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Name:
Pope Pontian
Preceded by: St. Urban I (222 - 230)
Succeeded by:St. Anterus (235 - 236)
Roman Catholic Pope #18
Antipope: St. Hippolytus (217 - 235)
Dates:
Born: ? (Rome, Italy)
Abdicated: September 28, 235
Died: ? (Prison on Sardinia)
Pope: July 21, 230 - September 28, 235 (5 years)
Feast Day: August 13
Biography:
The reign of Pope Pontian started out easily enough, but once emperor Alexander Severus was succeeded by
Maximus Thrax, everything changed for him and the Christian communities. Thrax instituted a harsh campaign of
repression and persecution. He even had Pontian and antipope Hippolytus shipped off to the mines on Sardina, a
place from which few evidently managed to return alive.
This resulted in two "firsts" for the papacy. Pontian was the first pope to ever abdicate. Pontian knew that he would almost certainly die on Sardina and didn't want there to be a long-term power vacuum in the church, so he decided that abdication would be the best course of action. Pontian's abdication also gives us the first certain date in the history of papacy: September 28, 235.
The only other event for which Pontian's papacy is known is his official approval of the condemnation of church father Origen for heresy. It seems likely that if there was a synod in Rome to hear the charges against Origin, then Pontian would have presided over it.
Also Known As: none
Alternate Spellings: none
Common Misspellings: none
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