CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Pope St. Leo I (The Great)

CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Pope St. Leo I (The Great)
Encyclopedia
Summa
Fathers
Bible
Library
Catholic Encyclopedia
> Pope St. Leo I (the Great)
Pope St. Leo I (the Great)
Please help support the mission of New Advent
and get the full contents of this website as an instant download. Includes the Catholic Encyclopedia, Church Fathers, Summa, Bible and more — all for only $19.99...
(Reigned 440-61).
Place and
date
of birth unknown; died 10 November, 461. Leo's pontificate, next to that of
St. Gregory I
, is the most significant and important in
Christian
antiquity. At a time when the
Church
was experiencing the greatest obstacles to her progress in consequence of the hastening disintegration of the Western Empire, while the
Orient
was profoundly agitated over dogmatic controversies, this great
pope
, with far-seeing sagacity and powerful hand, guided the destiny of the Roman and Universal Church. According to the
"Liber Pontificalis"
(ed. Mommsen, I, 101 sqq., ed. Duchesne, I, 238 sqq.), Leo was a native of
Tuscany
and his
father's
name was Quintianus. Our earliest certain historical information about Leo reveals him a
deacon
of the
Roman Church
under
Pope Celestine I
(422-32). Even during this period he was known outside of
Rome
, and had some relations with Gaul, since Cassianus in 430 or 431 wrote at Leo's suggestion his work "De Incarnatione Domini contra Nestorium" (
Migne
, P.L., L, 9 sqq.), prefacing it with a letter of dedication to Leo. About this time
Cyril of Alexandria
appealed to
Rome
against the pretensions of Bishop Juvenal of
Jerusalem
. From an assertion of Leo's in a letter of later date (ep. cxvi, ed.
Ballerini
, I, 1212; II, 1528), it is not very clear whether Cyril wrote to him in the capacity of Roman
deacon
, or to Pope Celestine. During the pontificate of
Sixtus III
(422-40), Leo was sent to Gaul by
Emperor Valentinian III
to settle a dispute and bring about a reconciliation between
Aëtius
, the chief military commander of the province, and the chief magistrate, Albinus. This commission is a
proof
of the great confidence placed in the clever and able
deacon
by the Imperial Court.
Sixtus III
died on 19 August, 440, while Leo was in
Gaul
, and the latter was chosen his successor. Returning to
Rome
, Leo was
consecrated
on 29 September of the same year, and governed the
Roman Church
for the next twenty-one years.
Leo's chief aim was to sustain the
unity of the Church
. Not long after his elevation to the Chair of Peter, he saw himself compelled to combat energetically the
heresies
which seriously threatened church unity even in the West. Leo had ascertained through Bishop Septimus of Altinum, that in Aquileia
priests
deacons
, and
clerics
, who had been adherents of
Pelagius
, were admitted to communion without an explicit
abjuration
of their
heresy
. The
pope
sharply censured this procedure, and directed that a provincial synod should be assembled in
Aquileia
, at which such
persons
were to be required to
abjure
Pelagianism
publicly and to subscribe to an unequivocal confession of Faith (epp. i and ii). This
zealous
pastor
waged
war
even more strenuously against
Manichæism
, inasmuch as its adherents, who had been driven from
Africa
by the
Vandals
, had settled in
Rome
, and had succeeded in establishing a secret
Manichæan
community there. The
pope
ordered the
faithful
to point out these
heretics
to the
priests
, and in 443, together with the senators and
presbyters
, conducted in person an investigation, in the course of which the leaders of the community were examined. In several sermons he emphatically warned the
Christians
of
Rome
to be on their guard against this reprehensible
heresy
, and repeatedly charged them to give information about its followers, their dwellings, acquaintances, and rendezvous (Sermo ix, 4, xvi, 4; xxiv, 4; xxxiv, 4 sq.; xlii, 4 sq.; lxxvi, 6). A number of
Manichæans
in
Rome
were converted and admitted to confession; others, who remained obdurate, were in obedience to imperial decrees banished from
Rome
by the civil magistrates. On 30 January, 444, the
pope
sent a letter to all the
bishops
of
Italy
, to which he appended the documents containing his proceedings against the
Manichæans
in
Rome
, and warned them to be on their guard and to take action against the followers of the
sect
(ep. vii). On 19 June, 445,
Emperor Valentinian III
issued, doubtless at the
pope's
instigation, a stern edict in which he established seven punishments for the
Manichæans
("Epist. Leonis", ed.
Ballerini
, I, 626; ep. viii inter Leon. ep). Prosper of Aquitaine states in his "Chronicle" (ad an. 447; "Mon. Germ. hist. Auct. antiquissimi", IX, I, 341 sqq.) that, in consequence of Leo's energetic measures, the
Manichæans
were also driven out of the provinces, and even Oriental
bishops
emulated the
pope's
example in regard to this
sect
. In
Spain
the
heresy
of Priscillianism still survived, and for some time had been attracting fresh adherents. Bishop Turibius of
Astorga
became cognizant of this, and by extensive journeys collected minute information about the condition of the churches and the spread of Priscillianism. He compiled the
errors
of the
heresy
, wrote a refutation of the same, and sent these documents to several African
bishops
. He also sent a copy to the
pope
, whereupon the latter sent a lengthy letter to Turibius (ep. xv) in refutation of the
errors
of the Priscillianists. Leo at the same time ordered that a council of
bishops
belonging to the neighbouring provinces should be convened to institute a rigid enquiry, with the object of determining whether any of the
bishops
had become tainted with the poison of this
heresy
. Should any such be discovered, they were to be
excommunicated
without hesitation. The
pope
also addressed a similar letter to the
bishops
of the Spanish provinces, notifying them that a universal synod of all the chief
pastors
was to be summoned; if this should be found to be impossible, the
bishops
of Galicia at least should be assembled. These two
synods
were in fact held in
Spain
to deal with the points at issue (
Hefele
, "Konziliengesch." II, 2nd ed., pp. 306 sqq.).
The greatly disorganized
ecclesiastical
condition of certain countries, resulting from national migrations, demanded closer bonds between their episcopate and
Rome
for the better promotion of
ecclesiastical
life. Leo, with this object in view, determined to make use of the
papal
vicariate of the
bishops
of Arles for the province of Gaul for the creation of a centre for the Gallican episcopate in immediate union with
Rome
. In the beginning his efforts were greatly hampered by his conflict with
St. Hilary
, then
Bishop
of Arles. Even earlier, conflicts had arisen relative to the vicariate of the
bishops
of Arles and its privileges. Hilary made excessive use of his authority over other ecclesiastical provinces, and claimed that all
bishops
should be
consecrated
by him, instead of by their own
metropolitan
. When, for example, the complaint was raised that Bishop Celidonius of
Besançon
had been
consecrated
in violation of the canons—the grounds alleged being that he had, as a
layman
, married a
widow
, and, as a public officer, had given his consent to a death sentence—Hilary deposed him, and
consecrated
Importunus as his successor. Celidonius thereupon appealed to the
pope
and set out in person for
Rome
. About the same time Hilary, as if the
see
concerned had been vacant,
consecrated
another
bishop
to take the place of a certain Bishop Projectus, who was ill. Projectus recovered, however, and he too laid a complaint at
Rome
about the action of the
Bishop
of Arles. Hilary then went himself to
Rome
to justify his proceedings. The
pope
assembled a Roman synod (about 445) and, when the complaints brought against Celidonius could not be verified, reinstated the latter in his
see
. Projectus also received his
bishopric
again. Hilary returned to Arles before the synod was over; the
pope
deprived him of
jurisdiction
over the other Gallic provinces and of
metropolitan
rights
over the province of Vienne, only allowing him to retain his Diocese of Arles.
These decisions were disclosed by Leo in a letter to the
bishops
of the Province of Vienne (ep. x). At the same time he sent them an edict of
Valentinian III
of 8 July, 445, in which the
pope's
measures in regard to St. Hilary were supported, and the primacy of the
Bishop of Rome
over the whole Church solemnly recognized "Epist. Leonis," ed.
Ballerini
, I, 642). On his return to his
bishopric
Hilary sought a reconciliation with the
pope
. After this there arose no further difficulties between these two saintly men and, after his death in 449, Hilary was declared by Leo as "beatæ memoriæ". To Bishop Ravennius, St. Hilary's successor in the
see
of Arles, and the
bishops
of that province, Leo addressed most cordial letters in 449 on the election of the new
metropolitan
(epp. xl, xli). When Ravennius
consecrated
a little later a new
bishop
to take the place of the deceased
Bishop
of
Vaison
, the
Archbishop
of Vienne, who was then in
Rome
, took exception to this action. The
bishops
of the province of Arles then wrote a joint letter to the
pope
, in which they begged him to restore to Ravennius the
rights
of which his predecessor Hilary had been deprived (ep. lxv inter ep. Leonis). In his reply
dated
5 May, 450 (ep. lxvi), Leo acceded to their request. The
Archbishop
of Vienne was to retain only the suffragan
Bishoprics
of
Valence
Tarentaise
Geneva
, and Grenoble; all the other sees in the Province of Vienne were made subject to the
Archbishop
of Arles, who also became again the mediator between the
Holy See
and the whole Gallic episcopate. Leo transmitted to Ravennius (ep. lxvii), for communication to the other Gallican
bishops
, his celebrated letter to
Flavian of Constantinople
on the Incarnation. Ravennius thereupon convened a
synod
, at which forty-four chief
pastors
assembled. In their synodal letter of 451, they affirm that they accept the
pope's
letter as a symbol of
faith
(ep. xxix inter ep. Leonis). In his answer Leo speaks further of the condemnation of Nestorius (ep. cii). The Vicariate of Arles for a long time retained the position Leo had accorded it. Another
papal
vicariate was that of the
bishops
of
Thessalonica
, whose
jurisdiction
extended over
Illyria
. The special
duty
of this vicariate was to protect the
rights
of the
Holy See
over the district of Eastern
Illyria
, which belonged to the Eastern Empire. Leo bestowed the vicariate upon Bishop Anastasius of
Thessalonica
, just as
Pope Siricius
had formerly entrusted it to Bishop Anysius. The vicar was to
consecrate
the
metropolitans
, to assemble in a synod all
bishops
of the Province of Eastern
Illyria
, to oversee their administration of their office; but the most important matters were to be submitted to
Rome
(epp. v, vi, xiii). But Anastasius of
Thessalonica
used his authority in an arbitrary and despotic manner, so much so that he was severely reproved by Leo, who sent him fuller directions for the exercise of his office (ep. xiv).
In Leo's conception of his
duties
as supreme
pastor
, the maintenance of strict
ecclesiastical discipline
occupied a prominent place. This was particularly important at a time when the continual ravages of the barbarians were introducing disorder into all conditions of life, and the rules of morality were being seriously violated. Leo used his utmost energy in maintining this discipline, insisted on the exact observance of the
ecclesiastical
precepts
, and did not hesitate to rebuke when
necessary
. Letters (ep. xvii) relative to these and other matters were sent to the different
bishops
of the Western Empire—e.g., to the
bishops
of the Italian provinces (epp. iv, xix, clxvi, clxviii), and to those of
Sicily
, who had tolerated deviations from the Roman Liturgy in the administration of Baptism (ep. xvi), and concerning other matters (ep. xvii). A very important disciplinary
decree
was sent to
bishop
Rusticus of Narbonne
(ep. clxvii). Owing to the dominion of the
Vandals
in Latin North Africa, the position of the
Church
there had become extremely gloomy. Leo sent the Roman
priest
Potentius thither to inform himself about the exact condition, and to forward a report to
Rome
. On receiving this Leo sent a letter of detailed instructions to the episcopate of the province about the adjustment of numerous
ecclesiastical
and disciplinary questions (ep. xii). Leo also sent a letter to
Dioscurus of Alexandria
on 21 July, 445, urging him to the strict observance of the canons and discipline of the
Roman Church
(ep. ix). The primacy of the
Roman Church
was thus manifested under this
pope
in the most various and distinct ways. But it was especially in his interposition in the confusion of the
Christological
quarrels, which then so profoundly agitated
Eastern Christendom
, that Leo most brilliantly revealed himself the wise, learned, and energetic shepherd of the
Church
(see
ONOPHYSITISM
). From his first letter on this subject, written to
Eutyches
on 1 June, 448 (ep. xx), to his last letter written to the new
orthodox
Patriarch
of
Alexandria
, Timotheus Salophaciolus, on 18 August, 460 (ep. clxxi), we cannot but admire the clear, positive, and systematic manner in which Leo, fortified by the primacy of the
Holy See
, took part in this difficult entanglement. For particulars refer to the articles:
UTYCHES
AINT
LAVIAN
OBBER
OUNCIL OF
PHESUS
Eutyches
appealed to the
pope
after he had been
excommunicated
by
Flavian
Patriarch
of Constantinople, on account of his
Monophysite
views. The
pope
, after investigating the disputed question, sent his sublime dogmatic letter to
Flavian
(ep. xxviii), concisely setting forth and confirming the
doctrine
of the Incarnation, and the union of the Divine and human natures in the one Person of Christ . In 449 the council, which was designated by Leo as the "Robber Synod", was held.
Flavian
and other powerful
prelates
of the East appealed to the
pope
. The latter sent urgent letters to Constantinople, particularly to Emperor Theodosius II and Empress Pulcheria, urging them to convene a
general council
in order to restore peace to the
Church
. To the same end he used his influence with the Western emperor,
Valentinian III
, and his mother Galla Placidia, especially during their visit to
Rome
in 450. This general council was held in Chalcedon in 451 under Marcian, the successor of Theodosius. It solemnly accepted Leo's dogmatical epistle to
Flavian
as an expression of the
Catholic
Faith
concerning the Person of Christ. The
pope
confirmed the decrees of the Council after eliminating the canon, which elevated the Patriarchate of Constantinople, while diminishing the
rights
of the ancient Oriental
patriarchs
. On 21 March, 453, Leo issued a circular letter confirming his
dogmatic definition
(ep. cxiv). Through the mediation of Bishop Julian of Cos, who was at that time the
papal
ambassador in Constantinople, the
pope
tried to protect further
ecclesiastical
interests in the Orient. He persuaded the new Emperor of Constantinople, Leo I, to remove the
heretical
and irregular patriarch, Timotheus Ailurus, from the
See of Alexandria
. A new and
orthodox
patriarch, Timotheus Salophaciolus, was chosen to fill his place, and received the congratulations of the
pope
in the last letter which Leo ever sent to the Orient.
In his far-reaching pastoral care of the Universal Church, in the West and in the East, the
pope
never neglected the domestic interests of the
Church
at
Rome
. When Northern
Italy
had been devastated by
Attila
, Leo by a personal encounter with the King of the Huns prevented him from marching upon
Rome
. At the emperor's wish, Leo, accompanied by the Consul Avienus and the Prefect Trigetius, went in 452 to Upper
Italy
, and met
Attila
at Mincio in the vicinity of
Mantua
, obtaining from him the promise that he would withdraw from
Italy
and negotiate peace with the emperor. The
pope
also succeeded in obtaining another great favour for the inhabitants of
Rome
. When in 455 the city was captured by the
Vandals
under Genseric, although for a fortnight the town had been plundered, Leo's intercession obtained a promise that the city should not be injured and that the lives of the inhabitants should be spared. These incidents show the high moral authority enjoyed by the
pope
, manifested even in temporal affairs. Leo was always on terms of intimacy with the Western Imperial Court. In 450
Emperor Valentinian III
visited
Rome
, accompanied by his wife Eudoxia and his mother Galla Placidia. On the feast of Cathedra Petri (22 February), the Imperial
family
with their brilliant retinue took part in the solemn services at St. Peter's, upon which occasion the
pope
delivered an impressive sermon. Leo was also active in building and restoring churches. He built a
basilica
over the grave of
Pope Cornelius
in the Via Appia. The roof of
St. Paul's without the Walls
having been destroyed by lightning, he had it replaced, and undertook other improvements in the basilica. He persuaded Empress Galla Placidia, as seen from the inscription, to have executed the great
mosaic
of the Arch of Triumph, which has survived to our day. Leo also restored St. Peter's on the Vatican. During his pontificate a
pious
Roman lady, named Demetria, erected on her
property
on the Via Appia a
basilica
in
honour
of St. Stephen, the ruins of which have been excavated.
Leo was no less active in the spiritual elevation of the
Roman congregations
, and his
sermons
, of which ninety-six genuine examples have been preserved, are remarkable for their profundity, clearness of diction, and elevated style. The first five of these, which were delivered on the anniversaries of his
consecration
, manifest his lofty conception of the dignity of his office, as well as his thorough conviction of the primacy of the
Bishop of Rome
, shown forth in so outspoken and decisive a manner by his whole activity as supreme
pastor
. Of his letters, which are of great importance for
church history
, 143 have come down to us: we also possess thirty which were sent to him. The so-called "Sacramentarium Leonianum" is a collection of orations and prefaces of the Mass, prepared in the second half of the sixth century. Leo died on 10 November, 461, and was buried in the
vestibule
of St. Peter's on the Vatican. In 688
Pope Sergius
had his remains transferred to the basilica itself, and a special altar erected over them. They rest today in St. Peter's, beneath the altar specially dedicated to St. Leo. In 1754
Benedict XIV
exalted him to the dignity of
Doctor of the Church
doctor ecclesiæ
). In the
Latin Church
the
feast day
of the great
pope
is held on 11 April, and in the
Eastern Church
on 18 February.
Sources
Leonis Opera omnia,
ed. ARDICINIO DELLA PORTA, (Rome, 1470); ed. QUESNEL (2 vols., Paris, 1675); edd. PETRUS AND HIERONYMUS BALLERINI (2 vols., Venice, 1753-7); ed. in
P.L.,
LIV-VI; AMELLI,
S. Leone d'Magno e l'Oriente
(Rome, 1886), 361-8; JAFFÉ
Regesta Rom. Pont.,
2nd ed., I, 58 sqq.; VON NOSTITZ­RIENECK,
Die Briefe Papst Leos I. im Codex Monacen. 14540
in
Historisches Jahrbuch
(1897), 117- 33; IDEM,
Die päpstlichen Urbanden f252;r Thessalonike und deren Kritik durch Prof. Friedrich
in
Zeitsch. für kath. Theologie
(1897), 1-50. Translation of letters and sermons given in FELTOE,
A select Library of Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers,
XIId (2nd series, New York, 1896);
Sacramentarium Leonianum,
ed. FELTOE (Cambridge, 1897). Concerning the
Sacramentarium,
cf. DUCHESNE,
Christian Worship; its origin and evolution
(London, 1903), 135 sqq.; and PROBST,
Die ältesten römischen Sacramentarien und Ordines erklärt
(Münster, 1892).
;—Liber Pontificalis,
ed. DUCHESNE, I, 238 sqq.; TILLEMONT,
Mémoires pour servir à l'histoire eccles.,
XV, 414 sqq.; ARENDT,
Leo der Grosse u. seine Zeit
(Mainz, 1835); PERTHEL,
Papst Leos I. Leben u. Lehren
(Jena, 1843d); DE SAINT­CHÉRON,
Hist. du Pontificat de Saint-Léon le Grand
(Paris, 1845; 2nd ed., 1861-4); FR. AND P. BÖHRINGER,
Die Väter den Papsttums Leo I und Gregor I
in
Die Kirche Christi u. ihre Zeugen
(Stuttgart, 1879); BERTANI,
Vita di Leone Magno
(2 vols., Monza, 1880-2); GORE in
Dict. Christ. Biog.
(London, 1882), s.v.; LANGEN,
Gesch. der röm. Kirche,
II (Bonn, 1885), 1 sqq.; GRISAR,
Gesch. Roms u. der Päpste im Mittelalter,
I, 308 sqq.; IDEM,
Il Primato romano nel secolo quinto
in
Analecta Romana,
I (Rome, 1900), 307-52; IDEM,
Rom u. die fränkische Kirche vornehmlich im VI. Jahrhundert
in
Zeitschr. für kath. Theologie
(1890), 447-93; GUNDLACH,
Der Streit der Bistümer Arles u. Vienne um den Primatus Galliarum
in
Neues Archiv
(1899), 250 sqq.; (1890), 9 sqq., 233 sqq.; KUHN,
Die Christologie Leos I. des Grossen
(Würtzburg, 1894); HEFELE,
Konziliengesch.,
II (2nd ed.), passim.
About this page
APA citation.
Kirsch, J.P.
(1910).
Pope St. Leo I (the Great).
In
The Catholic Encyclopedia.
New York: Robert Appleton Company.
MLA citation.
Kirsch, Johann Peter.
"Pope St. Leo I (the Great)."
The Catholic Encyclopedia.
Vol. 9.
New York: Robert Appleton Company,
1910.
.
Transcription.
This article was transcribed for New Advent by WGKofron.
With thanks to St. Mary's Church, Akron, Ohio.
Ecclesiastical approbation.
Nihil Obstat.
October 1, 1910. Remy Lafort, Censor.
Imprimatur.
+John M. Farley, Archbishop of New York.
Contact information.
The editor of New Advent is Kevin Knight. My email address is webmaster
at
newadvent.org. Regrettably, I can't reply to every letter, but I greatly appreciate your feedback — especially notifications about typographical errors and inappropriate ads.
Copyright © 2026 by
New Advent LLC
. Dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
ADVERTISE WITH NEW ADVENT