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Paul of SamosataFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Paul of Samosata (lived from 200 to 275 AD) was Bishop of Antioch from 260 to 268. He was a believer 

in monarchianism, a doctrine about the Trinity; his teachings anticipate adoptionism. 

Contents

[hide] 

1 Life 

2 Teachings 

o  2.1 Eusebius' account 

3 Aftermath 

4 Notes 

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  5 References 

[edit]Life

Paul was born at Samosata into a family of humble origin. He was elected bishop of   Antioch in 260. Heheld the civil office of Procurator ducenarius.

[1] 

His Monarchianist teachings aroused strong opposition in the church. He was also accused of corruption

on a grand scale. Edward Gibbon describes him as follows:

The wealth of that prelate was a sufficient evidence of his guilt, since it was neither derived from the

inheritance of his fathers, nor acquired by the arts of honest industry. But Paul considered the service of 

the church as a very lucrative profession. His ecclesiastical jurisdiction was venal and rapacious; he

extorted frequent contributions from the most opulent of the faithful, and converted to his own use a

considerable part of the public revenue. By his pride and luxury the Christian religion was rendered odious

in the eyes of the Gentiles. His council chamber and his throne, the splendour with which he appeared in

public, the suppliant crowd who solicited his attention, the multitude of letters and petitions to which he

dictated his answers, and the perpetual hurry of business in which he was involved, were circumstances

much better suited to the state of a civil magistrate than to the humility of a primitive bishop. When he

harangued his people from the pulpit, Paul affected the figurative style and the theatrical gestures of an

 Asiatic sophist, while the cathedral resounded with the loudest and most extravagant acclamations in the

praise of his divine eloquence. Against those who resisted his power, or refused to flatter his vanity, the

prelate of Antioch was arrogant, rigid, and inexorable; but he relaxed the discipline, and lavished the

treasures of the church on his dependent clergy, who were permitted to imitate their master in the

gratification of every sensual appetite. For Paul indulged himself very freely in the pleasures of the table,

and he had received into the episcopal palace two young and beautiful women, as the constant

companions of his leisure moments.[2]

 

In 269, seventy bishops, priests and deacons assembled at Antioch as a synod. 

From Egypt to the Euxine Sea, the bishops were in arms and in motion. Several councils were held,

confutations were published, ex-communications were pronounced, ambiguous explanations were by turns

accepted and refused, treaties were concluded and violated.[3]

 

The synod deposed Paul as bishop and elected Dominus as his successor. They also wrote an encyclical

letter to Dionysius and Maximus, bishops of  Rome and Alexandria respectively. This letter is the only

indisputably contemporary document concerning him and was preserved in  Eusebius of 

Caesarea's Ecclesiastical History .[4]

 

However, because the synod had acted without consulting the clergy or the people, its authority was in

question,[3]

 enabling Paul to claim continued possession of his bishopric. Since he had friendly relations

with Zenobia, the separatist queen of  Palmyra ruling in Syria, he maintained his occupancy of the bishop'shouse in Antioch for another four years. Late in 272, however, when the emperor   Aurelian defeated

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Zenobia, Paul lost her protection. Aurelian allowed the two parties, for and against Paul, to present their 

cases before his own tribunal. As a pagan with no interest in Christian doctrinal issues, wishing only to

restore order, Aurelian relied on the judgment of the bishops of Italy, whom he considered the most

impartial among the Christians. The unanimous verdict was for Paul to relinquish his position as bishop.

The fact that the pagan Aurelian ruled on a dispute among Christian bishops was an acknowledgement of 

the status of the Christian church and the position of early Christians as Roman citizens in a period when

there was no persecution.[citation needed ]

 

[edit]Teachings

Paul's teaching is a form of  Monarchianism, which emphasized the oneness of God. Paul taught that Jesus

was born a mere man, but that he was infused with the divine Logos or word of God. Hence, Jesus was

seen not as God-become-man but as man-become-God. In his Discourses to Sabinus, of which only

fragments are preserved in a book against heresies ascribed to Anastasius, Paul writes:

  "Having been anointed by the Holy Spirit he received the title of the anointed (i.e. Christos), suffering in

accordance with his nature, working wonders in accordance with grace. For in fixity and resoluteness

of character he likened himself to God; and having kept himself free from sin was united with God, and

was empowered to grasp as it were the power and authority of wonders. By these he was shown to

possess over and above the will, one and the same activity (with God), and won the title of Redeemer 

and Saviour of our race."

  "The Saviour became holy and just; and by struggle and hard work overcame the sins of our 

forefather. By these means he succeeded in perfecting himself, and was through his moral excellence

united with God; having attained to unity and sameness of will and energy (i.e. activity) with Him

through his advances in the path of good deeds. This will be preserved inseparable (from the Divine),

and so inherited the name which is above all names, the prize of love and affection vouchsafed in

grace to him."

  "We do not award praise to beings which submit merely in virtue of their nature; but we do award high

praise to beings which submit because their attitude is one of love; and so submitting because their 

inspiring motive is one and the same, they are confirmed and strengthened by one and the sameindwelling power, of which the force ever grows, so that it never ceases to stir. It was in virtue of this

love that the Saviour coalesced with God, so as to admit of no divorce from Him, but for all ages to

retain one and the same will and activity with Him, an activity perpetually at work in the manifestation

of good."

  "Wonder not that the Saviour had one will with God. For as nature manifests the substance of the

many to subsist as one and the same, so the attitude of love produces in the many a unity and a

sameness of will which is manifested by unity and sameness of approval and well-pleasingness."

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Paul was an early forerunner of   Adoptionism. Possibly, the Paulicians of Armenia adhered to his teachings,

and received their name from him. However, historical records show that the Paulicians were bitterly

persecuted more for their  gnostic and iconoclastic views than for their adherence to Adoptionism.

Paul's pupil Lucian of Antioch is considered to have had a major influence on  Arius the founder of   Arianism. 

[edit]Eusebius' account

 Another major source of information we have of Paul of Samosata comes from Eusebius of Caesarea, who

described some of the doctrines and practices Paul displayed openly, which included:

  Receiving money for his religious services,[5]

 as well as paying others to preach his doctrines.[6]

 

  Preferring to be called an imperial procurator of queen Zenobia, rather than bishop .[7]

 

  He stopped the production of psalms to Christ, and trained women to sing psalms to himsel f [8]

 as an

angel come down from heaven.[9] 

Likewise, Eusebius hints to the fact that Paul was "too familiar" with his women followers ,[10]

 whom he

called "subintroductae".[6]

 

[edit] Aftermath

Canon 19 of the First Council of Nicaea dealt with the Paulianists:

Concerning the Paulianists who have flown for refuge to the Catholic Church, it has been decreed that they

must by all means be rebaptized; and if any of them who in past time have been numbered among their 

clergy should be found blameless and without reproach, let them be rebaptized and ordained by the Bishop

of the Catholic Church; but if the examination should discover them to be unfit, they ought to be deposed.

Likewise in the case of their deaconesses, and generally in the case of those who have been enrolled

among their clergy, let the same form be observed. And we mean by deaconesses such as have assumed

the habit, but who, since they have no imposition of hands, are to be numbered only among the laity.[11]

 

 Athanasius of Alexandria explained that despite the fact that the followers of Paul of Samosata baptised in

the name of the Trinity, they did not make it in the orthodox sense, making their baptism invalid.[12]

The

Paulianists seemed to have disappeared soon after the council, although the Paulicianists, a 7th century

dualistic sect, were often misidentified as being one and the same.[13] 

[edit]Notes

1. ^  "Paul of Samosata". Catholic Encyclopedia . New York: Robert Appleton Company. 1913.

2. ^ Gibbon, Edward, The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Vol. 1, Ch. 16

3. ^ a  b  Gibbon, Edward, The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Vol. 1, Ch. 16.

4. ^ Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History , Book 7, chapter 30

5. ^ Eusebius of Caesarea, Ecclesiastical History , Book vii. Chapter xxx. Section 7.

6. ^ a  b  Eusebius of Caesarea, Ecclesiastical History , Book vii. Chapter xxx. Section 12.

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7. ^ Eusebius of Caesarea, Ecclesiastical History , Book vii. Chapter xxx. Section 8.

8. ^ Eusebius of Caesarea, Ecclesiastical History , Book vii. Chapter xxx. Section 10.

9. ^ Eusebius of Caesarea, Ecclesiastical History , Book vii. Chapter xxx. Section 11.

10. ^ Eusebius of Caesarea, Ecclesiastical History , Book vii. Chapter xxx. Section 13.

11. ^ http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/3801.htm 

12. ^ Schaff, Philip.  Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series II, Volume IV. Against the Arians,

Discourse II, 42-43 . Wikisource. 

13. ^ Peter L'Huillier (1996). The Church of the Ancient Councils: The Disciplinary Work of the First Four 

Ecumenical Councils . St Vladimir's Seminary Press. pp. 80 –81. ISBN 978-0-88141-007-5. 

Pavle Samosatski

Pavle Samosatski (200 - 275) je bio patrijarh  Antiohije od 260. do 269. godine. Smatrao je da

 je Isus rođen kao čovek koji je postao nalik Bogu. Njegovo učenje nazvano monarhijanstvo  je osuđeno

kao  jeres269. godine.

Sadržaj/Садржај  

[sakrij/сакриј] 

1 Život 

2 Učenje 

3 Napomene 

4 Spoljašnje veze 

Život [uredi - уреди] 

Pavle je rođen u Samosati u porodici skromnog porekla. Bio je sveštenik i izabran je za patrijarha Antiohije

260. godine. Izazvao je ogovaranja pustivši žene da žive u njegovoj kući i dozvolivši isto svojim

sveštenicima.[1] Origenisti Firmilijan Kapadokijski i Grigorije Neocezarijski uspeli su da izdejstvuju osudu

učenja Pavla Samosatskog, na Antiohijskim crkvenim saborima 264/265. i [269]. godine.[2]

 269. godine se

sedamdeset episkopa, sveštenika i đakona okuplja u Antiohiji i smenjuje Pavla, zbog njegovog

morhijanističkog učenja, birajući umesto njega Domnija. Iako je smenjen na ovom saboru, Pavle sebe i

dalje smatra patrijarhom i zbog poznanstva sa kraljicom Palmirom, i dalje boravi u patrijaršiskom sedištu u

 Antiohiji. 272. godine, sa promenom vlasti, Pavle gubi zaštitu i napušta mesto, na koje do lazi Domnije.

Učenje [uredi - уреди] 

Pavle iz Samosata smatra da je Isus rođen kao čovek, koji prilikom krštenja biva pomazan od Svetog Duha

i postaje Hrist (pomazanik). Isus sebe usavršava svojim ponašanjem i postaje nalik Bogu, sa kojim se

nalazi u odnosu ljubavi. Između Isusa i Svetog Duha postoji jedinstvo volje. 

U fragmentima koji su sačuvani, Pavle piše: 

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I "Budući pomazan od Svetog Duha, on je stekao naziv pomazanik (Hristos), pateći u skladu sa

svojom prirodom, čineći čuda u skladu sa milošću. Jer usmerenošću i odlukom karaktera on je

upodobio sebe Bogu. I čuvajući sebe slobodnim od greha, bio je sjedinjen sa Bogom... Ovim je

pokazao da poseduje, preko i iznad volje, jedno isto činjenje (sa Bogom) i stekao naziv Iskupitelja i

Spasitelja naše vrste."

II "Spasitelj je postao pravedan i svet; i borbom i teškim trudom je prevazišao grehe naših predaka.

Ovim sredstvima je uspeo da usavrši sebe, i izvrsnošću svoje naravi je postao sjedinjen sa

Bogom; postigavši jedinstvo i istovetnost volje i delanja sa NJim svojim napredovanjem na putu

dobrih dela. Ovo će biti sačuvano nerazdvojeno (od Božanskog), i tako steći ime koje je iznad svih

imena, nagradu ljubavi i privrženosti podarenu mu milošću." 

IV "Mi nismo stekli slavu bića koja su predana samo vrlini svo je prirode; ali smo stekli visoku slavu

bića koja su predana zbog svog stava koji je jedino iz ljubavi... 

V "Ne čudite se što Spasitelj ima jednu volju sa Bogom. Jer kao što priroda ispoljava mnoge

sadržaje da bi ostala jedna ista, tako stav ljubavi stvara u mnogima jedinstvo i istovetnost volje

koja je ispoljena jedinstvom i istovetnošću blagonaklonosti i prijatnosti."[3] 

Pavle svoje učenje formuliše terminima origenovske teologije i u njemu naglašava

 jedinstvo Boga. NJegovo učenje, nazvano dinamičko monarhijanstvo, se smatra

oblikom monarhijanstva (mono - jedno; arhe - načelo) i pretečom adopcionizma. Sam

Pavle je svoje učenje smatrao pravovernim. Neki smatraju da su pavlićani iz Jermenije

prihvatili njegovo učenje i dobili ime po njemu.  

Napomene [uredi - уреди] 

Paul Of Samosata, (flourished 3rd century), heretical bishop of Antioch in Syria and

proponent of a kind of dynamic monarchian doctrine on the nature of Jesus Christ

(see Monarchianism). The only indisputably contemporary document concerning him is a letter

 written by his ecclesiastical opponents, according to which he was a worldly cleric of humble

origin who became bishop of Antioch in 260.

Paul held that it was a man who was born of Mary, through whom God spoke his Word (Logos).

Jesus was a man who became divine, rather than God become man. A similarspeculativ eChristology   was found among the primitive Ebionites of Judaea; in Theodotus and

 Artemon of Rome (both of whom were excommunicated); and perhaps in other early Christian

 writers (and suggested by phrases in the New Testament, such as Acts 2:36). The biblical scholar

Lucian of Antioch and his school were influenced by Paul. The 7th-century Paulicians of Armenia

may have claimed to continue his traditions, hence their name.

Between 263 and 268 at least three church councils were held at Antioch to debate Paul’s

orthodoxy. The third condemned his doctrine and deposed him. But Paul enjoyed the patronage

of Zenobia, queen of Palmyra, to whom Antioch was then subject, and it was not until late in 272,

 when the emperor Aurelian defeated Zenobia and brought Antioch under Roman imperial ruleagain, that the actual deposition was carried out.

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