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38-484: The exact origin of the Areopagus as an institution remains unclear. In pre-classical times (before the 5th century BC), the Areopagus may have been a council of elders for the city of Athens, with membership restricted by constitutional conventions to those who had held high public office, in this case that of Archon . Conversely, it may have also begun almost exclusively as a homicide court and judicial body. While there

76-604: A body of former archons in Roman times. After Sulla's capture of Athens in 86/87 BC and subsequent restructuring of the city's political structure, it was elevated to one of the most prestigious and politically powerful institutions in Athens. The Roman statesman Cicero once said of the council, "when one says 'the Athenian state is ruled by the council,' the words 'of the Areopagus' are omitted." Acts 17:16-34 prominently features

114-436: A bribe from Harpalus. On obtaining this information he sent a dispatch to Athens, in which he gave a list of such as had taken a bribe from Harpalus, both their names and the sums each had received. Demosthenes, however, he never mentioned at all, although Alexander held him in bitter hatred, and he himself had a private quarrel with him." Harpalus appears in the historical novel Fire From Heaven by Mary Renault . In it, he

152-802: A church and monastery - both dedicated to Dionysios the Areopagite. The term "Areopagus" also refers to the judicial body of aristocratic origin that subsequently formed the higher court of modern Greece . Near the Areopagus was also constructed in the mid-19th century AD by the Roman Catholic Church the Cathedral Basilica of St. Dionysius the Areopagite . 37°58′20″N 23°43′25″E  /  37.97222°N 23.72361°E  / 37.97222; 23.72361 Archon Archon ( Greek : ἄρχων , romanized :  árchōn , plural: ἄρχοντες , árchontes )

190-571: A festival by selecting a chorus of three playwrights based on descriptions of the projected plays. Each playwright would be assigned a choregos, also selected by the archon, from among the wealthy citizens who would pay all the expenses of costumes, masks, and training the chorus. The archon also assigned each playwright a principal actor (the protagonist ), as well as a second and third actor. The City Dionysia, an ancient dramatic festival held in March in which tragedy, comedy, and satyric drama originated,

228-493: A judicial proceeding. Most general happenings are the same but with a unique twist, such as the presiding officer being the goddess Athena and all prosecutors being female and divine as well. Although, one notable inconsistency in this drama is that, in the fifth-century, Orestes would not have been tried at the Areopagus council since he was claiming to have killed his mother 'with justice' rather than asserting that he had not killed her. A case of this nature would instead come before

266-517: A reception, the circumstances of the case, the Athenians' need to appease Alexander, the urgency of accounting for the missing funds, Demosthenes' patriotism and desire to free Greece from Macedonian rule, all support George Grote's view that Demosthenes was innocent, that the charges were politically motivated, and that he "was neither paid nor bought by Harpalus". According to Pausanias , "shortly after Harpalus ran away from Athens and crossed with

304-488: A squadron to Crete, he was put to death by the servants who were attending him (in 323 BC), though some assert that he was assassinated by Pausanias, a Macedonian". The geographer also tells the following story: "The steward of his money fled to Rhodes, and was arrested by a Macedonian, Philoxenus, who also had demanded Harpalus from the Athenians. Having this slave in his power, he proceeded to examine him, until he learned everything about such as had allowed themselves to accept

342-411: A title in fraternities and sororities . In Gnostic religious traditions, the term archon generally refers to a group of seven supernatural beings, associated with the seven classical planets and considered to be responsible for the creation of the physical world. Harpalus Harpalus ( Greek : Ἅρπαλος), son of Machatas , was a Macedonian aristocrat and childhood friend of Alexander

380-401: Is a Greek word that means "ruler", frequently used as the title of a specific public office. It is the masculine present participle of the verb stem αρχ- , meaning "to be first, to rule", derived from the same root as words such as monarch and hierarchy . In the early literary period of ancient Greece , the chief magistrates of various Greek city states were called archontes . The term

418-596: Is also attested, as a translation of foreign titles such as "grand prince". In the mid-13th century, it was established as a special court rank, held by the highest-ranking official of the emperor's company. It existed throughout the Palaiologan period , but did not have any specific functions. During the centuries of Ottoman rule in Greece , archons remained a part of urban administration. In Athens during this period, there were four archons appointed every two years by

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456-493: Is no consensus, homicide trials seem to have been held by Athenians on the Areopagus hill as early as the 7th century BC and possibly as far back as the mid-8th century BC. In 594 BC, the Areopagus Council was heavily restructured by Solon , as was the rest of the Athenian state apparatus. Aristotle suggests that Solon confirmed its competence over cases of treason ( eisangelia , εἰσαγγελία) and its guardianship of

494-474: Is very little evidence to suggest that Cleisthenes may have altered the composition or the jurisdiction of the Areopagus Council, given that he himself was likely a council member. Cleisthenes significantly influenced the Areopagus by establishing the Council of Five Hundred and implementing ostracism , which reduced aristocratic power and encouraged citizen involvement in governance. These reforms transformed

532-538: The Heliaia . While this perception is corroborated by most ancient authors, it may have merely been a retrojection by those writing long after the 5th century BC. This is because there is little evidence to suggest that the Areopagus Council had done anything of note to warrant an attack on its powers by the time of Ephialtes. Nevertheless, over the course of the 5th century BC, the Areopagus Council did lose its competence over eisangelia and dokimasia (δοκιμασία),

570-713: The Lamian War . Lame in one leg and therefore exempt from military service, Harpalus did not follow Alexander into the Persian Empire , but was nevertheless given a post in Asia Minor . Alexander is said to have contacted him to request some reading material for his leisure time. Harpalus sent the king plays by Aeschylus , Sophocles and Euripides , the History of Philistus and odes by Philoxenus and Telestes. In 324 BC, Harpalus sought refuge in Athens. He

608-603: The Orthodox Church faith and tradition. His main concern is to protect and promote the Holy Patriarchate and its mission. He is also concerned with human rights and the well-being and general welfare of the Church. As it is a significant religious position, the faith and dedication of a candidate for the role are extensively reviewed during consideration; the candidate should have demonstrated commitment for

646-629: The ephetai at the Delphinium. Phryne , a hetaera of the 4th century BC who was famed for her beauty, appeared before the Areopagus Court accused of profaning the Eleusinian mysteries . One story has her letting her cloak drop and so impressing the judges with her almost divine form that she was summarily acquitted. In the second half of the 4th century BC, the Areopagus Court grew in influence and political power, and contributed to

684-411: The 10th–12th centuries, archontes are also mentioned as the governors of specific cities. The area of an archon's jurisdiction was called an archontia ( ἀρχοντία ). The title was also used for the holders of several financial posts, such as the head of the mint ( ἄρχων τῆς χαραγῆς ), as well as directors of the imperial workshops, arsenals, etc. The title of megas archon ("grand archon")

722-483: The Areopagus as the setting for the Apostle Paul's Areopagus sermon during his visit to Athens, notably leading to the conversion of Dionysius the Areopagite . However, it is unclear whether Paul gave his speech before the Areopagus Council in the setting of a judicial investigation or trial, or on the physical location of the Areopagus hill as an informal speech. The Areopagus Council likely would not have met on

760-463: The Areopagus into a judicial body, emphasizing justice within the democratic framework. By organizing citizens into demes, Cleisthenes further ensured broader representation, solidifying the Areopagus's role in Athenian democracy . In 462/461 BC, Ephialtes may have put through reforms which deprived the Areopagus Council of almost all its functions - except that of a murder tribunal - in favour of

798-406: The Athenians , the power of the king first devolved to the archons, and these offices were filled from the aristocracy by elections every ten years. During this period, the archon eponymos was the chief magistrate, the polemarch was the head of the armed forces, and the archon basileus was responsible for the civic religious arrangements. After 683 BC, the offices were held for only a single year, and

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836-572: The Great in the 4th century BC. Harpalus was repeatedly entrusted with official duties by Alexander and absconded with large sums of money on three occasions. Alexander appointed him treasurer of his empire in Babylon in 330 BC. In 324 BC he fled from Babylon to Athens with a large sum of money. The resulting political controversy in Athens ("the Harpalus Affair") was a contributing factor in

874-617: The United States were organized into a service society, the Order of St. Andrew. This archon status is not part of the Church hierarchy and is purely honorary. An archon is an honoree by His All Holiness the Ecumenical Patriarch, for his outstanding service to the Church, and a well-known, distinguished, and well-respected leader of the Orthodox Church (at large). It is the sworn oath of the archon to defend and promote

912-486: The actual Areopagus hill by the time of Paul's visit, but rather in the agora or in the Stoa Basileios . The Areopagus ceased operation as a political council by at least the early 5th century AD, according to Theodoret of Cyrus . After the closure of the Council, the Areopagus hill was occupied by various houses and dwellings while under Byzantine rule . Buildings of note on the hill during this time included

950-466: The anti- Macedonian faction in Athens. It conducted an investigation on charges of treason and bribery ( apophasis , ἀπόφασις) against Demosthenes as a result of the Harpalus affair in 324 BC. At the same time, the Areopagus as an institution may have also regained power over the nomophylakia , which had been lost to reforms in the 5th century BC. The Areopagus Council continued to function as

988-552: The betterment of the Church, Parish-Diocese, Archdiocese and the community as a whole. "Archon" is used in Modern Greek colloquially, as άρχοντας ( archontas) , for someone that holds a form of status or power, and the Arab -speaking Copts use it in church parlance in the form أرخن ʼurḫun as a title for a leading member of the laity . Archon was the title of Great Officers of Sicily . It can also be used as

1026-696: The citizens to serve in the city government as representatives of the Greeks. These archons served alongside the Cadi (Islamic judge) in the court of the Voivode . The archons of Ottoman Athens were chosen from the most powerful and wealthy families in the city. From time to time, laity of the Orthodox Church in communion with the Patriarch of Constantinople have been granted the title of archon to honor their service to Church administration. In 1963, archons in

1064-470: The initial examination of those elected into office, though it is unknown if this was because of Ephialtes. In The Eumenides of Aeschylus (458 BC), the Areopagus is the site of the trial of Orestes for killing his mother ( Clytemnestra ) and her lover ( Aegisthus ). While this is a dramatization of the trials that would have taken place at the Areopagus, it is the only surviving tragedy that most closely resembles what Athenian citizens would recognize as

1102-493: The laws ( nomophylakia , νομοφυλακία). Solon's entrusting of the nomophylakia to the Areopagus Council may imply that the council was invested with maintaining the stability of his reforms after he left Athens. Under the reforms of Cleisthenes , enacted in 508/507 BC, the Boule (βουλή) or council was expanded from 400 to 500 men, and was formed of 50 men from each of the ten clans or phylai (φυλαί) of Attica . There

1140-407: The orator faced a new wave of public outrage. The Areopagus held an inquiry, the results of which led to Demosthenes being charged with the misuse of 20 talents from the money Harpalus had brought. At Demosthenes' trial in the Heliaia before an unusually large jury of 1,500, Hypereides, the chief prosecutor, pointed out that Demosthenes had admitted taking the money, but said that he had used it for

1178-425: The people and had borrowed it free of interest. The prosecutor rejected this argument and accused Demosthenes of being bribed by Alexander. Demosthenes was found guilty, fined 50 talents and imprisoned, as he was unable to pay such a huge sum, but after a few days, thanks to the carelessness or connivance of some citizens, he escaped and travelled around Calauria , Aegina and Troezen . The Athenians soon overturned

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1216-424: The sentence and sent a ship to Aegina to bring Demosthenes back to the port of Piraeus . Demosthenes did not return to Athens until nine months later, after Alexander's death. On his return he "received from his countrymen an enthusiastic welcome, such as had never been accorded to any returning exile since the days of Alkibiades ". It remains unclear whether the charges against him were justified or not, but such

1254-660: The titular head of state under democracy , though of much reduced political importance. The archons were assisted by "junior archons", called thesmothetai (pl. of thesmothetēs ). After 487 BC, ex-archons were automatically enrolled as life members of the Areopagus , though that assembly was no longer extremely important politically at that time. Under the Athenian constitution, archons were also in charge of organizing festivals by bringing together poets, playwrights, actors, and city-appointed choregoi (wealthy citizen patrons). The archon would begin this process months in advance of

1292-432: The year was named after the archon eponymos. (Many ancient calendar systems did not number their years consecutively.) Although the process of the next transition is unclear, after 487 BC the archonships were assigned by lot to any citizen and the polemarch's military duties were taken over by a new class of generals known as strategoi . The polemarch thereafter had only minor religious duties. The archon eponymos remained

1330-428: Was also used throughout Greek history in a more general sense, ranging from "club leader" to "master of the tables" at syssitia to "Roman governor". In Athens , a system of three concurrent archons evolved, the three office holders being known as archon eponymos ( ἄρχων ἐπώνυμος ), the polemarch ( πολέμαρχος ), and the archon basileus ( ἄρχων βασιλεύς ). According to Aristotle 's Constitution of

1368-414: Was applied to a class of provincial governors. In the 8th and 9th centuries, these were the governors of some of the more peripheral provinces, inferior in status to the themata : Dalmatia , Cephalonia , Crete and Cyprus . Archontes were also placed in charge of various naval bases and trade stations, as well as semi-autonomous Slavic -inhabited areas ( sclaviniae ) under Byzantine sovereignty. In

1406-510: Was imprisoned by the Athenians at the instigation of Demosthenes and Phocion , despite the opposition of Hypereides , who wanted an immediate—and certain to fail —uprising against Alexander. The Ecclesia, at the suggestion of Demosthenes, decided to guard Harpalus' money, which was entrusted to a committee headed by Demosthenes himself. When the committee counted the money, they found 350 talents, although Harpalus had declared that he had 700 talents. When Harpalus escaped and fled to Crete ,

1444-520: Was under the direction of one of the principal magistrates, the archon eponymos . Byzantine historians usually described foreign rulers as archontes . The rulers of the Bulgars themselves, along with their own titles , often bear the title archon placed by God in inscriptions in Greek. Inside Byzantium, the term could be used to refer to any powerful noble or magnate, but in a technical sense, it

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