Gelasius I
Pope who wrote to the emperor Anastasius in 494 that the world is ruled by two powers, the authority of priests and the power of kings. The letter was much quoted in later debates about church and ruler.
Gelasius is remembered for his letter of 494 to the emperor Anastasius. It distinguishes the “sacred authority of the priests” from the “royal power”, gives the priests the heavier responsibility because they answer to God for kings too, and tells the emperor that in matters of religion he is to obey and not to command (Gelasius, Letter to Anastasius). The setting is described under the End of the Western Roman Empire.
The Liber Pontificalis, compiled a generation or so after his death, says that he was an African by origin, held the see for four years and eight months, expelled Manicheans found in Rome and burned their books, cared for the clergy and the poor, and saved the city from famine (Liber Pontificalis 51 (Gelasius)). Eugippius mentions that the body of Severinus of Noricum was laid to rest near Naples with his authorisation (Eugippius, Life of Severinus 46).
In the timeline
- AD 476, firm dateThe End of the Western Roman Empire
The general Odoacer deposes the boy emperor Romulus Augustulus at Ravenna and rules Italy as king. No Western emperor follows, and the bishops of Rome begin to deal with distant emperors and with kings of another confession.
- AD 482 to AD 519, firm dateThe Henotikon and the Acacian Schism
The emperor Zeno tries to reunite the supporters and opponents of Chalcedon with a statement of faith that neither adopts nor expressly condemns the council. Rome answers by declaring Acacius of Constantinople deposed, and the two sees stay out of communion for thirty-five years.