Pope Anacletus (born – died ), also known as Cletus, was the

bishop of Rome The pope is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the pope was the sovereign or head of sta ...

, following

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and Linus. Anacletus served between and his death, . Cletus was a Roman who, during his tenure as pope, ordained a number of priests and is traditionally credited with setting up about twenty-five parishes in Rome. Although the precise dates of his pontificate are uncertain, he "died a martyr, perhaps about 91". Cletus is mentioned in the Roman Canon of the mass; his feast day is April 26.

Name and etymology

The name "Cletus" () means "one who has been called", and "Anacletus" () means "one who has been called back". Also "Anencletus" () means "unimpeachable" or "blameless".Richard Lansing, "The Dante Encyclopedia" p. 178, 2010 The

Roman Martyrology The ''Roman Martyrology'' () is the official martyrology of the Catholic Church. Its use is obligatory in matters regarding the Roman Rite liturgy, but dioceses, countries and religious institutes may add duly approved appendices to it. It provid ...

mentions the pope as "Cletus". The ''

Annuario Pontificio The ''Annuario Pontificio'' ( Italian for ''Pontifical Yearbook'') is the annual directory of the Holy See of the Catholic Church. It lists the popes in chronological order and all officials of the Holy See's departments. It also provides nam ...

'' gives both forms.

Eusebius Eusebius of Caesarea (30 May AD 339), also known as Eusebius Pamphilius, was a historian of Christianity, exegete, and Christian polemicist from the Roman province of Syria Palaestina. In about AD 314 he became the bishop of Caesarea Maritima. ...

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Augustine of Hippo Augustine of Hippo ( , ; ; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430) was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Africa. His writings deeply influenced the development of Western philosop ...

and Optatus all suggest that both names refer to the same individual, while the Liberian Catalogue counts Cletus and Anacletus as separate popes.Campbell, Thomas (1907)
"Pope St. Anacletus."

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. Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company.

Papacy

As with many of the early popes, little is known of Anacletus' pontificate. Earlier historical records are inconsistent in their usage of the names Cletus, Anacletus, and Anencletus and in the placement of these names in the order of succession. Generally, the order used by

is used today, wherein Cletus and Anacletus refer to the same person, who succeeded Linus and preceded Clement. Traditionally, it was accepted that he reigned for twelve years, though the dates of that reign are questionable. The 2012 ''Annuario Pontificio'' states, "For the first two centuries, the dates of the start and the end of the pontificate are uncertain", before placing Anacletus' pontificate from AD 80 to AD 92. These are the years given by

and

Jerome Jerome (; ; ; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was an early Christian presbyter, priest, Confessor of the Faith, confessor, theologian, translator, and historian; he is commonly known as Saint Jerome. He is best known ...

. However, AD 76 to AD 88 are also frequently cited. According to tradition, Pope Anacletus divided Rome into twenty-five

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

es. One of the few surviving records concerning his papacy mentions him as having ordained an uncertain number of

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

s. Pope Anacletus was martyred, ending his pontificate. A tomb ascribed to Anacletus is located near St. Peter's tomb in the Vatican Necropolis field P, underneath St. Peter's Basilica. This tomb is located with tombs ascribed to Linus, Evaristus, Telesphorus, Hyginus, Pius I, Anicetus, and Victor I. Little epigraphic evidence exists to support the ascription of these tombs to the early popes. His name (as Cletus) is included in the Roman Canon of the

Mass Mass is an Intrinsic and extrinsic properties, intrinsic property of a physical body, body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the physical quantity, quantity of matter in a body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physi ...

Veneration

The Tridentine calendar reserved 26 April as the feast day of Saint Cletus, who the church honoured jointly with Pope Marcellinus, and 13 July for solely Saint Anacletus. In 1960,

Pope John XXIII Pope John XXIII (born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death on 3 June 1963. He is the most recent pope to take ...

, while keeping the 26 April feast, which mentions the saint under the name given to him in the Canon of the Mass, removed 13 July as a feast day for Saint Anacletus. The 14 February 1961 Instruction of the Congregation for Rites on the application to local calendars of

motu proprio In law, (Latin for 'on his own impulse') describes an official act taken without a formal request from another party. Some jurisdictions use the term for the same concept. In Catholic canon law, it refers to a document issued by the pope on h ...

''Rubricarum instructum'' of 25 July 1960, decreed that "the feast of 'Saint Anacletus', on whatever ground and in whatever grade it is celebrated, is transferred to 26 April, under its right name, 'Saint Cletus'". Priests who celebrate Mass according to the General Roman Calendar of 1954 keep the July 13th feastday; but the feast has been removed from the

General Roman Calendar The General Roman Calendar (GRC) is the liturgy, liturgical calendar that indicates the dates of celebrations of saints and Sacred mysteries, mysteries of the Lord (Jesus Christ) in the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, wherever this liturgic ...

since 1960, and as such is not kept even in the 1962 Missal.Calendarium Romanum (Libreria Editrice Vaticana 1969), p. 121 Although the day of his death is unknown, Saint Cletus continues to be listed in the

among the saints of 26 April.Martyrologium Romanum (Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2001 )

Literature

In the

Divine Comedy The ''Divine Comedy'' (, ) is an Italian narrative poetry, narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun and completed around 1321, shortly before the author's death. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature and one of ...

Dante Dante Alighieri (; most likely baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri; – September 14, 1321), widely known mononymously as Dante, was an Italian Italian poetry, poet, writer, and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called ...

mentions him as being placed in the "Heaven of the Fixed Stars" (Paradiso 27.41).

Notes

References

* Donald Attwater and Catherine Rachel John, ''The Penguin Dictionary of Saints'', 3rd edition, New York: Penguin Books, 1993. . *Louise Ropes Loomis, ''The Book of Popes'' (''Liber Pontificalis''). Merchantville, New Jersey: Evolution Publishing. (Reprint of the 1916 edition.) (Ends with Pope Pelagius, who reigned from 579 until 590. English translation with scholarly footnotes, and illustrations). *Richard P. McBrien, ''Lives of the Popes'', (Harper, 2000).

External links

''Writings attributed to Pope Anacletus/Cletus''''The Society of Pope Saint Anacletus''
an

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association in the United States {{DEFAULTSORT:Anacletus 1st-century deaths 1st-century Christian saints 1st-century Romans Ancient Greeks in Rome Burials at St. Peter's Basilica Italian popes Greek popes Papal saints Popes Year of birth unknown 1st-century popes