Editing Pope Callixtus I (section)

==Life==
Callixtus I's contemporaries and enemies, [[Tertullian]] and [[Hippolytus of Rome]], the author of ''[[Philosophumena]]'', relate that Callixtus, as a young [[slavery in ancient Rome|slave from Rome]], was put in charge of collected funds by his master Carpophorus, funds which were given as [[alms]] by other Christians for the care of widows and orphans; Callixtus lost the funds and fled from the city, but was caught near [[Portus]].<ref name=SHMI>{{cite book|author=Paolo O. Pirlo|title=My First Book of Saints|year=1997|publisher=Sons of Holy Mary Immaculate - Quality Catholic Publications|isbn=978-971-91595-4-4|pages=240|chapter=St. Callistus I}}</ref> According to the tale, Callixtus jumped overboard to avoid capture but was rescued and taken back to his master. He was released at the request of the creditors, who hoped he might be able to recover some of the money, but was rearrested for fighting in a [[synagogue]] when he tried to borrow money or collect debts from some [[Jews]].<ref name="ce"/>

''Philosophumena'' claims that, denounced as a Christian, Callixtus was sentenced to work in the mines of [[Sardinia (Roman province)|Sardinia]].<ref name=SHMI /> He was released with other Christians at the request of Hyacinthus, a [[eunuch]] [[presbyter]], who represented [[Marcia (mistress of Commodus)|Marcia]], the favourite mistress of Emperor [[Commodus]].<ref name=SHMI /> At this time his health was so weakened that his fellow Christians sent him to [[Antium]] to recuperate and he was given a pension by [[Pope Victor I]].<ref name="ce"/>

In 199, Callixtus was ordained a deacon by [[Pope Zephyrinus]] and appointed superintendent of the Christian cemetery on the [[Appian Way]]. That place, which is to this day called the ''[[Catacomb of Callixtus|Catacombs of St. Callixtus]]'', became the burial-ground of many popes and was the first land property owned by the Church.<ref name=SHMI /> Emperor [[Julian (emperor)|Julian the Apostate]], writing to a pagan priest, said:<ref name=SHMI />
{{blockquote|Christians have gained most popularity because of their charity to strangers and because of their care for the burial of their dead.}}
In the third century, nine bishops of Rome were interred in the Catacomb of Callixtus, in the part now called the ''Capella dei Papi''. These catacombs were rediscovered by the archaeologist [[Giovanni Battista de Rossi]] in 1849.{{citation needed|date=January 2025}}

In 217, when Callixtus followed Zephyrinus as [[Bishop of Rome]], he started to admit into the Church converts from sects or schisms who had not done penance.<ref>Philosophoumena IX.7</ref> He fought with success the heretics, and established the practice of absolution of all sins, including adultery and murder.<ref name=SHMI /> Hippolytus found Callixtus's policy of extending forgiveness of sins to cover sexual transgressions shockingly lax and denounced him for allowing believers to regularize liaisons with their own slaves by recognizing them as valid marriages.<ref>
{{cite book|first=Elaine|last=Pagels|title=The Gnostic Gospels|page=108|year=1979|publisher=Weidenfeld & Nicolson}}
</ref><ref>
{{cite book|author=Hippolytus|title=Refutation of all heresies|at=Book 9 Ch. 7 |url=http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/050109.htm}}
</ref> As a consequence also of doctrinal differences, Hippolytus was elected as a rival bishop of Rome, the first [[antipope]].<ref>
{{cite book|chapter=Saint Hippolytus of Rome|title=Encyclopædia Britannica|chapter-url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/266682/Saint-Hippolytus-of-Rome}}
</ref>

The [[Basilica di Santa Maria in Trastevere]] was a ''[[Titular church|titulus]]'' of which Callixtus was the patron. In an apocryphal anecdote in the collection of imperial biographies called the ''[[Augustan History]]'', the spot on which he had built an oratory was claimed by tavern keepers, but Alexander Severus decided that the worship of any god was better than a tavern, hence the structure's name. The 4th-century [[basilica]] of ''Ss Callixti et Iuliani''  was rebuilt in the 12th century by [[Pope Innocent II]] and rededicated to the [[BVM(RC)|Blessed Virgin Mary]].  The 8th-century [[San Callisto|''Chiesa di San Callisto'']] is close by, with its beginnings apparently as a shrine on the site of his martyrdom, which is attested in the 4th-century ''Depositio martyrum'' and so is likely to be historical.{{citation needed|date=January 2025}}