Christian Hornung - Sirice and the rise of papacy

Soon after the death of Damase, on the 12th of December 384, Sirice gained the Episcopal see of Rome. His election was unanimous, because the Roman community remembered the violent conflicts in the aftermath of Damase’s election, a situation they wanted to avoid 20 years later.

Sirice was elected as bishop being a deacon, which corresponded to a local Roman tradition; he was also preferred to Hieronymus, who was an intimate of Damase and lived in Rome at this time. Notwithstanding this external continuity the succession of Sirice (384-398) marks an important break in the history of Roman bishops. For this reason ERICH CASPAR characterised Sirice as the first pope on the Episcopal see of Rome.

In order to estimate the importance of Sirice, it is useful to analyse the first epistle of Sirice, sent to Himerius of Tarragona, a Spanish bishop. Therefore this letter stands in the centre of this shorter communication. It is the Directa ad decessorem (JK 255), which is usually called the first decretal. Sirice responds to several questions related to the discipline of community and clergy. Form and style of the letter, its preface and the following text give us important insights into his new conception of office. The decretal, for example, is modelled on imperial constitutions, the correspondence between Sirice and Himerius is characterized by Roman law terms (consultatio, relatio and responsum) and the instruction to publicise the letter at the end shall promote the promulgation. In order to legitimise the primacy of the Roman see, Sirice uses the term haeres and the Roman law of succession as well as several theological terms and conceptions (Mt. 16, 18f. and the Pauline metaphor of body), arranged at prominent passages in the letter. Using these different motives, Sirice articulates a new conception of office, which is unknown from his predecessors and can be described as primacy. For the common history of Roman bishops Sirice’s mode articulating the new claim is very interesting and informative. The wide reception of this letter also shows its importance in Late Antiquity.  

Furthermore, the demand of primacy, which Sirice enunciates, can also be recognized in another aspect: Sirice’s answer does not only respond to the questions of Himerius, but also adds them and decrees general instructions of canonical law, especially for the clergy.  The first decretal almost constitutes, as far as we can judge from the words used, a compendium of the early clergy law, intending the sanctification of the clergy. Sirice also tries to enforce his demand of primacy by establishing a canonical law, which follows the Roman tradition. This can also be proved in the writings of Innocence, a successor of Sirice.      

The signifiance of Sirice and his episcopate for the history of Roman bishops shall be shown  by the communication.