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August 13, 2005

Sts. Pontian and Hippolytus

(d. 235)

Two men died for the faith after harsh treatment and exhaustion in the mines of Sardinia. One had been pope for five years, the other an antipope for 18. They died reconciled.

Pontian. Pontian was a Roman who served as pope from 230 to 235. During his reign he held a synod which confirmed the excommunication of the great theologian Origen in Alexandria. Pontian was banished to exile by the Roman emperor in 235, and resigned so that a successor could be elected in Rome. He was sent to the “unhealthy” island of Sardinia, where he died of harsh treatment in 235. With him was Hippolytus (see below) with whom he was reconciled. The bodies of both martyrs were brought back to Rome and buried with solemn rites as martyrs.

Hippolytus. As a presbyter in Rome, Hippolytus (the name means “a horse turned loose”) was at first “holier than the Church.” He censured the pope for not coming down hard enough on a certain heresy—calling him a tool in the hands of one Callistus, a deacon—and coming close to advocating the opposite heresy himself. When Callistus was elected pope, Hippolytus accused him of being too lenient with penitents, and had himself elected antipope by a group of followers. He felt that the Church must be composed of pure souls uncompromisingly separated from the world, and evidently thought that his group fitted the description. He remained in schism through the reigns of three popes. In 235 he was also banished to the island of Sardinia. Shortly before or after this event, he was reconciled to the Church, and died with Pope Pontian in exile.

Hippolytus was a rigorist, a vehement and intransigent man for whom even orthodox doctrine and practice were not purified enough. He is, nevertheless, the most important theologian and prolific religious writer before the age of Constantine. His writings are the fullest source of our knowledge of the Roman liturgy and the structure of the Church in the second and third centuries. His works include many Scripture commentaries, polemics against heresies and a history of the world. A marble statue, dating from the third century, representing the saint sitting in a chair, was found in 1551. On one side is inscribed his table for computing the date of Easter, on the other a list of how the system works out until the year 224. Pope John XXIII installed the statue in the Vatican library.

Comment:

Hippolytus was a strong defender of orthodoxy, and admitted his excesses by his humble reconciliation. He was not a formal heretic, but an overzealous disciplinarian. What he could not learn in his prime as a reformer and purist, he learned in the pain and desolation of imprisonment. It was a fitting symbolic event that Pope Pontian shared his martyrdom.

Quote:

“Christ, like a skillful physician, understands the weakness of men. He loves to teach the ignorant and the erring he turns again to his own true way. He is easily found by those who live by faith; and to those of pure eye and holy heart, who desire to knock at the door, he opens immediately. He does not disdain the barbarian, nor does he set the eunuch aside as no man. He does not hate the female on account of the woman’s act of disobedience in the beginning, nor does he reject the male on account of the man’s transgression. But he seeks all, and desires to save all, wishing to make all the children of God, and calling all the saints unto one perfect man” (Hippolytus, Treatise on Christ and Antichrist).

The Word Among Us

Saturday, August 13, 2005

Meditation
Joshua 24:14-29

We face hundreds of choices every day. Many of them seem trivial: whether to wake up on time or sleep a little longer, what to eat for breakfast, what to write in a sympathy note, what to tell a friend seeking advice. Such choices do more than just express who we are. They also help form our character. Are we decisive or wishy-washy? Impulsive or reflective? Do our choices strengthen generosity or reinforce selfishness? Occasionally we face a choice that is life-changing: proposing to the girl you’ve fallen in love with, leaving an abusive spouse, quitting a job, going on a short-term mission. But all of these decisions are influenced by every little choice we’ve made along the way.

It was the same for the Israelites. At the end of his life, their leader Joshua called everyone together for a final exhortation. Born in the wilderness, these people had followed Joshua across the Jordan into the Promised Land. They had defeated one enemy after another by following his battle tactics, strange as they seemed. (Remember the walls of Jericho?) What would happen to them after Joshua died?

Joshua made it simple: Choose this day whom you will serve, the true God or one of the many pagan gods of the surrounding peoples. Respecting their freedom to choose, he simply declared his own intentions: “As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15). Instead of trying to force them to do the right thing, he even tried to discourage them (24:19).

With one voice, the Israelites promised to serve the Lord who had done such mighty things for them (Joshua 24:16-18). Sadly, the Bible reveals that this was not a wholehearted choice. Just as the Israelites had long practiced grumbling and complaining whenever things went wrong, they again turned away from God when a new problem or enemy threatened them.

Let’s pay attention to all the little choices we face today, making them with hearts generous and open to God. By taking these little steps of faithfulness, we will find it far easier to make the bigger steps whenever we encounter them.

“Lord, I have chosen to be your disciple. Help me always to be conscious of your unconditional love for me. Help me to make every decision, large or small, in the light of that love.”

Psalm 16:1-2, 5,7-8,11; Matthew 19:13-15