Pope Anterus (, ,) was the bishop of Rome from 21 November 235 until his death on 3 January 236.Shahan, Thomas (1907). "Pope St. Anterus" in ''The Catholic Encyclopedia''. Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company.

Life

Anterus was the son of Romulus, born in

Petilia Policastro Petilia Policastro is a ''comune'' and town in the province of Crotone, in Calabria, Italy. History Petilia Policastro is an ancient village, of presumed Byzantine origin, surrounded in the past by defensive walls. In its territory, along the ...

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, Italy. He is thought to have been of Greek origin, and his name may indicate that he was a freed slave. He succeeded

Pope Pontian Pope Pontian ( la, Pontianus; died October 235) was the bishop of Rome from 21 July 230 to 28 September 235.Kirsch, Johann Peter (1911). "Pope St. Pontian" in ''The Catholic Encyclopedia''. Vol. 12. New York: Robert Appleton Company. In 235, duri ...

, who had been deported from Rome to Sardinia, along with the

antipope An antipope ( la, antipapa) is a person who makes a significant and substantial attempt to occupy the position of Bishop of Rome and leader of the Catholic Church in opposition to the legitimately elected pope. At times between the 3rd and mid- ...

Hippolytus. He created one bishop, for the city of Fondi. Some scholars believe Anterus was martyred, because he ordered greater strictness in searching into the acts of the martyrs, exactly collected by the notaries appointed by

Pope Clement I Pope Clement I ( la, Clemens Romanus; Greek: grc, Κλήμης Ῥώμης, Klēmēs Rōmēs) ( – 99 AD) was bishop of Rome in the late first century AD. He is listed by Irenaeus and Tertullian as the bishop of Rome, holding office from 88 AD t ...

. Other scholars doubt this and believe it is more likely that he died in undramatic circumstances during the persecutions of Emperor

Maximinus the Thracian Gaius Julius Verus Maximinus "Thrax" ("the Thracian"; – 238) was Roman emperor from 235 to 238. His father was an accountant in the governor's office and sprang from ancestors who were Carpi (a Dacian tribe), a people whom Diocletian ...

. He was buried in the papal crypt of the Catacomb of Callixtus, on the Appian Way in Rome. The site of his sepulchre was discovered by Giovanni Battista de Rossi in 1854, with some broken remnants of the Greek epitaph engraved on the narrow oblong slab that closed his tomb; only the Greek term for bishop was legible. His ashes had been removed to the

Church of Saint Sylvester Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...

in the Campus Martius and were discovered on 17 November 1595, when Pope Clement VIII rebuilt that church. Pope Anterus is remembered in the Catholic Church on

3 January Events Pre-1600 * 69 – The Roman legions on the Rhine refuse to declare their allegiance to Galba, instead proclaiming their legate, Aulus Vitellius, as emperor. * 250 – Emperor Decius orders everyone in the Roman Empire (except ...

and in the Russian Orthodox Church on

18 August Events Pre-1600 * 684 – Battle of Marj Rahit: Umayyad partisans defeat the supporters of Ibn al-Zubayr and cement Umayyad control of Syria. * 707 – Princess Abe accedes to the imperial Japanese throne as Empress Genmei. * 1304 & ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Anterus 236 deaths 3rd-century archbishops 3rd-century Christian saints 3rd-century Romans Greek popes Italian popes Papal saints People from the Province of Crotone Popes Year of birth unknown 3rd-century popes Patriarchs in Italy Eastern Orthodox saints

Life

See also

References