Saint Pontianus was elected as the eighteenth Pope of the Catholic Church in AD230. His reign lasted for five years.
Pope Pontianus was born in Rome in AD175. He was an aide to Pope Urban I and Pope Callistus I during their papacy.
As it had been under the reign of Pope Urban I, the atmosphere during his pontificate was peaceful and conducive for the spread of Christianity. Severus Alexander, the then Roman emperor, was tolerant towards Christians and understood that there was no logic in persecuting Christians.
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Pope Pontianus convened a Synod to deal with and settle matters concerning the Patristic Father Origen, born in Alexandria. Having built a strong foundation on faith after witnessing his father's martyrdom, Origen strove though his books and studies to saefgauard the church and her doctrines from heresies and false teachings and succeeded on this attempt to some extent.
However, Origen took the verse Matthew 19:12, "there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven" literally and made himself a eunuch.
Origen expressed his desire to become a priest to Bishop Demetrius of Alexandria. The Bishop however refused to grant the request immediately and sent him on missions to other places. During the said journey he found church leaders who supported his desire and was ordained by them. Enraged by this disobedience, Demetrius excommunicated Origen. At a synod convened by Pope Pontianus to discuss the decision, the Pope upheld Bishop Demetrius’s decision and declared Origen worthy of punishment.
After the death of Severus Alexander, Maximinus the next emperor, opposed his successor's policies and resumed the persecution of Christians. He had Pope Pontianus arrested and exiled to forced labor in the mines of Sardinia.
Hippolytus, the anti-pope, was also imprisoned and exiled to the mines of Sardinia. The time spent with Pope Pontianus made Saint Hippolytus realize his mistake and repented. He became reconciled with Pope Pontianus and exhorted his supporters to unite with Rome.
Pope Pontianus relinquished his throne to St. Anterus while working in the mines. Pope Pontinaus was called to eternal rest shortly owing to the unbearable ill treatment and hard work at an old age and attained martyrdom.
-edit&transl.SM