Metropolitan
Metropolitan is a title traditionally held by the Elder of Berytus (and the Elder of Enetoi since 863) and associated with the leadership of Unbroken Church. The first Metropolitan was Iban Acacias, appointed by the prophet Acacius in 41 IB. Subsequent successors to Iban Acacias reigned as Metropolitan undisputed until the Conciliation Crisis (470–483). After the end of that, they continued undisputed until the Enetoi Schism in 717. Since then two rival lines of claimants to the metropolitanate have vied for legitimacy. The successors of Boutros II head the Haugrkirk Emuna, while the successors to Ymir IV head the Imperial See. In 863 the Haugrkirk abandoned claims to the See of Berytus, while continuing to claim the metropolitanate. Only the rightful Metropolitan can access the Tomb of Acacias, which contains the remaining seven Chaos Seals.
The title Metropolitan is shortened to "Metron" for names ending in "s" and "Metros" for all other names. Thus "Metropolitan Gyros" is shortened to "Metron Gyros", while "Metropolitan Celandine" is shortened to "Metros Celandine". This shortening is based on the Imperial language, which requires titles to have opposite ending consonants from the proper name.
Notable Metropolitans
Metron Saint Stephanos II (born Awrahim Erishum; c. 120 – 190) was Metropolitan Elder of Berytus from 157 to 190. He convoked the Council of Salon in 170 to settle the Divinity Crisis, and upheld the co-essentiality definition declared by the Council. A forceful rhetorician, the sermons and speeches of Stephanos II are considered among the finest in the Old Berytusian language, and still taught to students in colleges throughout Eirene. He was an ethnic Midean, and the only Metropolitan born outside of Eirene until Boutros II's election in 705. He was canonized by the Second Council of Berytus in 380, but widely venerated even before then. Metros Saint Celandine the Great (c. 301 – 12 Helion 389) was Metropolitan Elder of Berytus from 362 to 389. His reign occurred during the height of the Mides Crisis, when the Padishah Amalthea had converted from Emuna to Monism, triggering a wave of conversions across Abrisom and southern Eirene. In 366 he declared the First Great Holy War to usurp Amalthea and place the Emunite Midesian prince Matevosian on the throne of Mides; though unsuccessful, it reasserted Emuna's power and helped reconvert Eirene's lapsed Emunites. He also created the Order of Archons and convoked the Second Council of Berytus in 380. His steadfast defense of Emuna and bloodthirsty response to apostasy earned him the nickname "Sword of God", and he was canonized as a saint in 470 by the Council of Apannina. Metropolitan Petris I (born Iolrath Yesphyra; 20 Acacion 690 – 28 Helion 909) was an Elf who reigned as Metropolitan of the Haugrkirk Emuna and ruler of the Theorepublic of Enetoi from 796 to 909. His 113 year long reign is the longest of any Metropolitan, and comprises the Petrine Era of Eirenen history, a golden age and the pinnacle of Eirenen culture and technology. He won the Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Great Holy Wars, convoked the Council of Boutros in 850, and forged the permanent Union of Abbas with the Yothian Church, as well as temporarily forcing orthodoxy on the Saura Emuna Cathedral from 829 to 856 in the Union of Andropolis. Despite the orthodoxy of his theology and the justice and skill of his worldly rule, he is not canonized as a saint, owing to his numerous personal failings, including adultery, homosexuality, drug addiction, drunkenness, and gluttony. His tomb is the largest in Enetoi, constructed on the orders of his successor Metros Saint Hylos XIII, and the large public works constructed during his reign still stand today as the most massive and beautiful structures in Enetoi. The additions he made to the Colossal Palace of Enetoi are collectively referred to as the Palace of Petris. The epitaph above his coffin reads, "Never has one done more, neither good nor bad, than he."Notable for other work
Antimetropolitans
An Antimetropolitan or Anti-Metropolitan is a person who claims to be the Metropolitan in opposition to the generally accepted claimant. Only a handful of Antimetropolitans have ever existed with any widespread support or recognition. The largest number of disputed Antimetropolitans came during the Conciliation Crisis (470–483). Pontiff Begingi (born Bey Zingiberis; 410 – 483) was the Pontiff (governor) of Belladocia from 440, and Antimetropolitan from 474 until his death in 483. He is considered a legitimate Metropolitan by the Haugrkirk Emuna from 475 to 483. After the Tolimanic Apocalypses in 467, he staged a rebellion, conquering Apannina and uniting it with Belladocia to form the Pontificate, a state independent of Berytus. He captured and held hostage the Council of Apannina, forcing them to elect him as Metropolitan in 474. He remained in control of the entire Apennine Peninsula until his death, and his son Basilios succeeded him as Pontiff. Basilios abandoned claims to the metropolitanate and dissolved the Council of Apannina. For this act of reconcilation the Berytusian Empire recognized Basilios and his heirs as rulers of all the Apennine Peninsula, thus forming the Pontifical House who would later rule the independent kingdoms of Belladocia and Apannina. More modern assessments (especially those in the Haugrkirk Emuna) assert that Begingi was the legitimate Metropolitan from the death of the Berytusian claimant Adrian III in 475 until 483, since Theological Councils were widely believed to have the power to elect Metropolitans at the time, a matter settled in the west only at the Council of Boutros (850) and still disputed in the east.Anti-Conciliar Metropolitans
These claimants were elected according to canon law as Metropolitans, but their elections were rejected by the Council of Apannina, casting doubt on the legitimacy of their tenure. All from Athanasios I were elected in contravention of Emperor Carloman's sedevancante edict, which proclaimed that a new metropolitan could not be elected until the Council was settled.- Adrian III (412 – 475) from 470 to his death in 475.
- Athanasios I (413 – 476) from 18 Thargelion 475 to 4 Aemelion 475.
- Athanasios II (420 – 482) from 34 Aemelion 475 to 7 Idarion 482.
- Athanasios III (410 – 488) from 10 Idarion 482 to 7 Helion 484; abdicated to accepted claimant Adrian IV.
Other Information
Requirements
Only men under the Covenant of Drowning are eligible to become Metropolitan, but almost all metropolitans are invariably Presbyters of the Church before their election, and usually Cardinals in the case of the Haugrkirk.
Appointment
Elected by the Electoral College in Haugrkirk Emuna, and by the presbyters of the See of Berytus in the Imperial See. After election, three Presbyters (Cardinals in the Haugrkirk) vest the candidate as Elder of Berytus (or Enetoi in the Haugrkirk).
Duties
The Metropolitan commands the entire force of the Church, directing the suppression of heresy and apostasy, and promulgating edicts for the correction of teachings. The Metropolitan is responsible for crowning any ruler with the rank of Emperor, and imposing sanctions on heretical clerics.
Benefits
The Metropolitan of the Haugrkirk is also secular head of the Theorepublic of Enetoi, and commands the most wealthy institution on Tessera. The Imperial Metropolitan has total purview over the Imperial Academy and all its wealth. In both cases the Metropolitan is considered the most prestigious and highest ranked person on Tessera.
Accoutrements & Equipment
Iban Acacias ordered the creation of a full set of Metropolitan regalia in 44 IB, which was completed in 46 IB and first worn by Paul Simon in 90 IB when he presided over the First Council of Berytus. Since 717 the Metron Mitre and stole have been held by the Haugrkirk Emuna, while the chasuble and alb have been held by the Imperial See.
Grounds for Removal/Dismissal
In the Haugrkirk the Metropolitan may be removed only by Electoral College unanimously, and only for manifest heresy in his public teachings. In the Imperial See the Metropolitan may be deposed by the Emperor even without formal cause.
Cultural Significance
The Metropolitan is the de facto cultural leader of Emuna, and as such his words have extreme weight throughout the world. The wealth of the Haugrkirk means that a great majority of the art and culture produced in Eirene comes from the Metropolitan's purse, and as such cultural trends are very often set by his personal taste. This was the case most notably during the Petrine Era, under which the arts and intellectual traditions flourished.
Metropolitan of Berytus
Type
Religious, Clerical
Status
Currently disputed between Imperial See and Haugrkirk Emuna. Imperial claimant is ceremonial and a puppet of the Emperor, while the Haugrkirk claimant rules Enetoi.
Creation
The title of Metropolitan was bestoed on Iban Acacias by Acacius in 41 IB by the Writ of Acacius (1,193 years ago).
Form of Address
His Holiness
Alternative Naming
Metros, Metron, Papa (in Belladocia)
Source of Authority
Heliand, through the Writ of Acacius
Length of Term
Life or removal
First Holder
Current Holders
Related Locations
Related Organizations
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