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Name:
Pope Anastasius II
Preceded by: St. Gelasius I (492 - 496)
Succeeded by: St. Symmachus (498 - 514)
Roman Catholic Pope #50
Dates:
Born: ? (Rome)
Died: December 19, 401
Pope: November 24, 496 - November 19, 498 (2 years)
Biography:
Pope Anastasius II came to power at a time when relations between the Eastern and
Western churches were at a particularly low point. His predecessor, Pope Gelasius
I, was stubborn in his stance towards the Eastern church leaders after his
predecessor, Pope Felix III, had excommunicated the Patriarch of Constantinople,
Acacius, for replacing the orthodox archbishop of Antioch with a monophysite.
Pope Anastasius II was distressed by the worsening relations and, as a consequence, tried to take a more conciliatory approach, saying "We do not want the disagreement among the churches to continue any longer" in a letter. Meanwhile, the Byzantine Emperor had reached an agreement with the Ostrogoth king Theodoric according to which the latter's claim the kingship of Italy would be recognized by Constantinople and, in exchange, Anastasius would adopt a softer attitude towards the Monophysites.
Matters didn't work out quite so well, however, because Anastasius wasn't consulted on this and, in Rome, the Church and was split sharply between those who were willing to compromise with the Monophysites and those who took a strong stand in defense of orthodoxy. Anastasius died during this crisis and, according to his enemies, it was due to the Wrath of God. Later Church leaders didn't think too much of him either - the author of the Liber Pontificalis criticized him and, because of this, Dante depicted him in Hell.
Also Known As: none
Alternate Spellings: none
Common Misspellings: none
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