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SAINT ALEXANDER I A.D. 109-119IT is said that
this pontiff pursued his studies under the direction and
advice of Pliny the Younger and Plutarch. There are attributed to him two
decrecs and three decretal letters; the first addressed to all the
orthodox, the second to 311 the bishops, and the third to all the
priests. Modern critics have decided those pieces to be apocryphal. They find in
them no trace of the system of composition of the two great
writers above mentioned. Novaes credits what is said of
Saint Alexander's connection with Pliny. As regards Plutarch, he himself confesses
that during his travels in Italy he could not command sufficient leisure to acquire
a profound
knowledge of the Latin language, occupied as he was with the
public business which was intrusted to him, and with the
conferences with the learned men who came to consult and listen
to him. In all probability Plutarch could not give lessons in Latin literature to Alexander; but
the painter of the virtue of the Greeks, who was born A.D. 66,
in the
little town of Chaeronea, in Boeotia, could instruct the Christian in
the art of meditating upon the Greek literature. This a pontiff
could not neglect, as he necessarily had to maintain
correspondence with so many illustrious cities which spoke the
language of Homer and Herodotus. It is unfortunate that we have no letter or other document from the pen of
Alexander containing any expression of a feeling of gratitude
towards such masters, as it might have enabled us to learn
something as to the various sentiments of Pliny and Plutarch
upon the great question of religion which at that period
divided the pagans. The letter that Pliny wrote in favor of the
Christians is justly famous, and does credit to his
enlightened tolerance. The virtues of that friend of Trajan, who was
then proconsul and governor of Bithynia, induced, it is said, some persons to reckon him among them, and to assign
him a place in their diptychs. Unfortunately, however, those
partisans of Plinius Secundus have confounded him with another
Secundus, a true Christian, whose name was quite properly placed on the Christian roll.
Alexander was still young when he arrived at the pontificate.
Some say that he was only twenty, and others that he was thirty,
when he became pope. On that point Novaes says:
"Alexander was young in years; but in morals, knowledge, and virtue, he
was a veteran." It was he who ordered that the
priests should celebrate but one Mass daily, which rule was
observed unt il the papacy of Saint Deodatus, in 615. Alexander
converted to the faith: Ermes, prefect of Rome, that officer's
wife, and numerous illustrious citizens. Being thrown into
prison for those glorious efforts, he converted the tribune
Quirinus and his daughter Balbina. Alexander, in three
ordinations, created six bishops, priests, and two or three
deacons. He suffered martyrdom under Adrian,who had not
suffit ently weighed the plea which Pliny the Younger had
addressed to Trajan.
PLINY TO THE EMPEROR TRAJAN
"I feel my duty, my Lord, to make known to you all my doubts; for who can better deciede for and instruct me? I have never been present at the trial and sentence of any Christian, so that I know not the particulars of the information against them, or to how great a degree of punishment they should be consigned. I feel great hesitation on the subject of different ages. Should Christians be subject to punishment without any distinction being made between the older and the younger? Ought those to be pardoned who repent, or is renunciation of Christianity useless when it has once been professed? Are they punishable for the mere name of Christianity, or for the crimes connected with that name? The following is the rule by which I have governed myself in the cases which have been brought before me concerning the Christians. I have questioned a second and even a third time those who have avowed their Christianity, and I have threatened them with punishment should they persist, and I have sent to execution those who did so persist; for no matter what may be the nature of that which they confessed, I felt that I must not neglect to punish their disobedience and their inflexible obstinacy. Others, though confessedly guilty of the same folly, I have sent to Rome, because they are Roman citizens. Subsequently this crime, or accusations of it, having spread, as is usual in such cases, charges were made in great variety. An anonymous memorial has been placed m my hands, accusing of Christianity many persons who deny that they are or ever have been such. In my own presence, and to terms that I dictated to them, they have invoked the gods, and offered wine and incense to your image, which I expressly ordered to be brought with the images of the gods. They have even indulged in furious imprecations against Christ, which I am assured no real Christians can be made to do, I therefore deemed that they ought to be acquitted. Others, accused by an informer, at first admitted that they were Christians, but immediately afterwards denied it, declaring that inudeed they had been, but had ceased to be so, some for three years and others for more, even to the extent in some cases of twenty years. All of this class have venerated your image and the statues of the gods, and have also cursed Christ. They protested that their error or their crime had been confined to the following particulars: On appointed days they assembled before sunrise, and sang by turns verses in praise of Christ, as being God; that they engaged themselves on oath, not to any crime, but that they would not be guilty of larceny, theft, or adultery, or of breach of promise or denial of deposit made with them. That afterwards it was their custom to separate, and then reassemble to eat in company inocent food: and that they had ceased to hold those assemblies when my edict was published, in obedience to your orders forbidding such assemblies. This made me feel it all the more necessary to get at the whole truth, by dint of torture, from two young slave-girls, who confessed to ministering in this worship: but as I ascertained only that they earned to excess a stupid superstition, for that reason I suspended further proceedings until I can receive your orders. "This business appears to me to be worthy of your
consideration, on account of the multitude of those that are placed in this peril;
for a great number of persons of all ages and ranks, and of
both sexes, are and will be implicated in this accusation.
This contagious evil has not only diffused itself in the cities and towns, but also in villages and in the open country. I
believe, however, that it can be remedied and arrested. What
is certain is that our temples, which were almost
deserted, are now frequented, and sacrifices long neglected recommence.
Victims are now everywhere in demand, which formerly found no purchasers; whence we may infer what numbers of
persons would be redeemed from their errors if repentance would procure pardon."
Trajan
replied in the following terms:
"You have taken the right course, my dear Secundus, as
to the cases of Christianity that have been referred to you;
for it is not practicable to establish a certain and
general form of procedure in a business of this kind. Inquiry and
search should not be ordered; but those who are accused and convicted
should be punished. If, however, the accused denies his Christianity,
and authenticates his denial by his conduct —I mean, by
invoking the gods—his repentance should obtain his pardon, whatever the
suspicions under which he has formerly labored. In no kind of accusation should anonymous
denunciations be received, for they set an evil example, and suit not
our age."
Fleury, after transcribing this letter, makes the following judicious
observations:
"That reply of the emperor in some sort put a stop to
the persecution which threatened the Christians, yet left their enemies no less
pretext to annoy them. In some places the populace and in
others the authorities set snares for them; so that without
any declared general persecution, there were individual
persecutions in every province."
The persecution in which Pope Saint Alexander perished had not been
expressly ordered by the emperor, but the sycophantic governors, hoping to
please him, and often without any orders, or under misinterpreted orders, sent Christians to execution.
Saint Alexander governed the Holy See ten years, five months, and
twenty days; he has the title of martyr in the
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