![Theophanis Patriarch 1620](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2c/Theophanis_Patriarch_1620.JPG)
Theophanes III of Jerusalem ( el, Θεοφάνης Γ΄ Ιεροσολύμων) was the
from 1608 to 1644.
The early life of Patriarch Theophanes is largely unknown. As the successor to
Sophronius IV, Theophanes continued Sophronius' defense of Orthodox rights to the Christian shrines in the
Holy Land
The Holy Land; Arabic: or is an area roughly located between the Mediterranean Sea and the Eastern Bank of the Jordan River, traditionally synonymous both with the biblical Land of Israel and with the region of Palestine. The term "Holy ...
s. In 1611, with a decree from the
Ottoman sultan
The sultans of the Ottoman Empire ( tr, Osmanlı padişahları), who were all members of the Ottoman dynasty (House of Osman), ruled over the transcontinental empire from its perceived inception in 1299 to its dissolution in 1922. At its hei ...
, Theophanes was able to fend off the
Armenians
Armenians ( hy, հայեր, ''hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diaspora ...
from taking over the celebration of the
Holy Light.
Due to careless financial management by Serbian
monk
A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...
s who lived at the
Monastery of Saint Sabas
The Holy Lavra of Saint Sabbas, known in Arabic and Syriac as Mar Saba ( syr, ܕܝܪܐ ܕܡܪܝ ܣܒܐ, ar, دير مار سابا; he, מנזר מר סבא; el, Ἱερὰ Λαύρα τοῦ Ὁσίου Σάββα τοῦ Ἡγιασμέ ...
, Theophanes was forced to sell holy heirlooms of value to avert surrendering the monastery and its ''
metochion
A ''metochion'' or ''metochi'' ( gr, μετόχιον, metóchion or gr, μετόχι, metóchi; russian: подворье, podvorie) is an ecclesiastical embassy church within Eastern Orthodox tradition. It is usually from one autocephalous or ...
'' of the Archangel to the
Latins
The Latins were originally an Italic tribe in ancient central Italy from Latium. As Roman power and colonization spread Latin culture during the Roman Republic.
Latins culturally "Romanized" or "Latinized" the rest of Italy, and the word Latin ...
and Armenians. During 1631 to 1634, the patriarch was successful in obtaining a number of
firman
A firman ( fa, , translit=farmân; ), at the constitutional level, was a royal mandate or decree issued by a sovereign in an Islamic state. During various periods they were collected and applied as traditional bodies of law. The word firman com ...
s from Sultan
Murad IV
Murad IV ( ota, مراد رابع, ''Murād-ı Rābiʿ''; tr, IV. Murad, was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1623 to 1640, known both for restoring the authority of the state and for the brutality of his methods. Murad IV was born in Cons ...
that continued those of
Mehmed II
Mehmed II ( ota, محمد ثانى, translit=Meḥmed-i s̱ānī; tr, II. Mehmed, ; 30 March 14323 May 1481), commonly known as Mehmed the Conqueror ( ota, ابو الفتح, Ebū'l-fetḥ, lit=the Father of Conquest, links=no; tr, Fâtih Su ...
and
Selim I
Selim I ( ota, سليم الأول; tr, I. Selim; 10 October 1470 – 22 September 1520), known as Selim the Grim or Selim the Resolute ( tr, links=no, Yavuz Sultan Selim), was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1512 to 1520. Despite last ...
, thus fending off demands of the French ambassador in Constantinople.
In April 1619, Patriarch Theophanes traveled to Moscow to participate in the
enthronement
An enthronement is a ceremony of inauguration, involving a person—usually a monarch or religious leader—being formally seated for the first time upon their throne. Enthronements may also feature as part of a larger coronation rite.
...
of Metropolitan
Philaret as
Patriarch of Moscow
The Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus' (russian: Патриарх Московский и всея Руси, translit=Patriarkh Moskovskij i vseja Rusi), also known as the Patriarch of Moscow and all Russia, is the official title of the Bishop of Mo ...
on June 1, 1619.
Georges Florovsky, ''Ways of Russian Theology'', Notes to Chapter III
/ref> In August 1620, when he was returning from his visit to Moscow, Patriarch Theophanes erected a new metropolis on the territory of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi-confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Crown of the Kingdom of ...
— the Metropolis of Kiev, Galicia and all Ruthenia
The Metropolis of Kiev, Galicia and all Ruthenia was a metropolis of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople in the Eastern Orthodox Church that was erected in 1620. The dioceses (eparchies) included the Eparchy of Kiev itself, along with ...
. He consecrated
Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...
Job Boretsky
Job Boretsky ( uk, link=no, Йов, secular name Ivan Matfeyevich Boretsky, pl, link=no, Iwan Borecki, died 2 March 1631) was the Metropolitan of Kiev, Galicia and all Ruthenia in the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople in the Eastern Ortho ...
as the first metropolitan and also other bishops, during a stop in Kiev. These consecrations restored the Orthodox hierarchy in the area that was occupied by Uniate
The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also called the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Eastern Rite Catholicism, or simply the Eastern Churches, are 23 Eastern Christian autonomous (''sui iuris'') particular churches of th ...
bishops after the Union of Brest
The Union of Brest (; ; ; ) was the 1595–96 decision of the Ruthenian Orthodox Church eparchies (dioceses) in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth to break relations with the Eastern Orthodox Church and to enter into communion with, and place i ...
in 1596 when Metropolitan Michael Rohoza
Michael Rohoza ( be, Міхал Рагоза, uk, Михайло Рогоза, pl, Michał Rahoza, russian: Михаил Рагоза) (died 1599) was the Metropolitan of Kiev, Galicia and all Rus' in the Patriarchate of Constantinople of the E ...
turned to support the union.
Patriarch Theophanes reposed in 1644.
References
Sources
Period of the Ottoman Turks Rule
*
{{Authority control
17th-century Greek Orthodox Patriarchs of Jerusalem
17th-century Eastern Orthodox archbishops