Servant of the servants of God

"Servant of the servants of God" (Latin: servus servorum Dei)^[1] is one of the titles of the Pope and is used at the beginning of papal bulls.^[2]

The 1570 bull Quo primum of Pope Pius V in a Roman Missal. Below the name of the Pope Pius Episcopus (Pius Bishop) appears his title Servus servorum Dei. Not all papal documents begin in this way, but bulls do.

History

Pope Gregory I (pope from 590 to 604), the first Pope to use this title extensively to refer to himself,^[3] deployed it as a lesson in humility for the archbishop of Constantinople John the Faster (in office 582-595), who had been granted the traditional title "Ecumenical Patriarch"^[4] by a Council convened in Constantinople in 587.^[5] Gregory reportedly reacted negatively to the Patriarch's title, claiming that "whoever calls himself universal bishop [the imprecise Latin translation of "Ecumenical Patriarch"],^{[citation needed]} or desires this title, is, by his pride, the precursor to the Antichrist."^[6]

References

1. Gabriel Adeleye, Kofi Acquah-Dadzie, Thomas J. Sienkewicz, World dictionary of foreign expressions: a resource for readers (1999) "Servus servorum Dei", p. 361.
2. Ian Robinson The papal reform of the eleventh century p. 326 - 2004 "Gregory bishop, servant of the servants of God, to the archbishops, bishops , dukes, counts and the greater and lesser men in the kingdom of the Germans, greeting and apostolic blessing."
3. Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Servus servorum Dei" . Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
4. Kiminas, Demetrius (1 March 2009). "The Ecumenical Patriarchate: A Short History". The Ecumenical Patriarchate: A History of Its Metropolitanates with Annotated Hierarch Catalogs. Orthodox Christianity, volume 1 (1 ed.). Wildside Press LLC. p. 13. ISBN 9781434458766. Retrieved 23 September 2023. [...] the Patriarch of Constantinople began to be addressed as the 'Ecumenical Patriarch', with the first known use of the title being recorded at the time of Patriarch Acacius (472-89).
5. Kiminas, Demetrius (1 March 2009). "The Ecumenical Patriarchate: A Short History". The Ecumenical Patriarchate: A History of Its Metropolitanates with Annotated Hierarch Catalogs. Orthodox Christianity, volume 1 (1 ed.). Wildside Press LLC. p. 13. ISBN 9781434458766. Retrieved 23 September 2023. A Council held in Constantinople in 587 [...] officially bestowed the title 'Ecumenical Patriarch' on Constantinople Patriarch John IV (582-95). This action caused Patriarch of Rome, Pelagius II (579-90) to sever his connection with Constantinople, while his successor, Gregory I (590-604), sent letters of protest to both Patriarch John IV and Emperor Mauricius (582-602) - but with no results.
6. McCulloh, James H. (1852). "Investigation concerning the Developments of Christianity from the time of its promulgation until the Downfall of the Roman Empire in the West". Analytical Investigations Concerning the Credibility of the Scriptures and of the Religious System Inculcated in Them: Together with a Historical Exhibition of Human Conduct During the Several Dispensations Under which Mankind Have Been Placed by Their Creator. Vol. 2. Baltimore: James S. Waters. p. 331. Retrieved 23 September 2023. Pope Pelagius, who in the first instance opposed this assumption of John the faster, having died very shortly afterwards, the quarrel was taken up by his successor Pope Gregory the Great [...]. [...] and in a letter to the bishop of constantinople who succeeded John the faster, he affirms, that 'whoever calls himself Universal Bishop, or desires to be so called in the pride of his heart, is the forerunner of anti-christ.'

Bibliography

• Camillo Ruini (2007). Alla sequela di Cristo : Giovanni Paolo II, il servo dei servi di Dio [Imitating Christ: John Paul II, the servant of the servant of God] (in Italian). Siena: Cantagalli. p. 103. ISBN 9788882722982. OCLC 238896950.
• George Weigel (September 14, 2010). The end and the beginning : Pope John Paul II : the victory of freedom, the last years, the legacy. New York: Crown Publishing Group- Doubleday. p. 556. ISBN 9780307715869. OCLC 688480029.</ref>