Pope Linus

Linus (* in Tuscany; † 79, probably in Rome) was probably 67-79 Bishop of Rome and therefore the successor of St.. Peter. In early Christian lists Linus is named as the first pope of the Catholic Church, only from the late 2nd or early 3rd century, championed the notion, to name Peter as the first Pope of the Church and Linus as the second. Linus is venerated in the Roman Catholic Church as a martyr and saint.

Life

According to tradition, Linus was born in Volterra in Tuscany. About his life almost nothing is known, all attributed to him records were identified as forgeries or mistakes. Zedler known as Linus ' mother Claudia, as the father herculeanus. Linus was ordained by Peter Bishop. Previously, he was said to be vicar at him. The information on Linus ' episcopate differ greatly. Most sources they can begin 67. The Catholic Encyclopedia also holds the 64 year possible. The Liber Pontificalis calls this year 56 of the Liberian catalog lists 55, Eusebius of Caesarea 69 The discrepancy of the data might be explained by the fact that Linus well served as far back as the apostle as his vicar and some sources incorrectly refer to this time.

Linus was eleven to 15 years Pope, the Liberian catalog lists twelve years four months and twelve days. The majority of sources give the year as 79 year of his death, some of the year 76, the Liber Pontificalis 67; Eusebius calls this year 81 Most sources - in particular, the Liber Pontificalis, but not Irenaeus of Lyons - indicate Linus suffered martyrdom. Since at the time of his death, however, no persecution of Christians in Rome is mentioned that keep most historians rather unlikely. Tertullian called Clement of Rome as the successor of the Apostle Peter, but despite the disagreement in the data, all other sources agree that Linus was the direct successor of Peter.

The apocryphal Latin descriptions of the death of the Apostles Peter and Paul were falsely attributed to Linus, but date from the 6th century. The fact that Linus had imposed the decree, according to which women had to keep their heads covered in church, is also doubtful.

His feast day is September 23, the day of his martyrdom according to the Liber Pontificalis. Irenaeus identified him with the Linus, which Paul mentioned in 2 Timothy 4.21 EU. After the Liber Pontificalis, Linus was buried in the Vatican. In the 7th century an inscription was found near the grave of the Apostle Peter, which supposedly contains the name Linus '; However, here is an error in decoding likely.