Patriarch Gabriel II of Constantinople
Encyclopedia
Gabriel II was Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople for one week in 1657.
In 1659 he was hanged by the Ottoman Sultan for having baptized a converted Muslim
, and after refusing to abjure his own Christian faith. He is hence revered as New
Hieromartyr
Gabriel, Metropolitan of Prousa and his feast in the Eastern Orthodox Church
is December 3.
of Ganos
and Chora
on 23 March 1648 for a first term which lasted until 26 November 1651, and again in 1654. After the execution of Parthenius III
he was appointed as the new Patriarch on 23 April 1657 with the support of the Greek Orthodox nobility
. However the Holy Synod
considered him uneducated and unsuitable for the throne, and deposed him a few days later, on 30 April 1657.
After his deposition, besides his diocese of Ganos, he was given the position of administrator (proedros
) of the vacant Metropolitan See of Prousa (Bursa). Here he was accused by the Jewish community to have baptized a Muslim, even if actually the baptized was a Jew and not a Muslim. He was also charged with maintaining good relations with the Russians, at the time at war with the Ottoman Empire
.
Sultan Mehmed IV
was in those days in Bursa, and his Grand Vizier
Mehmed Koprulu imprisoned Gabriel, and promised him freedom and honor in change to conversion to Islam
. Gabriel refused and was tortured and finally hanged on 3 December 1659.
In 1659 he was hanged by the Ottoman Sultan for having baptized a converted Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
, and after refusing to abjure his own Christian faith. He is hence revered as New
New Martyr
The title of New Martyr or Neomartyr of the Eastern Orthodox Church was originally given to martyrs who died under heretical rulers . Later the Church added to the list those martyred under Islam and various modern regimes, especially Communist ones, which espoused state atheism...
Hieromartyr
Hieromartyr
In the Eastern Orthodox tradition, a hieromartyr is a martyr who was also one of the clergy . In like manner a priest-monk is often called a hieromonk....
Gabriel, Metropolitan of Prousa and his feast in the Eastern Orthodox Church
Eastern Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...
is December 3.
Life
Gabriel was elected MetropolitanMetropolitan bishop
In Christian churches with episcopal polity, the rank of metropolitan bishop, or simply metropolitan, pertains to the diocesan bishop or archbishop of a metropolis; that is, the chief city of a historical Roman province, ecclesiastical province, or regional capital.Before the establishment of...
of Ganos
Sarköy
Şarköy is a seaside town and district of Tekirdağ Province situated on the north coast of the Marmara Sea in Thrace in Turkey. Şarköy is 86 km west of the town of Tekirdağ, and can be reached either by the inland road or by the winding coast road, which goes on to Gallipoli...
and Chora
Sarköy
Şarköy is a seaside town and district of Tekirdağ Province situated on the north coast of the Marmara Sea in Thrace in Turkey. Şarköy is 86 km west of the town of Tekirdağ, and can be reached either by the inland road or by the winding coast road, which goes on to Gallipoli...
on 23 March 1648 for a first term which lasted until 26 November 1651, and again in 1654. After the execution of Parthenius III
Ecumenical Patriarch Parthenius III of Constantinople
Parthenius III was Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople in 1656–1657. In 1657 he was charged with treason by the Ottoman Sultan and hanged, after refusing to abjure his own Christian faith...
he was appointed as the new Patriarch on 23 April 1657 with the support of the Greek Orthodox nobility
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
. However the Holy Synod
Holy Synod
In several of the autocephalous Eastern Orthodox churches and Eastern Catholic Churches, the patriarch or head bishop is elected by a group of bishops called the Holy Synod...
considered him uneducated and unsuitable for the throne, and deposed him a few days later, on 30 April 1657.
After his deposition, besides his diocese of Ganos, he was given the position of administrator (proedros
Proedros
Proedros was a senior Byzantine court and ecclesiastic title in the 10th to mid-12th centuries. The female form of the title is proedrissa .-Court dignity:...
) of the vacant Metropolitan See of Prousa (Bursa). Here he was accused by the Jewish community to have baptized a Muslim, even if actually the baptized was a Jew and not a Muslim. He was also charged with maintaining good relations with the Russians, at the time at war with the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
.
Sultan Mehmed IV
Mehmed IV
Mehmed IV Modern Turkish Mehmet was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1648 to 1687...
was in those days in Bursa, and his Grand Vizier
Grand Vizier
Grand Vizier, in Turkish Vezir-i Azam or Sadr-ı Azam , deriving from the Arabic word vizier , was the greatest minister of the Sultan, with absolute power of attorney and, in principle, dismissable only by the Sultan himself...
Mehmed Koprulu imprisoned Gabriel, and promised him freedom and honor in change to conversion to Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
. Gabriel refused and was tortured and finally hanged on 3 December 1659.