Pope Pontian

Pope Saint

Pontian
Bishop of Rome
Portrait by Spinello Aretino, c. 1383 (Hermitage Museum)
ChurchCatholic Church
Papacy began21 July 230
Papacy ended28 September 235
PredecessorUrban I
SuccessorAnterus
Personal details
Born
Rome, Italy, Roman Empire
DiedOctober 235
Sardinia, Sardinia and Corsica, Roman Empire
Sainthood
Feast day
  • 13 August (Eastern Orthodox Church, Catholic Church 1969 calendar)
  • 19 November (Catholic Church 1960 calendar and prior)
Venerated inCatholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church

Pope Pontian (Latin: Pontianus; died October 235) was the bishop of Rome from 21 July 230 to 28 September 235.[1] In 235, during the persecution of Christians in the reign of the Emperor Maximinus Thrax, Pontian was arrested and sent to the island of Sardinia.

He abdicated to make the election of a new pope possible.[1] Resigning on 28 September 235, he was the first pope to do so. This allowed an orderly transition in the Church of Rome and so ended a schism that had existed in the Church for eighteen years. Some accounts say he was beaten to death only weeks after his arrival on Sardinia.

Pontian is venerated as a saint in both the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches.

  1. ^ a b Kirsch, Johann Peter (1911). "Pope St. Pontian" in The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 12. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
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