ST. ANASTASIUS, POPE, C.

HE was by birth a Roman, and had, by many combats and labors, acquired a high reputation for his virtues and abilities. He succeeded Siricius in the papacy, in 398. St. Jerom calls him1 a man of a holy life, of a most rich poverty, and endued with an apostolic solicitude and zeal. He exerted himself in stopping the progress of Origenism. When Rufinus had translated the dangerous books of Origen, On the Principles, he condemned hat translation as tending to weaken our faith, built on the tradition of the apostles and our fathers, as he says in his letter on this subject, to John bishop of Jerusalem.2 As to Rufinus, he leaves to God his intention in translating this work.* In this epistle he calls all people and nations scattered over the earth, the parts of his body.† He sat three years and ten days, dying on the 14th of December, 401. St. Jerom says,3 that God took him out of this world lest Rome should be plundered under such a head: for in 410, it fell into the hands of Alaric the Goth. The remains of this holy pope have been often translated: the greatest part now rest in the church of St. Praxedes. The Roman Martyrology commemorates his name on this day, which is probably that of one of these translations. See Ceillier, t. 8, p. 556, &c.