Saint Telesphorus, Pope & Martyr
S. Telesphori Papae et Martyris
Saint Telesphorus was the eighth Bishop of Rome, who governed the Church in the early second century and gave his life for Christ in the age of persecution.
Saint Telesphorus shepherded the Church of Rome during the reign of the Emperor Hadrian, in the years following the apostolic age. The most ancient lists of the bishops of Rome, preserved by Saint Ireneus of Lyons, name him as the eighth Bishop of Rome, the seventh to succeed Saint Peter himself, and the early Church remembered him with particular honour as a martyr.
What is reliably known
Little detail of his life has come down to us, and the Church does not pretend to more than she has received. What is certain is preserved by Saint Ireneus, who wrote within living memory of the second century: that Telesphorus held the See of Rome and that he “suffered a glorious martyrdom.” This testimony makes him one of the very few popes of the first centuries whose martyrdom is attested by an early and trustworthy witness.
Later sources connect his name with certain customs of fasting and of the celebration of the sacred mysteries, but these traditions cannot be confirmed with confidence, and it is enough to honour him for what is sure. He governed in a perilous time, kept the faith handed down from the Apostles, and sealed his witness with his blood.
His witness today
The feast of Saint Telesphorus, kept each year on the fifth of January, reminds the faithful that the chair of Peter was watered by the blood of its earliest occupants. In him the Church venerates the unbroken line of pastors who received the faith, guarded it, and handed it on at the cost of their lives. His name is spoken in the Roman Canon among the holy martyrs, joining the worship of the Church on earth to the saints who reign with Christ.
The Collect
Look forgivingly on thy flock, Eternal Shepherd, and keep it in thy constant protection, by the intercession of blessed Telesphorus thy Martyr and Supreme Pontiff, whom thou didst constitute Shepherd of the whole Church.
Gregem tuum, Pastor ætérne, placátus inténde: et, per beátum Telesphórum Mártyrem tuum atque Summum Pontíficem, perpétua protectióne custódi; quem totíus Ecclésiæ præstitísti esse pastórem.
Patronage
He is venerated among the early martyr-popes of Rome and is named in the Roman Canon of the Mass.
In the Modern Calendar
In the modern calendar his feast is observed on 5 January as an optional memorial.
Common Questions
When is the feast of Saint Telesphorus?
His feast is kept on 5 January in the calendar of the 1962 Roman Missal, as a Fourth Class feast.
Who was Saint Telesphorus?
He was an early Bishop of Rome — the eighth pope — who governed the Church in the early second century during the reign of the Emperor Hadrian and died a martyr. His martyrdom is attested by Saint Ireneus of Lyons.
Why is so little known about him?
He lived in the first generations after the Apostles, an age of persecution from which few written records survive. The Church honours him for what is certain — that he held the See of Peter and gave his life for the faith — without inventing details that history did not preserve.
See where this feast falls in the Church’s year on the liturgical calendar, or find a Traditional Latin Mass near you.
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