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Pope Vigilius (537–555) was appointed a deacon in Rome in A.D. 531. In the same year, the church in Rome gave the bishop of Rome authority to appoint his own successor. (The bishop of Rome may have had papal authority at that time, though the circumstance described on this page makes it appear that he did not.)
Vigilius was chosen by Boniface II to be his successor, but the general outcry against the new process caused him to withdraw his choice and to burn the decree giving him such authority. Boniface was in fact succeeded by Pope John II, who reigned for only two years, and he was followed by Agapetus I.
Agapetus made Vigilius his representative in Constantinople in 535 or 536. There the empress Theodora was stewing over the deposition of bishop Anthimus of Constantinople for embracing the monophysite heresy, which had been condemned at the Council of Chalcedon in 451, almost a century earlier. Despite Chalcedon's condemnation, many eastern bishops still held that Jesus had but one nature, rather than both a human and divine nature.
The empress offered Vigilius—or so it is said—a large sum of money and letters and aid that would secure his appointment to the papacy if he would embrace the monophysite doctrine.
Apparently Vigilius accepted because in 537 the commander of the Byzantine army, Belisarius, secured Rome and pressured the Roman church into deposing Pope Silverius after a short 17-month reign. This happened despite the city being beseiged by the king of the Goths, who had secured Silverius' appointment in the place of Pope Agapetus I.
Not all the Roman clergy would accept Pope Vigilius' appointment, but Vigilius had his predecessor, Silverius, imprisoned. There the treatment was so harsh that Pope Silverius soon died. After his death, just 8 months later, the clergy gave their full assent to Vigilius, thus accounting for the fact that Rome's Annuario Pontifico, the most official list of Roman popes there is, shows an 8 month overlap in their reigns.
Pope Vigilius betrayed the empress, however. He maintained a stance against the monophysites and supported the deposition of Anthimus.
One can only assume that this was done to maintain peace with his subjects in the church in Rome. Eventually, though, he was going to have to give in, as it is dangerous to anger an empress.
Finally, Justinian, the emperor, came up with an idea. He condemned three writings, which became known as "the three chapters," whose authors had been approved by the Council of Chalcedon. Justinian figured he could get away with this since these writings were seen as supporting Nestorianism, which was condemned by the Council of Ephesus in 432.
The west would have nothing of it, though, because it came to close to overthrowing the decrees of the Council of Chalcedon. Eastern bishops embraced it because many of them were already officially excommunicated for being monophysites.
Pope Vigilius sided with the western bishops, the only safe thing to do in Rome, but Justinian was less tolerant than his wife Theodora. He sent an imperial official who pulled Vigilius out of the middle of a service to go to Constantinople.
It was a difficult journey because Rome was besieged by the Goths. Vigilius was stuck in Sicily for nearly a year, and then spent the next eight years as a virtual captive in Constantinople.
Finally he could take it no longer. He agreed to the condemnation of the three chapters, but wrote a letter in defense of the Council of Chalcedon. He was able to do this by condemning the writings but not the writers.
This was enough to satisfy Emperor Justinian. Pope Vigilius was released to return to Rome in 555, but he died on the journey home.
Christian-History.org haipati habari yoyote ya kibinafsi kutoka kwa ubao wa utafutaji hapa chini. Papa Vigilius (537 - 555) aliteuliwa kuwa mtawa huko Roma mwaka wa 531 W.K. Mwaka huohuo, kanisa la Roma lilimpa askofu wa Roma mamlaka ya kumteua mrithi wake mwenyewe. (M askofu wa Roma huenda alikuwa na mamlaka ya papa wakati huo, ingawa hali iliyoelezwa kwenye ukurasa huu inaonyesha kwamba hakuwa nayo.) Boniface II alimchagua Vigilius kuwa mrithi wake, lakini hasira ya watu wote dhidi ya utaratibu huo mpya ilimfanya aondoke na kuchoma amri iliyompa mamlaka hiyo. Papa Boniface II alibadilishwa na Papa John II, ambaye alitawala kwa miaka miwili tu, na akafuatwa na Agapetus I, ambaye alimfanya Vigilius kuwa mwakilishi wake huko Constantinople mnamo 535 au 536. "Mfalme Theodora wa Roma alishtuka sana kwa sababu ya kuondolewa kwa askofu wa Constantinople, Anthimus, kwa sababu ya kuunga mkono ""uasi wa dini ya Monophysite,"" ambao ulikuwa umehukumiwa katika Baraza la Chalcedon mwaka wa 451 KK." Licha ya hukumu ya Chalcedon, maaskofu wengi wa mashariki bado walidai kwamba Yesu alikuwa na asili moja tu, badala ya kuwa na asili ya kibinadamu na ya kimungu. Malkia alimtolea Vigilius - au hivyo inasemekana - kiasi kikubwa cha pesa na barua na msaada ambao ungehakikisha uteuzi wake kwa upapa ikiwa angekubali fundisho la monophysite. "Vigilio alikataa kwa sababu katika mwaka wa 537 B.K., Belisario, aliyekuwa kamanda wa jeshi la Byzantium, alishinda Roma na kulazimisha kanisa la Roma kumfukuza Papa Silverius baada ya kutawala kwa muda mfupi wa miezi 17.""" Hata hivyo, wakati huo, Silverius alikuwa amepiga ngome ya Roma na kuichukua mahali pa Papa Agapetus wa Kwanza. Si makasisi wote wa Roma waliokubali uteuzi wa Papa Vigilius, lakini Vigilius alimweka kifungoni Silverius aliyekuwa amemtangulia. Huko walitendewa kikatili sana hivi kwamba Papa Silverius alikufa upesi. Baada ya kifo chake, miezi minane tu baadaye, makasisi walimpa Vigilius idhini yao kamili, hivyo wakihesabu ukweli kwamba Annuario Pontificum ya Roma, orodha rasmi zaidi ya mapapa wa Roma, inaonyesha kuingiliana kwa miezi minane katika utawala wao. Hata hivyo, Papa Vigilius alimsaliti malkia huyo. Alidumisha msimamo dhidi ya Monophysites na kuunga mkono kuondolewa kwa Anthimus. Mtu aweza tu kudhani kwamba hilo lilifanywa ili kudumisha amani na raia wake katika kanisa la Roma. Hata hivyo, hatimaye alilazimika kukubali, kwa kuwa ni hatari kumkasirisha malkia. Mwishowe, maliki Justinian alipata wazo. "Kama ilivyoelezwa katika sura ya kwanza, ""maandishi matatu"" yaliyotolewa na Baraza la Chalcedon." Justinian alidhani kwamba angeweza kuepuka kosa hilo kwa sababu maandishi hayo yalionwa kuwa yanaunga mkono Nestorianism, ambayo ilikataliwa na Baraza la Efeso katika 432. Hata hivyo, nchi za Magharibi hazingeweza kufanikiwa, kwa sababu zilikaribia kuangusha amri za Baraza la Chalcedoni. Maaskofu wa Mashariki waliikubali kwa sababu wengi wao walikuwa tayari wametengwa rasmi na kanisa kwa sababu ya kuwa wafuasi wa Monophysite. Papa Vigilius aliunga mkono maaskofu wa magharibi, jambo pekee salama kufanya huko Roma, lakini Justinian hakuwa mwenye kuvumilia sana kama mke wake Theodora. Alimtuma ofisa wa milki ambaye alimvuta Vigilius kutoka katikati ya ibada ili aende Constantinople. Ilikuwa safari ngumu kwa sababu Roma ilikuwa imezingirwa na Wagothi. Vigilius alikaa Sicily kwa karibu mwaka mmoja, kisha akatumia miaka minane iliyofuata akiwa mfungwa halisi huko Constantinople. Mwishowe, hangeweza kuvumilia tena. Alikubali hukumu ya sura hizo tatu, lakini akaandika barua ya kutetea Baraza la Kalkedoni. Aliweza kufanya hivyo kwa kulaani maandishi lakini si waandishi. Hilo lilitosha kumridhisha Maliki Justinian. Papa Vigilius aliachiliwa ili arudi Roma mwaka 555, lakini alikufa alipokuwa akirudi nyumbani.