Dioscorus and Flavian

Lovejoypeace_

So I've seen this story from an EO perspective, and haven't found it from our perspective. Theirs doesn't make us look good though. :/ Anyone have the Coptic side of this?

"It was said Dioscorus had previously gathered 1000 monks, telling them to wait outside the church during the council and to come when he called them. When Dioscorus began to read the sentence of condemnation against Flavian and Eusebius, some bishops went up to Dioscorus asking him not to. Dioscorus called the guards, and the 1000 monks that were waiting outside with some soldiers came in and charged at Flavian and his followers. Flavian ran to the altar and grabbed hold of it for his life. The soldiers and monks forcefully took him from the altar beating him, kicking him, and later whipped him.

Flavian was deported into exile, and died from his wounds a few days later in Lydia. His body was buried in obscurity. It was not until Flavius Marcianus called the Council of Chalcedon that Flavian's body was buried with honor in Constantinople. "

mabsoota

this story is grossly inaccurate.

Lovejoypeace_

@mabsoota
What actually happened though?

Girgisantony

Flavian was roughed up by soldiers not “Monophysite monks.”

Lovejoypeace_

@Girgisanthony

Why did the soldiers "rough up" Flavian?

Girgisantony

He was excommunicated and deposed by Ephesus II in 449 AD. Whenever a Bishop is excommunicated and deposed, they are then exiled. Usually it is soldiers who take people to exile. When the soldiers took Flavian to exile they beat him. The beating was so bad he died.

Remnkemi

There is evidence that Flavian sent a letter 6 months after Ephesus II. It's too early to say if this is true or not. 

Regardless, one has to realize historians operated on polemics. They didn't separate biased theology and unbiased science. Sometimes when they (these ancient historians) saw what thought was a violation of theology, they embellished stories (or made up totally) to justify the violation of theology. Don't put too much weight into it.

I have been saying for years, if you rely on hagiography to prove theology, you will lose all logical coherence. 

Lovejoypeace_

@Remnkemi

In instances where theological decisions were so heavily surrounded by politics, how would it be fitting to determine whether one is correct and the other is incorrect, or if both are wrong, or if (as I believe is the case with II Ephesus and Chalcedon), both are correct and simply using different semantics?

minasoliman

The underlying message of what is communicated is important.  So who Christ is and what He does in Himself and how He does it all matter.  These are some of the questions that have been asked and attempted to answer.  When the fog clears, you might find the message to be exactly the same, maybe some slight nuances that are easy to gloss over and unnecessary for divisions, or clear differences that still need to be worked out and warrant a justified separation.