“He was a man of great holiness who was rich in his poverty” Saint Jerome on Saint Anastasius I

Pope Anastasius I was the 39th bishop of Rome. Though he only served for a little over two years, his legacy lives on as a canonized saint of the Roman Catholic Church. A Roman by birth, he became pope in 399.

Not much is known of his early life. Historians believe he was born in Rome and the son of a man named Maximus His baptismal name is said to have been Innocentius. He was a pious man as a youth and cared nothing for material things as an adult. When he was a young man, Anastasius must have married and had at least one son. Relatively early, it would appear, Anastasius was widowed and never remarried.

Among his friends were Saint Augustine of Hippo, Saint Jerome, and Saint Paulinus of Nola. It was a time of peace and growth for the Catholic Church and, despite wars in far off regions of the empire, it was a time of relative peace in the Western provinces. Anastasius became a cleric and, it would make sense to assume, so did his son.

The Church had converted to Latin as its universal language, due to the expansion of the faith. It became necessary to have a common language for councils and synods, at this point. Many of the fathers of the Church and theologians thus wrote in, or had works translated into, Latin. It often happened that the original authors were long dead at the time of the translation. Thus was the scenario when Anastasius ascended the Chair of Peter. The new pope, consecrated 27 November 399, received a letter from Patriarch Theophilus of Alexandria, expressing strong doubt about Origen’s fidelity to the Church. Rufinus of Aquiliea had taken the time to translate Origen’s “First Principles” from the original Greek. St Jerome, the elderly man who had worked so hard on the “Vulgate Bible”, had attacked Rufinus’ work. He felt the writings of Origen did not meet his sense of orthodoxy. Not being familiar with Origen’s work, himself, Anastasius called a council to consider the problem. The council ultimately agreed with Jerome and claimed that Origen’s work was heterodox, thus eliminating it from acceptable belief.

St Anastasius instructed priests to stand and bow their head as they read from the gospels. He was a staunch supporter of persecuted Christians living in North Africa.

Anastasius died in Rome on 19 December 401, having ruled just over two years. He was buried in the Catacomb of Pontian together with his son and immediate successor, Pope Innocent I, which is probably a unique case of a pope being succeeded by his son.

Anastasius I is a saint of the Roman Catholic Church, and his feast day is December 19.

Other Saints of the day
1. Saint Bernard Valeara of Teramo
2. Saint Manirus of Scotland
3. Saint Fausta of Sirmium
4. Saint Meuris of Alexandria
5. Saint Thea of Alexandria

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