MARK EUGENICUS. - Archbishop of Ephesus, famous Byzantine schismatic polemicist, b. at Constantinople in 1591 or 92, d. there in 1444. A monk from 1418 on the island of Antigone and then in Constantinople itself, he began to have in view the future Council of Union and prepared numerous writings, responding to the theological problems that were to be discussed beforehand by the will of the Emperor. Later appointed bishop of Ephesus (1437), he was elected by the Patriarchs of Antioch and Jerusalem, on the proposal of John VIII Palaeologus, as their procurator at the Council.
In the sessions at Ferrara, there are three of his discussions on Purgatory against the general opinion, which, however, are not lacking in interest. At Florence, then, from Feb. 1439 he began that obstructionist tactic of his of sterile disputes over the lawfulness of the Filioque and over the authenticity of the patristic texts. Characteristic was the oration he delivered on 17 March, after which, while still remaining in Florence, he no longer wished to attend the sessions and even less to subscribe to the dogmatic Decree of Union (6 July 1439). Having returned to his homeland, he had to suffer from the Turks at Ephesus and arrest at Lemnos for two years at the hands of the Emperor. Having returned at last, free, to Constantinople, he died there soon after, still working bitterly until his last day against the Florentine Union.
A most prolific writer, but not profound, M. left ascetic, scriptural, oratorical, liturgical and even epigrammatic works, besides his numerous epistolary correspondence. He owes his fame, however, to his polemical writings. Against the Greeks is the most extensive of his volumes, Κατὰ τῆς αἱρέσεως τῶν Ἀκυνολογιστῶν, where he attacks Manuel Kalekas and shows himself an open partisan of Gregory Palamas. Against the Latins he wrote at least the 18 treatises collected by Petit in the PO (v. bibl.), the discourses of Florence, the dogmatic epistles to the most prominent personages after the Council and his testament, in which he encourages George Scholarios in the struggle for "Orthodoxy" in the face of Rome.
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Emmanuele Candal