Pope Saint Anacletus – Saint Of The Day – 26 April
Pope Saint Anacletus. Third bishop of Rome after St Peter the Apostle. Cared for martyrs’ graves and died as martyr. A saint in both Catholic and Orthodox Churches.
Pope Anacletus (25AD–92AD), also known as Cletus, was a Roman and served as the third bishop of Rome. During his service as Pope he was ordaining many priests and setting up many parishes in Rome.
When he just started his Papacy, there are not many rules in the Church so he was the one who started bringing the order into the Church. For instance, he made rules for the newly established parishes and their hierarchy, and also for the burial places for martyrs. Anacletus believed that martyrs were witnesses to the atrocities that Christians faced and that they deserved a good final resting place. He also asked that some of the spots be set aside for future martyrs. Pope Anacletus himself died as a martyr.
