Succession Crises in Sixth-Century Iberia. Dead Bishops, Greedy Clerics, and the Council of Valencia in 546

<p dir="ltr">During the mid-540s, the east of the Iberian Peninsula saw efforts to establish ecclesiastical government, perhaps in cooperation with the Visigothic monarchy, through a series of Church councils, including a council of the provincial church of Carthaginensis that met at Valencia in 546. This article offers a translation and extended discussion of the conciliar acts from Valencia, which deal with the order of liturgical services, how to define and administer different kinds of property, especially in the context of a vacancy in the episcopal office resulting from a bishop’s death, and ecclesiastical discipline, particularly as it related to clerical mobility. The article situates the individual canons within the broader history of canonical regulation and ecclesiastical practice in sixth-century Iberia. It argues that the council’s rulings should be understood as part of a sustained effort by the bishops present to manage the disruption that was caused within local communities, especially among the urban clergy, when bishoprics were left vacant for an extended period of time. The solutions proposed included oversight by the metropolitan and neighbouring bishops, as well as the keeping of records and calls for increased vigilance that regulations were being followed.</p>