Steven Avery
Administrator
David
Farmakidis
Lilia
McGrane
Halki
Farmakidis
Lilia
McGrane
Halki
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the theological academies of Benedict, Procopius and others from Voulgaris to Kapodistrias and the revolution to Simonides
- Thread starter Steven Avery
- Start date
Steven Avery
Administrator
Farmakidis book
The two monks, Benedict and Dendrinos, have since remained in the Russian Monastery of Saint Panteleimon on Mount Athos for the rest of their lives. Benedict also taught at the "Theological School of Halki", co-teaching with Bartholomew Koutlumousianos of Imbros (who became Scholaarch, 1840-1846)102.
102 Tryphon Evaggelidou "Education under Ottoman rule", volume A, p. 49.
p. 42
The knowledge of Benedict
Benedict knew well the art of manuscripts, from the classical era to the most recent, and taught it to Constantius-Dinis Simonides. He also knew the techniques of all the other ethnicities: Persian, Egyptian, Carian, Lydian, etc. He had a deep knowledge of the ancient literature on them. Constantine described to us, in a letter of 1863, the origin of his admirable knowledge. In the same letter he tells us that Benedict, in addition to the styles, materials, style and processes of each period, was very familiar with the contents of the manuscripts. Benedict was an excellent philologist and theologian, as Constantine's knowledge demonstrates, since he was his only real teacher. He knew twelve languages. By the ink of a manuscript or by the cut of the pen and thus by the writing, he could tell where and when a manuscript was written. Benedict and his entourage saw Constantine as a unique person who could handle these matters.
Tischendorf will declare in Leipzig on February 3, 1856, through the German newspapers, which at that time published a pamphlet in Berlin entitled "Simonides' Decision", the following: "Simonides received an excellent education, and when a young man spends so considerable time in the Greek monasteries of Mount Athos, occupying himself almost exclusively with the study of ancient manuscripts, especially with this, he greatly enriches his knowledge of Greek and Egyptian archaeological monuments. At the same time he worked a lot with painting and lithography, in which he became very skilful, and he used this skill later on when copying ancient manuscripts. Moreover, by vigorous study and much travel in Asia and Africa, Simonides reached the pinnacle of excellence in literature, especially in his knowledge of the marvelous art of ancient manuscripts."
Simonides will also write103: "What I learned (S.S. near Vé-nédicis) was the art of preparing the proper materials for writing, the right ink, the polishing of skins, the cleaning with chemicals of some sheets soiled by time, the care and proper separation of columns, the adoption of the form of writing and other things appropriate to palaeography".
The two monks, Benedict and Dendrinos, have since remained in the Russian Monastery of Saint Panteleimon on Mount Athos for the rest of their lives. Benedict also taught at the "Theological School of Halki", co-teaching with Bartholomew Koutlumousianos of Imbros (who became Scholaarch, 1840-1846)102.
102 Tryphon Evaggelidou "Education under Ottoman rule", volume A, p. 49.
p. 42
The knowledge of Benedict
Benedict knew well the art of manuscripts, from the classical era to the most recent, and taught it to Constantius-Dinis Simonides. He also knew the techniques of all the other ethnicities: Persian, Egyptian, Carian, Lydian, etc. He had a deep knowledge of the ancient literature on them. Constantine described to us, in a letter of 1863, the origin of his admirable knowledge. In the same letter he tells us that Benedict, in addition to the styles, materials, style and processes of each period, was very familiar with the contents of the manuscripts. Benedict was an excellent philologist and theologian, as Constantine's knowledge demonstrates, since he was his only real teacher. He knew twelve languages. By the ink of a manuscript or by the cut of the pen and thus by the writing, he could tell where and when a manuscript was written. Benedict and his entourage saw Constantine as a unique person who could handle these matters.
Tischendorf will declare in Leipzig on February 3, 1856, through the German newspapers, which at that time published a pamphlet in Berlin entitled "Simonides' Decision", the following: "Simonides received an excellent education, and when a young man spends so considerable time in the Greek monasteries of Mount Athos, occupying himself almost exclusively with the study of ancient manuscripts, especially with this, he greatly enriches his knowledge of Greek and Egyptian archaeological monuments. At the same time he worked a lot with painting and lithography, in which he became very skilful, and he used this skill later on when copying ancient manuscripts. Moreover, by vigorous study and much travel in Asia and Africa, Simonides reached the pinnacle of excellence in literature, especially in his knowledge of the marvelous art of ancient manuscripts."
Simonides will also write103: "What I learned (S.S. near Vé-nédicis) was the art of preparing the proper materials for writing, the right ink, the polishing of skins, the cleaning with chemicals of some sheets soiled by time, the care and proper separation of columns, the adoption of the form of writing and other things appropriate to palaeography".
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Steven Avery
Administrator
The Academy of Cydoniae
Simonides said his uncle Benedict began
his career “while Professor in the College
of Cydon, in the year 1784...”
According to The Encyclopedia of the
Hellenic World, that courtyard contained: a
small nursery, an elementary school and a
Greek school. It also had a library and living
quarters for the teachers and out-of-town
According to the Encyclopedia, this
is where four teachers taught: deacon
Evgenios of Vourla, Frantzeskos of Kea,
Theodosios of Mudanya and Vissarion of
Symi (who is most interesting to us). — The
school received its support from charitable
contributions by the churches and wealthy
citizens of Cydoniae.
students. It even had a hospital! ^
Vissarion of Symi began teaching in
the fourth year of the school, in 1784,
according to that tiny reference in a letter
by Constantine Simonides. Vissarion, of
course, became the monk Benedict.
Simonides wrote:
"First, that my uncle Benedict, being
by profession a theologian, and versed
in twelve languages ... began this
work while Professor in the College
of Cydon, in the year 1784. Having
removed to Mount Athos in 1819, for
the sake of retirement, and embraced
the monastic life in the Monastery
of Esphigmenos, he was named
Benedict ...having formerly had two
names, Basilaeus and Bessarion.” —
This was the college or academy of
Cydoniae which was also known as
Kydonies or Aibali or Ayvalik. Those are
Greek and Turkish names for a fruit, called
a quince.
Concerning Cydoniae, The Monthly
Review of December 1827 said,
"On the coast of Asia Minor, opposite
the delightful island of Mitylene,
stood, lately, the town of Cydoniae,
now a heap of ruins. Its inhabitants
were entirely Greeks...” —
Is Cydoniae Really a Heap of Ruins?
Skip
So let’s go back to the school started
in 1780 in the lower district of Cydoniae,
in the courtyard of the Virgin of the
Orphans church. There were three well-
known students of this school: Veniamin
Lesvios, Theophilos Kairis and Grigorios
Saraphis. i WH1 tell each of their stories,
one at a time. As you read each story, ask
Skip
Benjamin of Lesbos
When he returned six years later in 1796,
Veniamin taught physics, mathematics,
metaphysics and ethics. (Fellow student
Grigorios Saraphis taught Greek. But we’ll
get back to him later.)
...
At this point, some of the most advanced
Greek education wasn’t done in Greece
(which wasn't a nation at this time), but in
Asia Minor (now called Turkey). The three
schools were located at Chios, Smyrna and
Cydoniae. They were all located less than
100 miles from each other.
In 1798, two years after Veniamin
returned from his studies in Western
Europe, the aristocrats and the merchants
basically settled their disputes and decided
together to start an academy. Two years
later, in 1800, Veniamin founded the
Academy of Cydoniae. By that time
he had greatly expanded the school
into a full-out academy, with printing
press, scientific equipment and top-notch
scholars, and it was moved to the north
side of town. But it only took two
more years, 1802-1803, for progressives at
the academy to threaten the traditional
Orthodox religious leadership.
The Patriarchate vs the Progressives
That’s when the Patriarchate of
Constantinople put Veniamin Lesvios
under the magnifying glass.
Veniamin wanted the progressive
European Enlightenment thinking to
continue. He quickly sent the second
student, his friend Theophilos Kairis to
Europe. In case anything should happen
to himself, Veniamin wanted Theophilos to
be ready to replace him when the latter
returned from Europe.
While Veniamin made plans for
his replacement, the Patriarchate of
Constantinople brought charges against
Veniamin of instructing in “carnal love"
and of unscriptural teachings regarding
the movement of the earth. In short, they
accused him of being an atheist.
Figure 58. Athanasios Parios, a
conservative monk and one of the
original teachers at Cydoniae
A letter from the Synod publicly called
upon Veniamin to recant his teachings
and teach like the conservative monk
Athanasios. (Most of the teachers at
Cydoniae had been Athanasios’ students.)
The Synod also announced that the third
student, Grigorios Saraphis, would replace
Veniamin.
It appears that Grigorios, unlike the
other two, learned locally and never
absorbed the Western European thinking
of the day. So the Synod believed they
could trust Grigorios with maintaining
traditional Orthodox teaching after they
fired Veniamin.
There were two opposing sides:
the Patriarchate of Constantinople and
supporting monks, who wanted traditional
religion; and the colleges and academies,
who wanted academic freedom to pursue
the Western European ideas instead
of Eastern Orthodoxy. Those were two
different worlds.
Simonides said his uncle Benedict began
his career “while Professor in the College
of Cydon, in the year 1784...”
According to The Encyclopedia of the
Hellenic World, that courtyard contained: a
small nursery, an elementary school and a
Greek school. It also had a library and living
quarters for the teachers and out-of-town
According to the Encyclopedia, this
is where four teachers taught: deacon
Evgenios of Vourla, Frantzeskos of Kea,
Theodosios of Mudanya and Vissarion of
Symi (who is most interesting to us). — The
school received its support from charitable
contributions by the churches and wealthy
citizens of Cydoniae.
students. It even had a hospital! ^
Vissarion of Symi began teaching in
the fourth year of the school, in 1784,
according to that tiny reference in a letter
by Constantine Simonides. Vissarion, of
course, became the monk Benedict.
Simonides wrote:
"First, that my uncle Benedict, being
by profession a theologian, and versed
in twelve languages ... began this
work while Professor in the College
of Cydon, in the year 1784. Having
removed to Mount Athos in 1819, for
the sake of retirement, and embraced
the monastic life in the Monastery
of Esphigmenos, he was named
Benedict ...having formerly had two
names, Basilaeus and Bessarion.” —
This was the college or academy of
Cydoniae which was also known as
Kydonies or Aibali or Ayvalik. Those are
Greek and Turkish names for a fruit, called
a quince.
Concerning Cydoniae, The Monthly
Review of December 1827 said,
"On the coast of Asia Minor, opposite
the delightful island of Mitylene,
stood, lately, the town of Cydoniae,
now a heap of ruins. Its inhabitants
were entirely Greeks...” —
Is Cydoniae Really a Heap of Ruins?
Skip
So let’s go back to the school started
in 1780 in the lower district of Cydoniae,
in the courtyard of the Virgin of the
Orphans church. There were three well-
known students of this school: Veniamin
Lesvios, Theophilos Kairis and Grigorios
Saraphis. i WH1 tell each of their stories,
one at a time. As you read each story, ask
Skip
Benjamin of Lesbos
When he returned six years later in 1796,
Veniamin taught physics, mathematics,
metaphysics and ethics. (Fellow student
Grigorios Saraphis taught Greek. But we’ll
get back to him later.)
...
At this point, some of the most advanced
Greek education wasn’t done in Greece
(which wasn't a nation at this time), but in
Asia Minor (now called Turkey). The three
schools were located at Chios, Smyrna and
Cydoniae. They were all located less than
100 miles from each other.
In 1798, two years after Veniamin
returned from his studies in Western
Europe, the aristocrats and the merchants
basically settled their disputes and decided
together to start an academy. Two years
later, in 1800, Veniamin founded the
Academy of Cydoniae. By that time
he had greatly expanded the school
into a full-out academy, with printing
press, scientific equipment and top-notch
scholars, and it was moved to the north
side of town. But it only took two
more years, 1802-1803, for progressives at
the academy to threaten the traditional
Orthodox religious leadership.
The Patriarchate vs the Progressives
That’s when the Patriarchate of
Constantinople put Veniamin Lesvios
under the magnifying glass.
Veniamin wanted the progressive
European Enlightenment thinking to
continue. He quickly sent the second
student, his friend Theophilos Kairis to
Europe. In case anything should happen
to himself, Veniamin wanted Theophilos to
be ready to replace him when the latter
returned from Europe.
While Veniamin made plans for
his replacement, the Patriarchate of
Constantinople brought charges against
Veniamin of instructing in “carnal love"
and of unscriptural teachings regarding
the movement of the earth. In short, they
accused him of being an atheist.
Figure 58. Athanasios Parios, a
conservative monk and one of the
original teachers at Cydoniae
A letter from the Synod publicly called
upon Veniamin to recant his teachings
and teach like the conservative monk
Athanasios. (Most of the teachers at
Cydoniae had been Athanasios’ students.)
The Synod also announced that the third
student, Grigorios Saraphis, would replace
Veniamin.
It appears that Grigorios, unlike the
other two, learned locally and never
absorbed the Western European thinking
of the day. So the Synod believed they
could trust Grigorios with maintaining
traditional Orthodox teaching after they
fired Veniamin.
There were two opposing sides:
the Patriarchate of Constantinople and
supporting monks, who wanted traditional
religion; and the colleges and academies,
who wanted academic freedom to pursue
the Western European ideas instead
of Eastern Orthodoxy. Those were two
different worlds.
Last edited: