Emperor Justinian

The Holy Emperor Justinian the Great was a military commander for his uncle Justin I before his elevation to the throne. It was toward the end of Justin I's reign that the two began a co-reign as uncle and nephew for the former's health was beginning to deteriorate. Justinian would begin this co-regnancy with his uncle in the year 527 A.D. and later that year, his uncle would repose. Justinian would become the sole monarch of the entire Roman Empire. The Roman Empire was beginning to deteriorate. The barbarians had overrun the West and all that was left was in the East. Yet that was about to change. According to the historian Otto of Freising,

"In the five hundred and twenty-seventh year from the incarnation of the Lord, Justinian, the fifty-first in line from Augustus, obtained the imperial power while the sons of Clovis were still  reigning in Francia. This most zealous and Christian monarch resurrected his domain, as it were, from the dead. The state, which had been in large part overthrown, he reestablished and among other brave and valiant deeds triumphed gloriously, through Patrician Belisarius, over the Persians who had invaded the Roman territories. The laws published before his time had been put together in loose fashion with semblance of order. Justinian made a compendium of all these laws. This he reduced to order and published in a single volume, a volume which to this day is called after Justinian the Leges Justinianae. He adorned the Church of God also with many beautiful basilicas throughout the length and breadth of his domain: among others was one in the Royal City, a basilica preeminent for its material workmanship, in honor of wisdom divine, called by the Greeks Sophia. He also caused the king of the Heruli, Grates by name, who came to him at Constantinople, to be baptized at the festival of the Epiphany of the Lord. At that time also Garda, king of the Huns, and a certain widow woman of the Huns with a hundred thousand of their race are said to have accepted the faith and to have received the sacrament of baptism." (The Two Cities, Bk. 5.4)

Justinian was a Serb by birth according to St. Nikolai Velimirovic. There was much work to do for the Roman Empire when Justinian took charge. He began to complete the bathhouses throughout the Empire and he also contributed significantly to the construction and architecture. His most notable contribution to the architecture of the Roman Empire was Hagia Sophia Cathedral. Hagia Sophia, initially built as a Cathedral, flipped allegiances after the first millennium different times before finally falling into the hands of the Turks. It had been a Cathedral for the Greeks who had opposed communion with the Roman Bishop, it had been a Cathedral for the first Uniates, and back and forth. According to Met. Kallistos Ware, the last joint-service between the Latin Crusaders and the Greek Church occurred in Hagia Sophia before the Turks captured Constantinople in 1453 A.D. and turned it into a mosque. Hagia Sophia was a museum up until 2020 when it was converted back into a mosque. There is a tradition in the Hagiography of St. Demetrios that Justinian wanted to have relics of the Great Martyr brought back to Hagia Sophia. So he sent soldiers to the tomb of the saint, yet when they started digging, they were halted by a fire. The saint appeared, condemning the soldiers for their actions but allowed them to take some of the dirt back to Constantinople for the Emperor. The Emperor was told this story and placed the dirt from the tomb of St. Demetrios in the Hagia Sophia Cathedral.

The Emperor would also marry out of love his consort Theodora. Theodora was an actress, which in Roman culture, and in Christian culture, was one of the lowest of the professions. It certainly was not economically successful and was a largely frowned upon profession. Yet Justinian's love for his consort was genuine and the two would marry. Justinian was greatly influenced by her and her role in the Nica Revolts would save him the throne. She has been falsely tarnished as a Monophysite heretic, especially regarding her role in the Council of Constantinople. Though the Empress would not live to see the Council, she would be involved deeply with Justinian's arguments regarding the Three Chapters with Pope Vigilius. The West for some time disregarded the Council of Constantinople though its fruits are now evident in the entire Christian world. The Council would denounce the Nestorian leanings of Ibas of Edessa, Theodoret, and Theodore of Mopsuestia. When Theodora would repose in 548, presumably of cancer, the Emperor would regularly light a candle in remembrance of her.

The Emperor also began liberation campaigns in various regions of Africa and Western Europe for Christians who were persecuted by the Arian heretics. Seeking peace first, the Emperor had actually converted many Huns to Christianity from their Arian heresies, he would eventually be forced to exercise war. These former regions once held by a Christian Empire under Constantine could not tolerate being given up to Pagans and Heretics once again. He launched a military campaign in Africa against the Vandals through his Patrician Belisarius and then went into Spain and Italy seizing more land from the Goths and the Vandals. He would form an alliance with the Frankish Kings Childebert, Lothar, and Theudebert. Though Theudebert wanted sole control of Italy so he appointed his general Buccelin to combat Belisarius. Buccelin would achieve many victories against the formidable Patrician forcing Justinian to demote his Patrician and appoint Narses in his place. Narses at first was driven back but when Buccelin was killed in battle, Narses would be able to regain full control of Italy for the Emperor. This control began in 555 A.D. and would last until 565 A.D. when the Emperor reposed.

"The same emperor also built within the city of Constantinople to Christ our Lord, who is the wisdom of God the Father, a church which he called by the Greek name 'Hagia Sophia,' that is, 'Divine Wisdom.' The workmanship of this so far excels that of all other buildings that in all the regions of the earth its like cannot be found. This emperor in fact was Catholic in his faith, upright in his deeds, just in his judgments, and therefore, to him all things came together for good. In his time Cassiodorus was renowned in the city of Rome for knowledge both human and divine. Among other things which he nobly wrote, he expounded particularly in a most powerful way the obscure parts of the Psalms. He was in the first place a consul, then a senator, and at last a monk." (Paul the Deacon, History of the Langobards, Bk. 1.XXV)

The Justianianic Code, which establishes the principles of equality under the law and the presumption of innocence, forms the basis of many of the legal codes today. It had tremendous influence on Napoleon Bonaparte who included many of its principles in his own Napoleonic Code. The legal legacy of Justinian the Great is so tremendous that if one walks into the Halls of U.S. Congress, they will see, in the House of Representatives, images of the great influencers and legal thinkers of American law. Among these are Pope Innocent III, Louis IX, and Justinian the Great. Justinian is considered the founder of Roman law though what he really did was right Roman law down into written format, giving it a more explicitly Christian emphasis.

Justinian practiced this law and governed as was due. During the Nika riots, of which the Blue faction of the chariot fanatics would often persecute relentlessly other factions, burning their homes down, murdering, and looting. Justinian did not lean himself in the governance to be in favor of one faction over another despite whatever perceived leanings he had toward the chariot factions. He ministered due justice, putting to death whoever caused harm, even if it was the Blue faction that he may have been sympathetic toward (Evagrius Scholasticus, Ecclesiastical History, Bk. 4, ch. XXXII). According to John Malalas, Justinian would cut the genitals off of clerics who practiced pederasty causing the deaths of many priests caught in pederasty (Chronicle, Bk. 18.18) and he ended the Gothic wood and oil taxes (Bk. 18.20). The Empress Theodora, his consort, also punished severely brothel keepers (Bk. 18.24).

In addition to his theological contributions at the Council of Constantinople which led to the further decimation of the Nestorian heresy, he also combated the Monophysite heresy in Byzantium and contributed to the Divine Liturgy by writing the Hymn "Only Begotten". He also established as Patriarch of Constantinople, St. Eutychius and his successor St. Menas. Toward the end of his life, Justinian was taken over by an evil spirit, much like the Pious King David, and began to oppose the Patriarch he had appointed, teaching the error of Theopassianism which asserted that the Divine Nature experienced suffering and died. This error was rebuked at the Council of Chalcedon. Justinian would be rebuked for this error but before he could do further damage to the Church, he came to repentance and reposed.

Justinian was always accessible to his people and would allow them to visit his courts frequently. He was a great rebuilder of the Roman Empire and was known as "the Emperor who never sleeps". In his final moments, the light of the Imperial Palace in Constantinople was still on. He is forever immortalized in Western Culture, but even more importantly, he is immortalized in the Church as a Pious Emperor who died in the Holy Faith of Orthodox Catholicism. He entered into eternity in the year 565, having reigned for 38 years as Emperor of the Romans. St. Justinian the Great, pray for us sinners!