Stephan I (Bishop of Rome)

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Stephen I , also Saint Stephen , († August 2, 257 ) was bishop of Rome from May 12, 254 until his death .

Life

Its name comes from the Greek and means "the one with a wreath".

pontificate

Johann von Schraudolph , Speyer Cathedral : Prayer of Pope Stephen I.
Escape of the holy Pope Stephen I from the altar of Mars, whose statue falls from the pedestal. Copper engraving by Joh.Mathias Werlin after IW Baumgartner, around 1760.

Stephen's term of office - between the persecution of Decius and Valerian - represents a relative time of peace for the church. Stephan died before the actual outbreak of the Valerian persecution. That he was martyred is a legend; in the Roman calendar of 354 he is not mentioned in the list of martyrs, but in that of the deceased bishops.

Stephan fell out in the so-called heretic controversy with Cyprian of Carthage and Firmilian of Caesarea in Cappadocia . In contrast to these, which from an already by a heretic baptized a renewed baptism demanded Stephan rejected the re-baptism from. Also Dionysius of Alexandria represented herein this attitude. With his adamant attitude on this issue, Stephan almost risked a break with the Church in Africa and the East. Only after his death was the dispute settled by his successor Sixtus II . In the long term, however, Stephen's position prevailed in the Catholic Church .

In the question of how to deal with Christians who had sacrificed to the pagan gods during the persecution ( lapsi ), which was acute after the Decian persecution , Stephan took a comparatively accommodating attitude. He is also mentioned as a proponent of the reinstatement of the Bishops of León and Astorga , who were expelled for disbelief during the persecutions but later repented. This brought Stephan into sharp contrast to the representatives of rigorous positions, especially Novatian . Both in the heretic controversy and in the question of penitential discipline, Stephan insisted emphatically on the primacy of the Roman bishop and on the exemplary character of Roman traditions . He was a powerful advocate of the indissolubility of marriage and the inventor of the engagement ring given by the future husband to the future wife to reinforce their mutual promise of fidelity.

Legends

The legend of his martyrdom is told in the Legenda aurea : Pope Stephen is said to have been captured by the soldiers of the Roman emperor Valerian and brought to the temple of the god Mars . Instead of sacrificing Mars, he prayed to God that he would set a sign against the pagan beliefs of the Romans. The statue of Mars and the temple were then destroyed by lightning. Pope Stephen fled to the catacomb where St. Lucia rested. When the emperor's captors found him there, he was reading mass in front of the altar. The Roman soldiers beheaded him in this place.

Adoration

His feast day is August 2nd . He is buried in the Calixtus catacomb , the relic of his head is venerated in Speyer Cathedral .

literature

Web links

Commons : Stephan I.  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files
predecessor Office successor
Lucius I. Bishop of Rome
(the term Pope was first used after 384)
254–257 		Sixtus II.
personal data
SURNAME Stephan I.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Bishop of Rome
DATE OF BIRTH 2nd century or 3rd century
DATE OF DEATH August 2, 257