Ecclesiology
Yuri Koszarycz
POWER, POLITICS and RELIGION in 800
AD
So we can see that by the end of the seventh century three distinct
powers co- existed in Europe. Firstly the power of the West controlled by
the ruler of the Christian people, the pontiff who was to be king-maker
and king-breaker. Secondly, the power of Byzantium, a power based on a neat
compound of Rome, Hellenism and Christianity. It perceived Rome's new allegiances
with the rising Frankish territories as a betrayal - a transfer of alliance
which weakened an already precarious position.
The Islamic conquests represented the third power. It was perceived
by both Rome and Constantinople with alarm, yet in the end it was not enough
for this mutual self-interest to heal the rifts emerging in the two Churches.
With the Pope becoming more and more committed to the maintenance of the
empire in the West, Eastern Christendom became increasingly isolated, ultimately
falling before the onslaught of Islamic forces.
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