8,921
edits
Changes
m
cat.
[[Image:12-Meletie.jpg|right|frame|St. Meletius of Antioch]]
Our father among the [[saint]]s '''Meletius of Antioch''' (Greek: Μελέτιος) was the Orthodox [[bishop]] of Antioch from 361 until his death in 381. His staunch support of the Orthodox [[First Ecumenical Council|Nicene]] faction of the church led to his exile three times under [[Arianism|Arian]] emperors. One of his last acts was to preside over the [[Second Ecumenical Council]] in 381. His feast day is [[February 12]].
Later in November 361, Constantius died suddenly and was succeeded by [[Julian the Apostate]], who immediately revoked the the decrees of banishment. The next year, Meletius returned to Antioch, but to an atmosphere of [[schism]] with the Eustathians, who would not recognize Meletius as his election occurred with the help of the Arians. A further estrangement occurred when attempts at mediation by Eusebius of Vercelli were negated by the [[consecration of a bishop|consecration]] of Paulinus as bishop of Antioch by Lucifer, Bishop of Cagliari. Thus, Meletius became the leader of one of three factions in Antioch that accepted the Nicene Creed. In 365, emperor Valens exiled Meletius again, to Armenia. The date of his return is uncertain although he may have returned to Antioch in 367.
During the decades of the 360s and 370s, support for Meletius' orthodoxy increased as the number of bishops supporting him increased. In 370, St. [[Basil the Great|Basil]] became the bishop of [[Caesarea ]] and became a strong supporter of Meletius. The decade of the 370s became period of long distance negotiations among the Nicene factions. With the rise of Gratian to the imperial throne, peace was restore to the Church. In late 378, Meletius was restored in Antioch and exiled bishops were recalled to their sees. In 379, Emperor [[Theodosius the Great (emperor)|Theodosius I]] came to the Roman throne in the East. An ardent Nicene Orthodox, he expelled the Arian, Demophilus, as bishop of Constantinople and restored Meletius as bishop of Antioch. In October 379, Meletius presided at a council in Antioch of the bishops to assure the restoration of orthodoxy in the East. In May 381, Meletius and Theodosius convened what became the Second Ecumenical Council in Constantinople to bring harmony to the divided church. The council, opening with Meletius as its presiding officer, began by electing [[Gregory the Theologian|Gregory of Nazianzus]] as the Bishop of Constantinople, who was then [[enthronement|enthroned]] by St. Meletius, before continuing on to confirmation of the Nicene creed. During these sessions in 381, St. Meletius died suddenly.
The funeral services for St. Meletius were held in the Church of the Apostles after which his body was transferred to Antioch for a second funeral service before he was laid to rest alongside his predecessor, St. [[Babylas of Antioch|Babylas]].
[[Category: Bishops]]
[[Category:4th-century bishops]]
[[Category: Patriarchs of Antioch]]
[[ro:Meletie al Antiohiei]]
