Photius, Saint

Photius, Saint

(born c. 820, Constantinople—died 10th century; feast day February 6) Patriarch of Constantinople (858–867, 877–886). A high-ranking civil servant, he was promoted swiftly through the ecclesiastical orders to become patriarch after the deposition of Ignatius, an action that offended Pope Nicholas I. Photius added to the conflict by refusing to restore dioceses earlier transferred from the Roman to the Byzantine church. Angry that Nicholas would not recognize him, Photius excommunicated the pope (867), thus beginning the Photian Schism. Photius was deposed the same year but restored in 877 after his successor died. He and Pope John VIII agreed to return Bulgaria to the Roman church but to allow Greek bishops to remain.