Gennadius II (Greek Γεννάδιος Βʹ; lay name Γεώργιος Κουρτέσιος Σχολάριος, Georgios Kourtesios Scholarios; c. 1400 – c. 1473) was a Byzantine Greek philosopher and theologian, and Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from 1454 to 1464. He was a strong advocate for the use of Aristotelian philosophy in the Orthodox Church.
Gennadius was, together with his mentor, Mark of Ephesus, involved in the Council of Florence which aimed to end the schism between the Orthodox and Catholic churches. Gennadius had studied and written extensively on Catholic theology. After the failure of the union of Florence and the Fall of Constantinople, Gennadius became the first Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople under Ottoman rule. Just before the fall of Constantinople, and after Cardinal Isodore had celebrated a Latin Mass in St. Sophia to celebrate the ratification of the council of Florence, its citizens consulted Gennadius. Gibbon has him say: "O miserable Romans, why will ye abandon the truth? and why, instead of confiding in God, will ye put your trust in the Italians? In losing your faith you will lose your city. Have mercy on me, O Lord! I protest in thy presence that I am innocent of the crime. O miserable Romans, consider, pause, and repent. At the same moment that you renounce the religion of your fathers, by embracing impiety, you submit to a foreign servitude."
A polemicist, Scholarios left in writing several treatises on the differences between Catholic and Orthodox theology, the Filioque, a defence of Aristotelianism and excerpts from an exposition (entitled Confession) of the Eastern Orthodox faith addressed to Mehmed II.
Biography
He was born Georgios Kourtesios in Constantinople in c. 1400 and he belonged to an ethnic Greek family originally from the island of Chios; the name Scholarios (which was also a title) is thought to derive from a family member's position in the Byzantine Navy or the imperial palace. His abecedary was Mark of Ephesus (d. 1444). Following his tutelage under the famous John Chortasmenos ("didaskalos" of the Patriarchal School), Manuel-Mark might have then recommended him to study under his own previous master, Georgios Gemistus Pletho (d. 1452/1454), c. 1428. However, his studies under Pletho are a matter of speculation and, at any rate, would have been more likely attendance at Pletho's lectures at Mistra. Scholarius had been a teacher of philosophy before entering the service of the emperor John VIII Palaeologus as a theological advisor. In fact, in 1437 – in anticipation of the Council of Ferrara-Florence – the emperor formally studied Nilus Cabasilas's works along with Mark of Ephesus and Gennadius Scholarius. Curiously, the trio also formally studied the works of John Duns Scotus (d. 1308) because of his rejection of the Filioque in Thomistic metaphysics, as well as Scotus' doctrine of a "formal distinction" between the persons and essence of God, as well as God's attributes (or "energies"). It was for this reason that Scholarius wrote an academic refutation of the first eighteen of Mark of Ephesus' "Syllogistic Chapters against the Latins." From this, the Catholic Encyclopedia speculates that Scholarius was likely writing an academic exercise to inform his former master that Thomas Aquinas' opinions did not constitute a universally Latin approach to questions on the Trinity.
Council of Florence
Georgios Scholarius became historically important when, as judge in the civil courts under John VIII (1425–1448), he accompanied his emperor to the council of Ferrara-Florence, held in 1438–1439 in Ferrara and Florence. The object of this endeavor was bringing a union between the Greek and Latin Churches, which he supported at that time. He made four speeches at the council – all exceedingly conciliatory.
At the same council appeared the celebrated Platonist, Gemistus Pletho, the most powerful opponent of the then dominant Aristotelianism, and consequently an antagonist of Scholarius. In church matters, as in philosophy, the two were opposed – Pletho advocated a partial return to Greek paganism in the form of a syncretic union between Christianity and Zoroastrianism; while Scholarius, more cautious, pressed the necessity for ecclesiastical union with Rome on doctrinal grounds, and was instrumental in drawing up a form which from its vagueness and ambiguity might be accepted by both parties. Georgios Scholarius was at a serious disadvantage because, being a layman, he could not directly take part in the discussions of the council.