Editing Gennadius Scholarius (section)

=== Return to Constantinople ===
Despite his initial advocacy of the union (and berating many of the Orthodox bishops for their lack of theological learnedness), Gennadius soured on union during the council and left it early in June 1440. At the behest of his mentor [[Mark of Ephesus]], who converted him completely to anti-Latin Orthodoxy, until his death, Gennadius was known (with Mark of Ephesus) as the most uncompromising enemy of the union. It was at just about this time (1444) that he began to draw attention to the putative heterodoxy of Aquinas' "distinction of reason" between the attributes (viz., energies) and essence of God. First, as contained in [[Martin Jugie]]'s edition of his ''opera omnia'', Gennadius interrupts chapters 94–96 of his discourse "On Being and Essence" of [[Thomas Aquinas]] and replaces the [[Thomism|Thomistic]] explanation with that of [[Scotism]] in order to agree better with [[Gregory Palamas]]. However, he initially mitigates total condemnation of Aquinas, noting that later [[Scholasticism|Scholastics]] (like [[Hervaeus Natalis]]) interpret Aquinas in a more Orthodox light.<ref>{{harvp|Kappes|2013b}}</ref> This point marks Gennadius' increasing theological distance from Aquinas, where he begins to be more theologically condemnatory of him in later works (e.g., his treatises on the Holy Spirit and his Preface to the Greek "Summa Theologiae"). However, this distance can be overstated. Marcus Plested observes that Gennadius' "love and esteem for Thomas was to continue undimmed throughout his career although he would often accentuate the note of caution in later works".<ref name="Marcus Plested 2012, pp. 128–129">Marcus Plested (2012), ''Orthodox Readings of Aquinas'', [[Oxford University Press]], pp. 128–129</ref> Despite his cautions, Gennadius writes of Thomas "We love this divinely-inspired and wise man".<ref>Luis Petit, Xenophon Sidéridès, Martin Jugie, Eds. (1928–1936), ''Oeuvres complètes de Georges Scholarios'', 8 vols, Paris, VI, 177–178, quoted in Plested, p. 129</ref> He wrote many works to defend his new convictions, which differ so much from the earlier conciliatory ones that [[Leo Allatius]] thought there must be two people of the same name;<ref>''Diatriba de Georgiis'' in Johann Albert Fabricius-Gottlieb Christoph Harless ''Bibliotheca Græca'', X, 760–786</ref> to whom [[Edward Gibbon]]: "[[Eusèbe Renaudot]] has restored the identity of his person, and the duplicity of his character".<ref>Edward Gibbon, ''[[Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire|Decline and Fall]]'', lxviii, note 41</ref>

After the death of John VIII in 1448, Gennadius entered the [[Zeyrek Mosque|Pantokrator monastery]] in Constantinople under Emperor [[Constantine XI Palaiologos]] (1448–1453) and took, according to the invariable custom, a new name: Gennadius. Before the [[Fall of Constantinople|fall of the city]] he was already well known as a bitter opponent of the union. He and Mark of Ephesus were the leaders of the anti-Latin party. In 1444, Mark of Ephesus on his deathbed praised Gennadius's irreconcilable attitude towards the Latins and the union.<ref>''[[Patrologia Graeca]]'', CLX, 529</ref> It was to Gennadius that the angry people went after seeing the [[Uniate]] services in the great church of [[Hagia Sophia]]. It is said that he hid himself, but left a notice on the door of his cell: "O unhappy Romans, why have you forsaken the truth? Why do you not trust in God, instead of in the Italians? In losing your faith you will lose your city".<ref>Quoted by Edward Gibbon, ''[[Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire|Decline and Fall]]'', ed. [[J. B. Bury]], VII, 176</ref>