St sixtus ii biography of christopher

Head of the Catholic Church from to

Pope Sixtus II (Greek: Πάπας Σίξτος Β΄), also written as Pope Xystus II, was bishop of Rome from 31 August until his death on 6 August He was killed along with seven deacons, including Lawrence of Rome, during the persecution of Christians by the Emperor Valerian.^[1]

Life

According to the Liber Pontificalis, he was a Greek,^[2] born in Greece, and was formerly a philosopher.^[3] However, this is uncertain, and is disputed by modern Western historians arguing that the authors of Liber Pontificalis confused him with the contemporary author Xystus, who was a Greek student of Pythagoreanism.^[1]

Sixtus II restored the relations with the African and Eastern churches, which had been broken off by his predecessor over the question of hereticalbaptism raised by the heresy Novatianism.

In the persecutions under the Emperor Valerian in , numerous bishops, priests, and deacons were put