Symmachus (Pope)

Symmachus (mosaic from Sant'Agnese fuori le mura , mid-7th century).

Symmachus (* in Sardinia ; † July 19, 514 in Rome ) was Bishop of Rome and is listed as Pope by the Catholic Church .

He was initially archdeacon under Pope Anastasius II. On November 22, 498, Symmachus was elected bishop of Rome with the support of the Ostrogoth king Theodoric . The unsuccessful candidate Laurentius , who had the support of Byzantium , served as antipope until 505 .

In 501 Symmachus was charged with various crimes. But he declared that he was not subject to secular criminal jurisdiction. The basis for this claim was the Symmachian forgeries , which were drafted by his followers to support his position. In the following year, these accusations led to street fighting in Rome between followers of Symmachus and those of the deposed antipope Laurentius. After the Ostrogoth king Theodoric the Great again sided with Pope Symmachus in 505, his rival Laurentius withdrew to his estate near Rome. Symmachus had a fountain built in St. Peter's Square . He died on July 19, 514 in Rome.

Symmachus was later canonized and the feast day was set for the anniversary of his death, July 19.

literature

• Eckhard Wirbelauer: Two Popes in Rome. The conflict between Laurentius and Symmachus (498-514) (sources and research on the ancient world; 16). Tuduv, Munich 1993, ISBN 3-88073-492-5 (also dissertation, University of Freiburg / B. 1992).
• Ekkart Sauser :  Symmachus. In: Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon (BBKL). Volume 11, Bautz, Herzberg 1996, ISBN 3-88309-064-6 , Sp. 359-363.
• Entry in the Catholic Encyclopedia , Robert Appleton Company, New York 1913.

Web links

Commons : Pope Symmachus  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

predecessor	Office	successor
Anastasius II	Pope 498-514	Hormisdas