St. Eugene I
Eugene · 654 – 657
Elected while Martin I was still alive in exile, he navigated impossible loyalty between a living pope and an angry emperor.
Eugene was a Roman cleric, known for his gentle character. He was elected pope while Martin I was still alive in Crimean exile, making his position awkward from the start. He tried to maintain peace with Constantinople but refused to accept a compromised doctrinal formula from Patriarch Peter. The Roman clergy and people backed him when he rejected the patriarch's letter. He died before the emperor could punish him as he had punished Martin.
An Impossible Position
Eugene became pope while his predecessor was still alive, exiled, and suffering. It was not his fault; the Church needed a functioning bishop in Rome. But the situation required enormous delicacy. Eugene managed to avoid both caving to Constantinople and provoking the emperor into another arrest. It was a tightrope walk, and he managed it.