Apocrisiarius

An apocrisiarius, the Latinized form of apokrisiarios (Greek: ἀποκρισιάριος), sometimes Anglicized as apocrisiary, was a high diplomatic representative during Late Antiquity and the early Middle Ages. The corresponding (purist) Latin term was responsalis ("he who answers").^[1] The title was used by Byzantine ambassadors, as well as by the representatives of bishops to the secular authorities.^[2] The closest modern equivalent is a papal nuncio; the title apocrisiarius is also still employed by the Anglican Church.

Byzantine apocrisiarii

An apocrisiarius was a cleric who served as the representative (also described as legate, a less precise term) of a patriarch or other bishop to the Byzantine imperial court of Constantinople. The office existed since the 5th century, but was institutionalized by law only under Emperor Justinian I (r. 527–565). Several of the more important ecclesiastical sees maintained permanent apocrisiarii in the imperial capital.^[1] The most important of these were the papal apocrisiarii (circa 452 till 743). The title was also used for the representative of a metropolitan archbishop at the court of his "territorial" patriarch in either Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, or Jerusalem and for secular officials carrying correspondence of the Byzantine emperor.^[3]

Frankish apocrisiarii

From the reign of Charlemagne (r. 768–814), the court of the Frankish king/emperor had clerical members styled apocrisiarii. However, they were only royal archchaplains decorated with the title of the ancient papal envoys, since they did not perform any diplomatic duties.^{[citation needed]}

Anglican Church

In the modern Anglican Communion, representatives of the Archbishop of Canterbury to various churches are styled apocrisiarioi.^[4]

References

Citations

1. Kazhdan 1991, p. 136.
2. Kazhdan 1991, pp. 75, 136; Parry & Hinnells 1999, p. 35.
3. Parry & Hinnells 1999, p. 35.
4. Diocese in Europe (20 May 2011). "Partners - Apocrisiaroi". Diocese in Europe. Archived from the original on 6 February 2012. Retrieved 10 December 2011.

Sources

• Kazhdan, Alexander Petrovich, ed. (1991). The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium. New York, New York and Oxford, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-504652-6.
• Parry, Ken; Hinnells, John R. (1999). The Blackwell Dictionary of Eastern Christianity. Malden, Massachusetts: Blackwell Publishing. ISBN 0-631-18966-1.

Further reading

• Ekonomou, Andrew J. (2007). Byzantine Rome and the Greek Popes: Eastern Influences on Rome and the Papacy from Gregory the Great to Zacharias, A.D. 590-752. Lanham, Maryland and Plymouth, UK: Lexington Books (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.). ISBN 978-0-7391-1978-5.
• Larousse, Pierre; Augé, Claude (1906). Petit Larousse Illustré: Nouveau Dictionnaire Encyclopédique. Paris, France: Librairie Larousse.

External links

• Catholic Encyclopaedia - Apocrisiarius