Pope Anicetus

{{Short description|Head of the Catholic Church from c. 157 to 168}}

{{Infobox Christian leader

| type = Pope

| honorific-prefix = Pope Saint

| name = Anicetus

| title = Bishop of Rome

| church = Catholic Church

| term_start = c. 157

| term_end = c. 20 April 168

| predecessor = Pius I

| successor = Soter

| birth_date = late 1st century

| birth_place = Emesa, Syria, Roman Empire

| death_date = April 168

| death_place = Rome, Italy, Roman Empire

| feast_day = 20 April (West)
17 April{{in lang|el}} [http://www.saint.gr/1955/saint.aspx Άγιος Ανίκητος ο Ιερομάρτυρας πάπας Ρώμης Ορθόδοξος Συναξαριστής] (East)

| attributes = Papal tiara, palm branch

| image = Wolnzach, St Laurentius 017.JPG

| caption = Statue of Pope St. Anicetus from St. Laurentius, Holzkirchen in Wolnzach, Bavaria, Germany

}}

Pope Anicetus (Greek: Ανίκητος) was the bishop of Rome from c. 157 to his death in April 168.Campbell, Thomas (1907). "Pope St. Anicetus" in The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company. According to the Annuario Pontificio, the start of his papacy may have been 153. Anicetus actively opposed Gnosticism and Marcionism. He welcomed Polycarp of Smyrna to Rome to discuss the Easter controversy.

Biography

According to the Liber Pontificalis, Anicetus was a Syrian from the city of Emesa (modern-day Homs).{{Cite book

|publisher = Liverpool University Press

|ol = 8283722M

|isbn = 9780853235453

|author = Raymond Davis

|title = Book of the Pontiffs (Liber Pontificalis) (Liverpool University Press - Translated Texts for Historians)

|year = 2000

|publication-date = January 1, 2001|page=5

}}

According to Irenaeus, it was during his pontificate that the aged Polycarp of Smyrna, a disciple of John the Evangelist, visited Rome to discuss the celebration of Easter with Anicetus. Polycarp and his Church of Smyrna celebrated the crucifixion on the fourteenth day of Nisan, which coincides with Pesach (or Passover) regardless of which day of the week upon this date fell, while the Roman Church celebrated Easter on Sunday—the weekday of Jesus's resurrection. The two did not agree on a common date, but Anicetus conceded to Polycarp and the Church of Smyrna the ability to retain the date to which they were accustomed. The controversy was to grow heated in the following centuries.Irenaeus, cited in Eusebius, Historia Ecclesiastica, 5.24; translated by G.A. Williamson, Eusebius: History of the Church (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1965), pp. 232f

The Christian historian Hegesippus also visited Rome during Anicetus's pontificate. This visit is often cited as a sign of the early importance of the Roman See.

Anicetus actively opposed the Gnostics and Marcionism.[https://www.bartleby.com/lit-hub/lives-of-the-saints/volume-iv-april/st-anicetus-pope-and-martyr/ Butler, Alban. "St. Anicetus, Pope and Martyr", The Lives of the Saints, Vol. IV: April. 1866] The Liber Pontificalis records that Anicetus decreed that priests are not allowed to have long hair (perhaps because the Gnostics wore long hair).

According to church tradition, Anicetus suffered martyrdom during the reign of Emperor Lucius Verus, but there are no historical grounds for this account.Calendarium Romanum (Libreria Editrice Vaticana 1969), p. 120 16, 17 and 20 April are all cited as the date of his death, but 20 April is currently celebrated as his feast day.Martyrologium Romanum (Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2001 {{ISBN|88-209-7210-7}}) Before 1970, the date chosen was 17 April. The Liber Pontificalis states he was buried in the cemetery of Callistus.

References

External links

{{Cite CE1913 |wstitle=Pope St. Anicetus |first=Thomas Joseph |last=Campbell |volume=1}}
Duff, Eamon. Saints and Sinners: A History of the Popes, Yale University Press, 2001, p. 13. {{ISBN|0-300-09165-6}}
Maxwell-Stuart, P. G. Chronicle of the Popes: The Reign-by-Reign Record of the Papacy from St. Peter to the Present, Thames & Hudson, 2002, p. 19. {{ISBN|0-500-01798-0}}.
{{Hl-Lex|b|Anicetus.html|Anicetus}}
[http://www.documentacatholicaomnia.eu/01_01_0155-0166-_Anicetus,_Sanctus.html Collected works of Migne Patrologia Latina]