| Anterus | |
|---|---|
| Papacy began | 21 November 235 |
| Papacy ended | 3 January 236 |
| Predecessor | Pontian |
| Successor | Fabian |
| Personal details | |
| Birth name | Anterus |
| Born | ??? ??? |
| Died | 3 January 236 Rome, Roman Empire |
| Papal styles of Pope Anterus |
|
|---|---|
| Reference style | His Holiness |
| Spoken style | Your Holiness |
| Religious style | Holy Father |
| Posthumous style | Saint |
Pope Saint Anterus was Pope from 21 November 235 to 3 January 236, and succeeded Pope Pontian, who had been deported from Rome along with the antipope Hippolytus to Sardinia.
Anterus was the son of Romulus, born in Petilia Policastro.[1] He was pope for only one month and ten days,[2] and is thought to have been of Greek origin,[1] but the name could indicate that he was a freed slave.[2] He created one bishop for the city of Fondi.[1]
Some scholars believe he was martyred,[1][3] because he ordered greater strictness in searching into the acts of the martyrs exactly collected by the notaries appointed by Saint Clement.[1][4] Other scholars doubt this and believe it is more likely that he died in undramatic circumstances during the persecutions of Emperor Maximinus the Thracian.[2]
He was buried in the papal crypt of the Catacomb of Callixtus on the Appian Way[1] in Rome. The site of his sepulchre was discovered by De Rossi in 1854, with some broken remnants of the Greek epitaph engraved on the narrow oblong slab that closed his tomb[4] and only the Greek term for bishop readable.[3]
His ashes had been removed to the Church of Saint Sylvester in the Campus Martius[1] and were discovered on 17 November 1595 when Pope Clement VIII rebuilt that church.[1]
| Catholic Church titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Pontian |
Bishop of Rome Pope 235–236 |
Succeeded by Fabian |
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