Pope Eugene I (Latin:Eugenius I; died 2 June 657) was thebishop of Rome from 10 August 654 to his death on 2 June 657. He was chosen to becomePope after the deposition and banishment ofMartin I by EmperorConstans II over the dispute aboutMonothelitism.
Eugene was a Roman from the Aventine, son of Rufinianus. He was brought up in the Church's ministry, and was already an elderly priest when a dispute flared up between thepapacy in Rome, which opposed themonothelite teachings, and the imperial government inConstantinople, which supported it. As a result,Pope Martin I was deposed by EmperorConstans II and carried off from Rome on 18 June 653, eventually ending up banished toCherson.[1] Little is known about what happened in Rome after Martin's departure, but it was typical in those days for theHoly See to be governed by thearchpriest andarchdeacon.[2] Martin hoped that a successor would not beelected while he lived, but the imperial courtexerted pressure on Rome through theexarch of Ravenna. On 10 August 654, Eugene was appointed the new pope, to which Martin acceded.[2] The imperial government believed that Eugene would be cooperative and ratified his election.[1]
As pope, Eugene consecrated twenty-one bishops for different parts of the world and received the youthfulWilfrid on the occasion of his first visit to Rome (c. 654).[2]
Eugene I showed greater deference than his predecessor to the emperor's wishes and made no public stand against theMonothelitism of thepatriarchs of Constantinople.[3] One of the first acts of the new pope was to sendlegates to Constantinople with letters to Emperor Constans II informing him of his election and professing his faith. The legates were deceived, or bribed, and brought back a synodical letter fromPatriarch Peter of Constantinople (656–666), while the emperor's envoy, who accompanied them, brought offerings forSaint Peter and a request from the emperor that the pope would enter into communion with the patriarch of Constantinople. Peter's letter proved to be written in a difficult and obscure style and avoided making any specific declaration as to the number of "wills or operations" inChrist. When its contents were read to the clergy and people in the church ofSt. Mary Major in 656, they not only rejected the letter with indignation, but would not allow the pope to leave the basilica until he had promised that he would not on any account accept it.[2]
The imperial officials were furious at this harsh rejection of the wishes of the emperor and patriarch.[2] Constans threatened to dispose of Eugene just as he had disposed of Martin,[1] but was preoccupied by defending the empire from theMuslim conquests.[2]
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Mann, Horace Kinder (1909). "Pope St. Eugene I". In Herbermann, Charles (ed.).Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 5. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
Attwater, Aubrey (1939).A Dictionary of Popes: From Peter to Pius XII.
