Cyril Lucaris

Cyril Lucaris was a Greek prelate and theologian who attempted to reform the Eastern Orthodox Church along Calvinist Protestant lines. He was influenced by Calvinism during his studies in Venice, Padua, Wittenberg, and Geneva, and developed a strong opposition to Roman Catholicism and the Union of Brest-Litovsk, which united the Orthodox Church of Kiev with Rome. He served as the Patriarch of Alexandria for twenty years, and then as the Patriarch of Constantinople for several terms, facing frequent opposition and deposition from both his own communion and the Jesuits. He sent young Greek theologians to study in Protestant universities, and wrote a Confession of Faith that professed the major doctrines of Calvinism, such as predestination, justification by faith alone, and rejection of icons. His Confession was condemned by a church council in 1672, and his actions, motivations, and specific viewpoints remain a matter of debate among scholars. He was killed by Ottoman soldiers on the orders of Sultan Murad IV, who wanted to avoid the trouble he would cause while he was away for a war with Persia. His body was thrown into the sea, but later recovered and buried at a monastery in Halki. He was honored as a saint and martyr by the Alexandrian Orthodox Church in 2009.