to the theme of Cherson after denouncing ''
Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman people, Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caes ...
''
Bardas
Bardas ( el, Βάρδας; died 21 April 866) was a Byzantine Empire, Byzantine noble and high-ranking minister. As the brother of Empress Theodora (wife of Theophilos), Theodora, he rose to high office under Theophilos (emperor), Theophilos (. ...
, brother of the
Empress Theodora
Theodora is a given name of Greek origin, meaning "God's gift".
Theodora may also refer to:
Historical figures known as Theodora
Byzantine empresses
* Theodora (wife of Justinian I) ( 500 – 548), saint by the Orthodox Church
* Theodora of ...
, for illicit cohabitation. Joseph returned again to Constantinople in 867, after Bardas had been assassinated.
Through the favour of the Patriarch Ignatius I, he was appointed ''
skeuophylax ''Skeuophylax'' ( el, σκευοφύλαξ), feminine form ''skeuophylakissa'' (σκευοφυλάκισσα), meaning "keeper of the vessels", is an ecclesiastical office in the Eastern Orthodox Church.
Usually held by a priest, the office of the ...
'' (keeper of the sacred vessels—i.e., the official responsible for the building containing the treasure of the church) in the Great Church of Constantinople. Joseph also stood high in the favor of Patriarch Photius the Great, the rival and successor of Ignatius, and accompanied Photius into banishment. He was among those who inspired the first missionaries to Russia.
He reportedly possessed the " gift of discernment" because of which Photius appointed him the
spiritual father
Confessor is a title used within Christianity in several ways.
Confessor of the Faith
Its oldest use is to indicate a saint who has suffered persecution and torture for the faith but not to the point of death.confessor for priests, recommending him as, "A man of God, an angel in the flesh and father of fathers." He died 3 April 886 AD according to Theophanes.
Hymnography
Since Joseph's contribution to the Studites reform is often confused with the works of Joseph of Thessalonica,
Theodore
Theodore may refer to:
Places
* Theodore, Alabama, United States
* Theodore, Australian Capital Territory
* Theodore, Queensland, a town in the Shire of Banana, Australia
* Theodore, Saskatchewan, Canada
* Theodore Reservoir, a lake in Sask ...
's brother, the exact attribution of poems "by Joseph" is still a controversial issue.
Tomadakes (1971) has attributed 385 canons and 9
kontakia
The kontakion (Greek , plural , ''kontakia'') is a form of hymn performed in the Orthodox and the Eastern Catholic liturgical traditions.
The kontakion originated in the Byzantine Empire around the 6th century and is closely associated with Sain ...
of the menaion, 68 canons of the parakletike, 6 complete canons of the triodion and 34 triodes-tetraodes, 2 canons and 24 triodes-tetraodes of the pentekostarion to the Sicilian Joseph. He also created more than 6 canons and 13 stichera—so-called which were not included in the new chant books of the sticherarion created by the Studites. This attribution regards Joseph more or less as the author or even inventor of the Parakletike, but earlier sources which had been recently discovered, do not confirm this view, it rather reframes the question, how the repertoire was changed and re-ordered by Joseph's initiative.
Hagiography and veneration
Joseph the Hymnographer appears as well in Latin as in Greek hagiography. The earliest ''
Vita
Vita or VITA (plural vitae) is Latin for "life", and may refer to:
* ''Vita'', the usual start to the title of a biography in Latin, by which (in a known context) the work is often referred to; frequently of a saint, then called hagiography
* Vit ...
'' was written by Theophanes who followed Joseph in his monastery as
hegoumenos
Hegumen, hegumenos, or igumen ( el, ἡγούμενος, trans. ), is the title for the head of a monastery in the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches, similar to the title of abbot. The head of a convent of nuns is called a hegumenia ...
. There is a later
synaxarion
Synaxarion or Synexarion (plurals Synaxaria, Synexaria; el, Συναξάριον, from συνάγειν, ''synagein'', "to bring together"; cf. etymology of ''synaxis'' and ''synagogue''; Latin: ''Synaxarium'', ''Synexarium''; cop, ⲥⲩⲛⲁ ...
, probably of the 11th century, attributed to one John the Deacon whose exact identity is still a controversial matter.
Godfrey Henschen's edition of the synaxarion was reprinted at Patrologia Graeca. A younger ''Vita'' was written by Theodore Pediasimos during the early Palaiologan period (early 14th century).
The feast of Joseph the Hymnographer is celebrated on 3 April in the Greek tradition, on 4 April in the Slavic rite, and on 14 June in the calendar of saints of the Roman Catholic Church.
See also
*
Byzantine Music
Byzantine music (Greek: Βυζαντινή μουσική) is the music of the Byzantine Empire. Originally it consisted of songs and hymns composed to Greek texts used for courtly ceremonials, during festivals, or as paraliturgical and liturgical ...
Stoudios Monastery
The Monastery of Stoudios, more fully Monastery of Saint John the Forerunner "at Stoudios" ( grc-gre, Μονή του Αγίου Ιωάννη του Προδρόμου εν τοις Στουδίου, Monē tou Hagiou Iōannē tou Prodromou en to ...
*
Sabas of Stoudios Sabas of Stoudios was an abbot of the Monastery of Stoudios who played a leading role at the Second Council of Nicaea (787 AD).
Biography
The Second Council of Nicaea met to restore the veneration of icons, which had been suppressed and banned by i ...