Sophronius

Sophronius.

1. A contemporary and friend of Jerome in Palestine about the close of the 4th century. He would seem to have been a Greek, who composed original works, and also translated a portion of Jerome's Latin version of the Scriptures into Greek. He is mentioned in the De Viris Illustr. c. 134. See Cave, De Script. Eccl. p. 236; Fabric. Bibl. Eccl. p. 11; Vallarsii Opp.

Hieron. (ed. Alt.), 2, 2, 818; Fabric. Bibl. Groec, (ed. Harl.), 9, 158; Schrockh, Kirchengesch. 2, 132.

2. A monk of Damascus, who was termed a scholar or sophist, and who became patriarch of Jerusalem in A.D. 634. He opposed the endeavors of Cyrus, patriarch of Alexandria, to secure the general acceptance of Monothelite views, and though temporarily induced, in a conference with Sergius, patriarch of Constantinople, and with Cyrus, to consent to the phrase θεανδρικὴ ἐνέργεια without insisting further on the consequences therefrom in favor of a dual nature in Christ, he refused to be intimidated after he became patriarch. In a circular letter addressed to Sergius and Honorius of Rome, he gave a detailed exposition of the doctrine of Christ's person, and demanded that no further concessions should be made to Monothelitism. The emperor Heraclius issued his edict Ecthesis (q.v.) in 638 with the design of putting an end to the discussion; and as Jerusalem had fallen into the possession of the Saracens two years earlier, Sophronius was no longer able to bring any considerable influence to the support of his cause. The pistola encyclica referred to above given in Hardouin, Acta Conc. 3, 1258, 1315. (Conc. Oecumen. 6, 11 et Acta 12). The work by Joannes Moschus, Pratum Spirituale (Λειμὼν Πνευματικός), is frequently cited under the. name of Sophronius. It was perhaps dedicated to Moschus, or composed by Sophronius and Moschus together. Several additional writings by Sophronius exist in MS. or in Latin editions (comp. Cave, De Script. Eccl. p. 451; Walch, Gesch. d. Ketzereien, 9, 17, 37, 115 sq.; Neander, Kirchengesch. 3, 248). The Menologium Groecoruin (Urbini, 1727) cites this Sophronius as a saint, and fixes his day on March 11.

3. Possibly identical with No. 1, is mentioned in Photius's Bibl. Cod. 5 as having written a Liber pro Basilio adv. Eunomium. The name is also found in lists of the patriarchs of Alexandria and Constantinople. See Fabric. Bibl. Groec. (ed. Harl.), 9, 158 sq.