Basiliscus Declares: Emperor Backs Monophysite Faith
He handed out a letter promising peace by erasing the word "two natures." Emperor Basiliscus, backed by his wife and the powerful Patriarch Peter the Fuller, demanded bishops sign a document that declared Christ had only one nature. It was a desperate gamble to stop the empire from fracturing. But the church erupted in fury. Two patriarchs were deposed, thousands were exiled, and riots tore through Constantinople's streets. The emperor lost his throne within two years, proving that you can't legislate faith without paying a steep price. In the end, unity bought with silence is just a quieter kind of war.
April 9, 475
1551 years ago
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