Pammachius (d. 410 AD) was a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

senator who is venerated as a

saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...

in the

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism. Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or "canonical") ...

and

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

Churches. He married

Paulina Paulina or Paullina (, ) was a name shared by three relatives of the Roman Emperor Hadrian: his mother, his elder sister and his niece. Mother of Hadrian Domitia Paulina or Paullina, Domitia Paulina Major or Paulina Major, (''Major'' Latin fo ...

. After her death, gave himself up to works of charity.

Biography

Pammachius was born to a noble Roman family, possibly the

Furii The gens Furia, originally written Fusia, and sometimes found as Fouria on coins, was one of the most ancient and noble patrician houses at Rome. Its members held the highest offices of the state throughout the period of the Roman Republic. The ...

. He was a boyhood friend and classmate in the schools of rhetoric of

Jerome Jerome (; la, Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was a Christian presbyter, priest, Confessor of the Faith, confessor, th ...

.Holböck, Ferdinand. ''Married Saints and Blesseds: Through the Centuries''
n.p., Ignatius Press, 2017 The church of Santi Giovanni e Paolo on the

Caelian Hill The Caelian Hill (; la, Collis Caelius; it, Celio ) is one of the famous seven hills of Rome. Geography The Caelian Hill is a sort of long promontory about long, to wide, and tall in the park near the Temple of Claudius. The hill over ...

in Rome was founded either by Pammachius or his father. It was anciently known first as the ''Titulus Bizantis'', and then as the ''Titulus Pammachii''.Kirsch, Johann Peter. "Sts. John and Paul." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 8. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 12 November 2021 He was a senator, and became proconsul.Butler, Alban. "Saint Pammachius, Confessor". ''Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs, and Principal Saints'
1866. CatholicSaints.Info. 19 August 2014 In 385 he married Paulina, second daughter of

Paula of Rome Paula of Rome (AD 347–404) was an ancient Roman saint and early Desert Mother. A member of one of the richest senatorial families which claimed descent from Agamemnon, Paula was the daughter of Blesilla and Rogatus, from the great clan of th ...

. He was probably among the ''viri genere optimi religione præclari'', who in 390 denounced

Jovinian Jovinian ( la, Iovinianus; died c. 405) was an opponent of Christian asceticism in the 4th century and was condemned as a heretic at synods convened in Rome under Pope Siricius and in Milan by Ambrose in 393, because of his anti-ascetic views ...

Pope Siricius Pope Siricius (334 – 26 November 399) was the bishop of Rome from December 384 to his death. In response to inquiries from Bishop Himerius of Tarragona, Siricius issued the ''Directa'' decretal, containing decrees of baptism, church discipline ...

.Bacchus, Francis Joseph. "St. Pammachius." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 11. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. 13 November 2021 Paulina died in childbirth in 397. After her funeral, Pammachius gave substantial alms to the poor for the repose of her soul. On the advice of his friend

Paulinus of Nola Paulinus of Nola (; la, Paulinus Nolanus; also Anglicized as Pauline of Nola; – 22 June 431) born Pontius Meropius Anicius Paulinus, was a Roman poet, writer, and senator who attained the ranks of suffect consul () and governor of Campania ...

, he then gave himself up to works of charity. In 398, with another friend, Fabiola, he built at

Porto Porto or Oporto () is the second-largest city in Portugal, the capital of the Porto District, and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipality of Porto, is small compared to its metropol ...

, at the mouth of the

Tiber The Tiber ( ; it, Tevere ; la, Tiberis) is the third-longest river in Italy and the longest in Central Italy, rising in the Apennine Mountains in Emilia-Romagna and flowing through Tuscany, Umbria, and Lazio, where it is joined by the Riv ...

opposite Ostia, the Xenodochium of Pammachius, a guest-house for pilgrims."St. Pammachius", FaithND
/ref> In 399 Pammachius and Oceanus wrote to Jerome asking him to translate

Origen Origen of Alexandria, ''Ōrigénēs''; Origen's Greek name ''Ōrigénēs'' () probably means "child of Horus" (from , "Horus", and , "born"). ( 185 – 253), also known as Origen Adamantius, was an Early Christianity, early Christian scholar, ...

's ''De Principiis'', and repudiate the insinuation of Rufinus that Jerome was of one mind with himself with regard to Origen. He corresponded with Jerome on matters of faith, and tried unsuccessfully to get Jerome to tone down the language he used when referring to opponents. Many of Jerome's commentaries on scripture were dedicated to Pammachius. In 401 Pammachius was thanked by

Augustine of Hippo Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Af ...

for a letter he wrote to the people of

Numidia Numidia ( Berber: ''Inumiden''; 202–40 BC) was the ancient kingdom of the Numidians located in northwest Africa, initially comprising the territory that now makes up modern-day Algeria, but later expanding across what is today known as Tunis ...

, where he owned property, exhorting them to abandon the Donatist schism. Pammachius never seems to have entered holy orders, as some have thought; but lived sequestered from the world, devoting himself entirely to the exercises of devotion, penance, and charity. He died in 410. The liturgical feast of Pammachius is kept on 30 August.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pammachius 409 deaths 5th-century Christian saints Year of birth unknown 4th-century Latin writers 5th-century Latin writers Latin letter writers

Biography

See also

References