Georgius Pachymeres, Chronicle II

he persuaded. And indeed on many occasions the emperor, sending both the quaestor Choumnos of that time and the writer together, commanded them to say and request the same things from him. For he was tyrannized by his love for him to the extent of overlooking the church being so agitated, and of yielding nothing to those against him, so as even to proclaim something more than was fit 127 ting, but to persuade them to consider him orthodox and to be ready to make a treaty once the scandal had been removed; and this would certainly happen, if he would resign peacefully. These things the emperor said, having already grown weary of the scandal of the many. But he, hearing this then, was greatly distressed, if indeed they had openly ridiculed him for heresy, but secretly accepted him as being orthodox. For this reason he sought that this confession be made by them jointly, with the state gathered together with the senate and the emperor, with not even the select monks being absent.

8. As he was seeking these things on the understanding that he would immediately offer his resignation, there was a very great debate, and a great schism arose among those who were seceding from him, some not even tolerating to confess him to be orthodox, on the grounds that if they should confess, they would immediately install him on the throne even against their will, and with the cause removed, he would 128 henceforth have the power both to rebuke them for their wrongdoing and to lay claim to his office. And these were the party of the bishop of Ephesus and the bishop of Cyzicus, who indeed said that Gregory should rather be judged, and that they would accept the outcome, and not compound the evil, nor say one thing while concealing another, for the sake of oikonomia. But of those who, by way of oikonomia, inclined to confess Gregory as pious, as they were not so much scandalized by the Tomos as by the letter of the monk Mark, they demanded only that he be ready to provide the bill of resignation. And they wished, if it were possible, to assure Gregory of this also by letters. But when the emperor sent word, he gave his assurance verbally, in the presence of God, as he said, that they had only to confess his piety, and he would give the document of resignation. So then, the party of the bishop of Ephesus neither accepted the proposal at all, nor did they judge the matter to be seemly; but the party of the bishop of Philadelphia held the statement very much as an oath, as being said in the presence of God, and they affirmed that even if 129 he should change his mind, they would from that point have the power to depose him as one convicted of perjury. So when the party of the bishops of Ephesus and Cyzicus did not accept that communion at all, but wished to judge the one whom they said they knew to be convicted, the emperor, speaking to them and not persuading them, since he saw the prey being scared off because the pretexts did not cease at all, one night, having called them together and having discussed not a little concerning the matters at hand, finally grew angry at their not being persuaded, reproaching them for their harshness and lack of oikonomia, as desiring always to disturb the church and to stir up waves that had not yet been completely calmed. And he banished both of them from his presence, having sternly enjoined upon them both to be confined in their monasteries and to remain without going out, until, a patriarch having been restored to the church, their cases would be examined, and especially the case of the bishop of Ephesus, since he had already written the worst things against Gregory to the Asiatics. And having thus sent them away, the ruler, dealing more sternly with those who had been isolated with them, immediately shows them to be obedient and unites them with the rest. Who indeed, having gathered at 130 the great palace, in the presence of the emperor and of the entire senate and clergy and almost all the monks and no small portion of the laity, with even those themselves who had initially rushed against Gregory being present, Theoleptos of Philadelphia stood up and became one tongue for the many mouths against Gregory, and proclaimed the patriarch present to be orthodox, and he attributed that whole scandal and the entire apostasy from him to the letter of Mark, as the disturbances had been stirred up from there, which indeed had also been rejected by the patriarch himself

ἔπειθε. καί γ' ἐπὶ πολλοῖς καὶ τὸν τότε κοιαίστορα Χούμνον καὶ τὸν συγ γράφοντα συνάμα πέμπων ὁ βασιλεὺς προσέταττε λέγειν καὶ ἀξιοῦν τὰ αὐτὰ παρ' αὐτοῦ. τυραννεῖσθαι γὰρ τῇ εἰς ἐκεῖνον ἀγάπῃ ἐπὶ τῷ μέχρι τόσου τὴν ἐκκλησίαν κυμαινομένην περιορᾶν, καὶ μηδὲν ἐφεῖναι τοῖς κατ' ἐκείνου ὥστε καὶ πλέον τι παρὰ τὸ εἰ 127 κὸς ἐκκηρύττειν, ἀλλ' ὀρθόδοξον ἡγεῖσθαι πείθειν καὶ ἑτοίμως σπένδεσθαι τοῦ σκανδάλου παραιρεθέντος· τὸ δ' ἔσται πάντως, εἰ μετ' εἰρήνης παραιτοῖτο. ταῦτ' ἔλεγε βασιλεύς, ἀπειρηκὼς ἤδη πρὸς τὸ τῶν πολλῶν σκάνδαλον. ἀλλ' ἀκούων ἐκεῖνος τότε πολὺς ἦν ἀλύων, εἴπερ ἀναφανδὰ μὲν ἐφ' αἱρέσει τοῦτον διεκω μῴδησαν, κρυφὰ δὲ ὡς ὀρθοδοξοῦντα δέχονται. διὰ τοῦτο καὶ τὴν ὁμολογίαν ἐζήτει ταύτην κοινῇ παρ' αὐτῶν γενέσθαι, συν αχθείσης τῆς πολιτείας ἅμα συγκλήτῳ καὶ βασιλεῖ, μηδὲ τῶν ἐκκρίτων μοναχῶν ἀπόντων.

8. Ταῦτα ζητοῦντος ἐκείνου ὡς αὐτίκα καὶ τὴν παραίτη σιν δώσοντος, σκέψις ἦν μεγίστη, καὶ σχίσμα μέγα μεταξὺ τῶν ἀπ' ἐκείνου σχιζομένων ἐγένετο, τῶν μὲν μηδ' ἀνεχομένων ὁμο λογεῖν ἐκεῖνον ὀρθοσεβῆ, ὡς εἰ ὁμολογοῖεν, παρευθὺς ἐγκαθι στᾶν τῷ θρόνῳ καὶ ἄκοντας, καὶ τοῦ αἰτίου λυθέντος αὐτὸν 128 ἔχειν τὸ ἀπὸ τοῦδε καὶ ἐπιτιμᾶν ἀδικοῦσι καὶ τῆς ἀξίας ἐπιλαμ βάνεσθαι. ἦσαν δ' οὗτοι οἱ περί τε τὸν Ἐφέσου καὶ τὸν Κυζί κου, οἳ δὴ καὶ μᾶλλον δεῖν ἔλεγον κρίνεσθαι τὸν Γρηγόριον, καὶ σφᾶς τὸ ἀποβησόμενον δέχεσθαι, μηδ' ἐπειλύειν τὴν κάκην, μηδ' ἄλλα κεύθοντας ἄλλα βάζειν, οἰκονομοῦντας. τῶν δὲ τρόποις οἰκονομίας νευόντων ὁμολογεῖν εὐσεβῆ τὸν Γρηγόριον, ὡς μηδ' ἐκ τοῦ τόμου τόσον σκανδαλισθέντας ὅσον ἐκ τοῦ τοῦ μο ναχοῦ Μάρκου γράμματος, μόνον ἐκεῖνον ἕτοιμον εἶναι ἠξίουν παρέχειν τὸν τῆς παραιτήσεως λίβελλον. καὶ ἤθελον τοῦτο, εἰ οἷόν τ' ἦν, πληροφορεῖν καὶ γράμμασι τὸν Γρηγόριον. ὁ δὲ πέμψαντος τοῦ βασιλέως λόγοις ἐπληροφόρει θεοῦ ἐναντίον, ὡς ἔλεγε, μὴ φθάσαι τούτους ὁμολογεῖν ἐκείνῳ τὸ σέβας, κἀκεῖνον διδόναι τὸ τῆς παραιτήσεως ἔγγραφον. οἱ μὲν οὖν περὶ τὸν Ἐφέ σου οὐδ' ὅλως οὔτε τὸν λόγον ἐδέχοντο οὐδὲ τὸ πρᾶγμα εὔσχημον ἔκρινον· οἱ δὲ περὶ τὸν Φιλαδελφείας καὶ μάλα τὸν λόγον ἔνορ κον εἶχον ὡς ἐναντίον γίνεσθαι λεγόμενον τοῦ θεοῦ, κἂν μετα 129 βάλοι τὴν γνώμην ἐκεῖνος, αὐτοὺς ἔχειν τοὐντεῦθεν δύναμιν κα θαιρεῖν ὡς ἐπιορκίας ἁλόντα διεβεβαίουν. τῶν γοῦν περὶ τὸν Ἐφέσου τε καὶ Κυζίκου μηδ' ὅλως καταδεχομένων τὴν κοινωνίαν ἐκείνην, ἀλλὰ κρίνειν θελόντων ὃν εἰδέναι ἔλεγον ἁλισκόμενον, ὁ βασιλεὺς πρὸς ἐκείνους λέγων καὶ μὴ πείθων, ἐπεὶ ἑώρα ἀνα σοβουμένην τὴν θήραν ἐπὶ τῷ μηδὲν τὰς προφορὰς παύεσθαι, μιᾷ νυκτῶν συγκαλέσας καὶ περὶ τῶν προκειμένων οὐκ ὀλίγα διεξελθών, τέλος μὴ πειθομένοις ὀργίζεται, σκληρότητα σφίσιν ὀνειδίζων καὶ ἀνοικονομησίαν ὡς ἀναταράσσειν ἀεὶ τὴν ἐκκλησίαν ὀρεγομένοις καὶ ἀνεγείρειν κλύδωνας μήπω κατευνασθέντας τέλεον. κἀκείνους μὲν καὶ ἄμφω ἀπὸ προσώπου ποιεῖται, ἐπισκήψας σφίσι μετ' ἐμβριθείας ἐγκλεισθῆναί τε ταῖς καταμοναῖς καὶ ἀπροΐ τους μένειν, ἕως οὗ ἀποκαταστάντος πατριάρχου τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ τὰ κατ' αὐτοὺς ἐξετασθήσονται, καὶ μᾶλλον τὰ κατὰ τὸν Ἐφέ σου, ἐπεί γε καὶ ἔφθασε γράψας Ἀσιανοῖς κατὰ Γρηγορίου τὰ χείριστα. καὶ τοὺς μὲν οὕτως ἀποπεμψάμενος ὁ κρατῶν, τοῖς σὺν ἐκείνοις μονωθεῖσιν ἐμβριθέστερον προσφερόμενος πειθηνίους τε παραυτίκα δείκνυσι καὶ συνενοῖ τοῖς λοιποῖς. οἳ δὴ καὶ κατὰ 130 τὸ μέγα παλάτιον συναχθέντες, παρόντος μὲν βασιλέως παρού σης δ' ἁπάσης συγκλήτου καὶ κλήρου καὶ μοναχῶν σχεδὸν ἁπάν των καὶ λαώδους οὐκ ὀλίγης μοίρας, συνόντων καὶ αὐτῶν δὴ τῶν κατὰ Γρηγορίου τὴν ἀρχὴν ὁρμησάντων, σταθεὶς ὁ Φιλαδελ φείας Θεόληπτος πολλῶν τῶν κατὰ Γρηγορίου στομάτων μία γλῶσσα γίνεται, καὶ ἀνακηρύττει παρόντα τὸν πατριάρχην ὀρ θόδοξον, ἅπαν δ' ἐκεῖνο σκάνδαλον καὶ πᾶσαν τὴν ἀπ' ἐκείνου ἀποστασίαν τῷ τοῦ Μάρκου γράμματι ἀνετίθει ὡς ἐκεῖθεν ἀνε γηγερμένων τῶν ταραχῶν, οὗ δὴ καὶ παρ' αὐτοῦ τοῦ πατριάρ χου ἀποβληθέντος