John Italos c. 1023 – c. 1090
John Italos (c. 1023 – c. 1090) was a Byzantine philosopher of the Medieval era, associated with Platonism and Christian Philosophy.
John Italos was a Byzantine philosopher of the eleventh century, born in southern Italy of Norman parents, who studied in Constantinople under Michael Psellos and succeeded him as Consul of the Philosophers under Michael VII Doukas. His extensive teaching of Plato, Proclus, and Aristotle and his enthusiasm for the deductive philosophical method earned him the suspicion of the more austere monastic theologians, and in 1082 he was tried for heresy by the Patriarch of Constantinople and condemned, his eleven Errors against the faith being added to the Synodikon of Orthodoxy and read aloud in churches each year. His commentaries and questions, recovered in modern times, mark the most ambitious Byzantine effort to read Christian theology through Greek philosophy.
Key facts
- Nationality
- Byzantine
- Era
- Medieval
- Movements
- Platonism, Christian Philosophy
Selected quotes
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Attributed to John Italos:
“What can be demonstrated must be demonstrated; what cannot must be confessed.”
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Attributed to John Italos:
“Plato and Proclus are not the enemies of the faith; they are the schoolmasters who prepare the soul for it.”
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Attributed to John Italos:
“The fear of philosophy is the fear of the proper exercise of the soul.”
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Attributed to John Italos:
“Reason and revelation, rightly used, do not contradict; only their misuses do.”
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Attributed to John Italos:
“He who teaches must be ready to be tried; he who refuses the trial has not yet taught.”
Frequently asked about John Italos
- When did John Italos live?
- John Italos was born in c. 1023 and died in c. 1090.
- Where was John Italos from?
- John Italos was a Byzantine philosopher of the Medieval era.
- What philosophical movements is John Italos associated with?
- John Italos was associated with Platonism and Christian Philosophy.
- What was John Italos known for?
- John Italos was a Byzantine philosopher of the eleventh century, born in southern Italy of Norman parents, who studied in Constantinople under Michael Psellos and succeeded him as Consul of the Philosophers under Michael VII Doukas.
- How many quotes are attributed to John Italos?
- There are 5 attributed quotations from John Italos in the 1001Philosophers collection, organized by topic.