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Liturgical Poetry in the Middle Byzantine Period: Hymns Attributed to Germanos I, Patriarch of Constantinople (715-730)

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Liturgical Poetry in the Middle Byzantine Period: Hymns Attributed to Germanos I, Patriarch of Constantinople (715-730) Liturgical Poetry in the Middle Byzantine Period: Hymns Attributed to Germanos I, Patriarch of Constantinople (715-730) Kosta Simic Submitted to the School of Theology, Faculty of Theology and Philosophy, Australian Catholic University This thesis is presented for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy 7th of December 2017 Liturgical Poetry in the Middle Byzantine Period, K. Simic Contents Abstract …………………………………………………………………….…………..…4 Statement of Sources……………………………………………………….………..….....5 Acknowledgements………………….…………………………………….…………..…..6 Abbreviations……………………………………………………………….…………......7 Introduction…………………………………………………………………..……….…...8 Overview of the Scholarship and Current Trends…………………………..………….….8 Scope of the Thesis: Approach and Methodology……………………...…….………......11 The Problem of Authorship……………………………………………...…………….....15 The Structure and Main characteristics of “Germanos’s” Kanons………..………….…..24 Germanos’s Heirmoi in Heirmologia……………..…………………………….………...29 Overview of Chapters……………………………………………………..…………….....34 Chapter One: Mariological Poetry………………………………………….……………..38 Germanos I and the Authorship of Mariological Poetry…………………….…………….38 Germanos and the Akathistos Hymn………………………………………….…………..40 1. The Nativity of the Virgin Mary…………………………………………….………….43 Content of the Kanon…………………………………………….………………………..47 2. The Annunciation of the Virgin Mary………………………………………………….56 Content of the Kanon…………………………………………….………..………………62 The Mary-Eve Analogy…………………………………………..……….……………….65 3. Hymns for the Hypapante…………………………………….…………..….………….77 A Historical Overview of the Feast……………………………….………..…..………..…77 The Question of the Feast Character……………………………….………………..……...78 Kanons for the Hypapante………………………………………….………..………..……83 Germanos’s Hymns for the Hypapante……………………………………………….…….85 The Place of Symeon in the Kanon……………………………………………………..…..94 Chapter Two: Hagiographical Poetry………………………………………………………98 On the Development of Hagiographical Hymnography……………………………………98 The Purpose of Hagiographical Hymns…………………………………………………….102 Saints as Icons of Virtues…………………………………………………………………..104 Modelling the Saints on Biblical Figures and Saints as Models for Imitation……………..106 2 Liturgical Poetry in the Middle Byzantine Period, K. Simic i. Homilies………………………………………………………………………108 ii. Apophthegmata Patrum……………………………………………………….111 iii. Hagiography…………………………………………………..……..………..112 Kanons for Saint Basil and Saint Nicholas………………………………..…….………..115 New Moseses…………………………………………………………….…………….…122 New Abrahams…………………………………………………………………………...130 Joshua, the Son of Nun: An Image of the Emperor……………………………………...134 Chapter Three: Cult of Relics and Icons…………………………………………………139 On the Development of the Cult of Relics………………………………………………..139 Relics in Byzantine Hymnography……………………………………………………….142 Germanos’s Hymns on Relics…………………………………………………………….142 Martyrdom as Analogy to Eucharistic Sacrifice………………………………………….146 1. Exaltation of the Holy Cross (14 September)………………………………………….149 Instruments of the Passion and Iconoclasm………………………………………………156 Cross and Emperor………………………………………………………………………..157 References to the Emperor in Germanos’s Kanon………………………………………..161 Anti-Muslim Polemic……………………………………………………………………..163 2. The First and Second Inventions of the Head of John the Baptist (24 February)……...166 Authenticity of the Kanon Attributed to Germanos………………………………………169 Content of the Kanon………………………………………………………………………170 Cult of Sacred Images…………………………………………………………….……….178 Icons in Hymns…………………………………………………………………..………..180 Kanon for Mary of Egypt………………………………………………………………..…182 Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………….189 Catalogue of Hymns………………………………………………………………………..197 List of Manuscripts…………………………………………………………………………216 Bibliography………………………………………………………………………………..219 3 Liturgical Poetry in the Middle Byzantine Period, K. Simic Abstract The present thesis explores aspects of the liturgical hymns transmitted under the name of Germanos, a figure frequently identified with Germanos I, patriarch of Constantinople (715- 730). The corpus of hymns associated with this name includes about 65 kanons (nine-ode hymns) and 52 stichera (monostrophic stanzas), mostly composed during the Middle Byzantine period. By focusing on this large body of texts, the purpose of my research is to contribute to the study of Byzantine hymnography, a largely neglected genre of Byzantine literature despite its enormous fertility and importance. The dissertation consists of an introduction, three chapters corresponding to the three main themes of the thesis, and a conclusion. Chapter One is devoted to Mariological poetry and deals with the kanons and stichera for the Nativity of the Mother of God (8 September), the Annunciation (25 March), and the Hypapante (2 February). Chapter Two deals with hagiographical poetry. It deals with the hymns, both kanons and stichera, devoted to the saints, the most voluminous category in the extant corpus. The saints eulogised in these hymns include apostles, martyrs, holy bishops, and ascetics. The topics discussed in Chapter Two include references to saints as imitators of Christ and his sacrifice; a vocabulary from painting applied to Christian saints; modelling the saints on biblical figures; and presenting them as exemplars for emulation by the faithful. The cult of relics and icons is the subject in Chapter Three. The veneration of sacred objects, especially the instruments of Christ’s Passion and the saints’ physical remains, found a notable expression in Middle Byzantine liturgical poetry. There are seven such hymns preserved under the name of Germanos. Five of them are devoted to the so-called primary relics, i.e., saints’ bodies or bodily parts. The hymn for the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (14 September) has for its subject the Holy Cross and the Holy Lance. In the conclusion, I summarise the results of my research. 4 Liturgical Poetry in the Middle Byzantine Period, K. Simic Statement of Sources I certify that the work in this thesis entitled “Liturgical Poetry in the Middle Byzantine Period: Hymns Attributed to Germanos I, Patriarch of Constantinople (715-730)” contains no material published elsewhere or extracted in whole or in part from a thesis by which I have qualified for or been awarded another degree or diploma. No parts of this thesis have been submitted towards the award of any other degree or diploma in any other tertiary institution. No other person’s work has been used without due acknowledgment in the main text of the thesis. All research procedures reported in the thesis received the approval of the relevant Ethics/Safety Committees (where required). Kosta Simic / Student Number: S00156258 7th of December 2017 5 Liturgical Poetry in the Middle Byzantine Period, K. Simic Acknowledgements First and foremost, I would like to express my most sincere gratitude and appreciation to my supervisors Professors Pauline Allen and Bronwen Neil for their guidance, encouragement and support at all stages of the research. Without their invaluable and substantial support and friendship during some very difficult moments I endured during the write-up, the completion of this thesis would not be possible. I extend my deepest appreciation to Professor Wendy Mayer for her help and advice. I would like to thank Australian Catholic University for generous financial support, which allowed me not only to work on my thesis but also sojourn in Australia, and attend several international overseas conferences. This kind of research is inconceivable without the help of librarians and archivists. I owe special thanks to colleagues working in various European libraries and archives, including the Centre of Sinaitic Studies (Athens), Cultural Foundation of the National Bank of Greece (Athens), National Library of Greece (Athens), Patriarchal Institute for Patristic Studies (Thessaloniki), Bibliothèque nationale de France (Paris), Russian State Museum (Moscow) and Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana (Rome). Last, but by no means least, my sincere thanks to librarians and the Interlibrary Loan Service of ACU. I would also like to extend my gratitude to my family and friends for their support. 6 Liturgical Poetry in the Middle Byzantine Period, K. Simic ABBREVIATIONS AB Analecta Bollandiana AHG Analecta Hymnica Graeca BHG Bibliotheca Hagiographica Graeca BZ Byzantinische Zeitschrift CCSG Corpus Christianorum Series Graeca CCSL Corpus Christianorum Series Latina CFHB Corpus Fontium Historiae Byzantinae CNRS Centre Nationnal de la Recherche Scientifique CPG Clavis Patrum Graecorum CSCO Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium DOP Dumbarton Oaks Papers GCS Die Griechischen Christlichen Schriftsteller der ersten drei Jahrhunderte GOThR Greek Orthodox Theological Review JEChS Journal of Early Christian Studies JÖB Jahrbuch der österreichischen Byzantinistik JRS The Journal of Roman Studies Mansi Mansi, J. D. Sacrorum conciliorum nova et amplissima collectio, vols. 1‐53, Paris-Leipzig, 1901‐1927. Reprint: Graz: Akademische Druck- und Verlagsanstalt, 1960-1961. OCA Orientalia Christiana Analecta OCP Orientalia Christiana Periodica ODB The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium, vols. 1-3, A. Kazhdan et al., Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press, 1991. PG Patrologia Graeca PL Patrologia Latina PO Patrologia Orientalis RÉB Revue des études byzantines RSBN La Rivista di Studi Bizantini e Neoellenici SC Sources Chrétiennes 7 Liturgical Poetry in the Middle Byzantine Period, K. Simic Introduction As an integral part of the Church ritual, liturgical hymns provided what was possibly the most effective
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