St. Sixtus II

A Brief Pontificate That Restored Peace

St. Sixtus II was Bishop of Rome for less than a year—from August 257 to August 258—yet he became one of the most venerated martyrs of the early Church. Ancient sources say little of his origins; tradition describes him as a Greek. As pope he is remembered for restoring peaceful relations with the churches of North Africa and Asia Minor, which had been strained under his predecessor by the controversy over the rebaptism of heretics, a dispute in which St. Cyprian of Carthage was a leading voice.

Seized in the Cemetery of Callixtus

His pontificate coincided with the persecution of the emperor Valerian. In August 258 an imperial edict ordered that bishops, priests, and deacons be summarily executed. On August 6, 258, Sixtus was seized by soldiers while presiding at worship in the cemetery of Callixtus on the Appian Way and was put to death—beheaded, according to tradition—together with four of his deacons; two others, Felicissimus and Agapitus, died the same day. His most famous deacon, St. Lawrence, followed him in martyrdom four days later, on August 10.

Crypt of the Popes and Roman Canon

Sixtus was buried in the Crypt of the Popes in the Catacombs of Callixtus, where a century later Pope St. Damasus I honored his tomb with a verse epitaph. His name was inserted into the Roman Canon of the Mass (Eucharistic Prayer I), where it is still recited today, and St. Cyprian's letters preserve a nearly contemporary account of his death—making him one of the best-attested martyrs of the third century.

Feast and Pilgrimage to the Catacombs

Venerated since antiquity, long before formal canonization processes, St. Sixtus II is commemorated with his companions on August 7. Pilgrims to Rome can visit the Crypt of the Popes in the Catacombs of Callixtus, the very ground where he was seized and where he was laid to rest.

Significance

Though he led the Church for less than a year, this pope eased strained relations among the churches and then gave his life for Christ along with his deacons. His name, still spoken in the Roman Canon, joins every celebration of that prayer to the courage of the early martyrs. Pilgrims in the Catacombs of Callixtus can stand where he was taken while leading worship, a reminder that the liturgy and faithful witness belong together.