Blessings, Bribes, and Bishops: Cyril of Alexandria, the Council of Ephesus (431), and the Making of Orthodoxy

Volker Menze*

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to Book/Report typesChapterpeer-review

    Abstract (may include machine translation)

    This chapter probes the subtle boundary between gift and bribe, analysing what kind of gifts were made by the clergy, for what purposes, and in what contexts. Although bribes were frowned upon and simony explicitly forbidden, gift exchanges were as much part of ecclesiastical life as they were common in the secular sphere. Setting what was arguably the largest bribe in antiquity gold and blessings given by Cyril of Alexandria to numerous members of the Constantinopolitan court in 431 as incentives to accept Cyril's position of the Council of Ephesus into broader context, this essay provides a detailed analysis of the religious politics that motivated Cyril. Intent on unifying the divided church on his terms, Cyril proactively exploited Byzantine courtiers avaritia for his own ends. By Christianizing the terminology, he veiled his gifts as blessings, and rebranded the economy of venality in Christian terms.

    Original languageEnglish
    Title of host publicationThe Dangers of Gifts from Antiquity to the Digital Age
    PublisherTaylor and Francis
    Pages48-64
    Number of pages17
    ISBN (Electronic)9781000651607
    ISBN (Print)9781032298542
    DOIs
    StatePublished - 1 Jan 2022

    Fingerprint

    Dive into the research topics of 'Blessings, Bribes, and Bishops: Cyril of Alexandria, the Council of Ephesus (431), and the Making of Orthodoxy'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

    Cite this