2 Cândea, V., ‘Interférences culturelles au Levant: les écrits de Paolo Segneri en arabe, grec, roumain et turc’, Revue des études sud-est européennes 27 (1989) 49–63 Google Scholar.

3 Concerning Segneri and his work, see Bolis, E., L’uomo tra peccato, grazia e libertà nell’opera di Paolo Segneri SJ (1624-1694) (Milan 1996) 18–39 Google Scholar; Massei, G., Breve ragguaglio della vita del Venerabile servo di Dio Padre Paolo Segneri della Compagnia di Gesù (Venice 1733)Google Scholar; a bibliography of Segneri’s works can be found in Sommervogel, C., Bibliothèque de la Compagnie de Jésus, VII (Brussels and Paris 1896) col. 1050-89Google Scholar.

4 Segneri has exerted a considerable influence on a number of authors besides Nikodemos. The Italian Jesuit’s writings were extremely popular and were translated into many languages. While Il penitente istruito and Il confessore istruito were translated into Greek and published in their entirety, certain segments of Segneri’s prayers were included in the Έβδομαδευχάριον by Athanasios Varouchas (see Cândea, ‘Interférences culturelles au Levant’, 52-5), a work which had 34 editions in the 18^th century ( Papadopoulos, T., Έλληνική βιβλιογραφία (1466 ci.-1800), I (Athens 1984) 3 Google Scholar, 71, 410-12). Furthermore, two preambles taken from Segneri’s homilies, including ‘On death’, were included in the Τητορική πραγματεία by Athanasios Parios; see ‘Ρητορική πραγματεία ήτοι τής Έρμογένους τον Ταρσέως ... φητορικής τέχνης έξήγησις (Venice 1799) 144–82. This homily was reprinted in 1804 together with the ΔιδαχοΧ of Meniates, Elias: see Αιδαχοϋ είς τήν Αγίαν καϊ Μεγάλην Τεσσαρακοστήν (Venice 1804) 370–403 Google Scholar. Frangiskos Skouphos and Prokopios Dionysios Megalospelaiotes are two more Greek authors who were influenced by Segneri’s works: see Sphoine, A., Ξένοι συγγραφεΐς μεταφρασμένοι έλληνικά (Athens 2003) 98ff.Google Scholar; Ladas, G., ‘Ή έν Ετεν 1716 πρώτη εκδοσις των Αιδαχων τοθ Ήλία Μηνιάτη’, Συλλέκτης 1 (1947-51) 12–19 Google Scholar (17); Podskalsky, G., Griechische Theologie in der Zeit der Türkenherrschaft (1453-1821). Die Orthodoxie im Spannungsfeld der nachreformatorischen Konfessionen des Westens (Munich 1988) 383 Google Scholar. An especially broad reception of Segneri’s work can be observed in the theological writings of Methodios Anthrakites, primarily in his Θεωρίαι χριστιανικαι (1699) and Βοσκος λογικων προβάτων (1708): see Tsakiris, V., Die gedruckten griechischen Beichtbücher zur Zeit der Türkenherrschaft. Ihr kirchenpolitischer Entstehungszusammenhang und ihre Quellen (Berlin and New York 2009) 155ffGoogle Scholar.

5 Citterio, E., L’orientamento ascetico-spirituale di Nicodemo Aghiorita (Alessandria 1987) 359-61Google Scholar; cf. idem, ‘Nicodemo Agiorita’ in Carmelo and Vassa Conticello (eds.), La théologie byzantine et sa tradition (Turnhout 2002) 905-97.

6 Unlike both authors mentioned above, Alexandru Elian, who independently realized the dependence of the Penitential on Segneri (although he did not prove this with textual parallels), was aware of the Greek printed translations: see Elian, A., ‘Postfaţă’, in Nicodim Aghioritul, Carte foarte folositoare de suflet (Timişoara 1986) 165-8Google Scholar. The extensive parallels, which reveal the degree to which the Penitential depends on Segneri, can be found in my introductory study on the two translations of Romanites (see Tsakiris, Ol μεταφράσεις των εργων Πνευματικος διδασκόμενος και Μετανοών διδασκόμενος, 1-73).

7 See Frangiskos, E., Άόρατος πόλεμος (1796), Γυμνάσματα πνευματικα (1800). Ή πατρότητα τών “μεταφράσεων” τοΰ Νικόδημου Αγιορείτη’, Ό Έρανιστής 19 (1993) 102-35Google Scholar; see also idem, ‘Tò ζήτημα της γλωσσομάθειας τοΰ Νικόδημου Αγιορείτη’, Ό Έρανιστής 23 (2001) 173-90.

8 The few fragmentary pieces of information about E. Romanites’ life do not offer a complete picture of his education and biography. For biographical information see Frangiskos, Άόρατος πόλεμος’, 107-09; Tsoulkanakes, N., ‘О μέγας διδάσκαλος τοϋ γένους Μακάριος ίεροδιάκονος Καλογερας (Thessaloniki 1994) 195-9Google Scholar. Romanites probably moved from Crete to Patmos in order to study with the teacher of the Patmian school Makarios Kalogeras. Beginning in 1716, Romanites was officially in charge of the secretarial office of the Patmian community: ‘Tfi aihfl ήμέρα έφήφησεν ή χώμα δια καντζιλιέριν έμέ τον έμμανουήλ ρωμανίτην’ (ibid., 197, note 2).

9 The date of the translation is 3 March 1720: see Komines, A., Πίνακες χρονολογημένων πατμιακων κωδίκων (Athens 1968) 57 Google Scholar, no. 297, table 120; see also Sakkelion, I., Πατμιακή Βιβλιοθήκη (Athens 1890) 150 Google Scholar, no. 297.

10 Papadopoulos-Kerameus, A., Ίεμοσολυμιτικη Βιβλιοθήκη, ήτοι Κατάλογος των έν ταΐς βιβλιοθήκαις τον άγιωτάτου άποστολικοϋ καΧ καθολικοϋ πατριαρχικοθ Θρόνου τών Ίεροσυλύμων καί πάσης Παλαιστίνης άποκειμένων έλληνικών κωδίκων, IV (Saint Petersburg 1899) 391 Google Scholar, no. 413; Demetrakopoulos, A., Προσθήκαι καί διορθώσεις είς τήν ‘Νεοελληνικήν Φιλολογίαν’ Κωνσταντίνου Σάθα (Leipzig 1871) 101 Google Scholar.

11 Lampros, S., ‘Κατάλογος κωδίκων της βιβλιοθήκης της Βουλης’, Νέος Έλληνομνήμων 3 (1906) 113-21Google Scholar, 243-8, 447-73 (114–15) (Ms. 52). This is actually a work by G. P. Pinamonti, Segneri’s collaborator in the latter’s missionary and literary activities (see Frangiskos, Άόρατος πόλεμος’, 111, note 27).

12 A list of Romanites’ translations can be found in Tsoulkanakes, Μακάριος Καλογερας, 197-9; see also Frangiskos, To ζήτημα τής γλωσσομάθειας той Νικοδήμου, 108-12.

13 This work had already been translated by many authors, and some of these translations had found their way to print; see Sphoine, A., ‘Τέσσερις άβιβλιογράφητες μεταφράσεις’, Ό Έρανιστης 19 (1993) 325-30Google Scholar (326-8); Karalevskij, C., ‘La missione greco-cattolica della Cimara nell’Epiro nei secoli XVI-XVIII’, Bessarion 16 (1912) 181-99Google Scholar (197); Papadopoulos, T., Έλληνική βιβλιογμαφία, I, 424-5Google Scholar; see also ibid., II (Athens 1986) 225-6; Eliou, Ph., Προσθήκες στήν έλληνικήβιβλιογραφία. A’. Ta βιβλιογμαφικά κατάλοιπα τοΰ E. Legrand καί τσνH. Pernot (1515-1799) (Athens 1973) 182 Google Scholar; Phreres, S., ‘Ol έλληνικες μεταφράσεις της “Μιμήσεως τοΰ Χριστσϋ’’, Anno Domini 1 (2003) 125-52Google Scholar; Pantos, D., Ίωάννης-Ίερόθεος Κομνηνος μητροπολίτης Δύστρας (1657–1619). Βίος — έκκλησιασπκή δράση — σνγγραφικο ëpyo (unpublished doctoral thesis, University of Athens, 2007) 142-4Google Scholar; see also Litzica, C., Catalogul manuscriptelor greceşti (Bucharest 1909) 184-5Google Scholar. Romanites was to translate this popular work once more into vernacular Greek. The manuscript in the Patmian Library is dated 2 October 1724 (see Sakkelion, , Πατμιακή Βιβλιοθήκη, 238, no. 564 Google Scholar; see also Komines, , Πίνακες χρονολογημένων πατμιακών κωδίκων, 58, no. 564 Google Scholar, table 123; Frangiskos, Άόρατος πόλεμος’, 112).

14 Sakkelion, , Πατμιακή Βιβλιοθήκη, 150, no. 296 Google Scholar; Komines, , Πίνακες χρονολογημένων πατμιακών κωδίκων, 56, no. 296 Google Scholar, table 117; Citterio, E., ‘La fisionomia spirituale di Nicodemo l’Aghiorita’, in Rigo, Antonio (ed.), Nicodemo l’Aghiorita e la filocalia (Atti dell’VIII Convegno ecumenico internazionale di spiritualità ortodossa ..., Bose, 16-19 Settembre 2000) (Bose-Magnano 2001) 103-31Google Scholar (119).

15 Lampros, Κατάλογος κωδίκων Βουλής, 114–15, no. 52.

16 Ibid.

17 Frangiskos, ‘Άόρατος πόλεμος’, 106f. Besides the two works by Segneri already mentioned, Nikodemos Hagioreites made extensive use of Romanites’ translations of Tesauro’s La filosofia morale derivata dall’alto fonte del grande Aristotele Stagirita and Scupoli’s Combattimento spirituale (in Romanites’ Greek translations) in his works Συμβουλευτικόν έγχεφίδιον (1801) and Αόρατος πόμος (1796) respectively.

18 The pertinent documents have been published by Hofmann, G., Patmos und Kom. Darstellung der Beziehungen zwischen dem griechischen Johanneskloster und der Römischen Kirche nach ungedruckten Quellenschriften (Roma 1928)Google Scholar and Mercati, A., ‘Complementi e notizie sull’Unione di Orientali con Roma’, Orientalia Christiana Periodica 15 (1949) 302-12Google Scholar. They are, for the most part, accounts written by members of the Congregatio de Propaganda Fide and Italian translations of the letters sent by the abbots of St John’s monastery.

19 See Miklosich, F. and Müller, J., Acta et diplomata graeca medii aevi sacra et profana IV: Acta et diplomata monasteriorum et ecclesiarum orientis (Vienna 1890) 393ffGoogle Scholar.

20 Hofmann, Patmos und Kom, 11.

21 Ibid., 49.

22 Ibid., 47-9.

23 A part of it has been published in Miklosich and Müller, Acta et diplomata, 313-40.

24 See Zerlentes, P., ΊστομικαΙ ëpzvvai περΐ τάς έκκλησίας τών νήσων τής άνατολικής μεσογείου θαλάσσης (Hermoupolis 1913) 156-60Google Scholar.

25 Ibid.

26 See Gedeon, G., Πατριαρχικοι πίνακες. Είάήσεις Ιστορικαι βιογμαφικαί περ’ι των Πατριοφχων Κωνσταντινουπόλεως άπό Ανδρέου τοΰ πρωτοκλήτου μέχρις Ίωακείμ τον Γ’ τοΰ άπο Θεσσαλονίκης, 2nd edn (Athens 1996) 509-19Google Scholar, 524, 526-8, 531.

27 Zerlentes, ΊστορικαΙ ίμεοναι, 160f.

28 Miklosich and Müller, Acta et diplomata, 319-32.

29 Gregoriou, P., Σχέσεις Καθολικών καί Όρθοδόξων (Athens 1958) 188 Google Scholar.

30 See Hofmann, Patmos und Kom, 94; the introduction to this confession of faith has been published by Gregoriou, Σχέσας Καθολικων καϊ Όρθοδόξων, 184f. Unfortunately, Gregoriou failed to print the text of the confession itself, so we know nothing about its content.

31 Hofmann, Patmos und Kom, 55.

32 Ibid., 56f;.

33 ‘... supplicano ... per esser ... dispensati da qualunque irregolarità che per causa di ordinatione e di origine habbiano contratto, a fine anco di poter celebrare la S. messa’ (Hofmann, Patmos und Kom, 50).

34 Mercati, Notizie sull’Unione di Orientali con Roma, 308-10. see also Gregoriou, Σχέσας Καθολικών και Όρθοδόξων, 188.

35 See Hofmann, Patmos und Rom, 51ff.

36 So far, the only known project of translating Roman-Catholic works into Greek in considerable numbers was undertaken by the Congregatio de Propaganda Fide, which printed several modern Greek translations at the time of its struggle against the pro-Calvinist activities of the Patriarch of Constantinople, Kyrillos Loukaris (1570/2-1638): see Papadopoulos, T., ‘Βιβλία καθολικών και βιβλία όρθοδόξων’, ‘О Έρανιστής 19 (1993) 36–65 Google Scholar. Besides Romanites’ venture, the only comparable undertaking in Ottoman lands materialized in Wallachia and Moldavia within a common initiative of the Patriarch of Jerusalem Dositheos (1641-1707) and several princes of Wallachia and Moldavia at the turn of the 17^th century, most notably Constantin Brâncoveanu (see Dură, I., О Δοσίθεος Ίεροσολύμων καϊ ή προσφορά του είς τάς Ρουμανικάς χώρας καϊ την έκκλησίαν αντών (Athens 1977) 216-56Google Scholar. At least some of these translations, however, were only a means of making Roman-Catholic theology accessible to authors of vehement anti-Catholic polemics who did not know enough Latin themselves, like Sevastos Kymenites and Dositheos of Jerusalem. An example of such a translation is the one of the Praenotiones Dogmaticae by Nikolaos Papadopoulos Komnenos, extant as MS 238 of the Metochion of the Holy Sepulchre in Constantinople, housed today in the Greek National Library; an edition of this partial translation is being prepared by Konstantinos Garitses.

37 Among Romanites’ contacts, the only one in dialogue with a number of contemporary scholars was Makarios Kalogeras, who was to play an important role in advancing the publication of his translations, as will be seen later on in this article. Makarios owed his connections to his years of study spent at the Patriarchal Academy of Constantinople; many of his fellow students, such as Konstantinos Cordatos, Azarias Tzigalas, Nikolaos Kritias, were to become influential scholars in later times. See Tsoulkanakes, Μακάριος Καλογεμας, 70.

38 See below.

39 Nos. 562 and 563: see Sakkelion, Πατμιακή Βφλιοθήκη, 237; see also Komines, Πίνακες χρονολογημένων πατμιακών κωδίκων, 58, table no. 124.

40 Frangiskos, ‘Αόρατος πόλεμος’, 110 note 24. See also Komines, Πίνακες χρονολογημένων πατμιακών κωδίκων, ibid.

41 Segneri, ‘О μετανοών διδασκόμενος, 70.

42 ‘ Ή άληθινή σοφία ή στοχασμοΐ ώφελιμώτατοι πμος άπόκτησιν τοϋ άγίου φόβου τον Θεον έκτεθέντες olà πάσας τάς ήμέμας τής έβδομάδος, παμά Παύλυυ Σεγνέριου έκ τυύτυυ με πμοσθήκην ολου έκείνου όποΰ εΐναι άναγκαιον είς μίαν καλήν έξομολόγησιν, μεταγλώττισις Μανουήλ ‘Ρωμανίτου τοϋ Κμητός’: see Lampros, Κατάλογος κωδίκων Βουλής, 114.

43 ‘Τόμάννα τής φυχής. Σύνθεσις τοΰΐΐατμοςΠαύλουΣέγνεμη είς ίταλικψδιάλεκτον,μεταγλώττησιςΜανουήλ ‘Ρωμανίτου τοθΚρητός’: see Papadopoulos-Kerameus, Ίεροσολυμιτική Βιβλιοθήκη, 391.

44 Glykys does not mention the name of the Patriarch. In 1742, when the two books were printed, the Patriarch of Constantinople was Paisios II (see Gedeon, Πατριαμχικοϊ πίνακες, 528-34, 537-8).

45 Konstantinos Mavrokordatos had lost his throne to Mihai Racoviţă (1741–4) in September 1741, which is to say, a few months before the publication of the books. Without giving any evidence, Cândea presents as a fact the conjecture that Nikolaos Mavrokordatos had financed the editions (see Cândea, Interferences culturelles au Levant, 62).

46 Segneri, ‘О μετανοών διδασκόμενος, 71.

47 I have not been able to find any evidence concerning Marcellini. His family must have moved to Ottoman territory some generations before his birth. In 1654, a certain Giovanni Marcellini from Pesaro was working at the Ottoman court as a personal physician to the future Grand Vizier Fazil Ahmed Pasha, see Wurm, H., Der osmanische Historiker Hüseyn b. Ğáfer, germant Hezārfenn, und die Istanbuler Gesellschaft in der zweiten Hälfte des 17. Jahrhunderts (Freiburg im Breisgau 1971) 50 Google Scholar, note 3. Our Marcellini could have been his descendent.

48 Concerning Ramadanes, see Sphyroeras, B., Oi Δραγομάνοι τσθ Στόλυυ (Athens 1965) 101-05Google Scholar; on the Ramadanes family and especially on the dragoman’s brother Demetrios, see Paize-Apostolopoulou, M., Έλληνες λόγιοι τον IS” αίώνα, όφανεις, άσημοι και διάσημοι σέ διασταυρούμενες τμοχιές (Athens 2007) 71ffGoogle Scholar.

49 The entire part of letter concerning the translations of Romanites reads as follows: ‘Την άπάντησιν των εύγενικων αύτής γραμμάτων, ών μ’ ήξίωσεν έκ της ‘Ρόδου, ‘έπεμψα εύθυς είς Κώ, άπερ γράμματα έσημειώσατό μοι ό Νικόλαος οτι επεμψε xfl of) ένδοξότητι. Κοίί ει μεν ήλθον έκεινα τά γράμματα καλώς, εί δε παρερφύησαν, ίδοίι καΐ αύθις διά βραχέων άποκρίνομαι. Διά τοϋς λόγους σθς έζήτησε τοΰ Σένερη, οϋκ είσιν έκείνου τά μεταφροσθέντα παρά τοΰ ένταΰθα Μανουήλ Κατζηλιέρη, άλλα βίβλος τις κατ’ άπίστων και μαλλον άξιολογωτέρα ταιν διδαχόϋν έκείνου, οτι καΐ αύτος ό Σένερης όμολογεΐ οτι ούκ εστι κύημα ‘ίδιον, άλλ’ έρανίσατο έκ των άρχαίων. Ταύτην τοίνυν την βίβλον εί μεν και εύδοκεΐ, άξίωσον πεμφθηναι ή άντιγραφθηναι έξ αύτοΰ τοθ Κατζηλιέρη καθως καΐ αύτος ó γράφων ύπόσχεται’: Tsoulkanakes, Μακάριος Καλογερας, 196ff.

50 Ibid., 153. Makarios Kalogeras, the brotherhood of St John monastery and the Patmians on the whole also maintained close relationships with Ramadanes’ predecessor, the Dragoman of the Ottoman fleet Konstantinos Ventouras (1713-31), see Sphyroeras, , Οί Αραγομάνοι, 78, 93–101 Google Scholar. For example, the abbot asked him in one case to intervene at the Sublime Porte so the monastery would be delivered from a newly imposed tax: see Malandrakes, M., ‘Νησιωτικά χρονικά. Ανέκδοτα εγγραφα’, Έλληνικά 10 (1937-8) 29–116 Google Scholar, 319-402 (388-9). Addressing Ventouras, who had also been a protector of the school of Patmos like his successor, Makarios Kalogeras wrote: ‘[we owe] an ample thanksgiving to divine providence, that granted us such a defender and a generous benefactor’ (‘χάρις πολλη тј) θείςι προνοίη, ήτις ήμΐν έδωρήσατο τοιοΰτον ύπερασπιστην και μεγαλόδωρον εύεργέτην’: Sphyroeras, Oi Δραγομάνοι, 98). In Constantinople, Ventouras would receive representatives of the island of Patmos who were there to apply for his assistance in managing communal affairs (ibid., 96). All this shows that the dragoman of the fleet was consequently supporting the island of Patmos in all its ecclesiastical, financial and administrative problems (primarily with the Ottoman government) and furthermore, fostering Greek education on the island. Even before Ventouras, the dragoman Ioannakes Porphyrites was also maintaining relations with Patmos (ibid., 86–93). This traditional connection between the dragomans of the fleet and Patmos was continued by Ramadanes. Although the latter had been involved in his predecessor’s displacement, which ended with his decapitation, he nevertheless went on supporting the island in many ways, in as much as the privileges connected with his office allowed him to do so.

51 Concerning Nikolaos of Kos (Χατζής), see Tsoulkanakes, Μακάριος Καλογερας, 191–4, 196.

52 Cf. Segneri, P., ‘О πνενματικος διάασκόμενος (Thera 2005) 13 Google Scholar.

53 Sphyroeras supposes that the books went to the Princely Library of Bucharest, where Ramadanes had served (see Sphyroeras, Oi Αραγομάνοι, 102). However, a letter addressed by Ramadanes to Patriarch Chrysanthos of Jerusalem informs us that the books were meant not for the Princely Library, but – most probably – for the library of the St Savvas monastery instead, see Iorga, N., Documente privitóre la istoria Românilor, XIV (Bucharest 1915) 695fGoogle Scholar. Therefore, it seems that Ramadanes was responsible for the books sent by Chrysanthos to the monastery’s library. Obviously, Ramadanes was equipped with the knowledge necessary to organize a library.

54 See Tsoulkanakes, Μακάριος Καλογερας, 172ff.

55 Ibid., 171.

56 “О Μανουηλ Κατζηλιερης ήδη άντιγράφει την βίβλον καΐ μισθον άπαιτεΐ ούδένα, ώς λέγει, πλήν έσχάτη πενία συζΑ. Όθεν, οταν πέμψη την βίβλον, οπερ δόξει xfj ύμετέρσ; εύγενείςι άντιπέμψει. Ταΰτα της όφειλομένης προσρήσεως.’ This passage is part of a so far unpublished letter from Makarios Kalogeras to Ramadanes, which will be published soon in N. Tsoulkanakes, Μακαρίου Ίεροδιακόνου Καλσγερα, Έπιστολές. Μέρος II. ai κοσμικούς (forthcoming); the author was kind enough to allow me to make use of this work.

57 This conjecture is corroborated by a letter addressed by the Patmian teacher Gerasimos Vyzantios to the teacher of the school of Chios Konstantinos Gordatos (see Tsoulkanakes, Μακάριος Καλογερας, 163), which shows that Romanites had undertaken to copy a manuscript on order from a certain Pater Damaskenos from Chios and would accept as payment just a reimbursement of the copying costs (‘Όσον οϋπω γράψεν την ποθουμενην βίβλον, μόνον τά άναλώματα πεμφθείτω’) • Apparently, Romanites occasionally worked as a manuscript copyist as well.

58 Sphyroeras, 01 Αραγομάνοι, 100.

59 This vita has been published in Sathas, K., Μεσαιωνική βιβλιοθήκη, III (Venice 1872) 504-14Google Scholar.

60 Numerous manuscripts of works by Greek authors were not printed in the end, in spite of long-term efforts to have them printed. The implementation of an editing project was no simple thing, dependent as it was on many different factors, including random circumstances, see Papadopoulos, T., Άγνωστα Εργα Έλλήνων imo έκδοση’, in The Printed Greek Book in the 15th-19th Centuries. Acts of the International Congress in Delphi, 16-20 May 2001 (Athens 2004) 291–308 Google Scholar. Regarding the manuscript translations of Il penitente istruito and Il confessore istruito, the successful outcome of the editing project must be attributed to the efforts of Ramadanes.

61 This influence is partially presented in my study on these two printed Greek translations of Segneri’s works Il penitente istruito and Il confessore istruito see Tsakiris, Οί μεταφράσεις τών £ργων Πνευματικος διδασκόμενος καΐ Μετανοων διδασκόμενος, 29-54; for a summary, see idem., Die gedruckten griechischen Beichtbücher, 310ff.