Pape (96 ème) de 795 à
816 (✝ 816)
En difficulté avec
la noblesse romaine, il dut faire appel plusieurs fois au protectorat de
Charlemagne. En 799, durant une procession, il fut même jeté à bas de son
cheval et échappa de justesse aux émeutiers qui voulaient lui crever les yeux.
Charlemagne vint lui-même à Rome et Léon III le couronna du diadème impérial.
Malgré la pression des évêques de France et d'Espagne, il refusa l'introduction
du "Filioque" dans le symbole de Nicée-Constantinople, ce qui était
en usage chez eux, mais pas à Rome.
À Rome, près de saint Pierre, en 816, saint Léon III, pape, qui donna à
Charlemagne, roi des Francs, la couronne de l’Empire romain et déploya la plus
grande ardeur à défendre la vraie foi en la dignité divine du Fils de Dieu.
Martyrologe
romain
SOURCE : http://nominis.cef.fr/contenus/saint/1310/Saint-Leon-III.html
Saint Léon III
Pape - (
+ 816)
Romain, il devint pape en 795. Il fut arrêté et torturé à cause de sa
lutte contre les factions insoumises de Rome. Il invoqua l’aide de Charlemagne,
qui rétablit la paix dans la ville et fut couronné empereur d’Occident dans
l’église Saint-Pierre de Rome, en 800. Le pape Léon créa ainsi le Saint Empire
Romain et jeta les bases du Moyen-Age. Léon refusa d’insérer le Filioque dans
le Credo de Nicée. Elle ne sera insérée dans le Credo romain qu’au XIème
siècle.
LE XII JUIN. SAINT LÉON III, PAPE ET CONFESSEUR.
Voici qu'un parfum de Noël arrive jusqu'à nous sous
les feux de la glorieuse Pentecôte. Léon III, montant de cette terre, la laisse
embaumée du souvenir de l'auguste jour où l'Enfant-Dieu voulut manifester par
lui la plénitude de sa principauté sur les peuples. La fête de Noël de l'an 800 vit proc lamer le
Saint-Empire. La pauvreté, l'obscurité qui, huit siècles auparavant,
présidaient à la naissance du Fils de Dieu, avaient pour but d'attirer nos
cœurs ; mais cette faiblesse, toute de condescendance et de tendresse, était
loin d'exprimer le mystère entier du Verbe fait chair. L'Eglise le redit chaque
année, au retour béni de cette nuit d'amour : « Un petit enfant nous est né,
portant sur son épaule le signe de la principauté ; il sera appelé l'Admirable,
le Fort, le Père du siècle futur, le Prince de la paix (ISAI. IX, 6). » Car
c'est la paix qui derechef resplendit en ce jour sur le Cycle sacré, la paix du
Christ vainqueur et roi sans conteste ; mieux encore que Jean de Sahagun, Léon
III mérite en ce point les hommages du peuple fidèle. Sylvestre nouveau d'un
autre Constantin, par lui seulement la victoire du Verbe divin se révèle
absolue.
Successivement le Christ a triomphé des faux dieux,
du césarisme byzantin, des peuples barbares. Une société nouvelle apparaît,
gouvernée par des princes qui reconnaissent tenir de l'Homme-Dieu leurs
couronnes. Au vieil empire romain fondé sur la force, au césarisme étreignant
le monde et le broyant plutôt qu'il ne l'unissait dans l'étau de fer de sa domination
(Dan. II, 40), va succéder la confédération des nations baptisées qui
s'appellera la chrétienté. Mais d'où viendra l'unité à ce grand corps ? de tous
ces princes, égaux par la naissance et les droits, quel sera le chef ? sur quel
fondement doit s'établir sa primauté ? qui suscitera, qui révélera l'élu du
Seigneur, et l'oindra d'une onction si puissante que jamais les plus puissants
rois ne songent à lui disputer la première place dans leurs conseils ?
L'Esprit-Saint, planant sur les peuples ainsi qu'au début de la création sur
les eaux ténébreuses (Gen. I, 2), a longuement élaboré cette autre création qui
doit, elle aussi, attester la gloire de notre Emmanuel (Apoc. XVII, 15, Psalm.
XVIII, 2) ; l'empire nouveau est maintenant préparé ; il naîtra comme de
lui-même, et sans effort, des circonstances que l'éternelle Sagesse avait
divinement ordonnées dans sa force et dans sa douceur (Sap. VIII, 1).
Seule jusqu'ici, entre les royaumes chrétiens,
s'élève la primauté incontestée du pouvoir spirituel. Plus faible que tous, le
successeur de Pierre voit le monde à ses pieds ; la ville des Césars est
devenue la sienne ; par lui, Rome commande toujours aux nations. Néanmoins son
autorité désarmée doit compter avec la violence dont les assauts, toujours
possibles, ont plus d'une fois déjà mis en péril le patrimoine consacré par les
siècles à assurer l'indépendance du vicaire de l'Homme-Dieu. Elle-même, depuis qu'elle apparaît ainsi dans
sa sublime grandeur, la puissance spirituelle devient l'objet d'ambitions
sacrilèges, toutes prêtes aux plus noires perfidies. Léon III vient d'en faire
en personne la sinistre expérience. Un seigneur laïque et des clercs indignes,
unissant leurs communes convoitises, ont attiré le pontife dans un guet-apens ;
le corps meurtri et sanglant, les yeux crevés, la langue arrachée, il n'a
recouvré la parole et la vue, il n'a conservé la vie, que par le plus éclatant
des miracles. Rome entière, témoin du prodige, s'est répandue en actions de
grâces ; Dieu même, cette fois, a délivré son christ ; mais les sicaires n'en
restent pas moins les maîtres de la ville, jusqu'à ce que l'armée du roi des
Francs ramène en triomphe dans son palais la noble victime. Triomphe glorieux,
mais qui, à lui seul, ne garantit point l'avenir : d'autres déjà t’ont précédé,
également dus par l'Église romaine au dévouement de sa fille aînée toujours
prête au premier appel ; or, le bras protecteur une fois éloigné, l'œuvre de
restauration à peine accomplie, de nouvelles trames se reformaient bientôt, à
l'extérieur ou dans Rome même, pour l'usurpation des droits spirituels ou
temporels de la papauté. Des rives du Bosphore, les successeurs de Constantin
ne savent plus qu'applaudir à ces intrigues, et soudoyer les conspirateurs et
les traîtres.
Une telle situation ne saurait se prolonger. Le
pontife souverain doit chercher aux grands intérêts dont la garde lui est
confiée, une sûreté moins précaire ; la paix du monde chrétien, la paix des
âmes et des nations, demande que la première autorité qui soit sur la terre ne
reste pas à la merci d'incessants complots. Il ne suffit pas même qu'au jour de
l'épreuve, et pour le temps qu'elle peut durer, le vicaire de Jésus-Christ soit
assuré de la fidélité d'une nation ou d'un prince ; l'état présent de la
société réclame une institution permanente qui puisse, à Rome, non seulement
réparer, mais prévenir les coups de la force ou de la perfidie.
Déjà sans doute, Pépin le Bref, en abandonnant ses
conquêtes d'Italie au Siège apostolique, a constitué sans limites aucunes la
souveraineté temporelle des pontifes romains; l'usage du glaive pour sa défense
appartient au Pape de plein droit, comme à tout prince dans ses Etats ; mais,
en dehors de l'impossibilité absolue d'en agir autrement, l'emploi personnel de
la force armée répugne au successeur de l'Apôtre établi par l'Homme-Dieu
ici-bas comme le vicaire de son amour (Ambr. in Luc. X). Ne craignons point
cependant pour le maintien des droits sacrés dont il répond devant les hommes
et devant Dieu. Roi lui-même, le successeur de Pierre choisira, parmi ces rois
d'Occident qui se font gloire d'être ses fils, un prince auquel il puisse confier
d'office la protection et la défense de l'Eglise. Le chef de la milice
spirituelle des élus, le portier du ciel, le dépositaire de la grâce et de
l'infaillible vérité, conviera ce prince à l'honneur de son alliance : alliance
sublime, dont la légitimité l'emportera sur celle de tous les traités conclus
entre les puissants de ce monde, parce que les droits qu'elle a pour but de
garantir sont ceux du Roi des rois dans son représentant, du Seigneur des
seigneurs; alliance aux redoutables devoirs, mais en même temps aux privilèges
merveilleux pour l'élu qu'elle appelle. La noblesse de la race, l'étendue des
possessions, la gloire des combats, l'éclat du génie, ont beau relever un prince ; sa grandeur part de la
terre, et ne dépasse point la mesure de l'humanité. Mais l'allié des pontifes
voit sa dignité s'élever jusqu'au ciel, où résident les intérêts dont il assume
la garde filiale. Protecteur attitré de sa mère l'Eglise, sans empiéter sur le
domaine des autres rois, ses égaux naguère, sans attenter à leur indépendance,
il aura néanmoins le devoir et en conséquence le droit de porter son glaive
partout où l'autorité spirituelle a des droits en souffrance, ou réclame son
concours pour l'accomplissement de sa mission d'enseigner et de sauver les
âmes. Universel en ce sens est son pouvoir, parce qu'universelle est aussi la
mission de la sainte Église. Si réel est ce pouvoir, si distinct de tout autre,
qu'une couronne nouvelle devra s'ajouter pour l'exprimer à celle qu'il tenait
de ses pères, et qu'une onction différente de l'onction royale manifestera dans
sa personne à tous les rois le chef du Saint-Empire, de l'empire romain
renouvelé, agrandi, sans autres bornes que celles du domaine assigné par Dieu
le Père en ce monde à son Fils incarné.
Car c'est bien l'empire illimité du Fils de Dieu né
de Marie, qui se dévoile ainsi dans sa plénitude admirable. Lui seul possède en
toute vérité, par droit de naissance et par droit de conquête, l'universalité
des nations (Psalm. II,8) ; lui seul peut déléguer, pour son Eglise et par
elle, une telle puissance aux rois. Qui nous dira la grandeur de ce jour où,
prosterné devant l'Enfant-Dieu, le plus grand prince qui fut jamais,
Charlemagne, vit ses gloires antérieures comme éclipsées par l'éclat du titre
inattendu qui l'instituait lieutenant du nouveau-né couché dans la crèche !
Près des restes du premier pape, crucifié par les ordres du césar Néron, Léon
III, de sa pleine autorité, reconstituait l'empire ; au nom de Pierre et sur sa
tombe, il renouait la chaîne brisée des Césars. Aux yeux des peuples désormais,
selon le langage consacré par l'usage des pontifes en leurs bulles, le pape et
l'empereur apparaîtront comme les deux astres dirigeant la marche du monde : le
pape, expression fidèle du Soleil de justice; l'empereur, tirant son éclat du
rayonnement que projette sur lui le pontificat suprême.
De parricides révoltes viendront trop souvent, dans
la suite, tourner contre l'Église le glaive qui devait la défendre ; mais elles
aussi montreront à leur manière que, de l'aveu de tous, la papauté est bien,
dans ces temps, la seule source de l'empire. On verra les tyrans de la
Germanie, rejetés comme indignes par le pontife romain, s'emparer violemment de
la ville éternelle et créer des antipapes dans le seul but de pouvoir, par ces
faux vicaires de l'Homme-Dieu, être armés soldats de saint Pierre sur le
tombeau du prince des Apôtres. Tant il est vrai que du Siège apostolique
relevait toute grandeur pour la société d'alors ! Les abus, les crimes, qui se
rencontrent partout dans l'histoire de l'humanité, ne doivent pas faire oublier
à des chrétiens que la valeur d'une époque et l'importance d'une institution se
mesurent, pour l'Eglise et pour Dieu, au progrès dont la vérité leur est
redevable. Alors même que l'Eglise souffrait de la violence des empereurs
intrus ou véritables, elle se réjouissait grandement de voir son Epoux glorifié
par la foi des nations reconnaissant qu'en lui résidait toute puissance.
Enfants de l'Église, jugeons du Saint-Empire comme l’a fait notre mère : il fut
la plus haute expression de l'influence et du pouvoir des papes; c'est dans
cette glorification du Christ en son vicaire que subsista durant mille ans la
chrétienté.
L'espace
nous manque pour rapporter ici, dans leur étendue, les magnificences de la
fonction liturgique consacrée durant le moyen âge à créer un empereur. Les Ordres romains qui nous en ont conservé le détail, sont pleins des
plus riches enseignements où se révèle avec clarté la pensée de l'Église.
Le futur
lieutenant du Christ, baisant les pieds du vicaire de l'Homme-Dieu, formulait d'abord sa profession : il « garantissait, promettait et jurait fidélité
à Dieu et au bienheureux Pierre,
s'engageant pour le reste de sa vie sur les saints Évangiles à la
protection et défense de l'Église romaine et de son chef en tous leurs besoins
ou intérêts, sans fraude ni mal engin, selon son pouvoir et sa science. »
Venait ensuite I'examen solennel de la foi et des mœurs de l'élu, presque
identique de tout point à celui qui précède au Pontifical la consécration des évêques. L'Eglise ayant
donc pris ses sûretés au sujet de celui qui devait être pour elle comme
l'évêque du dehors, alors seulement avait lieu I'ordination impériale. Pendant
que le Seigneur apostolique revêtait ses ornements pour la célébration des Mystères, deux cardinaux revêtaient lui-même l'empereur
élu de l'amict et de l'aube ; puis ils le présentaient au Pontife qui le faisait clerc, et lui
concédait pour la cérémonie de son couronnement l'usage de la tunique, de la
dalmatique et du pluvial avec la mitre et les chaussures pontificales.
L'onction du prince était réservée au cardinal évêque d'Ostie, consécrateur
attitré des empereurs et des papes. Mais le vicaire de Jésus-Christ remettait
lui-même au nouvel empereur I'anneau, sceau infrangible de sa foi; le glaive
représentant celui du Seigneur des armées, du Très-Puissant chanté dans le
psaume (Psalm. XL. IV, 4) ; le globe et le sceptre, images de l'universel
empire et de l'inflexible justice du Roi des rois ; la couronne enfin, signe de
la gloire que réservait dans les siècles des siècles à sa fidélité ce même Fils
de Dieu dont il était la figure. C'était pendant le Sacrifice qu'avait lieu la
tradition de ces augustes symboles. A l'Offertoire, l'empereur déposait le
pluvial et les insignes de sa dignité nouvelle; en simple dalmatique, il venait
à l'autel, et y remplissait près du pontife souverain l'office de sous-diacre,
comme serviteur de la sainte Eglise et premier représentant du peuple chrétien.
Plus tard, l'étole lui fut donnée; en 153o, au jour de son couronnement,
Charles-Quint assista Clément VII en qualité de diacre, présentant au pape la
patène et l'hostie et offrant le calice avec lui.
Le jour de Noël de Fan 800 ne vit pas se déployer
tous ces rites splendides, qui ne se complétèrent qu'avec les années et les
siècles. Léon III avait jusqu'au dernier moment tenu secret le projet grandiose
qu'il méditait en son cœur. Mais ce n'en fut pas moins un des instants les plus
solennels de l'histoire, que celui où Rome, à la vue de la couronne d'or posée
par son pontife au front d'un césar nouveau, fit retentir ses acclamations : «
A Charles, très pieux auguste couronné de Dieu, au grand et pacifique empereur
des Romains, vie et victoire! » Cette création d'un empire par la seule
puissance et volonté du pontife suprême, en un tel jour, et pour le seul
service des intérêts de l'Emmanuel, est bien le complément qu'attendait la
naissance du Fils de Dieu. Quand reviendra l'auguste solennité, rappelons-nous
l'œuvre de saint Léon III, et nous comprendrons mieux les touchantes antiennes
par lesquelles l'Église ouvre la fête : « Le Roi pacifique a fait paraître sa
grandeur ; il a montré sa gloire, ce Roi pacifique, au-dessus de tous les rois
de la terre entière. »
Nous
empruntons au Propre de la ville de Rome le récit de la vie du saint
Pape.
Léon,
troisième du nom, naquit à Rome et eut pour père Asuppius. Il fut élevé dès son
enfance dans les dépendances de l'Eglise patriarcale de Latran, et formé à
toutes les sciences divines et ecclésiastiques. Moine de saint Benoit, puis
prêtre cardinal, il fut enfin, d'un accord unanime, créé souverain pontife le
jour même de la mort d'Adrien, l'an sept cent quatre-vingt-quinze. Il occupa le
siège vénéré de saint Pierre vingt ans, cinq mois et dix-sept jours.
Il fut
dans le pontificat ce qu'il s'était montré avant son élévation, plein de
bienveillance et de douceur , adonné à Dieu, charitable au prochain, prudent
dans les affaires. Il fut le père des pauvres et des malades, le défenseur de
l'Église, le promoteur du culte divin. Pour Jésus-Christ et l'Eglise son zèle
entreprit les plus grandes choses, et sa patience supporta les dernières
extrémités.
Laissé à
demi-mort par des impies, les yeux crevés, couvert de blessures, il se trouva
guéri le lendemain par un insigne miracle ; ses prières obtinrent la vie aux
parricides auteurs de l'attentat. Il déféra à Charlemagne roi des Francs
l'Empire romain. Il construisit un vaste hospice pour les étrangers, et
consacra aux pauvres son patrimoine avec d'autres biens. Les basiliques de
Rome, surtout celle de Latran, dans le palais de laquelle il bâtit le
triclinium célèbre entre tous, ces édifices sacrés et d'autres encore, furent
comblés par lui de tant de richesses précieuses, qu'on peut à peine le croire.
Enfin il couronna sa vie si pieuse par une sainte mort, la veille des ides de
juin, l'an du Seigneur huit cent seize ; on l'ensevelit au Vatican.
Chargé par le lion de Juda d'achever sa victoire,
vous avez, ô Léon, constitué son règne, proclamé son empire. Les apôtres avaient
prêché, les martyrs versé leur sang, les confesseurs travaillé et souffert,
pour le grand jour où il vous fut donné de couronner ce travail de huit siècles
; maintenant, et par vous, l'Homme-Dieu domine au sommet de l'édifice social,
non seulement comme pontife en son vicaire, mais comme seigneur et roi dans son
lieutenant, le défenseur armé de la sainte Église, le chef civil de la
chrétienté. Votre oeuvre durera autant que le Père souverain laissera la gloire
de son Fils rayonner dans son plein éclat sur le monde. Après mille ans , quand
la divine lumière sera devenue trop forte pour leurs yeux lassés et souillés, les
hommes se détourneront de l'Église et renieront ses œuvres. Ils remplaceront
Dieu par eux-mêmes, la puissance du Christ par la souveraineté populaire, les
institutions nées du travail des siècles par l'instabilité de leurs chartes
improvisées, l'union du passé par l'isolement des peuples et l'anarchie dans
chaque nation ; dans ce siècle de ténèbres, ils nommeront lumières les utopies de
leur cerveau affolé, ils appelleront progrès le retour au néant. Le
Saint-Empire alors cessera d'être ; il ne sera plus, comme la chrétienté, qu'un
nom dans l'histoire. Mais l'histoire elle-même cessera bientôt ; car le monde
approchera du terme de ses destinées.
Votre gloire sera grande dans les siècles des
siècles, ô vous par qui l'éternelle Sagesse manifesta la grandeur de ses vues
merveilleuses. Docile instrument de l'Esprit-Saint pour la glorification de
notre Emmanuel, la fermeté n'eut d'égale en vous que la mansuétude ; et cette
humble douceur attira sur vous, dans son œuvre de conquête, les regards de l'Agneau
dominateur de la terre (ISAI. XVI, I). Comme lui, sous les coups de la
trahison, priant pour vos bourreaux, vous dûtes passer un jour par l'humiliation,
par le broiement et l'angoisse
de la mort ; mais c'est à cause de cela que vous furent données à distribuer
les dépouilles des forts (ISAI. LIII), et que, des siècles durant, la
volonté du Seigneur s'exécuta par votre conduite (Ibid. 10), selon le plan que vous aviez tracé.
Même en nos temps indignes de vous, bénissez la
terre. Fortifiez ceux que l'universelle apostasie n'a point encore ébranlés.
Que du moins leur foi reste pleinement acquise au Christ. Éloignez d'eux avant
tout la fatale erreur d'un libéralisme sans fondement dans l'Évangile et dans
l'histoire, et qui prétend rester chrétien en déniant au Fils de Dieu la
reconnaissance de sa principauté sur toute chair. Quelle insulte au Père !
quelle inintelligence de la divine Incarnation ! Mais, en même temps, quelle
indélicatesse peut inspirer à ces hommes, qui se disent dévoués au Seigneur, le
choix d'un tel moment pour formuler de pareils principes ? étrange réparation
au Cœur sacré pour la révolte des peuples ! Faites-leur comprendre, ô saint
pontife, que le salut n'est point en de mensongers compromis avec les rebelles
; que le temps est proche où s'imposera le règne de Dieu, où le soulèvement des
nations contre le Seigneur et contre son Christ tombera sous la moquerie de Celui
qui habite dans les cieux (Psalm. II). Personne alors ne contestera
plus l'origine du pouvoir. Heureux, en ce jour de la vengeance, quiconque aura
gardé au Roi le serment de son baptême (Psalm. LXII, 12) ! Comme le prophète de
Pathmos, ses fidèles le reconnaîtront facilement, quand le ciel s'ouvrira pour
lui livrer passage, lorsqu'il viendra écraser les nations ; car toutes les
couronnes du monde seront sur sa tête, et il portera écrit sur le vêtement de
son humanité : Roi des rois, et Seigneur des seigneurs (Apoc. XIX.).
Dom GUÉRANGER, L’Année liturgique.
LÉON III saint
(750-816) pape (795-816)
Romain de naissance, Léon III accéda au trône
pontifical malgré l'opposition de la famille de son prédécesseur, Adrien Ier (772-795), et nonobstant une vie personnelle
critiquable. En butte aux attaques de ses ennemis et accusé par eux de divers
crimes, il franchit les Alpes pour obtenir l'assistance de Charlemagne.
Celui-ci descendit en Italie, refusa de juger le pape — qui se justifia par un
serment d'innocence — et reçut à cette occasion des mains du pontife la
couronne impériale, le jour de Noël de l'an 800. Léon III fut ainsi
directement associé à cet événement considérable, qui lia pour longtemps
l'Église et l'Empire.
Par la suite, il entretint de fort bonnes relations avec
Charlemagne et eut à son égard une attitude déférente et soumise, encore qu'il
n'acceptât pas de suivre l'empereur dans sa position hostile à l'Orient
concernant la doctrine de la procession du Saint-Esprit (querelle du Filioque).
Il fit accomplir de nombreux travaux à Rome
et embellit notamment la Confession de saint Pierre.
À la mort de l'empereur, les ennemis du pape s'agitèrent à nouveau dans la
ville et lui reprochèrent divers méfaits. Il s'en justifia auprès du jeune roi
d'Italie, Bernard, délégué par Louis le Pieux. C'est seulement en 1673 que la
congrégation des Rites, à la suite d'une confusion, semble-t-il, inscrivit le
pape Léon III dans le calendrier des saints.
Marcel PACAUT, « LÉON III saint (750-816) - pape (795-816) », Encyclopædia Universalis [en ligne], consulté le 12 juin 2015. URL : http://www.universalis.fr/encyclopedie/leon-iii/
SOURCE : http://www.universalis.fr/encyclopedie/leon-iii/
Marcel PACAUT, « LÉON III saint (750-816) - pape (795-816) », Encyclopædia Universalis [en ligne], consulté le 12 juin 2015. URL : http://www.universalis.fr/encyclopedie/leon-iii/
SOURCE : http://www.universalis.fr/encyclopedie/leon-iii/
Leo III, Pope (RM)
Born in Rome, Italy; died June 12, 816; canonized 1673.
Son of Atypius and
Elizabeth, Leo was chief of the pontifical treasury or wardrobe (vestiarius)
and a cardinal-priest of Santa Susanna when he was elected pope on the day his
predecessor, Hadrian I, was buried, December 26, 795. Hadrian's two nephews
both hoped to be made pope themselves. In 799, they incited a gang of young
nobles to attack Leo. On Saint Mark's day Leo was riding in a procession when
these roughs dragged him from his horse, tried to cut out his tongue and
attempted to blind him. Leo escaped to the monastery of Saint Erasmus with the
help of the duke of Spoleto. There he recovered quickly, miraculously according
to some.
Leo enlisted the help of
the most powerful layman of the age, Charlemagne, who was at Paderborn.
Charlemagne provided troops a few months later to guard the pope as he
journeyed from Paderborn back to Rome, where he entered the city amid
rejoicing.
His enemies, however, did
not rest. They accused Leo of perjury and adultery. In 800, Charlemagne came to
Rome and appointed learned commissioners to examine whether any fault in Leo
could account for the attacks made on him. The convened synod found none. Leo
took an oath that he was innocent of any of the charges before the assembled
bishops.
On Christmas Day Leo
crowned Charlemagne as Holy Roman Emperor in Saint Peter's Basilica. This was
the beginning of the Holy Roman Empire, an attempt to realize Saint Augustine's
ideal of the City of God, which profoundly affected European history for many
centuries. On this alliance was founded the unity of medieval Christendom; but
opinions vary about the precise significance of the coronation and whether pope
or emperor gained most from it in authority and protection. Nevertheless, Leo
and the emperor now worked side by side to resolve quarrels throughout the Holy
Roman Empire, and to combat the spread of Islam.
In 804, Leo visited the
emperor and came to an agreement with him about the division of the empire
among Charlemagne's sons. Leo formally agreed to it two years later. With
Charlemagne's help Adoptionism was fought in Spain, but when Charlemagne wanted
the expression Filioque ("and the Son") added to the Nicene Creed,
Leo refused, in part because he would not permit secular interference in
ecclesiastical affairs, and in part because he did not wish to offend the
Byzantine Church.
Generally, the two acted in
concert. They settled the dispute between Canterbury and York (see under Saint
Wilfrid). In the quarrel between Archbishop Wilfrid and King Cenulf of Mercia,
Leo intervened, suspended the archbishop, and put the kingdom under interdict.
After the death of Offa, who had requested that Pope Hadrian create a
metropolitan at Lichfield, Leo restored Canterbury to its former status in 803.
At the suggestion of
Charlemagne, Leo also created a fleet to combat the Saracens, recovered some of
the Church's patrimony in Gaeta with the emperor's help, and was the
beneficiary of much treasure from him. Charlemagne's bounty permitted Leo to
restore many churches both in Rome and Ravenna, help the poor, and patronize
the arts.
When Charlemagne died in
814 and Leo's protection was gone, his enemies again rose against him. He
crushed one conspiracy by executing the ringleader, and another revolt by the
nobles of Campagna, who planned to march on Rome, was suppressed by the duke of
Spoleto. The saint died two years after his great ally, Charlemagne (Attwater,
Benedictines, Bentley, Delaney, Encyclopedia, Farmer).
Pope
Saint Leo is generally depicted in art as he crowns Charlemagne [Grandes
Chroniques de France, 14th century) (Roeder). A restored, near-contemporary
mosaic survives in the Lateran depicting Saint Peter giving the pallium to Leo
and a standard to Charlemagne (Farmer). Another image from the Grandes
Chroniques de France illustrates the Torture of Leo III.
Pope St. Leo III
Date of birth unknown; died
816. He was elected on the very
day his predecessor was buried
(26 Dec., 795), and consecrated on the following day. It is quite
possible that this haste may have been due to a desire on the part of the Romans
to anticipate any interference of the Franks with their freedom of election.
Leo was a Roman,
the son of Atyuppius and Elizabeth.
At the time of his election he
was Cardinal-Priest of St.
Susanna, and seemingly also vestiarius, or chief of the pontifical
treasury, or wardrobe. With the letter informing Charlemagne that he had been unanimously elected
pope, Leo
sent him the keys of the confession
of St. Peter, and the standard
of the city. This he did to show that he regarded the Frankish king as the protector of the Holy See. In return he received from Charlemagne letters of congratulation and a great part of the
treasure which the king had captured from the Avars. The acquisition of this wealth
was one of the causes which
enabled Leo to be such a great
benefactor to the churches and charitable institutions of Rome.
Prompted by jealousy or ambition, or by feelings of hatred and revenge, a number of the relatives of Pope Adrian I formed a plot to render Leo unfit to hold his sacred office. On the occasion of the procession of the Greater Litanies (25 April, 799), when the pope was making his way towards the Flaminian Gate, he was suddenly attacked by a body of armed men. He was dashed to the ground, and an effort was made to root out his tongue and tear out his eyes. After he had been left for a time bleeding in the street, he was hurried off at night to the monastery of St. Erasmus on the Cœlian. There, in what seemed quite a miraculous manner, he recovered the full use of his eyes and tongue. Escaping from the monastery, he betook himself to Charlemagne, accompanied by many of the Romans. He was received by the Frankish king with the greatest honour at Paderborn, although his enemies had filled the king's ears with malicious accusations against him. After a few months' stay in Germany, the Frankish monarch caused him to be escorted back to Rome, where he was received with every demonstration of joy by the whole populace, natives and foreigners. The pope's enemies were then tried by Charlemagne's envoys and, being unable to establish either Leo's guilt or their own innocence, were sent as prisoners to France (Frankland). In the following year (800) Charlemagne himself came to Rome, and the pope and his accusers were brought face to face. The assembled bishops declared that they had no right to judge the pope; but Leo of his own free will, in order, as he said, to dissipate any suspicions in men's minds, declared on oath that he was wholly guiltless of the charges which had been brought against him. At his special request the death sentence which had been passed upon his principal enemies was commuted into a sentence of exile.
A few days later, Leo and Charlemagne again met. It was on Christmas Day in St. Peter's. After the Gospel had been sung, the pope approached Charlemagne, who was kneeling before the Confession of St. Peter, and placed a crown upon his head. The assembled multitude at once made the basilica ring with the shout: "To Charles, the most pious Augustus, crowned by God, to our great and pacific emperor life and victory!" By this act was revived the Empire in the West, and, in theory, at least, the world was declared by the Church subject to one temporal head, as Christ had made it subject to one spiritual head. It was understood that the first duty of the new emperor was to be the protector of the Roman Church and of Christendom against the heathen. With a view to combining the East and West under the effective rule of Charlemagne, Leo strove to further the project of a marriage between him and the Eastern empress Irene. Her deposition, however (801), prevented the realization of this excellent plan. Some three years after the departure of Charlemagne from Rome (801), Leo again crossed the Alps to see him (804). According to some he went to discuss with the emperor the division of his territories between his sons. At any rate, two years later, he was invited to give his assent to the emperor's provisions for the said partition. Equally while acting in harmony with the pope, Charlemagne combatted the heresy of Adoptionism which had arisen in Spain; but he went somewhat further than his spiritual guide when he wished to bring about the general insertion of the Filioque in the Nicene Creed. The two were, however, acting together when Salzburg was made the metropolitical city for Bavaria, and when Fortunatus of Grado was compensated for the loss of his see of Grado by the gift of that of Pola. The joint action of the pope and the emperor was felt even in England. Through it Eardulf of Northumbria recovered his kingdom, and the dispute between Eanbald, Archbishop of York, and Wulfred, Archbishop of Canterbury, was regulated.
Leo had, however, many relations with England solely on his own account. By his command the synod of Beccanceld (or Clovesho, 803), condemned the appointing of laymen as superiors of monasteries. In accordance with the wishes of Ethelheard, Archbishop of Canterbury, Leo excommunicated Eadbert Praen for seizing the throne of Kent, and withdrew the pallium which had been granted to Litchfield, authorizing the restoration of the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the See of Canterbury "just as St. Gregory the Apostle and Master of the nation of the English had arranged it". Leo was also called upon to intervene in the quarrels between Archbishop Wulfred and Cenulf, King of Mercia. Very little is known of the real causes of the misunderstandings between them, but, whoever was the more to blame, the archbishop seems to have had the more to suffer. The king appears to have induced the pope to suspend him from the exercise of his episcopal functions, and to keep the kingdom under a kind of interdict for a period of six years. Till the hour of his death (822), greed of gold caused Cenulf to continue his persecution of the archbishop. It also caused him to persecute the monastery of Abingdon, and it was not until he had received from its abbot a large sum of money that, acting, as he declared, at the request of "the lord Apostolic and most glorious Pope Leo", he decreed the inviolability of the monastery.
During the pontificate of Leo, the Church of Constantinople was in a state of unrest. The monks, who at this period were flourishing under the guidance of such men as St. Theodore the Studite, were suspicious of what they conceived to be the lax principles of their patriarch Tarasius, and were in vigorous opposition to the evil conduct of their emperor Constantine VI. To be free to marry Theodota, their sovereign had divorced his wife Maria. Though Tarasius condemned the conduct of Constantine, still, to avoid greater evils, he refused, to the profound disgust of the monks, to excommunicate him. For their condemnation of his new marriage Constantine punished the monks with imprisonment and exile. In their distress the monks turned for help to Leo, as they did when they were maltreated for opposing the arbitrary reinstatement of the priest whom Tarasius had degraded for marrying Constantine to Theodota. The pope replied, not merely with words of praise and encouragement, but also by the dispatch of rich presents; and, after Michael I came to the Byzantine throne, he ratified the treaty between him and Charlemagne which was to secure peace for East and West.
Not only in the last mentioned transaction, but in all matters of importance, did the pope and the Frankish emperor act in concert. It was on Charlemagne's advice that, to ward off the savage raids of the Saracens, Leo maintained a fleet, and caused his coast line to be regularly patrolled by his ships of war. But because he did not feel competent to keep the Moslem pirates out of Corsica, he entrusted the guarding of it to the emperor. Supported by Charlemagne, he was able to recover some of the patrimonies of the Roman Church in the neighbourhood of Gaeta, and again to administer them through his rectors. But when the great emperor died (28 Jan., 814), evil times once more broke on Leo. Af fresh conspiracy was formed against him, but on this occasion the pope was apprised of it before it came to a head. He caused the chief conspirators to be seized and executed. No sooner had this plot been crushed than a number of nobles of the Campagna rose in arms and plundered the country. They were preparing to march on Rome itself, when they were overpowered by the Duke of Spoleto, acting under the orders of the King of Italy (Langobardia). The large sums of money which Charlemagne gave to the papal treasury enabled Leo to become an efficient helper of the poor and a patron of art, and to renovate the churches, not only of Rome, but even of Ravenna. He employed the imperishable art of mosaic not merely to portray the political relationship between Charlemagne and himself, but chiefly to decorate the churches, especially his titular church of St. Susanna. Up to the end of the sixteenth century a figure of Leo in mosaic was to be seen in that ancient church.
Leo III was buried in St. Peter's (12 June, 816), where his relics are to be found along with those of Sts. Leo I, Leo II, and Leo IV. He was canonized in 1673. The silver denarii of Leo III still extant bear the name of the Frankish emperor upon them as well as that of Leo, showing thereby the emperor as the protector of the Church, and overlord of the city of Rome.
Prompted by jealousy or ambition, or by feelings of hatred and revenge, a number of the relatives of Pope Adrian I formed a plot to render Leo unfit to hold his sacred office. On the occasion of the procession of the Greater Litanies (25 April, 799), when the pope was making his way towards the Flaminian Gate, he was suddenly attacked by a body of armed men. He was dashed to the ground, and an effort was made to root out his tongue and tear out his eyes. After he had been left for a time bleeding in the street, he was hurried off at night to the monastery of St. Erasmus on the Cœlian. There, in what seemed quite a miraculous manner, he recovered the full use of his eyes and tongue. Escaping from the monastery, he betook himself to Charlemagne, accompanied by many of the Romans. He was received by the Frankish king with the greatest honour at Paderborn, although his enemies had filled the king's ears with malicious accusations against him. After a few months' stay in Germany, the Frankish monarch caused him to be escorted back to Rome, where he was received with every demonstration of joy by the whole populace, natives and foreigners. The pope's enemies were then tried by Charlemagne's envoys and, being unable to establish either Leo's guilt or their own innocence, were sent as prisoners to France (Frankland). In the following year (800) Charlemagne himself came to Rome, and the pope and his accusers were brought face to face. The assembled bishops declared that they had no right to judge the pope; but Leo of his own free will, in order, as he said, to dissipate any suspicions in men's minds, declared on oath that he was wholly guiltless of the charges which had been brought against him. At his special request the death sentence which had been passed upon his principal enemies was commuted into a sentence of exile.
A few days later, Leo and Charlemagne again met. It was on Christmas Day in St. Peter's. After the Gospel had been sung, the pope approached Charlemagne, who was kneeling before the Confession of St. Peter, and placed a crown upon his head. The assembled multitude at once made the basilica ring with the shout: "To Charles, the most pious Augustus, crowned by God, to our great and pacific emperor life and victory!" By this act was revived the Empire in the West, and, in theory, at least, the world was declared by the Church subject to one temporal head, as Christ had made it subject to one spiritual head. It was understood that the first duty of the new emperor was to be the protector of the Roman Church and of Christendom against the heathen. With a view to combining the East and West under the effective rule of Charlemagne, Leo strove to further the project of a marriage between him and the Eastern empress Irene. Her deposition, however (801), prevented the realization of this excellent plan. Some three years after the departure of Charlemagne from Rome (801), Leo again crossed the Alps to see him (804). According to some he went to discuss with the emperor the division of his territories between his sons. At any rate, two years later, he was invited to give his assent to the emperor's provisions for the said partition. Equally while acting in harmony with the pope, Charlemagne combatted the heresy of Adoptionism which had arisen in Spain; but he went somewhat further than his spiritual guide when he wished to bring about the general insertion of the Filioque in the Nicene Creed. The two were, however, acting together when Salzburg was made the metropolitical city for Bavaria, and when Fortunatus of Grado was compensated for the loss of his see of Grado by the gift of that of Pola. The joint action of the pope and the emperor was felt even in England. Through it Eardulf of Northumbria recovered his kingdom, and the dispute between Eanbald, Archbishop of York, and Wulfred, Archbishop of Canterbury, was regulated.
Leo had, however, many relations with England solely on his own account. By his command the synod of Beccanceld (or Clovesho, 803), condemned the appointing of laymen as superiors of monasteries. In accordance with the wishes of Ethelheard, Archbishop of Canterbury, Leo excommunicated Eadbert Praen for seizing the throne of Kent, and withdrew the pallium which had been granted to Litchfield, authorizing the restoration of the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the See of Canterbury "just as St. Gregory the Apostle and Master of the nation of the English had arranged it". Leo was also called upon to intervene in the quarrels between Archbishop Wulfred and Cenulf, King of Mercia. Very little is known of the real causes of the misunderstandings between them, but, whoever was the more to blame, the archbishop seems to have had the more to suffer. The king appears to have induced the pope to suspend him from the exercise of his episcopal functions, and to keep the kingdom under a kind of interdict for a period of six years. Till the hour of his death (822), greed of gold caused Cenulf to continue his persecution of the archbishop. It also caused him to persecute the monastery of Abingdon, and it was not until he had received from its abbot a large sum of money that, acting, as he declared, at the request of "the lord Apostolic and most glorious Pope Leo", he decreed the inviolability of the monastery.
During the pontificate of Leo, the Church of Constantinople was in a state of unrest. The monks, who at this period were flourishing under the guidance of such men as St. Theodore the Studite, were suspicious of what they conceived to be the lax principles of their patriarch Tarasius, and were in vigorous opposition to the evil conduct of their emperor Constantine VI. To be free to marry Theodota, their sovereign had divorced his wife Maria. Though Tarasius condemned the conduct of Constantine, still, to avoid greater evils, he refused, to the profound disgust of the monks, to excommunicate him. For their condemnation of his new marriage Constantine punished the monks with imprisonment and exile. In their distress the monks turned for help to Leo, as they did when they were maltreated for opposing the arbitrary reinstatement of the priest whom Tarasius had degraded for marrying Constantine to Theodota. The pope replied, not merely with words of praise and encouragement, but also by the dispatch of rich presents; and, after Michael I came to the Byzantine throne, he ratified the treaty between him and Charlemagne which was to secure peace for East and West.
Not only in the last mentioned transaction, but in all matters of importance, did the pope and the Frankish emperor act in concert. It was on Charlemagne's advice that, to ward off the savage raids of the Saracens, Leo maintained a fleet, and caused his coast line to be regularly patrolled by his ships of war. But because he did not feel competent to keep the Moslem pirates out of Corsica, he entrusted the guarding of it to the emperor. Supported by Charlemagne, he was able to recover some of the patrimonies of the Roman Church in the neighbourhood of Gaeta, and again to administer them through his rectors. But when the great emperor died (28 Jan., 814), evil times once more broke on Leo. Af fresh conspiracy was formed against him, but on this occasion the pope was apprised of it before it came to a head. He caused the chief conspirators to be seized and executed. No sooner had this plot been crushed than a number of nobles of the Campagna rose in arms and plundered the country. They were preparing to march on Rome itself, when they were overpowered by the Duke of Spoleto, acting under the orders of the King of Italy (Langobardia). The large sums of money which Charlemagne gave to the papal treasury enabled Leo to become an efficient helper of the poor and a patron of art, and to renovate the churches, not only of Rome, but even of Ravenna. He employed the imperishable art of mosaic not merely to portray the political relationship between Charlemagne and himself, but chiefly to decorate the churches, especially his titular church of St. Susanna. Up to the end of the sixteenth century a figure of Leo in mosaic was to be seen in that ancient church.
Leo III was buried in St. Peter's (12 June, 816), where his relics are to be found along with those of Sts. Leo I, Leo II, and Leo IV. He was canonized in 1673. The silver denarii of Leo III still extant bear the name of the Frankish emperor upon them as well as that of Leo, showing thereby the emperor as the protector of the Church, and overlord of the city of Rome.
Sources
Liber
Pontificalis, ed. DUCHESNE, II (Paris, 1892), 1 sqq.; Codex Carolinus,
ed. JAFFÉ (Berlin, 1867); Annales Einhardi (so called) and other Chronicles,
in Mon. Germ.: Script., I; Carmen de Carolo Magno, in P.L.,
XCVIII. Cf. BRYCE, The Holy Roman Empire (London, 1889A); KLEINKLAUSZ, L'Empire
Carolingien (Paris, 1902); HODGKIN, Italy and her Invaders, VIII
(Oxford, 1899); BÖHMER, Regesta Imperii, ed. MÜHLBACHER, I (Innsbruck,
1908); MANN, The Lives of the Popes in the Early Middle Ages, II
(London, 1906), 1 sqq.
Mann, Horace. "Pope St. Leo III." The Catholic Encyclopedia.
Vol. 9. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 12 Jun. 2015
<http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/09157b.htm>.
SOURCE : http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/09157b.htm
ST. LEO III, POPE
(December 26, 795 - June 12, 816)
Leo came
from a modest family in southern Italy. He was elected to the office of St.
Peter unanimously by the clergy of Rome following the death of Pope Hadrian.
The papacy had dramatically changed over the 8th century,
and many Pope's had separated themselves from the protection the
Byzantine emperors and their governors in Ravenna. Pope Stephen II had, in 754,
sought the support of the Frankish king Pepin to defeat the invading Lombards.
The pope would receive from Pepin the lands formally conquered by the Lombards,
therefore creating the Papal States. The Lombards remained, and Leo soon found
that he had other enemies within Rome, many of the aristocratic families of the
city including relatives of the late Pope Hadrian who accused the pope of
perjury and adultery.
On April
25, 799, Leo was attacked while riding in a procession by a gang who sought to
cut out his eyes and tongue. While Leo survived the attack, he was arrested by
his enemies, deposed as pope and imprisoned in a monastery. Leo managed to escape
north to the Franks, who refused to accept the deposition. Leo was escorted
back to Rome where the Franks began an investigation both of the charges
against the pope and the attack upon his person. The emperor Charlemagne
arrived in Rome in November 800 to review the charges in solemn council. The
emperor stated that no one on earth could judge the Apostolic See, but he
accepted the pope's statement of innocence after Leo took an oath purging
himself of all charges on December 23rd.
At
Christmas mass at St. Peters some two days later, Leo crowned Charlemagne as
Holy Roman Emperor, giving Charlemagne equal status with the Byzantine emperors
in Constantinople. This relationship provided protection for the Holy See and
allowed Leo to administer the Papal States, bestowed several decades earlier by
Pepin. However Charlemagne extracted a high price for his support, often
interfering in the work of the church and expecting Leo's tacit approval in all
things. Leo began a building program in Rome, restoring and embellishing
churches. A great apse was added to Santa Susanna and a magnificent Byzantine
mosaic was installed in the apse, depicting both Leo and Charlemagne. Leo died
on June 12, 816 and was buried in the old Constantinian basilica of St. Peter.
Leo is listed as a saint based on the miracle of his restored eyes and tongue,
following the attack on his person in 799, his feast day is June 12.
SOURCE : http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint.php?n=268
Romano, il 25 dicembre dell' 800, in San Pietro, incoronò e consacrò Carlo
Magno imperatore. Nell'809, fece introdurre nel Credo la formula: "qui ex
Patre Filioque procedit", relativa alla Spirito Santo.
Leone III dopo la consacrazione avvenuta il 27 dicembre 795, comunicò a Carlo Magno la morte del suo predecessore Adriano I e quindi la sua consacrazione, gli mandò il vessillo della città di Roma, in segno di ossequio e le chiavi della Confessione di S. Pietro con l’invito a mandare un suo rappresentante alla cerimonia del giuramento di fedeltà del popolo romano.
Dovette occuparsi della questione dell’adozionismo teoria sostenuta principalmente dai vescovi spagnoli Felice di Urgel e Elipando di Toledo, questi dicevano che Gesù Cristo come uomo non era il vero Figlio di Dio, ma soltanto suo figlio adottivo.
La questione, già discussa sotto il pontificato del predecessore Adriano I, finì per essere condannata nei sinodi di Ratisbona del 792 e Francoforte del 794, ma Felice volendo discolparsi, si appellò a Carlo Magno, l’intervento del re fece sì che il papa convocasse nell’autunno 798 un sinodo a Roma, in cui fu confermata la condanna delle tesi di Felice.
Carlo Magno allora invitò il vescovo alla sua corte di Aquisgrana dove lo confrontò con il grande erudito Alcuino, disputa che durò sei giorni, alla fine dei quali il vescovo Felice riconobbe l’errore, il re comunque gli tolse l’incarico e lo affidò alla sorveglianza dell’arcivescovo di Lione; essendo ottantenne l’altro vescovo sostenitore dell’eresia, questa decadde per mancanza di altri sostenitori.
Altra questione che interessò il suo pontificato, fu quella del Filioque che vedeva in contrapposizione le due Chiese di Oriente ed Occidente. Nel simbolo o credo Niceno-Costantinopolitano, c’è riguardo la progressione dello Spirito Santo, l’espressione “qui ex Patre procedit”, cioè che procede dal Padre. In Occidente però dal 589 in poi, dal concilio di Toledo, si usava aggiungere la parola Filioque, cioè che lo Spirito Santo procede non solo dal Padre ma anche dal Figlio, così da poter precisare l’uguaglianza e la stessa sostanza delle tre persone della SS. Trinità.
Giacché in Occidente, a partire dalla Spagna, si cominciò a recitare il credo durante le celebrazioni eucaristiche, questa versione con il Filioque divenne comune a tutti i fedeli; questo si trasformò in oggetto di discordia fra Greci e Latini, provocando da ambo le parti accuse di mancanza di ortodossia, prendendo gli Atti del Concilio di Nicea come argomento interpretativo della questione.
Verso l’807 dopo un periodo di acquiescenza, il contrasto scoppiò di nuovo, questa volta a Gerusalemme fra i monaci greci e quelli latini; il papa riaffermò il principio della progressione dello Spirito Santo dal Padre e dal Figlio e giacché i monaci latini erano dei franchi, rimise la questione a Carlo Magno, il quale convocò il sinodo di Aquisgrana dell’809 dove dopo ampia discussione, fu approvata l’aggiunta del Filioque al credo; papa Leone III approvò la deliberazione, ma volendo essere il padre di tutti, orientali ed occidentali, non ritenne opportuno farne un obbligo per i Greci.
Papa Leone ebbe già dai primi anni del suo pontificato parecchie avversità, in particolare dai parenti del defunto papa Adriano I, che li aveva favoriti in importanti incarichi ed uffici, quindi fomentarono un odio contro di lui che non poteva continuare a favorirli, fino al punto da organizzare un vero e proprio attentato.
Il 25 aprile 799 mentre il papa si recava a cavallo dal Laterano a S. Lorenzo in Lucina per delle funzioni, fu assalito improvvisamente da alcuni uomini armati che lo tirarono giù da cavallo e presero a maltrattarlo, cercando di accecarlo e tagliargli la lingua; il papa cercò rifugio nella vicina chiesa, dove lo inseguirono gli assalitori; in serata fu portato prigioniero al monastero di S. Erasmo al Celio, dove poi i fedeli riuscirono a liberarlo e a riportarlo a S. Pietro; in seguito fu soccorso dal duca di Spoleto, Guinigi che lo condusse in salvo nella sua città.
Papa Leone III chiese l’intervento di Carlo Magno a cui si erano appellati anche gli avversari; ne seguì un processo durante il quale, il pontefice giurò solennemente di non essere colpevole dei crimini che gli venivano imputati. Il re presente a Roma, due giorni dopo, ricevé il 25 dicembre 800 dalle mani del papa, la corona del Sacro Romano Impero; divenuto così anche imperatore, egli poté pronunziare la sentenza di morte per questi romani attentatori, che poi per l’intervento del papa fu commutata con l’esilio in Francia.
I contrasti fra alcune famiglie patrizie romane contro il papa, continuarono anche dopo la morte di Carlo Magno (814), un nuovo complotto si stava organizzando, ma furono scoperti e accusati di lesa maestà e condannati a morte; il papa agì di sua propria autorità senza ricorrere al successore dell’imperatore, Ludovico, dimostrando una severità che poco si addiceva al capo spirituale della cristianità.
In ogni modo gli studiosi, pur comprendendo gli odi, i rancori, le ostilità che imperavano in quel tempo, non danno una visione benevola della sua autorità, in quanto le accuse contro di lui, sorte all’inizio del suo pontificato, si intensificarono durante i 20 anni del suo governo, fino a richiedere un pubblico giuramento; qualcosa non andava se gli animi invece di rappacificarsi si istigavano sempre più.
Fondò la Scuola Palatina da cui derivò l’Università di Parigi.
Morì il 12 giugno 816 e fu sepolto in S. Pietro. La Sacra Congregazione dei Riti nel 1673, inserì il suo nome nel Martirologio Romano al 12 giugno, ma bisogna dire che nella revisione del 1963 la sua festa è stata eliminata.
Autore: Antonio Borrelli
San Leone III
Papa
Nato a Roma - Roma, 12
giugno 816
(Papa dal 27/12/795 al 12/06/816)
Martirologio Romano: A Roma presso san Pietro, san Leone III, papa, che
conferì a Carlo Magno, re dei Franchi, la corona del Romano Impero e si adoperò
con ogni mezzo per difendere la retta fede e la dignità divina del Figlio di
Dio.
Nativo di
Roma, fu il primo papa ad essere eletto alla dignità pontificia, dopo che il
regno dei Franchi prese ad esercitare sul nuovo stato ecclesiastico, una forma
di protezione che garantiva la sicurezza interna ed esterna, mentre il papa
assumeva la figura di gran sacerdote, che prega per il popolo cristiano,
affinché abbia sempre vittoria su tutti i nemici di Dio.
Leone III dopo la consacrazione avvenuta il 27 dicembre 795, comunicò a Carlo Magno la morte del suo predecessore Adriano I e quindi la sua consacrazione, gli mandò il vessillo della città di Roma, in segno di ossequio e le chiavi della Confessione di S. Pietro con l’invito a mandare un suo rappresentante alla cerimonia del giuramento di fedeltà del popolo romano.
Dovette occuparsi della questione dell’adozionismo teoria sostenuta principalmente dai vescovi spagnoli Felice di Urgel e Elipando di Toledo, questi dicevano che Gesù Cristo come uomo non era il vero Figlio di Dio, ma soltanto suo figlio adottivo.
La questione, già discussa sotto il pontificato del predecessore Adriano I, finì per essere condannata nei sinodi di Ratisbona del 792 e Francoforte del 794, ma Felice volendo discolparsi, si appellò a Carlo Magno, l’intervento del re fece sì che il papa convocasse nell’autunno 798 un sinodo a Roma, in cui fu confermata la condanna delle tesi di Felice.
Carlo Magno allora invitò il vescovo alla sua corte di Aquisgrana dove lo confrontò con il grande erudito Alcuino, disputa che durò sei giorni, alla fine dei quali il vescovo Felice riconobbe l’errore, il re comunque gli tolse l’incarico e lo affidò alla sorveglianza dell’arcivescovo di Lione; essendo ottantenne l’altro vescovo sostenitore dell’eresia, questa decadde per mancanza di altri sostenitori.
Altra questione che interessò il suo pontificato, fu quella del Filioque che vedeva in contrapposizione le due Chiese di Oriente ed Occidente. Nel simbolo o credo Niceno-Costantinopolitano, c’è riguardo la progressione dello Spirito Santo, l’espressione “qui ex Patre procedit”, cioè che procede dal Padre. In Occidente però dal 589 in poi, dal concilio di Toledo, si usava aggiungere la parola Filioque, cioè che lo Spirito Santo procede non solo dal Padre ma anche dal Figlio, così da poter precisare l’uguaglianza e la stessa sostanza delle tre persone della SS. Trinità.
Giacché in Occidente, a partire dalla Spagna, si cominciò a recitare il credo durante le celebrazioni eucaristiche, questa versione con il Filioque divenne comune a tutti i fedeli; questo si trasformò in oggetto di discordia fra Greci e Latini, provocando da ambo le parti accuse di mancanza di ortodossia, prendendo gli Atti del Concilio di Nicea come argomento interpretativo della questione.
Verso l’807 dopo un periodo di acquiescenza, il contrasto scoppiò di nuovo, questa volta a Gerusalemme fra i monaci greci e quelli latini; il papa riaffermò il principio della progressione dello Spirito Santo dal Padre e dal Figlio e giacché i monaci latini erano dei franchi, rimise la questione a Carlo Magno, il quale convocò il sinodo di Aquisgrana dell’809 dove dopo ampia discussione, fu approvata l’aggiunta del Filioque al credo; papa Leone III approvò la deliberazione, ma volendo essere il padre di tutti, orientali ed occidentali, non ritenne opportuno farne un obbligo per i Greci.
Papa Leone ebbe già dai primi anni del suo pontificato parecchie avversità, in particolare dai parenti del defunto papa Adriano I, che li aveva favoriti in importanti incarichi ed uffici, quindi fomentarono un odio contro di lui che non poteva continuare a favorirli, fino al punto da organizzare un vero e proprio attentato.
Il 25 aprile 799 mentre il papa si recava a cavallo dal Laterano a S. Lorenzo in Lucina per delle funzioni, fu assalito improvvisamente da alcuni uomini armati che lo tirarono giù da cavallo e presero a maltrattarlo, cercando di accecarlo e tagliargli la lingua; il papa cercò rifugio nella vicina chiesa, dove lo inseguirono gli assalitori; in serata fu portato prigioniero al monastero di S. Erasmo al Celio, dove poi i fedeli riuscirono a liberarlo e a riportarlo a S. Pietro; in seguito fu soccorso dal duca di Spoleto, Guinigi che lo condusse in salvo nella sua città.
Papa Leone III chiese l’intervento di Carlo Magno a cui si erano appellati anche gli avversari; ne seguì un processo durante il quale, il pontefice giurò solennemente di non essere colpevole dei crimini che gli venivano imputati. Il re presente a Roma, due giorni dopo, ricevé il 25 dicembre 800 dalle mani del papa, la corona del Sacro Romano Impero; divenuto così anche imperatore, egli poté pronunziare la sentenza di morte per questi romani attentatori, che poi per l’intervento del papa fu commutata con l’esilio in Francia.
I contrasti fra alcune famiglie patrizie romane contro il papa, continuarono anche dopo la morte di Carlo Magno (814), un nuovo complotto si stava organizzando, ma furono scoperti e accusati di lesa maestà e condannati a morte; il papa agì di sua propria autorità senza ricorrere al successore dell’imperatore, Ludovico, dimostrando una severità che poco si addiceva al capo spirituale della cristianità.
In ogni modo gli studiosi, pur comprendendo gli odi, i rancori, le ostilità che imperavano in quel tempo, non danno una visione benevola della sua autorità, in quanto le accuse contro di lui, sorte all’inizio del suo pontificato, si intensificarono durante i 20 anni del suo governo, fino a richiedere un pubblico giuramento; qualcosa non andava se gli animi invece di rappacificarsi si istigavano sempre più.
Fondò la Scuola Palatina da cui derivò l’Università di Parigi.
Morì il 12 giugno 816 e fu sepolto in S. Pietro. La Sacra Congregazione dei Riti nel 1673, inserì il suo nome nel Martirologio Romano al 12 giugno, ma bisogna dire che nella revisione del 1963 la sua festa è stata eliminata.
Autore: Antonio Borrelli
