POPES THROUGH THE AGES by Joseph Brusher S.J. CONTENTS ST. PETER ST. LINUS c. 67-c. 76 ST. CLETUS c. 76-c. 91 ST. CLEMENT I C. 91-C. 100 ST. EVARISTUS c. 100-c. 105 ST. ALEXANDER I c. 105-c. 115 ST. SIXTUS I c. 115-c. 125 ST. TELESPHORUS C. 125-C.138 ST. HYGINUS c. 138-140 ST. PIUS I c. 140 - c. 154 ST. ANICETUS C. 155-C. 166 ST. SOTER c. 167-c. 175 ST. ELEUTHERIUS c. 174-c. 189 ST. VICTOR I c 189-199 ST. ZEPHYRINUS c. 199-c. 217 ST. CALIXTUS I C. 217-C. 222 ST. URBAN I c. 222-c. 230 ST. PONTIAN 230 -235 ST. ANTERUS 235 - 236 ST. FABIAN 236 - 250 ST . CORNELIUS 251 - 253 ST . LUCIUS 253 - 2544 ST. STEPHEN I 254-257 ST. SIXTUS 257 - 258 ST. DIONYSIUS 259 - 268 ST. FELIX I 269 - 274 ST. EUTYCHIAN 275 - 283 ST. CAIUS 283 - 296 ST. MARCELLINUS 296 - 304 ST. MARCELLUS I 308 - 309 ST. EUSEBIUS 309 or 31O ST. MILTIADES 311 - 314 ST. SYLVESTER I 314 - 335 ST. MARK 336 ST. JULIUS I 337-352 LIBERIUS 352 - 366 ST. DAMASUS I 366 - 384 ST. SIRICIUS 384 - 399 ST. ANASTASIUS I 399 - 401 ST. INNOCENT I 401 - 417 ST. ZOSIMUS 417 - 418 ST. BONIFACE I 418 - 422 ST. CELESTINE I 422 -432 ST. SIXTUS III 432 - 440 ST. LEO I, THE GREAT 440 - 461 ST. HILARY 461 - 468 ST. SIMPLICIUS 468 - 483 ST. FELIX II 483 - 492 ST. GELASIUS I 492 - 496 ANASTASIUS II 496 - 498 ST. SYMMACHUS 498 - 514 ST. HORMISDAS 514 - 523 ST. JOHN I 523 -526 ST. FELIX III 526 - 530 BONIFACE II 530 - 532 JOHN II 533 - 535 ST. AGAPETUS I 535 - 536 ST. SILVERIUS 536 - 537 VIGILIUS 537 - 555 P E L A G I U S I 556 - 561 JOHN III 561 - 574 BENEDICT I 575 - 579 PELAGIUS II 579 - 590 ST. GREGORY I, THE GREAT 590 - 604 SABINIAN 604 - 606 BONIFACE III 607 ST. BONIFACE IV 608 - 615 ST. DEUSDEDIT 615 - 618 BONIFACE V 619 - 625 HONORIUS I 625 - 638 SEVERINUS 640 JOHN IV 640 - 642 THEODORE I 642 - 649 ST. MARTIN I 649 - 654 ST. EUGENE I 654-657 ST. VITALIAN 657 - 672 ADEODATUS 672 - 676 DONUS 676 - 678 ST. AGATHO 678 - 681 ST. LEO II 682 - 683 ST. BENEDICT II 684 - 685 JOHN V 685 - 686 CONON 686 - 687 ST. SERGIUS 687-701 JOHN VI 701 - 705 JOHN VII 705 - 707 SISINNIUS 708 CONSTANTINE 708 - 715 ST. GREGORY II 715 - 731 ST. GREGORY III 731 - 741 ST. ZACHARY 741 - 752 STEPHEN 752 STEPHEN III 752 - 757 ST. PAUL I 757 - 767 STEPHEN IV 768 - 772 HADRIAN I 772 - 795 ST. LEO III 795 - 816 STEPHEN V 816 -- 817 ST. PASCHAL I 817 - 824 EUGENE II 824 - 827 VALENTINE 827 GREGORY IV 827 - 844 SERGIUS II 844 - 847 ST. LEO IV 847 - 855 BENEDICT III 855 - 858 ST. NICHOLAS I, THE GREAT 858 - 867 HADRIAN II 867 - 872 JOHN VIII 872 - 882 MARINUS I 882 - 884 ST. HADRIAN III 884-885 STEPHEN VI 885 -891 FORMOSUS 891 -896 BONIFACE VI 896 STEPHEN VII 896 - 897 ROMANUS 897 THEODORE II 897 JOHN IX 898 - 900 BENEDICT IV 900 - 903 LEO V 903 SERGIUS III 904 -911 ANASTASIUS III 911 - 913 LANDUS 913 914 JOHN X 914 -928 LEO VI 928 - 929 STEPHEN VIII 929 - 931 JOHN XI 931 - 936 LEO VII 936 - 939 STEPHEN IX 939 - 942 MARINUS II 942 - 946 AGAPETUS II 946 - 955 JOHN XII 955 - 963 BENEDICT V 964 LEO VIII 963 -965 JOHN XIII 965 - 972 BENEDICT VI 972 - 974 BENEDICT VII 974 - 983 JOHN XIV 983 - 984 JOHN XV 985 - 996 gregory v 996 - 999 SYLVESTER II 999 - 1003 JOHN XVII 1003 JOHN XVIII 1O03 - 1009 SERGIUS IV 1009 - 1012 BENEDICT VIII 1012 - 1024 JOHN XIX 1024 - 1032 BENEDICT IX 1032 -1044 GREGORY VI 1045 -1046 CLEMENT II 1046 - 1047 DAMASUS II 1048 ST LEO IX 1049-1054 VICTOR II 1055 - 1057 STEPHEN X 1057 - 1058 NICHOLAS II 1059 - 1061 ALEXANDER II 1061-1073 ST. GREGORY VII 1073 - 1085 BLESSED VICTOR III 1086 - 1087 BLESSED URBAN II 1088 -1099 PASCHAL II 1099 - 1118 GELASIUS II 1118 - 1119 CALIXTUS II 1119 -1124 HONORIUS II 1124 - 1130 INNOCENT II 1130 - 1143 CELESTINE II 1143 - 1144 LUCIUS II 1144 - 1145 BLESSED EUGENE III 1145 -1153 ANASTASIUS IV 1153 -1154 HADRIAN IV 1154 - 1159 ALEXANDER III 1159 -1181 LUCIUS III 1181-1185 URBAN III 1185 - 1187 GREGORY VII 1187 CLEMENT III 1187 -1191 CELESTINE III 1191 - 1198 INNOCENT III 1198 -1216 HONORIUS III 1216 -- 1227 GREGORY IX 1227 -- 1241 CELESTINE IV 1241 INNOCENT IV 1241 -- 1254 ALEXANDER IV 1254 -- 1261 URBAN IV 1261 -- 1264 CLEMENT IV 1265 -- 1268 BLESSED GREGORY X 1271 --1276 BLESSED INNOCENT V 1276 HADRIAN V 1276 JOHN XXI 1276-1277 NICHOLAS III 1277 -- 1280 MARTIN IV 1281 - 1285 HONORIUS IV 1285 -1287 NICHOLAS IV 1288 -- 1292 ST. CELESTINE V 1294 BONIFACE VIII 1294 - 1303 BLESSED BENEDICT XI 1303 - 1304 CLEMENT V 1305 - 1314 JOHN XXII 1316 - 1334 BENEDICT XII 1334 -- 1342 CLEMENT VI 1342 - 1352 INNOCENT VI 1352 - 1362 BLESSED URBAN V 1362 -- 1370 GREGORY XI 1370 - 1378 URBAN VI 1378 - 1389 BONIFACE IX 1389 - 1404 INNOCENT VII 1404 --1406 GREGORY XII 1406 --1415 MARTIN V 1417 - 1431 EUGENE IV 1431-1447 NICHOLAS V 1447 -- 1455 CALIXTUS III 1455 -1458 PIUS II 1458 - 1464 PAUL II 1464 -- 1471 SIXTUS IV 1471 - 1484 INNOCENT VIII 1484 -1492 ALEXANDER VI 1492 - 1503 PIUS III 1503 JULIUS II 1503 -- 1513 LEO X 1513 -- 1521 ADRIAN VI 1522 -1523 CLEMENT VII 1523 -- 1534 PAUL III 1534 - 1549 JULIUS III 1550 -- 1555 MARCELLUS II 1555 PAUL IV 1555 -- 1559 PIUS IV 1559 - 1565 ST. PIUS V 1566-1572 GREGORY XIII 1572 - 1585 SIXTUS V 1585 -1590 URBAN VII 1590 GREGORY XIV 1590 -- 1591 INNOCENT IX 1591 CLEMENT VIII 1592 - 1605 LEO XI 1605 PAUL V 1605 - 1621 GREGORY XV 1621 -1623 URBAN VIII 1623 --1644 INNOCENT X 1644 -- 1655 ALEXANDER VII 1655 - 1667 CLEMENT IX 1667 - 1669 CLEMENT X 1670 - 1676 BLESSED INNOCENT XI 1676 - 1689 ALEXANDER VIII 1689 - 1691 INNOCENT XII 1691 - 1700 CLEMENT XI 1700-1721 INNOCENT XIII 1721 --1724 BENEDICT XIII 1724 -1730 CLEMENT XII 1730 - 1740 BENEDICT XIV 1744 0 - 1758 CLEMENT XIII 1758 - 1769 CLEMENT XIV 1769-1774 PIUS VI 1775 -- 1799 PIUS VII 1800-1823 LEO XII 1823 - 1829 PIUS VIII 1829 - 1830 GREGORY XVI 1831 -- 1846 PIUS IX 1846 -- 1878 LEO XIII 1878 -- 1903 ST. PIUS X 1903 - 1914 BENEDICT XV 1914 -1922 PIUS XI 1922 - 1939 PIUS XII 1939 - 1958 JOHN XXIII 1958-1963 PAUL VI 1963 -- 1978 JOHN PAUL I 1978 JOHN PAUL II 1978 -- ST. PETER The first Pope was a Galilean fisherman named Simon. He was from Bethsaida on the lake of Genesareth. He and his brother Andrew had been attracted by St. John the Baptist. When the Baptist directed them to Christ, Jesus saw in Simon a man of destiny. He saw in the rough fisherman the rock on which He would build His Church, and so He called Simon "Peter," which means rock. Later, Jesus in a scene of historic importance solemnly commissioned Peter. "And Jesus came into the quarters of Caesarea Philippi: and he asked his disciples, saying: Whom do men say that the Son of man is? "But they said: Some John the Baptist, and other some Elias, and others Jeremias, or one of the prophets. "Jesus saith to them: But whom do you say that I am? "Simon Peter answered and said: Thou art Christ, the Son of the living God. "And Jesus answering said to him: Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jona: because flesh and blood hath not revealed it to thee, but My Father who is in heaven. And I say to thee: That thou art Peter; and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven. And whatsoever thou shalt bind upon earth, it shall be bound also in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth, it shall be loosed also in heaven." (Matthew 16:13-19.) Peter had made a great act of faith and had been given a great responsibility. He was to be the Vicar of Christ on earth, the first Pope. Yet Peter fell: in a moment of weakness he denied Jesus; but he was quick to repent. With bitter sorrow he mourned his shameful sin, and Jesus forgave him utterly as only God can forgive. He favored Peter with a special apparition in the glory of the first Easter. He ratified and confirmed the appointment of Peter as first Pope when He gave Peter the charge to feed His flock, lambs and sheep alike. After the Holy Ghost descended on the apostles that great day of Pentecost, Peter worked hard and worked well for Jesus. He presided over the council which chose Matthias to replace Judas, he supported the newly converted Paul, he threw open the gates of the Church to the Gentiles. He suffered imprisonment only to be released by an angel because he was destined for further labor. He worked in Jerusalem, in Antioch, and in great Rome itself, the imperial metropolis of the Western world. Peter proved by his devotion, a devotion faithful unto death, that Jesus had indeed seen something He could build on in the rough, untried Galilean fisherman. When Nero struck the Christian flock, the shepherd was not spared. They crucified Peter head down, tradition tells us, because he did not feel worthy to die like his Lord, Jesus. It was on a hill they crucified Peter. The name of that hill was the Vatican. ST. LINUS c. 67-c. 76 About St. Peter a great deal is known; about his successors, considerably less. For the early popes the main written source is the "Liber Pontificalis." This account of the lives of the popes was begun probably early in the sixth century while the Ostrogoths ruled Italy. The author had access to earlier written sources, but he was not rigidly critical. Since there are a number of mistakes which historians have checked, the "Liber Pontificalis," though valuable, is scarcely to be considered infallible. It is, however, the best written source extant for many of the early popes. St. Linus, according to the "Liber Pontificalis," was an Italian from Tuscany. His father's name was Herculanus. He died a martyr and was buried on the Vatican near St. Peter. It is probable that St. Paul refers to him when he writes from Rome to Timothy, "Eubulus and Pudens and Linus and Claudia and all the brethren salute thee" (2 Tim., 4:21). Little as is known of St. Linus, churchgoers can be reminded of him every time they see a woman in church wearing a hat or kerchief, for it is said that it was this second pope who decreed that women should enter church only with heads covered. The feast of St. Linus is celebrated on September 23. ST. CLETUS c. 76-c. 91 St. Cletus has given earlier historians some trouble because of his name. Two of the early lists of the popes, the so-called "Liberian Catalogue" and the "Poem Against Marcion" list an Anacletus as well as a Cletus. Most ancient lists, however, give the papal succession as Peter, Linus, Cletus, Clement; and modern scholars agree that this is the correct listing. Anacletus is a variant of Cletus, and this seems to have caused the difficulty. St. Cletus was a Roman. His father's name was Emilianus. Cletus ruled the Church from some time in the reign of the Emperor Vespasian to some time in the reign of Domitian. He was martyred and buried near St. Peter on the Vatican. St. Cletus' feast is celebrated along with that of St. Marcellinus on the twenty-sixth of April. ST. CLEMENT I C. 91-C. 100 St. Clement, according to tradition, was ordained by Peter himself. Some early writers, indeed, thought that Clement was Peter's immediate successor, but modern scholars agree that he is Peter's third successor. St. Clement has been identified with the Clement mentioned by St. Paul in his Epistle to the Philippians; but that Clement seems to have been a Philippian. For a time there were some who identified St. Clement with T. Flavius Clemens, a cousin of the Emperors Titus and Domitian. This is especially appealing because it is highly probable that the noble Roman was a martyr in the persecution of his cousin Domitian. Against this romantic theory is the prosaic fact that the early writers make no mention at all of this. Surely if the fourth pope had been a cousin of the Emperor, it would have been widely heralded. Modern scholars think that St. Clement was a freedman or the son of a freedman of the imperial household. It is doubtful whether he was of Jewish or Gentile origin. Some would argue for Jewish descent because his famous epistle is so steeped in the Old Testament. St. Clement was a Roman; he was martyred--at some place away from Rome. This is about all that is known for certain of Clement's death. The Greek "Acts of the Martyrs" (written in the fourth century) gives many and interesting details. St. Clement was exiled by the Emperor Trajan to the Chersonese, modern Crimea. There the holy Pope worked with such zeal among the prisoners laboring in the mines that he was condemned to death. He was thrown into the sea with an anchor tied around his neck. This is probable enough, but the story goes on to say that the sea flowed back a mile or so to reveal the body of the saint resting in a beautiful marble shrine. In the ninth century, St. Cyril, the Apostle of the Slavs, discovered some bones and an anchor in a Crimean mound. He translated these bones to Rome, where Pope Hadrian II placed them in the altar of St. Clement's Basilica. Whether or not these bones are authentic, St. Clement left us a real relic of the highest value in his famous letter to the Corinthians. This epistle, which modern scholars agree is authentic, rebukes the Corinthians for a schism which had broken out in their church. Written while one of the apostles was still alive, this letter of Clement is the first great non- inspired Christian document. It is interesting indeed that it shows the fourth pope interfering to put another apostolic church in order. The feast of St. Clement is celebrated on November 23. ST. EVARISTUS c. 100-c. 105 St. Evaristus was, according to the "Liber Pontificalis," a Greek from Antioch whose father, Juda, was a Jew from the birthplace of Jesus, Bethlehem. He ruled the Church while Domitian, Nerva, and Trajan were emperors. His pontificate saw the end of Domitian's tyranny and the start of the Antonine dynasty. According to the "Liber Pontificalis" this pope divided Rome into parishes. This, however, is generally believed by modern scholars to be a later organization. He also appointed seven deacons to check the preaching of a bishop for possible slips which might have dogmatic implications. This might refer to the prefaces of the mass where sometimes a sermon was added to the prayer recalling the feast. Evaristus is said to have ordained fifteen bishops, seven priests, and two deacons. Of his death nothing is known except that according to tradition he was a martyr. St. Evaristus is buried near St. Peter on the Vatican. His feast is celebrated on October 26. ST. ALEXANDER I c. 105-c. 115 The next Pope was, according to the "Liber Pontificalis," a Roman named, like his father before him, Alexander. St. Alexander is said to have introduced into the Mass the prayer just before the Consecration which recalls the memory of Christ's passion. He is also credited with the order that houses should be blessed with water to which salt had been added. St. Alexander's death has caused confusion among scholars because an account of the death of another St. Alexander, who was not a bishop, tallies somewhat closely with the account of the Pope's martyrdom in the "Liber Pontificalis." Duchesne, the learned editor of the "Liber Pontificalis," concludes that there can be no certainty in the matter. The traditional account of St. Alexander's martyrdom is that he was beheaded on the Via Nomentana within seven miles of the city of Rome, along with Eventius, a priest, and Theodulus, a deacon. St. Alexander was buried on the Via Nomentana near the spot where he suffered. His feast, together with that of Sts. Eventius and Theodulus, is celebrated on May 3. ST. SIXTUS I c. 115-c. 125 According to the "Liber Pontificalis" St. Sixtus was a Roman, the son of Pastor. He ruled the Church in the time of Emperor Hadrian. Pope Sixtus I decreed that the sacred vessels should not be touched except by the clergy. This is one of several ordinances attributed to the early popes regarding the sacredness of the ceremonial vessels. Sixtus also decreed that a bishop who had been summoned to Rome should not be received by his people when he returned until he presented the letter of greeting from the Apostolic See. Another very interesting ordinance attributed to Pope Sixtus I is the one which orders the priest after the preface to sing the Sanctus with the people. This is truly a beautiful prayer, "Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of Hosts. The heavens and earth are filled with Thy glory, Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is He Who cometh in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest." Since it is found in all the early liturgies, Duchesne concludes that it quite probably dates back to the time of Sixtus I and even earlier. Pope St. Sixtus I was martyred, but there are no available details of his death. He was buried on the Vatican near St. Peter. Pope Clement X gave some relics of St. Sixtus I to the well-known seventeenth century French Cardinal de Retz. He put them in the Abbey of St. Michael in Lorraine. The feast of Pope St. Sixtus I is kept on April 6. ST. TELESPHORUS C. 125-C.138 St Telesphorus was a Greek who had been an anchorite. He ruled the Church in the time of Emperor Antoninus Pius. To St. Telesphorus are attributed some church practices which endure down to this day. According to the "Liber Pontificalis" St. Telesphorus ordered a fast for seven weeks before Easter. That the Lenten fast goes back even before the time of Telesphorus, St. Irenaeus gives testimony. But the length of the fast varied considerably in those early days. It is probable enough that Pope St. Telesphorus did make some regulation as to the length of the Lenten fast. A custom much loved even today is also attributed to St. Telesphorus. He is said to have ordered that although Mass was not celebrated before the hour of tierce (i.e., 9 to 12 o'clock in the morning) at Christmas time Mass should be celebrated at night. This is the first mention of the beloved midnight Mass. However, scholars doubt whether this decree actually does go back to the time of St. Telesphorus. St. Telesphorus is said also to have decreed that the Gloria in excelsis should be sung at the Christmas Mass and only at the Christmas Mass. This magnificent hymn of praise is not said at all Masses even today. As late as the eleventh century, though the Pope could say it oftener, priests were not allowed to say it except at Easter. St. Telesphorus died a martyr as is known not only from the "Liber Pontificalis" but also from the earlier testimony of St. Irenaeus. He was buried near St. Peter on the Vatican. His feast is kept on January 5 in the Roman liturgy and February 22 in the Greek. ST. HYGINUS c. 138-140 St. Hyginus was a Greek. According to the "Liber Pontificalis" he had been a philosopher, but modern scholars are inclined to think that he is confused with a Latin author of the same name. During the pontificate of St. Hyginus the heretics Valentinus and Cerdo came to Rome. Cerdo, as Eusebius tells us in his Ecclesiastical History, was in and out of the Church a number of times. He would teach error, repent, and then fall back into error again. Since this is the first mention of heresy in these lives, it might be helpful to explain just what is meant by heresy and heretic. Heresy is a diluted or perverted Christianity. The English word comes from the Greek word which means a choosing. A heretic is one who chooses what he will believe of Christ's teaching. The particular heresy taught by Valentinus and Cerdo was Gnosticism. Valentinus, indeed, was an outstanding teacher of Gnosticism. He taught that Jesus is a higher being who, though not God, is gradually being purified, and will lead the elect with Him into the pleroma or "fullness." Gnosticism seems to have been a hodgepodge of lofty philosophic speculation about God and nature, a Manichean fear of matter, and in its later phases, some downright crude superstitions. St. Hyginus did some organizing of the clergy. According to tradition he died a martyr, but the ancient writers are silent on this point. His feast is kept on January 11. ST. PIUS I c. 140 - c. 154 St. Pius I, according to the "Liber Pontificalis," was an Italian from Aquileia. His father's name was Rufinus. He was a brother of the famous Hermas, the author of "The Shepherd," a precious early Christian document. Hermas in this work says that he was a slave and then a freedman. This, however, is quite possibly a fictional device of the author. If it is true, it would indicate that St. Pius was of a low social origin. St. Pius had to cope with the Gnostic heretics who were active at Rome during his reign. The Pope excommunicated a Gnostic leader named Marcion, who thereupon set up his own church. But if heretics afflicted the soul of St. Pius, he must have been consoled by the visit of St. Justin, the great defender of Christianity. Justin was a convert from paganism. He had a restless desire for truth which had led him through the Stoic, Platonic, and Pythagorean schools of philosophy to the Bible and Christianity. Not content with securing peace of soul through Christ, Justin wrote much to defend Christ's doctrines, and finally died a martyr. According to the "Liber Pontificalis," Pope St. Pius ordered that a heretic coming from the Jews should be received and baptized. This is somewhat obscure, and it is not certain whether he meant a heretic in the modern sense, i.e., some Judaeo Christian, or a real Jew. Later legend credits St. Pius with establishing the two Roman churches of St. Pudens and St. Praxedes, but this lacks historical justification. St. Pius is honored as a martyr by the Church. He was buried near St. Peter on the Vatican. His feast is kept on July 11. ST. ANICETUS C. 155-C. 166 St. Anicetus was a Syrian from Emesa. His father's name was John. His pontificate is interesting because during it the controversy over the date for celebrating Easter appears for the first (but by no means the last) time. At this period the Eastern Christians, following the tradition of St. John and St. Philip, celebrated the feast of the Lord's resurrection on the fourteenth day of the Jewish month Nisan, the day on which Jesus ate the Paschal Supper. The Western Christians, on the other hand, celebrated the feast of the resurrection on the Sunday following the fourteenth Nisan. This seemed proper because although it would not always be the actual date of the Lord's resurrection, it would be the day. And this is the reason that Sunday was already holy in Christian tradition. Against the authority of St. John and St. Philip, the West urged the tradition of St. Peter and St. Paul. Now one of the most venerated figures in the mid-second century church was St. Polycarp, the bishop of Smyrna. This old man, at the time in his eighties, was a disciple of the apostle St. John. (By the fifties of the second century he must have been one of the last.) St. Polycarp, naturally devoted to the practices he had learned from the apostle, wished to have the whole church celebrate Easter on the fourteenth Nisan. Accordingly, he came to Rome to confer with the Pope. Pope Anicetus was not convinced, but in turn he failed to convince Polycarp of the value of the Western date. Since this was not a question of doctrine but only of discipline, the Pope graciously allowed the venerable old saint to return to Smyrna and go on celebrating Easter on the date he had learned from St. John. Another distinguished visitor to Rome in the time of St. Anicetus was Hegesippus, perhaps the earliest Church historian outside the sacred authors. An interesting disciplinary decree is attributed to St. Anicetus by the Liber Pontificalis. He forbade the clergy to grow long hair after the precept of St. Paul (I Cor. 11:14). St. Anicetus died a martyr and was buried on the Vatican. His feast is kept April 17. ST. SOTER c. 167-c. 175 St. Soter was a Campanian from Fundi, the modern Fondi. His father's name was Concordius. He decreed that no monk should touch the consecrated altar cloth or offer incense in church. Some manuscripts read "nun" instead of "monk" in the above prohibition. These meager details, given for what they are worth, are from the sixth- century "Liber Pontificalis," but for St. Soter there is a very interesting reference in the early fourth-century "Ecclesiastical History of Eusebius." Eusebius speaking of St. Dionysius, bishop of Corinth, says (IV, xxiii, 9- 15): "There is moreover, extant a letter of Dionysius to the Romans addressed to Soter who was then bishop, and there is nothing better than to quote the words in which he welcomes the custom of the Romans which was observed down to the persecution in our own times. 'This has been your custom from the beginning, to do good in manifold ways to all Christians, and to send contributions to the many churches in every city, in some places relieving the poverty of the needy and ministering to the Christians in the mines, by the contribution which you have sent from the beginning, preserving the ancestral custom of the Romans, true Romans as you are. Your blessed bishop Soter has not only carried on the habit but has even increased it, by administering the bounty distributed to the saints and by exhorting with his blessed words the brethren who come to Rome, as a loving father would his children.'" In this same letter he also quotes the letter of Clement to the Corinthians, showing that from the beginning it had been the custom to read it in the church. "Today we observed the holy day of the Lord, and read out your letter, which we shall continue to read from time to time for our admonition, as we do that formerly sent us by Clement." This letter shows that Pope St. Soter was very charitable. It also indicates the high respect the Corinthians had for the letter of Pope St. Clement and the letter of Soter. The "persecution in our own times" mentioned by Eusebius was the persecution of Diocletian. The words of Eusebius are testimony that the Roman See was as preeminent in charity as it was in dignity. St. Soter was buried in the cemetery of Calixtus. He is honored by the Church as a martyr. His feast together with that of St. Caius, is celebrated on April 22. ST . ELEUTHERIUS c. 174-c. 189 According to the "Liber Pontificalis," St. Eleutherius was a Greek from Nicopolis in Epirus. His father's name was Habundius. He ordered that no food which was fit for a human being should be despised by Christians. This decree, if authentic, probably was aimed at the Montanists, a fanatical puritanical sect, or the Manicheans, who despised meat. St. Irenaeus, the famous father of the Church, was sent by St. Pothinus and the clergy of Lyons to confer with Pope Eleutherius about Montanism. Unfortunately Eusebius, who narrates the fact, did not preserve the details of this interesting mission. Montanism was a peculiar exaggeration or parody of Christianity started by a Phrygian ex-priest of Cybele, Montanus. This man taught that inspiration and ecstasy rather than the hierarchy should guide the faithful, that martyrdom should be rashly sought, that marriage was wrong, and that Montanus was, if not the Holy Ghost himself, the authentic herald of the Holy Ghost. In a modified form this heresy infiltrated into the West. Since its most common manifestation was an exaggerated strictness and since at first in the West it did not seek to break away from the Church, it is not surprising that it took a little time before it was discovered for the heresy it was. It is not clear whether Pope St. Eleutherius condemned Montanism at this time. A very interesting item in the "Liber Pontificalis" concerns the reception by Pope Eleutherius of a letter from Lucius, the king of Britain, asking for instruction in the Christian faith: very interesting but almost certainly untrue. Britain at this time was a Roman province. It is true that some high land chief from beyond the wall might call himself king, but it is quite unlikely that such a remote red-shanks should have written to Rome. The early British historian Gildas makes not the slightest mention of such an incident. Most modern scholars agree that the story is apocryphal. An interesting theory advanced by some modern scholars is that the author of the "Liber Pontificalis" or a copyist confused Lucius, king of Britain, with Lucius, king Britium in Mesopotamia. St. Eleutherius was buried near St. Peter in the Vatican. He is honored by the Church as a martyr. His feast is kept on May 6. ST. VICTOR I c 189-199 St. Victor's reign is noted for a lull in the persecution and a crisis in the Easter controversy. According to the "Liber Pontificalis," Victor was an African, the son of Felix. He decreed that after an emergency baptism, whether in river, spring, sea, or marsh, the neophyte should be treated as a Christian in full standing. The lull in the persecution was due to a woman named Marcia, who seems to have been a sort of morganatic wife of the Emperor Commodus. Marcia had great influence on Commodus. Friendly to Christianity, she used this influence to soften the lot of the hard-pressed Christians. She asked Pope Victor for a list of the Christians condemned to work in the mines of Sardinia and secured the release of these poor victims. At this time the controversy over the day for celebrating Easter came to a head. In Rome, where there lived many Asiatics, it must have been disconcerting to see one group of Christians observing the fast of lent and commemorating Christ's passion while other Christians were joyously celebrating the feast of the resurrection. Pope Victor determined to put a stop to this and ordered Polycrates, bishop of Ephesus, to hold a council of Asiatic bishops and get them to follow the Western custom of celebrating Easter on Sunday. Polycrates did indeed assemble the bishops, but informed the Pope that neither he nor the Asiatic bishops could abandon the tradition of St. John and St. Philip. Pope Victor put his foot down and ordered the Church to celebrate Easter on Sunday. All but the bishops of Asia Minor obeyed. Thereupon Victor excommunicated them. St. Irenaeus, now bishop of Lyons, pleaded with the Pope that after all, was only a matter of discipline and that the Pope's illustrious predecessors had allowed the divers of dates. Furthermore, St. Irenaeus argued, it was a sad thing for the glorious see of Ephesus to be cut off from Catholic unity. Pope Victor, convinced, seems to have relented. At any rate after this time the practice of celebrating Easter on Sunday spread throughout the East. Right at Rome a certain Blastus refused to obey the Pope and started a little church of his own. The Pope also had to excommunicate Theodotus, leather seller who had come from Byzantium Rome. This tanner denied the divinity of Christ and also set up a little church of his own. The Gnostics too gave trouble to Victor. Pope St. Victor wrote several treatises including (probably) one on dice throwers. St. Jerome calls him the first Latin writer in the Church. According to the "Liber Pontificalis," St. Victor died a martyr and was buried on the Vatican near St. Peter. His feast is kept on July 28. ST. ZEPHYRINUS c. 199-c. 217 The pontificate of this first third-century pope was to see a storm of heresy rage around the pontiff, who had to keep a firm hand on the tiller of Peter's bark. According to the "Liber Pontificalis," Zephyrinus was a Roman, the son of Habundius. He ordered that all ordinations, whether of priests, deacons, or simple clerics, should take place before the assembled clergy and laity. The storm which agitated Christian thought in the time of Pope Zephyrinus was due to a double heresy. On the one hand, Theodotus the Tanner, though excommunicated by Pope St. Victor, was still teaching that Christ was not the true Son of God. On the other hand, a certain Praxeas came to Rome to tell Pope Zephyrinus that the old idea of the Trinity was all wrong, that really there were not three Persons in one Divine Nature, but only three modes of one substance. Pope Zephyrinus, who was no philosopher, clung firmly to the traditional doctrine handed down from the Apostles. In the midst of these metaphysical storms, he also had a good strong adviser in Calixtus, who succeeded him as Pope. Eusebius in his "Ecclesiastical History" has an interesting story about the heretics in the pontificate of Pope Zephyrinus. Theodotus the Tanner, far from being silenced by Pope Victor's excommunication, had set up his own church. He had found backers in another Theodotus (a banker) and Asclepediotus. The heretics found a man of some prestige to be bishop for them. This was Natalius, who had been a confessor of the faith and had suffered tortures for it. They paid him a yearly stipend--150 denarii, about $25 in prewar money. But as Eusebius tells the story, Jesus, not wishing that one who had suffered for him should go out of the church, sent angels in visions to bring Natalius to a better frame of mind. Natalius, blinded by the pinchbeck glory of being a heretical bishop, at first paid the visions little attention. But one night the angels gave the stubborn fellow a sound whipping. This brought him to his senses. He put on sack- cloth, covered himself with ashes and hastened to throw himself before Pope Zephyrinus and plead for pardon. Besides heresy, Pope Zephyrinus had to cope with renewed persecution. Septimius Severus, friendly at the start of his reign, became decidedly hostile. During the pontificate of Zephvrinus the Emperor issued his famous decree forbidding anyone to become a Christian. St. Zephyrinus is honored as a martyr by the Church. He was buried in his own cemetery or August 26. His feast is kept on August 26. ST. CALIXTUS I C. 217-C. 222 St. Caliztus (or Callistus) was a Roman from the Trastevere district. His father's name was Domitius. He decreed a fast from corn, wine, and oil three times a year. These fasts together with the lenten fast make up the fasts of the four seasons which the Ember days prescribe even to today. Pope Calixtus is said to have built a basilica across the Tiber in his native Trastevere district. He constructed a cemetery on the Appian Way which is one of the most famous of Christian cemeteries. In it are buried many popes and martyrs. The "Liber Pontificalis" gives the above information, but Calixtus is chiefly known from the writings of his enemies. Hippolytus accused him of being too friendly to the Monarchian heretics in spite of the fact that Calixtus condemned Sabellius, the leader of that heresy. Both Hippolytus and Tertullian were deeply outraged by an act of the Pope which would endear him to most and shows him to be a true disciple of the merciful Christ. In the early Church there was a strong tendency to rigorism. Some bishops had refused to receive back into communion apostates, adulterers, and murderers. Such sinners, no matter how deeply they might repent, would remain excommunicated until death. By the time of Calixtus this practice had become general in the Church. How painful for repentant sinners this must have been can easily be imagined. Calixtus decreed that all sinners who truly repented could be absolved and received back into the Church after suitable penance. The grim Tertullian, infected with Montanist puritanism, was furious. Hippolytus went so far as to set himself up as antipope. Both wrote bitterly against the mercy of Pope Calixtus. St. Calixtus died a martyr. He was buried in the Cemetery of Calipodius on the Aurelian Way. His feast is kept on October 14. ST. URBAN I c. 222-c. 230 St. Urban's name is familiar to many because of his supposed connection with the beautiful life of St. Cecilia. According to the "Liber Pontificalis," he was a Roman, the son of Pontius. He had all the sacred vessels made of silver, and presented to the Church twenty-five silver patens. It seems that in the early Church glass as well as silver was a favorite material for the sacred vessels. He converted many and among them Valerian, the husband of St. Cecilia. Actually, it is pretty clear that this Urban did not have any dealings with St. Cecilia. The "Liber Pontificalis" seems to have relied on the fifth- century Passion of St. Cecilia. This is an account of St. Cecilia's martyrdom which is embroidered with legend. That St. Cecilia was a noble Roman lady who was martyred is certain, but her martyrdom goes back to an earlier time than the reign of Pope Urban. As a matter of fact, Pope Urban lived in times of comparative peace for the Church. The Emperor Alexander Severus, a mild man, even had a statue of Jesus in his collection of gods. Nor was his prefect, the great lawyer Ulpian, a persecutor. Alexander was influenced by his mother Julia Mammaea, who was a friend of the great Christian writer Origen. He even decided a lawsuit in favor of the Christians. The Christians were disputing the title to some land with a tavern keeper. The Emperor decided in favor of the Christians, saying that it was better to have God worshipped on the land in question than a tavern set up. Urban was buried in the Cemetery of Calixtus. He is honored by the Church as a martyr. His feast is kept on May 25. ST. PONTIAN 230 -235 St. Pontian was a Roman, the son of Calpurnius. He had to face a flare-up of persecution. Alexander Severus was assassinated in 235. His successor, Maximinus, an ex-wrestler, had no great preoccupation with matters of religion, but he hated Alexander Severus, and since Alexander had favored the Christians, Maximinus hastened to persecute them. He ordered that the leaders of the Church should alone be struck. And so St. Pontian found himself hustled off to the mines of Sardinia. In the mines he had as companion none other than the antipope Hippolytus. This priest, it may be remembered, had been so disgusted with Pope Calixtus and his edict of mercy that he had revolted and set himself up as antipope. Now in the mines of Sardinia he came to a better frame of mind. Not only did he become reconciled with St. Pontian, but he ordered all his followers to return to the Church. He made a good end, dying a confessor of Christ, and it is touching that down to this day, the Church celebrates the feast of St. Pontian, the Pope, and St. Hippolytus, once antipope, on the same day, November 19. St. Pontian seems to have abdicated when sent to the mines and to have been succeeded at Rome by Anterus. At any rate, in November 235 he was brutally beaten to death, a martyr for Christ. Pope Fabian brought his body back to Rome and buried him in the Cemetery of Calixtus. ST. ANTERUS 235 - 236 St. Anterus was elected Pope even before the death of St. Pontian. Pontian, evidently considering that he could not rule the Church efficiently from a Sardinian mine, abdicated. Anterus, according to the "Liber Pontificalis," was a Greek, the son of Romulus. He ruled the Church for a very short time, about forty days. He ordained a bishop for Fundi in Campania. The memory of Anterus should be dear to historians, for he ordered that the acts of the martyrs should be collected from notaries and kept in the church. St. Anterus probably died a martyr. At any rate the Church celebrates his feast as that of a martyr on January 3. He was buried in the Cemetery of Calixtus. A stone with the inscription "Antherus Epi[scopus]" written in Greek letters has been discovered in this cemetery ST. FABIAN 236 - 250 A pretty story of Fabian's election to the papacy is told by Eusebius in his "Ecclesiastical History" ( VI, xxix ): "It is said that Fabian, after the death of Anteros, came from the country along with others and stayed at Rome, where he came to the office in a most miraculous manner, thanks to the divine and heavenly grace. For when the brethren were all assembled for the purpose of appointing him who should succeed to the episcopate, and very many notable and distinguished persons were in the thoughts of many, Fabian, who was there, came into nobody's mind. But all of a sudden, they relate, a dove flew down from above and settled on his head as clear imitation of the descent of the Holy Ghost in the form of a dove upon the Savior; whereupon the whole people, as if moved by one divine inspiration, with all eagerness and with one soul cried out "worthy," and without more ado took him and placed him on the episcopal throne." According to the prosaic "Liber Pontificalis," Fabian was a Roman, the son of Fabius. He appointed seven deacons to the seven districts of Rome. He ordered subdeacons to cooperate with the notaries in gathering the acts of the martyrs. He brought back the body of St. Pontian from Sardinia and buried it in the Cemetery of Calixtus. This cemetery was enlarged and beautified. Vaults were adorned with paintings. A church rose above the cemetery. Later writers attributed all kinds of regulations to the busy time of Pope Fabian. Gregory of Tours, the famous historian of the Franks, even credits Fabian with starting the evangelization of Gaul. This is manifestly false because the Church existed in Gaul before the time of Fabian, but it is probable enough that he did something for the Gallic Church. All this activity was made possible by the peace which the Church enjoyed at this time. The first half of the third century was in general a period of peace. Septimius Severus, at the beginning of the century, and Maximinus, just before Fabian's reign, had been persecutors, but they were exceptions. After the death of the ex-wrestler Maximinus, his successors Papienus, Balbinus, and Gordianu had let the Christians pretty much alone. And Philip who murdered and succeeded Gordian was himself a Christian-- of sorts. Philip, though he presided at pagan games, was quite friendly to the Christians, and during his reign Christianity flourished. Fabian's activity has been noted; and at the same time Gregory, the wonder-worker, bishop of Neo-Caesarea, Cyprian, bishop of Carthage, the great Origen, and others were writing to create Christian literature. It looked as if the Church were going to burst out of the catacombs to flourish in the light of day. But the pagans were angry. Even before the death of Emperor Philip in 249 there had been isolated outbreaks against the Christians. The pagans bitterly resented Christian growth, and when Decius succeeded Philip as emperor, that resentment mounted the throne. Decius was on principle a determined and ruthless enemy of the Christian name. Septimius Severus had tried to stop conversions; Maximinus had gone after the leaders. Decius issued an edict ordering all Christians to deny Christ by some tangible sign such as offering incense to idols. The storm hit a church softened by peace. On all sides many hastened to deny Christ, but there were many too who stood up and faced the worst tortures and death for Him. Among these was St. Fabian. The details of his martyrdom are lacking, but it is historically certain. He is buried in the Cemetery of Calixtus. His feast is kept on January 20. ST . CORNELIUS 251 - 253 Decius is reported to have said that he would prefer to have a rival emperor rather than a bishop in Rome. As long as such an emperor was in full career, it was impossible for the Christians to elect a new pope. But after over a year the Emperor was distracted by rebels, the persecution slackened, and the Christians were able to elect a new pope. Cornelius, their choice, was a Roman, a man of strong mind and strong character. He was to need both. The winds of persecution had ceased to blow, but they left the bark of Peter tossing in the swells. The persecution had been too much for many Christians. Many had weakly denied Christ. Some had actually sacrificed to idols. Others had bribed officials to say that they had. Now that peace was restored, these poor weaklings came from all corners to try to get back into the Church. The Pope had to face the double challenge of laxism which too easily passed over the grievous offense and rigorism which repulsed the poor people. At first the laxists had to be checked. Many confessors, that is, those who had confessed Christ before a heathen judge, took it upon themselves to give the repentant apostates certificates entitling the holder to restoration to communion. This degenerated into a regular traffic, and when St. Cyprian, the bishop of Carthage, tried to stop it, a certain Novatus set up a dupe of his named Felicissimus as antibishop and went off to Rome to get the Pope's support. Comelius, however, was not deceived. He condemned the schism and the laxist practices. The repentant apostates might indeed return to communion but only after due penance. This moderate regulation provoked the rigorists, and a man named Novatian came to Rome and set himself up as antipope. He accused Comelius of having bribed an official to say that he had denied Christ. No wonder Cornelius wrote bitterly about Novatian in a letter to Bishop Fabius of Antioch. St. Cyprian loyally backed the Pope. At this time he wrote the classical treatise, "On the Unity of the Church." Novatian the rigorist, oddly enough, joined hands with Novatus the laxist. The movement they started spread into the East. It absorbed many of the old Montanists. These people called themselves Cathari (Puritans). The persecution once more flared up when a plague set the fanatical populace to demanding death for the Christians. Emperor Trebonianus Gallus yielded to the demand. This time the Christians were better prepared and the shocking wave of apostasy which had marked the Decian persecution was not repeated. Pope Cornelius kept his Romans in high morale. He was exiled to Centum Cellae, the modern Civita Vecchia, and was martyred there in 253. He was buried in the Cemetery of Calixtus. The feast of St. Comelius, together with that of his friend St. Cyprian, is kept on September 16 ST . LUCIUS 253 - 2544 St. Lucius, according to the "Liber Pontificalis," was a Roman, the son of Porphyrius. When he succeeded St. Comelius, the persecution of Trebonianus Gallus was still raging, and the new Pope was exiled. Soon, however, the persecution died away and Lucius was able to return to Rome. There is extant a letter from St. Cyprian congratulating the Pope on his return from exile and praising him for his confession of Christ. St. Lucius continued the policy of Cornelius in admitting repentant apostates to communion after due penance. St. Cyprian praises him for this. The "Liber Pontificalis" attributes to Pope Lucius a decree ordering that two priests and three deacons should live with a bishop that they might be witnesses for him. Duchesne, however, considers this decree apocryphal. According to the "Liber Pontificalis," Pope Lucius was beheaded in the persecution of Valerian. This is almost certainly inaccurate, for Lucius died before the persecution of Valerian broke out. At any rate, St. Lucius died some time in the beginning of March 254, and was buried in the Cemetery of Calixtus. His tombstone has been discovered. The feast of St. Lucius is kept on March 4. ST. STEPHEN I 254-257 St. Stephen's pontificate, though short was to see the Church troubled by a vexatious controversy within and attacked by a bitter persecution from without. St. Stephen was a Roman, the son of Jobius. He ordered the clergy not to use their consecrated vestments for daily purposes. The key figure in the vexing dispute over rebaptism was the bishop of Carthage, the great writer St. Cyprian. Cyprian, a man of vigor, called upon Pope Stephen to depose the bishops of Merida and Leon in Spain because during the persecution they had secured certificates saying that they had sacrificed to idols. Pope Stephen agreed with Cyprian and did depose the weak pair. Cyprian, who certainly kept an eye on things, once more called on the Pope--this time to depose Marcian, bishop of Arles in Gaul, because he had fallen into the Novatian heresy. Once more Pope Stephen consented. But a third time Cyprian found that Stephen could not agree with him, and that was in the thorny question of heretical baptism. There were a number of converts coming into the Church from heresy. Now if these were lapsed Catholics, they were absolved and given penance. But what if they were pagans who had been baptized by heretics? St. Cyprian firmly believed that they must be rebaptized and, being Cyprian, loudly proclaimed it. For, said Cyprian, outside the Church baptism is simply not valid. Cyprian held a council of African bishops in 255 and this council approved Cyprian's view. He sent the decisions of the council on to Pope Stephen. The Pope refused to approve. In his answer to Cyprian, Stephen took the stand that tradition was sacred. In often quoted words Stephen said, "Let there be no innovation beyond what has been handed down." In other words, as supreme guardian of Christian tradition, Stephen refused to recognize Cyprian's theory and practice as truly Christian. St. Cyprian had definitely acknowledged the supremacy of the Pope, but he did not seem to feel that the matter of rebaptism fell within the limits of papal jurisdiction. To bolster his position he held another council in 256, and once more the African bishops backed him up. Although there was no talk of the Pope's decision, it was a defiant act. Stephen began to threaten excommunication. Thereupon St. Firmilian, bishop of Caesarea in Cappadocia, wrote a strong letter attacking such a course. St. Stephen, a patient man, seems to have let matters ride. Soon the persecution of Valerian ended the lives of both principals. As usual the Roman doctrine finally prevailed. By the end of the century all Africa was in accord with Rome in this matter, and the dissident dioceses of Asia followed somewhat later. The persecution, in which St. Cyprian gloriously atoned for what fault there was in his well-meaning but misguided stubbornness, was roused by Emperor Valerian. Valerian, an honest soldier, was at first favorable to the Christians, but influenced by his right-hand man Macrianus, he turned to magic and soon issued two edicts of persecution. These aimed at the leaders of the Church and the corporate life of the Church. St. Stephen fell a victim to this persecution. The details of his martyrdom are not clear. It may be that he died an exile. He was buried in the Cemetery of Calixtus. His feast is kept on August 2. ST . SIXTUS 257 - 258 The author of the "Liber Pontificalis" calls St. Sixtus a Greek and a philosopher, but modern scholars think that Pope Sixtus is confused with another Sixtus, a Pythagorean philosopher. Whether a philosopher or not, Pope Sixtus II was a glorious martyr. St. Stephen had caused a good deal of excitement by his threat to excommunicate those bishops who did not conform in the matter of heretical baptism. St. Firmilian of Antioch had written a bitter letter to Stephen. St. Dionysius of Alexandria had written a mild letter pleading for mercy and forbearance. To St. Sixtus II, Dionysius addressed a similar appeal. His words were heeded. Pope Sixtus II, though he upheld the traditional Roman doctrine, did not break off relations with those African and Asiatic churches which followed St. Cyprian. Sixtus felt the full force of Valerian's persecution. That emperor had issued his second more drastic edict of persecution in 258. Soon blood was flowing. Since the Cemetery of Calixtus was too well known to government officials for safety, Pope Sixtus held services across the Appian Way in the Cemetery of Praetextatus. This cemetery seems to have been private rather than Church property. The precaution, however, was in vain. One day when Pope Sixtus was giving a talk to the faithful, the police broke in, arrested Sixtus and his chief clerics, and carried them off to the prefect. On this occasion they do not seem to have bothered about the lay people. According to tradition, the touching scene between St. Sixtus and his chief deacon, St. Lawrence, occurred at this time. Lawrence was absent when the police made their swoop. On hearing the news, he hastened to meet the Pope and asked him, "Where are you going, father, without your son? Where are you going, O priest, without your deacon?" Pope Sixtus replied, "My son, you I am not abandoning. Greater strife awaits you. Stop weeping; you will follow me in three days" (Paul Allard, Les dernieres persecutions du troisieme siecle, p. 91). And so it happened. The police pounced on St. Lawrence and put pressure on him to deliver up the treasures of the Church. St. Lawrence agreed to lead the prefect to the treasures, and since the reserve money of the Church had been distributed to the poor, Lawrence, even as Cornelia pointed to her children as her jewels, pointed to the poor as the Church treasure. The prefect was disappointed. Lawrence met death like a hero. Pope St. Sixtus II was put to death on August 6 in the cemetery where he had been holding services. He was buried, however, in the Cemetery of Calixtus. His feast is kept on August 6, the anniversary day of his martyrdom. ST. DIONYSIUS 259 - 268 The storm of persecution which had slain St. Sixtus and St. Lawrence blew throughout Rome with such violence that for some time the Christians could not elect a new pope. But by July of 259 Emperor Valerian was too busy worrying about Persians to pay much attention to Christians. On July 22, 259, the priest Dionysius was elected pope. St. Dionysius was to have a peaceful pontificate. In 260 Valerian was defeated by Sapor the Persian. He was made prisoner and then skinned. His son and successor, Gallienus, though an incapable ruler, was well-disposed to the Christians. Salonina, his wife, may well have been a Christian herself. Gallienus issued a decree of toleration which not only gave the Christians a breathing spell but even restored confiscated Church property. It is interesting to note that the decree dealt directly with the heads of the churches. While there was peace at Rome, there was trouble in the East. The Persians had ravaged Cappadocia, and the Christians had shared in the general agony. Pope Dionysius sent the sufferers a letter of consolation and a large sum of money to redeem such of the faithful as had been captured and enslaved. The Pope was on guard to defend the purity of Christian doctrine. His namesake, Dionysius, bishop of Alexandria, had gone astray in his speculations on the Trinity. The Pope, alarmed, held a synod at Rome, then sent a letter condemning the doctrinal vagaries of the good Alexandrian. This letter is important for its dogmatic content. It is a prelude to Nicaea. In it the Pope defends the true doctrine of the Three Persons in one divine nature. Dionysius of Alexandria was less than exact in his phraseology, but he was no heretic. The good old man died at peace with the Church. A real heretic, however, was troubling the Church in Asia at this time. Paul of Samosata, who incongruously combined the offices of bishop of Antioch and treasurer of the civil government, taught that Jesus was not true God. To meet this threat, the Asiatic bishops held a council at Antioch in 264 and condemned Paul's teaching. This council sent a circular letter addressed to Dionysius and Maximus, bishop of Alexandria, to inform the Christian world of its doings. Pope Dionysius also seems to have done some organizing of new parishes around Rome. Dionysius died in December 268 and was buried in the Cemetery of Calixtus. His feast is kept on December 26. ST. FELIX I 269 - 274 St Felix was a Roman, the son of Constantius. He was elected pope in 269. A letter to Bishop Maximus of Alexandria was once thought to be his, but later scholars have decided that it was a forgery. During the pontificate of St. Felix, the capable organizer and clever general Aurelian became emperor. Aurelian has a very interesting connection with the Pope. The pontificate of St. Dionysius had been troubled by the heresy of Paul of Samosata. A council held at Antioch had deposed Paul as bishop of Antioch, but the wily heretic hung on to the Church property and refused to give it up to his successor, Demetrianus. Emperor Aurelian, passing through Antioch, was called upon to settle the matter. The Emperor decided that he was truly the bishop who was in communion with the bishops of Rome and Italy. And so the orthodox Demetrianus was able to take over from the heretical Paul of Samosata. St. Felix is credited with ordering the celebration of Masses over the sepulchers of the martyrs. Pope St. Felix is called a martyr by the "Liber Pontificalis," which also says that he built a basilica on the Aurelian Way in which he was buried. Modern scholars, however, do not consider this to be true. Duchesne thinks that it is a confusion of Pope Felix with another Felix who was a martyr and was buried on the Aurelian Way. At any rate, Pope St. Felix died in 274 and was most probably buried in the Cemetery of Calixtus. His feast is kept on May 30. ST. EUTYCHIAN 275 - 283 Except for the information given by the "Liber Pontificalis" little is known about Pope St. Eutychian, and the accuracy of the "Liber Pontificalis" entry on Pope Eutychian is rather suspect. There is even confusion about the length of his reign between the "Liber Pontificalis," which says that Pope Eutychian ruled the Church eight years and eleven months, and Eusebius, who gives him a reign of only ten months. Pope Eutychian made a regulation allowing fruit --but only grapes and beans--to be blessed on the altar. He is said to have buried 324 martyrs with his own hands. He made the regulation that martyrs should be buried in a dalmatic (a purple tunic) and he wished that all burials of martyrs should be reported to him. Pope St. Eutychian is called a martyr, but that he died a violent death is considered unlikely. He was buried in the Cemetery of Calixtus. And at least the fact that he was buried in this cemetery is certain, for his tombstone has been discovered there. His feast is kept on December 8. ST. CAIUS 283 - 296 If an account of the martyrdom of St. Susanna were correct, there would be a very interesting fact about Pope St. Caius--that he was a relative of the terrible persecutor, Diocletian. But scholars give small credit to the account of the martyrdom of St. Susanna. It is true that the "Liber Pontificalis" confirms this relationship of Caius with Diocletian, but the "Liber Pontificalis" pretty clearly leaned on the unhistorical account of St. Susanna for its information. There is little information available on Pope St. Caius except that given by the "Liber Pontificalis." The accounts of popes and acts of the martyrs were quite probably destroyed when Diocletian made a determined effort to do away with all Christian writings. St. Caius was a Dalmatian, the son of Caius. He decreed that before a man could be bishop, he must first be porter, reader, exorcist, acolyte, subdeacon, deacon, and priest. He also divided the districts of Rome among the deacons. When the persecution of Diocletian began to rage, so we are told, St. Caius took refuge in the catacombs and died there a confessor. But actually the persecution of Diocletian did not even begin until six or seven years after the death of St. Caius. It is true that during the pontificate of Caius, Diocletian ascended the imperial throne, but at first the great organizer was anything but hostile to the Christians. At this period, however, work on the catacombs was pushed vigorously. New galleries were excavated and small churches built over them. St. Caius died in 296 and was buried in the Cemetery of Calixtus. His tombstone has been pieced together. The feast of St. Caius together with that of Pope St. Soter is celebrated on April 22. ST. MARCELLINUS 296 - 304 The next pope was to see the end of the long period of peace and the start of a most violent persecution, the persecution of Diocletian. St. Marcellinus was a Roman, the son of Projectus. When he first became pope, Diocletian was already on the throne, but he had not yet drawn the sword against the Christians. Indeed, at first under the influence of his wife, Prisca, and his daughter, Valeria, the despot left the Christians fairly free. The peace, however, had caused Christianity to grow and grow. This provoked a fierce reaction among the pagans, and they had a leader in no less a dignitary than the Caesar Galerius. According to Lactantius, the historian of the persecution, Diocletian was first angered by the Christians when the augurs or soothsayers told him that they could not prophesy because Christians made the sign of the cross. The Emperor promptly ordered all Christians to apostatize or get out of the army. This was in 302. The next year at a conference in Nicomedia, Galerius urged the Emperor to extend himself against the Christians. Diocletian asked the opinion of the oracle of Apollo at Miletus. Naturally, the oracle saw eye to eye with Galerius. But Diocletian started easily. At first he ordered the confiscation of Church property and the destruction of Christian books. When a rash Christian actually tore down the imperial edict right under the imperial nose at Nicomedia and two very convenient fires broke out in the imperial palace, Diocletian, enraged, took off the gloves. It was apostatize or die, and soon blood was streaming. The persecution hit Rome with disastrous results for the historians. The papal archives were seized and destroyed. The famous Cemetery of Calixtus was saved by the Christians, who blocked up the entrance. Pope St. Marcellinus was accused by Donatist heretics of having handed over the sacred books. Some went so far as to accuse him of having sacrificed to idols. The Liber Pontificalis repeats this but adds that St. Marcellinus repented and died a martyr. Actually it is not certain either that St. Marcellinus weakened or that he was a martyr. St. Augustine denies openly that the Pope had weakened, and there is no conclusive evidence of his having been killed. At any rate, St. Marcellinus did die a confessor of Christ in 304. According to the Liber Pontificalis, after his head was cut off, his body, along with those of other martyrs, was left lying on the street for twenty- six days to terrify the Christians. Then a priest buried the Pope in the Cemetery of Priscilla. His feast is kept on April 26. ST. MARCELLUS I 308 - 309 Diocletian's persecution had so badly disorganized the Church in Rome that not until 308 was a successor to Pope Marcellinus chosen. The new pope was Marcellus, a Roman from the Via Lata district. By this time the persecution had died down in the West, but the new pope faced enormous difficulties. His first task was to reorganize the badly shaken Church, and this task Marcellus seems to have accomplished. His second task, however, was more difficult. It will be remembered that after the short but very severe persecution of Decius the Church had been troubled by the problem of what to do with the numerous weaker brethren who had fallen under the stress of persecution. Now this same problem once more arose, but this time the trouble came from a different source. In the aftermath of the old persecution the chief trouble had come from harsh rigorists, and it had been necessary for Pope St. Cornelius to insist that the poor weak ones should be readmitted to communion with the Church after due penance. Now Pope St. Marcellus found that the weaker brethren wished indeed to be readmitted to the Church, but that they had small stomach for penance. The Pope's attempts to enforce this Church discipline were fiercely resented. Under the leadership of one who had denied Christ, even in time of peace, the malcontents raised so much trouble that fights broke out and blood was shed. The Emperor Maxentius seems to have believed that Pope Marcellus was at the bottom of these broils, and sent him into exile. There is a story, not well authenticated, that the Pope was forced to work in the stables of the imperial post. But at any rate it is certain that after a short time Pope Marcellus died in exile. He is honored as a martyr and a saint. His feast is kept on January 16. The exile of Pope Marcellus is one of the first examples of the secular government interfering with the Church apart from outright persecution. ST. EUSEBIUS 309 or 31O The man chosen to succeed St. Marcellus was a Greek priest named Eusebius. Except that he was the son of a doctor, nothing is known of his early life. There is some confusion about the date of his reign. He seems to have ruled the Church for only four months from April to August, but whether it was in the year 309 or 310 is uncertain. It was a troubled community that Eusebius was called upon to rule. The same situation which led to the exile of Pope Marcellus still prevailed. The fight over readmission of fallen Christians to the fold still raged on. Under the circumstances it is not surprising that the election of a new pope was bitterly contested. Pope Eusebius determined to follow the same sane policy of Pope Marcellus. He would readmit the fallen brethren, but only after due penance. The storm increased. The malcontents went so far as to choose an antipope, a man named Heraclius. Once more matters came to the point of open strife. Once more Emperor Maxentius intervened. But this time he exiled pope and antipope alike. Eusebius was sent to Sicily where he died shortly after. Like Marcellus he is honored as a saint and a martyr. His feast is kept on September 26. ST . MILTIADES 311 - 314 The storm which had exiled Popes Marcellus and Eusebius seems to have prevented an early election of a successor, but finally in 311 Miltiades, an African, was chosen. (His name is also recorded in the forms Milziadus and Melchiadus. ) The new pope was to guide the bark of Peter into calmer waters. Actually the Church in the West was already enjoying relief from persecution. But though Maxentius in the West was easy on the Christians, his colleague Galerius continued to scourge the Christians of the East pitilessly. In 311 struck down by disease, Galerius decided to call a halt to his war on Christ. He issued a decree of toleration which had its effect even in Rome. Maxentius turned over to Pope Miltiades several churches which had been confiscated. Pope Miltiades worked hard to get the Church back in shape after the severe storm. He also brought back the remains of Pope St. Eusebius and buried them with due honor in the Cemetery of Calixtus. Though St. Miltiades ruled the Church for only three years, he was to witness one of history's turning points--the coming of Constantine and the end of an era, the era of persecution. Constantine had been proclaimed emperor in Gaul, and now in 312 he marched on Rome to overthrow the tyrant Maxentius. Constantine, although not a Christian, had seen the cross in a vision and had learned that "by this sign shalt thou conquer." And for the first time in history the cross of peace appeared on the standards of an army. Under the banner of the cross the legions of Constantine met and routed the army of Maxentius at the Milvian Bridge. This dramatic victory ushered in a new era, an era of peace for the Church. The very next year, 313, at Milan, Constantine and his colleague Licinius issued the famous decree of toleration which really set the Christians free, free to come out of the catacombs. A new era meant a new position for the Church and new problems. Both position and problems were quickly given emphasis by a gathering of bishops held by Pope Miltiades in the Lateran Palace. This palace, so long revered in Christian memory, had belonged to the Laterani family. Nero had confiscated it, and now Constantine's wife, Fausta, give it to the Pope. Here in this stately palace overlooking the forum with its proud pagan monuments, the Pope presided over a gathering of fifteen Italian and three Gallic bishops to settle an African difficulty. In Africa a schism had broken out headed by an intriguer named Donatus. These Donatists disputed the rule of Carthage with the true bishop, Caecilian. Constantine, troubled by the resulting disturbances, had asked the Pope to do something about the matter, and this synod in the Lateran answered by condemning Donatus. St. Miltiades died shortly after. He was called by St. Augustine an excellent pontiff. He had given the Church good leadership in a difficult time of transition. St. Miltiades was buried in the Cemetery of Calixtus. It is significant that he was the last pope to be buried in a catacomb. ST. SYLVESTER I 314 - 335 If legend were history, the life of St. Sylvester would indeed be interesting. It would be pleasant to recount how St. Sylvester baptized the great Constantine and how Constantine was cured of leprosy by the baptismal waters. But this is a legend which, along with others, grew up around the papal contemporary of the colorful emperor. Sylvester was a Roman, the son of Rufinus. He was ordained a priest by Marcellinus. Chosen Pope in 314, he continued the work of organizing the peacetime Church so well begun by St. Miltiades. Sylvester saw the building of famous churches, notably the Basilica of St. Peter and the Basilica of St. John Lateran, built near the former imperial palace of that name. It is quite probable too that the first martyrology or list of Roman martyrs was drawn up in his reign. Towering over all other events of his pontificate, however, was the first ecumenical or general council of the Church. An ecumenical council represents the entire teaching Church as opposed to a diocesan synod or a metropolitan or a national council. The ecumenical council, like the pope, is infallible in matters of faith and morals because it is the voice of the teaching Church. A heresy had arisen in Alexandria and at that time was making great headway throughout the East, the heresy of Arius, a priest of Alexandria. Arius taught that Jesus Christ was not truly divine, that His nature was not the same as that of the Father but only similar. It was to study this question and to pronounce the true teaching of the Church that bishops from all parts of the empire made their way to Nicaea in 325. The Emperor Constantine, still a catechumen, had at first made light of the matter, but when his eyes were opened to the danger of Arian doctrine by Hosius of Cordova, he became so interested that he went to Nicaea himself. Pope Sylvester sent two legates to represent him Vitus and Vincentius, and it seems that it was the Pope who suggested the term consubstantial to describe the relation of Christ's nature to the Father. The Council condemned Arius and drew up the famous Nicene Creed. This creed, said in all the Catholic Churches throughout the world, proclaims that Jesus is true God of true God consubstantial with the Father. St. Sylvester died in 335. He was buried in a church which he himself had built over the Catacomb of Priscilla on the Via Salaria. His feast is kept on December 31. ST. MARK 336 St. Mark, a Roman, the son of Pricus, succeeded St. Sylvester as pope on January 18, 336. If an epitaph composed by Pope St. Damasus refers to Pope Mark, as the archeologist De Rossi believes, St. Mark was a man who "filled with the love of God, despised the world . . . the guardian of justice, a true friend of Christ." Emperor Constantine continued to show his generosity to the Church, for he gave to St. Mark two basilicas and the estates necessary to maintain them. One of these, the Church of St. Mark, still exists, though its present structure does not go back to the fourth century. The other was a cemetery church in the Catacomb of Balbina, a cemetery which lies between the Appian and Ardeatine roads. St. Mark is said to have decreed that a new pope should be consecrated by the bishop of Ostia. This is quite probable, for this custom is very ancient. He is also said to have decreed that the bishop of Ostia should receive the pallium. The pallium is a vestment of white wool which a pope wears as a symbol of the fullness of his apostolic power and an archbishop wears as a symbol of his participation in that power. An archbishop may not exercise any metropolitan prerogative until he has received the pallium from the pope. St. Mark died on October 7, 336, after a pontificate of less than a year. He is buried in the cemetery of Balbina, a place he seems to have chosen for himself. His feast is kept on October 7. ST. JULIUS I 337-352 With Pope St. Julius the Papacy finds at its doorstep the vexing problem of the Eastern Arians. It is true that the Council of Nicaea had condemned Arianism, but in spite of that Arians had been growing in strength and had even gained the ear of Constantine, and what was more crucial, that of his son Constantius who succeeded him in the East. The man who was compelled to face the problem was Julius, a Roman who had been chosen to succeed Mark after an unexplained interval of four months. He soon received delegates from Alexandria asking him to acknowledge a certain Pistus as bishop of Alexandria in place of Athanasius, the mighty fighter for orthodoxy. The delegates tried to prove that Athanasius, who actually had been the victim of Arian intrigue, had been validly deposed. Athanasius on his part also sent envoys and later came to Rome in person to plead his case before the Pope. The Arians asked Julius to hold a synod to decide the case, but when in 341 Julius actually did convene it, they refused to attend. The Pope held it without them and over fifty bishops decreed that Athanasius had been unjustly condemned. Julius informed the Arians at Alexandria of this decision and let them know that he was displeased at their uncooperative attitude. The Emperor Constans, who ruled in the West, was favorable to the orthodox Christians while his brother Constantius, who ruled the East, was proArian. At this time both Emperors agreed to hold a big general council to see if religious unity could be achieved. Pope Julius approved of the plan and sent legates to Sardica, the modern Sofia, where the council gathered. The council did not achieve religious unity because the Arians, when they found themselves outnumbered, walked out. The council once again vindicated Athanasius and once more repeated the solemn Nicene Creed. It also left an interesting set of regulations on the manner in which appeals to the pope should be made. In spite of the repeated vindications of Athanasius, that good man was unable to return to his see. Emperor Constans supported the Arian George until the usurper died. Then and only then was the long-suffering Athanasius allowed to go home. Pope Julius, delighted, wrote a letter to the people of Alexandria, congratulating them on the return of their true bishop. At Rome the number of Christians continued to grow during the pontificate of Julius. He built two new basilicas and three cemetery churches. The stay of St. Athanasius at Rome helped to popularize Egyptian monasticism and gave an impetus to religious life there. Pope St. Julius died April 12, 352. He was buried in the Cemetery of Calepodius. His feast is kept on April 12. LIBERIUS 352 - 366 The scene is a council at Milan in 355. Emperor Constantius demands that Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria, be condemned. The bishops cry out that to do so would be against the canon of the Church. Emperor Constantius, a bandy-legged fellow, roars: "My will is the canon." Five words which clearly and brutally define caesaropapism: The Emperor's will is the rule of the Church. From now on the popes will be troubled again and again by imperial interference, and of this Pope Liberius is an outstanding example. Liberius was a Roman who succeeded St. Julius as pope in the May of 352. He was soon to face despotic meddling. Constans, emperor in the West, had been killed in a rebellion; and though his brother Constantius mastered the rebels to become sole emperor, this spelled trouble. Constantius, under the influence of Arians, had long vexed the Eastern Church. Now he began to make matters unpleasant for the West. Pope Liberius appealed to him to hold a council. Constantius did so, but bullied the assembled bishops and the papal legates into abandoning Athanasius. Liberius, naturally, was displeased. Another council was held at Milan in 335. Emperor Constantius bluntly told the bishops to obey him or face exile. A few brave souls refused and were promptly banished. Pope Liberius wrote to the victims, hailing them as martyrs. Constantius realized that his pet project of uniting the Christians by a semi-Arian formula would not succeed as long as the Pope defended orthodoxy. He sent his confidential eunuch to Rome laden with gifts and loud with threats. But when Liberius spurned gifts and threats alike, he was hustled off to the imperial court to be browbeaten by Caesar in person. Constantius angrily asked the Pope who he was to stand out for Athanasius against the world. He then exiled Liberius to Thrace and isolated him from friends and counselors. To rule the Church the Emperor set up an antipope, Felix, but the disgusted Romans refused to cooperate with the imperial whim. Liberius returned to Rome but what price did he pay? Scholars still dispute the matter. There is evidence that Liberius abandoned Athanasius and signed some vaguely worded compromise formula. In any case, the question is historical not theological, for papal infallibility is not involved. Whether or not Liberius had a moment of weakness in exile, he continued to fight on for orthodoxy after his return. He deplored the weakness of those bishops who signed a compromise formula at Rimini in 359. He had the satisfaction of seeing the Arians first split into factions, then decline rapidly. Their great power at this period depended on imperial backing; when imperial policy changed they had little to fall back on. And change it did. Julian the Apostate succeeded Constantius in 361. Since Julian despised all Christians, orthodox or Arian, the Church was freed from the smothering embrace of Caesar. Liberius had the joy of receiving back into the Church a large number of moderate Arians. Liberius died April 12, 366. He is not honored as a saint. ST. DAMASUS I 366 - 384 After Julian the Apostate was cut off in full career by a Persian arrow, the Church in the West enjoyed peace. That brave and capable soldier, Valentinian, was not only a Christian but a Catholic. It was a time for growth and development, and in St. Damasus the Church had a leader suited to the time. Damasus was born in Rome of Spanish descent. He was elected pope by a large majority, but a minority refused to accept the election and set up Ursinus as antipope. Rome rang with tumult until finally Valentinian exiled Ursinus. Damasus was a capable administrator, a writer, and a holy bishop. He repeatedly condemned heresy yet was so merciful to repentant heretics that the dour old Arian-fighter, Lucifer of Cagliari, actually left the Church in disgust to start a rigorist schism. While Arians still troubled the Church new heresies added to the difficulties of Damasus. Macedonius was teaching that the Holy Ghost was not divine. Apollinaris was holding that Christ did not have a rational human soul. Both heresies were condemned by Damasus. In the East the Arians were enjoying a final fling. Valentinian's less capable and less orthodox brother, Valens, was under Arian influence. He made it hot for the orthodox, but in 378 Valens was ridden down by the hard-charging Goths at Adrianople. His successor, Emperor Theodosius, threw his support to the orthodox and asked that a council of the Church in the Eastern Empire be held to settle the matter. This council met at Constantinople in 381. Since it was an Eastern council, Pope Damasus does not seem to have had any direct connection with it, but the council adopted the Pope's teaching, recondemned Arianism and made a strong declaration of the divinity of the Holy Ghost against the Macedonians. Damasus approved the doctrinal decrees of the council and it became ranked as an ecumenical council. Damasus published a canon of Holy Scripture, that is, a list of the books of the Old and New Testaments which are to be considered the inspired word of God. To spread the knowledge of Holy Scripture, the Pope urged his friend the great St. Jerome to translate the Bible. St. Jerome did so and produced that Vulgate edition which has served the Church so long and so usefully. Damasus was noted, too, for his clear statement on the hierarchy in the Church. Quoting the words of Christ to Peter, "Thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build My church," Damasus says that the Roman Church is above all others. Next in importance comes Alexandria, founded by St. Mark at St. Peter's command, and Antioch, where St. Peter ruled before going to Rome. Now that the persecutions were over, Damasus worked hard to foster devotion to the martyrs. He encouraged pilgrimages to the catacombs. He built stairways and light wells in the sacred vaults. On the martyrs' tombs he placed inscriptions. Indeed, the Pope himself wrote many of these in excellent verse. He diligently searched the records for accounts of martyrdoms. Historians and archeologists as well as lovers of Holy Writ owe much to this intelligent and pious pope. ST. SIRICIUS 384 - 399 Siricius was a Roman, the son of Tiburtius. He entered the service of the Church as a youth and served as a deacon from the time of Pope Liberius. He was unanimously elected to succeed Pope Damasus in December of 384. St. Siricius is noted for being the author of the first papal decretal which has survived. There were earlier ones, but this is the first that has come down to modern times. A decretal contains an authoritative decision on questions of discipline. The occasion of this decretal was a letter from Himerius, bishop of Tarragona in Spain, who wrote to Pope Damasus asking for his decision in several matters of discipline. Siricius answered on February 10, and ordered that his reply should be communicated to the neighboring bishops. Among other things the Pope declared that converted Arians did not have to be rebaptized and that priests should be celibate. On January 6, 386, Pope Siricius held a synod at Rome, attended by eighty bishops, at which a number of disciplinary decisions were made. The Pope sent these decisions to the bishops of North Africa. He also sent out a letter to various churches urging the election of worthy bishops and priests. But around 388, Siricius was to have something to worry about at home. A monk named Jovinian, who had enjoyed a reputation for a strict life, came to Rome and began to teach that after all a strict life was useless. Vows, virginity, fasting, and good works were of small avail. Jovinian, quite consistently, gave up his strict life and not content with taking it easy himself began to persuade a number of monks and nuns to give it all up and get married. Lay people, scandalized at this, urged Siricius to do something. The Pope then held a synod in 390 which condemned the theories of Jovinian and excommunicated him and his chief followers. Siricius then sent three priests to Milan to tell St. Ambrose about the synod. Ambrose himself held a synod which praised the Pope for his watchfulness and repeated the condemnation of Jovinian. Pope Siricius received an embassy from the East asking him to put an end to the long-drawn-out schism in the see of Antioch. For years two bishops and their successors had disputed the bishopric. Now Pope Siricius granted the plea that he recognize the last survivor, Flavian, as true bishop and readmit him to communion. The venerable Basilica of St. Paul's-Without-the-Walls, which was destroyed by fire in 1823, was built by Siricius. He dedicated this famous church in 390. St. Siricius is buried in the Cemetery of Priscilla. His feast is kept on November 26. ST. ANASTASIUS I 399 - 401 Although the pontificate of St. Anastasius was brief, he had time to show that watchful care for the preservation of pure doctrine which distinguishes the holders of the Roman See. A Roman, the son of Maximus, Anastasius was elected to succeed Siricius in 399. One of his first problems was an appeal which had been made to Pope Siricius. At this time (and many other times too) the writings of Origen enjoyed a great vogue. This brilliant but erratic third-century writer exercised a charm over men's minds which, in view of his sometimes less than orthodox opinions, could be dangerous. St. Jerome himself, grim watchdog of orthodoxy that he was, had issued an expurgated edition of Origen's Homilies. But heretics were now appealing to the authority of Origen and it was imprudent of St. Jerome's old friend Rufinus to choose this moment for a translation of Origen's philosophical study, Peri Archon. He explained, however, that since a greater name had already translated Origen's Homilies he felt justified. Jerome was furious. Not at all mollified by the reference to one greater, he attacked his old friend with bitterness. Then Rufinus became angry and told his reading public quite bluntly that Jerome was a defamer. The East rang with the shock of this battle of words, and an appeal was made to the Pope. Siricius, probably in view of the personalities involved, had been slow to act, but now St. Anastasius felt that the time had come to speak out. He condemned Origen and deprecated the translation of Rufinus. Shortly after the Pope spoke, the imperial government banned the works of Origen. St. Anastasius also wrote to the bishops of Africa urging them to keep up the good fight against the Donatist heretics. But again, like so many popes, he was merciful to repentant heretics. Evidently there was some trouble about unauthorized priests drifting in to Rome, for Anastasius ordered that no priest from across the sea should be received unless he had a letter signed by five bishops. He also decreed that priests should stand with heads bowed while the gospel was being read. He built a basilica called the Crescentian. St. Anastasius was a friend of the great Fathers of the Church, St. Augustine, St. Jerome, and St. Paulinus. St. Paulinus had a pleasant visit with the Pope. St. Anastasius died in December 401 with the empire on the brink of disaster. St. Jerome says that he was a man of apostolic zeal and great poverty, and that Rome did not deserve to possess him long lest the world's head be cut off while ruled by such a bishop. His feast is kept on December 16. ST. INNOCENT I 401 - 417 A frightful storm was blowing up over Italy as Anastasius died. The man chosen to succeed him and face the storm was Innocent. Innocent was born at Albanum near Rome. He seems to have been brought up among the Roman clergy. He was unanimously elected pope in December 401. The great Theodosius had made his sons Honorius and Arcadius emperors in the West and East respectively. They were weak men quite incapable of coping with the barbarian storm. Honorius however, had at his side the competent general Stilicho who beat off every attempt of Alaric the Visigoth to get down into Italy. But when in 408 Emperor Honorius had Stilicho killed on suspicion of treason, the gates were open and down came Alaric. Honorius, safe in the fortress of Ravenna, defied the Goth and refused to give terms. Alaric rushed on Rome, but Rome's towers and walls were too much for the wild men who marched with Alaric. The Goths blockaded the city and ravaged the neighborhood. At last on the payment of a large ransom Alaric withdrew to Tuscany. But the ambitious Visigoth was determined to have his way. He kept on demanding from Honorius Dalmatia, Venetia, and Noricum, plus tribute. To save Rome from another attack Pope Innocent personally went with an embassy from Rome to the imperial court at Ravenna. Honorius, safe himself, would not budge. Once more Alaric attacked the city; once more he was baffled by Rome's lofty walls. But on a third attempt, traitors opened the Salarian gate and the Goths poured into the helpless city. For five days the barbarians burned and plundered. The world was shocked by the fall of great Rome. Pope Innocent, still at Ravenna, must have been heartbroken. It was to a ravaged city that he returned. Oddly enough, Pope Innocent found Honorius more cooperative in ecclesiastical than in civil matters. While the Emperor took steps against heretics, the Pope worked hard to maintain discipline. He issued decretals to Bishop Victricius in Gaul and to the Spanish bishops. Innocent began to hear complaints about a new heresy called Pelagianism and to receive decrees from councils in Jerusalem and Africa condemning it. The Pope approved these decrees, and himself condemned the heresy. From Constantinople came word that the legitimate patriarch, the great St. John Chrysostom, had been driven from his see. Theophilus, a meddling patriarch of Alexandria, had come to Constantinople and intrigued with the weak Emperor Arcadius to have the golden-tongued orator deposed. Pope Innocent wrote a stern rebuke to the Alexandrian meddler and denounced the intruded usurper. At home a wealthy matron named Vestina gave Innocent the money to build and endow a church dedicated to Sts. Gervase and Protase. This church still exists under the name of San Vitale. Pope Innocent died in 417. He is buried i basilica above the Catacomb of Pontian. ST. ZOSIMUS 417 - 418 That he was a Greek, the son of Abram, is all that is known of the early life of St. Zosimus. His pontificate, however, though short, is important for a climax in the fight against Pelagianism. Pelagius (man of the sea) was the nickname by which Morgan, a tall Britisher, was popularly known. This monk had come to Rome some time around 400, and had established a reputation as a spiritual adviser. After a while he moved on to Palestine, and soon his doctrine had the empire in an uproar. Briefly, Pelagianism denied original sin and the necessity of divine grace to perform meritorious acts, indeed even to win heaven itself. A Roman lawyer named Caelestius and a clever thinker, Julian of Eclanum, proved zealous propagators of the Britisher's heresy. But of course this heresy, so fundamentally opposed to basic Christian truths, aroused great opposition. St. Augustine, especially, attacked it with all his learning and genius. Pope Innocent had received decrees from councils in Jerusalem and Africa condemning Pelagianism and had himself approved the decrees. After Innocent died, Caelestius went to Rome to make a personal appeal against the decisions of the local councils. A fast talker, he loudly proclaimed that he believed whatever the Pope believed. And while Caelestius was edifying all at Rome by his pious demeanor, Pelagius sent a cleverly worded confession of faith to the Pope. No wonder Zosimus was taken in! He wrote to the African bishops that they had acted hastily in condemning Pelagius and Caelestius, since it was not sure that these gentlemen had taught the doctrine for which they have been blamed. But by an interchange of letters the African bishops were able to unmask the real attitude of Pelagius and Caelestius. Once Pope Zosimus was convinced that the pair actually taught heretical doctrine, he spoke out strongly in a famous Epistola tractoria or encyclical letter which clearly and forcefully condemned Pelagius and Pelagianism. Of this epistle, worthy to be ranked with the great modern encyclicals, Prosper of Aquitaine said that it put the sword of Peter into the hands of every bishop. St. Augustine was delighted with it and when Julian of Eclanum clamored for a council, the great doctor coolly replied that competent authority had judged the case. St. Zosimus decreed that clerics should not drink in taverns. He died December 27, 418, and was buried in the cemetery Church of St. Lawrence in Agro Verano. ST. BONIFACE I 418 - 422 After the death of Pope Zosimus, the Archdeacon Eulalius at the head of a mob of clerics and laymen seized the Lateran Basilica and prevented the rest of the priests from entering and holding the election of the pope according to custom. They then elected Eulalius himself. Meanwhile the majority of the priests set the election for the next day; and since they could not hold it in the Lateran, they agreed to meet in the Church of Theodora. There they elected an old priest, Boniface. Boniface, a Roman of high character, was consecrated in the Church of St. Marcellus, while Fulalius was consecrated in the Lateran. The rebels succeeded in getting the traditional consecrator of the pope, the bishop of Ostia, to perform the function. Rome was in a bad way with two men claiming to be the true pope. Both appealed to Emperor Honorius at Ravenna. Honorius, undecided, held a gathering of Italian bishops to discuss the ticklish situation, but no decision was reached. The Emperor then called for a larger council, to which he invited the bishops of Gaul and Africa. The council decided that neither claimant should celebrate Easter in Rome while the case was being decided. Boniface obeyed, but Eulalius entered the city in Passion Week, refused to obey the prefect's order to get out, and finally with a gang of partisans seized the Lateran. The imperial officials had to use force to get him out. At last a letter from Honorius announced that the council had decided that Boniface was the legitimate pope and that he should be received as such. On April 10, St. Boniface solemnly entered the city amid the cheers of the populace. Even so, a year later when Boniface became sick, the partisans of Eulalius raised their heads; but they were unable to upset the sick Pope. Boniface continued the fight against the Pelagian heresy on two fronts. While he asked St. Augustine to write a treatise refuting the heretics, he obtained from Emperor Honorius a decree ordering all bishops to subscribe to the condemnation of Pelagius and Caelestius. He used his influence with Honorius also to preserve his jurisdiction as patriarch over Illyricum. Theodosius II, now Emperor of the East, had detached that area from the Western Patriarchate and placed it under the patriarchal jurisdiction of Constantinople. Honorius succeeded in persuading Theodosius to repeal the decree. St. Boniface I died September 4, 422. His feast is kept on October 25. ST. CELESTINE I 422 -432 Two acts make the pontificate of St. Celestine outstanding: the condemnation of the Nestorian heresy and the sending of St. Patrick to Ireland. A Campanian, Celestine was said to have lived for a while with St. Ambrose at Milan. He was certainly a deacon at Rome in the time of Pope Innocent I. In contrast to the stormy election of Pope Boniface, Celestine's seems to have been quiet and harmonious. Once pope, St. Celestine continued the fight against now dying Pelagianism. He had the satisfaction of seeing it die away in Britain, the native isle of its founder, under the spirited attack of St. Germanus of Auxerre and St. Lupus of Troyes. When the heresy in the diluted form known as Semi-Pelagianism raised its head in Gaul, Celestine wrote against this new danger. A great friend of St. Augustine, he wrote a letter to the bishops of Gaul on the occasion of the mighty father's death, praising him and forbidding all attacks on his memory. The Pope also got the Council of Ephesus to condemn Pelagianism. But the third great ecumenical council held at Ephesus in 431 was chiefly concerned with still another new heresy. Nestorius, a priest of Antioch, had become patriarch of Constantinople. From the eminence of this lofty position he taught the new doctrine that in Christ there are not only two natures, which is correct, but that there are also two persons, which is incorrect. A logical consequence was that Mary was not the Mother of God but only of the human person of Christ. This aroused horror even in Constantinople itself, while St. Cyril, the patriarch of Alexandria, attacked the new doctrine most vigorously. Both Nestorius and Cyril were soon clamoring to the Pope for a decision. Celestine held a synod at Rome in 430 and condemned Nestorianism. Nestorius was to be deposed and excommunicated if he persisted in teaching false doctrine. Nestorius refused to submit, all the more because Cyril, who had been made the Pope's agent in the matter, demanded more than Celestine had asked. A general council was called to meet at Ephesus in 431. The council condemned Nestorianism, to the great joy of the people. It is probable, though not certain, that St. Celestine a short time before his death personally commissioned St. Patrick to preach the gospel to the Irish. At any rate, it was at this time that Patrick did begin his marvelous work. St. Prosper of Aquitaine says that Celestine saved the Roman island for the faith and to the "barbarous" island brought the light of Christ. At Rome Celestine restored the Church of Santa Maria in Trastevere, which had been destroyed by the Goths. He also caused some interesting pictures of the saints to be painted in the Church of St. Sylvester. St. Celestine died on July 27, 432. His feast is kept on July 27. The Greek Church also honors Celestine because of his part in putting down the Nestorian heresy. ST. SIXTUS III 432 - 440 Sixtus was one of those gentle souls who seem to exist for the purpose of binding wounds and healing bruises. A Roman, prominent among the clergy, a friend of St. Augustine, Sixtus was a natural choice for pope. He set himself the task of consolidating the victory over Pelagianism and Nestorianism by kindness and gentleness. Indeed, at one time it appeared as if that clever protagonist of Pelagianism, Julian of Eclanum, was about to pull the wool over the Pope's eyes. But his insincerity was unmasked, and Sixtus refused him readmittance into the Church. At the side of Sixtus in this matter stood a deacon named Leo whose aid was very valuable to the Pope. Of him more shall be heard. The Pope's kindness had happier results with the Nestorians. In 433, Sixtus held a council at Rome at which he announced that Cyril of Alexandria had informed him that many Nestorian leaders had returned to the Church. Certainly Sixtus made it easy for them to do so. The condemnation of Nestorianism had been a striking vindication of the honor paid to Mary as Mother of the Person who is God. Indeed, just as the word consubstantial was the keyword of orthodoxy against the Arians, so theotokos (Mother of God) was the keyword of orthodoxy against the Nestorians. The Council of Ephesus precipitated a spontaneous outburst of devotion to Mary. St. Sixtus celebrated the council by rebuilding the old basilica of Pope Liberius and decorating it with magnificent mosaics picturing the childhood of Jesus and the life of Mary. The church, which was dedicated to the Mother of God, is called St. Mary Major. Sixtus III did much for the churches in Rome. Not only did he redecorate St. Mary Major but he obtained from Emperor Valentinian III a golden image adorned with jewels on which the twelve apostles were represented. This he placed over the tomb of St. Peter. He did some restoration in the old Lateran Basilica and he erected a silver altar and porphyry columns in the Church of St. Lawrence. St. Sixtus III died August 19, 440. He was buried in that Church of St. Lawrence he did so much to adorn. His feast is kept on August 19. ST. LEO I, THE GREAT 440 - 461 "A burden to shudder at"--thus St. Leo I spoke of the papal office. Yet few have been so capable of bearing that burden as the clever, energetic, and holy Tuscan who succeeded St. Sixtus III. A deacon in the Church at Rome Leo was absent in Gaul on an important mission for the Emperor when St. Sixtus III died. He returned to find himself pope. To rule the mid-fifth-century Church was not easy. The West was filled with the clamor of barbarians wandering through provinces which had lost the nerve to resist. The East was troubled with a new and dangerous heresy. How Leo faced both situations is the story of his pontificate. Leo acted strongly against all heresies, but the dogmatic crisis of his pontificate arose when the Constantinople monk Eutyches and the patriarch of Alexandria, Dioscorus, began to teach that in Christ there is only one nature. This Monophysite ( one-nature ) heresy made such progress in the East that St. Flavian, the patriarch of Constantinople, called on the Pope to do something about it. Leo did. In a famous letter to Flavian, the Pope so clearly and forcefully exposed and condemned the Monophysite error that this letter has been venerated as a creed. The Monophysites, however, gained the ear of the Eastern Emperor, Theodosius II, and succeeded in holding a packed synod at Ephesus. There they so maltreated the saintly Flavian that he died, and they proclaimed the Monophysite error to be true Christian doctrine. Leo came to the rescue. In stinging words he characterized the Ephesus affair as a robbery, and the name has lived. To this day it is known as the robber synod. To counteract Monophysite influence on Theodosius, Leo got Valentinian III, the Western Emperor, to wake up his cousin to the danger of fostering heresy. Though Theodosius died, his successor Marcion heeded the Pope. To settle the matter a great council, the fourth ecumenical, was called to meet at Chalcedon in 451. There the fathers condemned Eutyches and accepted Leo's letter as the symbol of orthodox belief. Though the Monophysite heresy lingered long to trouble the Eastern Church, this great council killed its chance to win the East. In the West imperial feebleness forced Leo to stand as buffer between his people and barbarian hordes. Attila the Hun, checked at Chalons, had burst over the Alps in 452. Leo went north to meet Attila. On the banks of the Mincio these two giants of the age met, one representing brute might, the other, moral force. And Leo prevailed. Attila agreed to make peace and spare Rome. Three years later when a Vandal fleet sailed up the Tiber, the panic-stricken Romans turned to their bishop. The Pope went outside the walls to meet Genseric, the Vandal king. Genseric agreed to spare the lives and homes of the Romans. Then for fourteen days the Vandals helped themselves to the wealth of imperial Rome, but true to Genseric's promise to the Pope, they set no fires and kept their swords sheathed. The many-sidedness of Leo is a marvel. Diplomat, statesman, administrator, theologian, orator, and above all a holy man, this pope well deserves the title, Leo the Great. ST. HILARY 461 - 468 To replace a man like Leo was not easy, but the next pope was a man after Leo's heart, the archdeacon Hilary. Hilary was a Sardinian who had joined the Roman clergy and had been sent by St. Leo as one of the papal legates to the council at Ephesus in 449. This council, intended to settle the Monophysite affair, got out of hand. Packed with Monophysites and presided over by Dioscorus, the patriarch of Alexandria, the assembly refused to listen to the protests of the papal legates. Dioscorus steam-rollered through the council a condemnation of the orthodox and saintly Flavian, patriarch of Constantinople, and an approval of the Monophysite leader Eutyches. In vain Hilary protested. He had to fly in fear for his life and hide in a chapel of St. John the Evangelist. It was only with difficulty that he got back to Rome. No wonder St. Leo called this Ephesus council a gathering of robbers! As pope, Hilary worked hard to foster order in the Gallic hierarchy. When a certain Hermes illegally made himself archbishop of Narbonne, two Gallic delegates came to Rome to appeal to Pope Hilary. He held a council at Rome in 462 to settle the matter. He also upheld the rights of the see of Arles to be the primatial see of Gaul. From Spain also came appeals of a similar nature. To settle these Hilary held a council at Rome in 465. This is the first Council at Rome whose acts have come down to us. According to the "Liber Pontificalis" he sent a letter to the East confirming the ecumenical councils of Nicaea, Ephesus, and Chalcedon, and the famous dogmatic letter of his predecessor St. Leo to Flavian. He also publicly in St. Peter's rebuked the shadow-emperor Anthemius for allowing a favorite of his to foster heresy in Rome. St. Hilary deserves great credit for his work in building and decorating churches in Rome. Of especial interest is the oratory he built near the Lateran, dedicated to St. John the Evangelist. The Pope attributed his escape from the wild Monophysites at Ephesus to the intercession of the Beloved Disciple, and to show his gratitude he built this beautiful oratory. Over its doors may still be seen the inscription, "To his deliverer, Blessed John the Evangelist, Bishop Hilary, the Servant of Christ." Hilary built two more churches and spent freely in decorating still others. The gold and silver and marble used so lavishly by this Pope in adorning the Roman churches indicate that the wealthy families of Rome must have saved something from the grasping hands of Goths and Vandals. St. Hilary died on February 29. His feast is kept on February 28. ST. SIMPLICIUS 468 - 483 St. Simplicius, a native of Tivoli, was elected to succeed St. Hilary. His election was peaceful, his pontificate stormy. The empire in the West was dying. After the murder of Valentinian III back in 455, a succession of nine shadow emperors held the throne. Most of these were tools of barbarian generals, and finally in the time of Pope Simplicius in 476 the Heruli chieftain Odovakar deposed the last of these little monarchs and informed Emperor Zeno at Constantinople that he would rule the West for him. By this time, anyway, the imperial government had ceased to exercise much influence in the West. Visigoths ruled Spain, Franks and other tribes dominated Gaul, Vandals controlled Africa, and Britain had long been abandoned to Picts and Scots, Angles and Saxons. The Pope was not much troubled by the change. Odovakar, though an Arian, treated the Church well. But Simplicius was very much troubled by affairs in the East. In 475 a usurper named Basiliscus drove Emperor Zeno from the throne. Basiliscus favored the Monophysites, and now these heretics enjoyed a very resurrection. Timothy the Cat, that old Monophysite who had been deposed from the see of Alexandria by Emperor Marcion, now returned in triumph. Peter the Fuller took over Antioch. The usurper Basiliscus issued an imperial decree known as the "Encyclion" which ordered the dogmatic letter of St. Leo to Flavian and the acts of the Council of Chalcedon to be burned. It looked as if the whole East trembled on the brink of heresy as five hundred bishops actually subscribed to this audacious bit of imperial dogmatizing. Acacius the patriarch of Constantinople, still held firm, and to his rescue came Pope Simplicius. He strongly encouraged the monks and clergy of Constantinople to resist the usurper's tyranny. But though Constantinople held firm, Antioch and Alexandria were in heretic hands. When Timothy the Cat died, he was succeeded by his friend the equally ardent Monophysite, Peter the Hoarse. Just when things looked worst, Emperor Zeno made a comeback and regained the throne. Out went the intruded Monophysite bishops. Back came the Catholics. Pope Simplicius could feel that he had helped the East survive a fierce tempest. The time of peace, however, was very short. When the Catholic patriarch of Alexandria died, the Catholics elected John Talaia to succeed him. The Monophysites once more elected Peter the Hoarse. Now the Emperor Zeno and Patriarch Acacius began to favor the Monophysite, Peter. Strange this! But politics were at work. Zeno, alarmed at the strength of the Monophysites, was thinking of a way to pacify them, and Acacius was hand in glove with the Emperor. In spite of the Pope's protests, Peter the Hoarse was recognized as true patriarch of Alexandria. Then Peter went to Constantinople, where he joined Zeno and Acacius to cook up a compromise known as the Henoticon. This was in 482 while Simplicius still lived; but he died before the storm reached its peak. St. Simplicius built four churches in Rome. He died in 483. His feast is kept on March 2. ST. FELIX II 483 - 492 St. Felix II has the extraordinary distinction of being not only a pope and saint himself, but the great-grandfather of another pope and saint, Gregory the Great. Felix had been married, but his wife had died before he became a priest. He was a member of an old Roman family of senatorial rank. No sooner was he elected pope than Felix faced the vexing problem posed by Emperor Zeno's ill-considered attempt to unify the East by compromise. One of the evils which result from politicians meddling in church matters is the tendency to make a deal. And that is just what Zeno did. Alarmed by the hold that the Monophysites had on Egypt and Syria, Zeno issued his famous Henoticon (act of union) and ordered all to subscribe to it. This Henoticon was a creed drawn up by Acacius, the hitherto orthodox patriarch of Constantinople, and Peter, the Monophysite patriarch of Alexandria. It was orthodox in what it said, but implicitly it condoned the Monophysite heresy by omitting the decision of the Council of Chalcedon and the letter of Pope Leo to Flavian. Like so many compromises it pleased few. The more ardent Monophysites refused to follow their leader, Peter, and Pope Felix denounced it. With true spiritual independence, he warned the Emperor not to interfere in theological matters and "to allow the Catholic Church to govern itself by its own laws." Pope Felix sent legates to Constantinople to summon Acacius to Rome, but to his dismay the Pope discovered that his legates had approved the election of the Monophysite Peter as patriarch of Alexandria and had communicated with heretics--in short, had sold him out. Felix held a synod at Rome in 484 at which he excommunicated the untrustworthy legates. He also excommunicated Acacius, but the patriarch remained stubborn. Thus started the Acacian schism in which Constantinople was officially separated from the Roman Church over the Henoticon. Even after Acacius died, the schism dragged on until the next century. In the last years of this pontificate Theodoric led his Ostrogoths into Italy to defeat Odovakar and take over the rule of Italy--all in the name of Emperor Zeno. Though an Arian, Theodoric treated the Church well. It was different in Africa, where in the early years of his reign Felix heard anguished cries for help from the hapless Catholics. Hunneric, the Arian Vandal, ruthlessly harried the poor African Catholics. Pope Felix got Emperor Zeno to bring his influence to bear on the fierce Vandal, but this accomplished little. After Hunneric died, the persecution slackened, and the Pope then helped to get the Church in Africa on its feet. He followed the usual papal policy of mildness towards weak brethren who had given way in the storm. Pope St. Felix died March 1, 492. He is buried in St. Paul's on the Ostian Way. ST. GELASIUS I 492 - 496 "More a servant than a sovereign-thus Dionysius Exiguus describes St. Gelasius I. Yet he spoke so beautifully of the majesty of Peter's see that his words have been quoted down the ages. As late as the last ecumenical council, Pope Gelasius was quoted as an authority on papal infallibility. Gelasius was an African either by birth or descent. A member of the Roman clergy, he worked in close cooperation with St. Felix II, and when he became pope he continued the policy of his predecessor. Gelasius found the Church of Constantinople still in schism. Although the patriarch Euphemius had returned to orthodoxy, he refused to strike the name of Acacius from the diptychs. The diptychs were tablets used in the churches of those days on which were written the names of living and dead dignitaries. Since they were visible signs of the communion of saints, the names of all in heresy or schism or under excommunication were excluded from these diptychs. A number of bishops appealed to Gelasius to relent and readmit Constantinople to communion, but the Pope explained that it was a question not of personality but of principle, that to allow the name of Acacius to remain on the diptychs would be to repudiate his predecessor's actions against the Monophysite compromisers. Gelasius also defended the rights of the ancient patriarchates of Alexandria and Antioch against the encroachments of Constantinople. Although the Pope had his troubles with Emperor Anastasius over the Henoticon, he got along well with the Arian Theodoric. His difficulty at home arose, not from the government, but from a group of superstitious Romans. A plague had afflicted the city and these superstitious citizens, led by the Senator Andromachus, revived the Lupercalia to bring back good luck to the city. The Lupercalia were originally a pagan rite celebrated in mid-February, but it became a good luck superstition. Youths clad in skins ran around the city with whips to chase away bad luck. They struck any woman they met a blow which was supposed to confer fertility. That such rank superstition should be revived was a challenge to the Pope and vigorously he met it. Gelasius forbade all Catholics to have anything to do with the affair, and wrote against it so vigorously that he soon ended the mischievous nonsense. Gelasius, like his predecessor, spoke firmly to the Emperor on the need of independence for the Church. No history of political theory is complete without a discussion of this pope's masterly exposition of the role of Church and State in a famous letter to Emperor Anastasius. Gelasius defends the position of the Church as a perfect society, and at the same time recognizes the legitimate functions of both Church and State. Although a great writer, Gelasius made his strongest impression as a man of holiness. Prayerful and austere, he loved the companionship of monks. He was outstanding for his sense of justice and above all for his charity to the poor. "Great even among the saints," Gelasius died November 21, 496. ANASTASIUS II 496 - 498 Anastasius II is a much-maligned pope. Misunderstood by his contemporaries, he has been abused by medieval historians, and even placed in hell by Dante! Modern historical research, however, has cleared the memory of this pope. Anastasius II, a Roman, was a man of kindly and peaceable disposition. Distressed at the continued schism of Constantinople, he sent legates to the Emperor and messages of peace to the Patriarch. He did not sacrifice principle. He continued to demand the condemnation of the schismatic, Acacius. But the Romans seem to have misunderstood this, and they began to grumble. Their indignation flamed higher when they learned that Pope Anastasius had received back into communion Archbishop Andrew of Thessalonica, who had been an ardent partisan of the schismatic Acacius. They do not seem to have realized that Archbishop Andrew had repented and had repudiated Acacius and returned to Catholic unity. The confusion of the Romans was caused perhaps at least partially by the indiscreet remarks of Photinus, Andrew's legate to the Pope. At the same time the pro-Byzantine intrigues of the Senator Festus caused the Romans to be intensely suspicious. All this resulted in a good deal of bitterness on the part of Roman clergy and laity against peace-loving Pope Anastasius. Anastasius, however, was unable to effect the reunion which he desired and was spared the necessity of pacifying his disturbed Romans by his sudden death in 498. The "Liber Pontificalis" remarks that he was cut down by divine intervention; but Duchesne regards this as a manifestation of party feeling rather than the recording of cold history. There is no historical justification at all for the horrible death dreamed up for him by the more imaginative chroniclers of the Middle Ages. While Pope Anastasius was having his troubles, an event full of future significance took place in Gaul. Clovis, the Frankish king, was baptized by St. Remigius. ST. SYMMACHUS 498 - 514 The death of Anastasius left Rome tense with bitterness and suspicion as two factions struggled for control. The first and larger was the group which, out of misunderstanding, had grumbled at the late Pope's peace policy. The other faction was the pro-Byzantine party led by Senator Festus. This intriguer was anxious to make Rome conform to the imperial wish concerning Zeno's Henoticon. The clergy gathered at the Lateran on November 22, 498, and elected Symmachus. Later that same day, the pro- Byzantine minority went to St. Mary Major and elected an antipope, Lawrence. Off to Ravenna went embassies from pope and antipope to Theodoric. Theodoric wisely decided to recognize Symmachus because he had been elected first and by a majority. Lawrence bowed and was made bishop of Nocera. Symmachus, a Sardinian who had been baptized at Rome and had been a deacon there, took steps to prevent a recurrence of the trouble. He held a synod on March 1, 499, which passed stringent decrees against electioneering for the papacy. The next year he welcomed Theodoric to Rome. The great Ostrogoth received a splendid reception, and in turn promised to respect the privileges of the Romans. The pro-Byzantine party raised its head again in 501. Led by Festus, they accused the Pope of all kinds of crimes from celebrating Easter on the wrong date to immoral conduct. When Theodoric sent for Symmachus, the Pope boldly refused to be judged by a secular ruler. Theodoric then requested a synod to settle the matter, and sent, as Visitor to Rome, Bishop Peter of Altinum. The Pope agreed to the synod but refused to accept the Visitor. When, with his approval, the synod met, Symmachus demanded his complete reinstatement before answering any charge. Though the synod agreed to this, Theodoric did not. The Pope then gave in, and set out for the synod, but was attacked by partisans of the proByzantine faction and driven back to St. Peter's. This outrage ended his complaisance, and he refused to have anything more to do with the synod. Embarrassed, the synod broke up declaring that it had no competence to judge a pope, and that Symmachus should be regarded as free from all crime. Theodoric, however, refused to accept this, and the pro-Byzantine faction brought back Antipope Lawrence and installed him in the Lateran. For four years this schism dragged on, to the distress of the faithful. The patient Pope was gradually winning back the adherents of Lawrence when Theodoric changed his mind, and by withdrawing his support from the schismatics, put an end to the matter. In spite of all this trouble, Symmachus kept an eye on the East and rebuked Emperor Anastasius for his support of the Monophysite heresy. As firmly as Gelasius, the Pope maintained the independence of his spiritual power. He found time to do a good deal of building in Rome, including three refuges for the poor. He also sent alms to the persecuted Catholics of Africa. St. Symmachus died July 19, 514. Venerated as a saint, his feast is kept on that day. ST. HORMISDAS 514 - 523 Gloom and storm marked the pontificates of Anastasius II and Symmachus, but on St. Hormisdas the sun of peace and victory shone with cheerful splendor. St. Hormisdas was born at Frosinone in the Roman Campagna. Married before ordination, he had a son, Silverius, who also became pope. As a deacon, Hormisdas had staunchly backed St. Symmachus in his trouble with the antipope Lawrence and the pro-Byzantine faction. Elected with difficulty, St. Hormisdas began his career of peace with victory by receiving back into the Church the last die-hards of the Laurentian schism. A greater victory was in the making. Ever since 484 the Church of Constantinople had been in schism. First, Patriarch Acacius had supported the Henoticon and had died excommunicated and in schism. Then even when the patriarchs had returned to orthodoxy, they could not bring themselves to strike the name of Acacius from the liturgical diptychs or tablets. The fact that Emperor Anastasius, who ruled during most of this time, tended to the Monophysite heresy did not help matters. But more and more the orthodox clergy, monks, and laity of the East longed for an end to this schism which weakened their stand against the Monophysites. In 514 General Vitalian revolted and forced Anastasius to make overtures towards reunion; but since Anastasius was not serious, nothing came of this attempt. A number of Eastern bishops, however, independently made their submission to Rome. When Anastasius died in 517 hopes rose. His successor, the rugged soldier Justin I was orthodox. Popular opinion, the Emperor, and orthodoxy for once all agreeing, the way to reunion was easy. A synod at Constantinople sent a legate to Pope Hormisdas to seek reunion. The Pope sent back a legation with a formula of faith, and on Holy Thursday, March 28, 519, the papal legates received the Church of Constantinople back to Catholic unity. The ceremony was hailed with tears of joy, for this union was extremely popular. The formula of Hormisdas which the Pope sent to be signed on this occasion is a masterpiece of clarity. It repeats the condemnation of the heresies condemned by the ecumenical councils and it formally condemns the memory of Acacius who had started this schism. It so clearly stated the primacy and infallibility of the Roman See that from that day to the time of the Vatican Council, it has been a powerful weapon in the arsenal of Catholic orthodoxy. It was subscribed to by the patriarch of Constantinople, it swept the East and in the end was signed by 2,500 bishops. Another joyous moment for St. Hormisdas came when word was brought from Africa that after the death of the Vandal king Thrasamund, the hardpressed African Church enjoyed a little peace. Hormisdas forbade the use of the expression "one of the Trinity was crucified," not because it could not be understood in a true sense, but because it was used as a Monophysite catchword. He sent letters to the bishops of Gaul and Spain on disciplinary matters. When St. Hormisdas died in 523 the Church was, on the whole, peaceful, but black clouds were piling up in the West. ST. JOHN I 523 -526 John, a Tuscan, the Archdeacon of the Roman clergy, was elected to succeed St. Hormisdas, but he was not to enjoy the same prosperity as his predecessor. Now that the Acacian schism had ended in the East and an orthodox emperor ruled at Constantinople, the hitherto mild Theodoric began to make trouble at home. The Ostrogoth king was growing old and suspicious. He regarded the new friendliness between Rome and Constantinople as a possible danger to his regime. His suspicion rose to fury when he heard that Emperor Justin had taken measures against the Arian heretics in the East and had deprived them of their churches. The angry Goth seems at first to have thought of waging war in favor of his fellow Arians. Then he decided to see what he could accomplish by an embassy. He summoned Pope John to Ravenna and imposed upon him the decidedly disagreeable task of going to Constantinople at the head of this embassy to ask the orthodox emperor to restore the churches to the Arians. John objected, but Theodoric packed him and the embassy on board ship and away they sailed for Constantinople. The mission was embarrassing but the journey glorious. Wherever they stopped the Pope was hailed with joy, and when they approached Constantinople, Pope John was met at the twelfth milestone by a brilliant procession of clergy carrying crosses and candles. Emperor Justin received him with the highest honors. On Easter Sunday, April 19, 526, he celebrated Mass in Sancta Sophia. He crowned the Emperor. He received enthusiastic pledges of loyalty from the Eastern bishops. Alexandria alone, now hardening in its Monophysite heresy, remained aloof. This glorification of Pope John by the devout people of Constantinople was his Thabor. Calvary was before him. Theodoric was waiting for him, now a brutal Theodoric who had just butchered the gentle philosopher Boethius and the senator Symmachus. When the Pope got back to Ravenna Theodoric threw him into prison. Already tired by his journey and worn by new sufferings, Pope John did not last long in a prison cell. He died May 18, 526. He was buried outside the walls of Ravenna, but later his body was brought back to Rome and buried in St. Peter's. St. John is honored by the Church as a martyr; his feast is kept on May 27. ST. FELIX III 526 - 530 When Theodoric learned that his victim, Pope St. John, had died in prison he took measures to ensure that the next pope would be friendly. He put forward as his candidate Felix of Samnium, a priest of the Roman Church. The King's wishes were respected, and Felix, a man of excellent character anyway, was elected. In spite of being a royal nominee Felix proved to be a good pope. He used his favor with the Gothic Court to help the Church. Theodoric did not long survive his illustrious victim, Pope John, and died on August 30, 526. He was succeeded by his grandson, Athalaric, a lad of ten. The real power was the Queen Mother, Amalasuntha. This lady, Theodoric's daughter, was quite favorable to the Church, and from her Pope Felix secured a decree, drawn up by the noble old Cassiodorus, which reserved the trial of clerics to the pope. Violations of this law of clerical immunity were to be punished by a heavy fine, and any money thus obtained was to go to the poor. The Pope also received two temples in the Roman forum, that of Romulus, and that of the Sacred City. These he made over into the Church of Sts. Cosmas and Damian. The church still stands and to this day may be seen there mosaics made by order of Pope Felix. In Gaul there had arisen a mitigated form of Pelagianism. This Semi- Pelagianism had been taught by the ascetic John Cassian and a clever writer, Faustus of Riez. It lingered in Gaul, and St. Caesarius of Arles called on the Pope to help him fight this heres