St. Damasus I

Feast Day: December 11

The Christians of Rome still remembered where the martyrs were buried.

Some graves were hidden beneath the city.

Others had been neglected during years of persecution.

Pope Damasus wanted their names remembered.

He searched for the tombs of the martyrs, restored them, and placed inscriptions near their graves so future Christians would know the stories of those who had died for Christ.

But Damasus was also thinking about the future of the Church.

Christians throughout the Latin-speaking world were reading different Latin versions of Scripture.

Some translations were better than others.

The texts did not always agree.

So Damasus turned to one of the greatest scholars of his age:

St. Jerome.

He asked Jerome to revise the Latin text of the Gospels.

That project eventually grew into the biblical work associated with the Latin Vulgate, which would shape Western Christianity for more than a thousand years.

Damasus helped preserve the memory of Christians who had died for the faith.

And he helped begin a work that would preserve the words of Scripture for generations still to come.

St. Damasus I, pray for us.

Who Was St. Damasus I?

St. Damasus I was born around A.D. 305, during the final years of the great Roman persecutions of Christianity.

He became pope in A.D. 366.

By then, the situation of Christians in the Roman Empire had changed dramatically.

Christianity was no longer an illegal religion hiding from imperial authorities.

But new challenges had appeared.

The Church faced theological disputes, divisions, questions of biblical translation, and the need to preserve the memory of the martyrs.

Damasus became an important leader during this transition.

A Difficult Election

Damasus's election as bishop of Rome was deeply disputed.

A rival claimant named Ursinus was also chosen by a competing group.

Violence broke out between their supporters, and people were killed.

It is one of the darker episodes surrounding the early Roman episcopate.

Damasus ultimately remained recognized as the legitimate bishop of Rome.

The controversy reminds us that the early Church was made up of real human beings and that even important periods of Christian history could involve disorder and political conflict.

Defending Nicene Christianity

Damasus lived during the continuing aftermath of the Arian controversy.

The Council of Nicaea had taught that the Son is truly divine and consubstantial with the Father.

But disagreements continued for decades.

Damasus strongly supported Nicene Christianity.

He opposed teachings that denied the full divinity of Christ or misunderstood the Trinity.

Under his pontificate, Rome became an important center for defending orthodox Trinitarian teaching.

St. Jerome and the Bible

One of Damasus's most lasting decisions involved St. Jerome.

At the time, several Latin translations of Scripture circulated in the Western Church.

Differences between them could cause confusion.

Damasus asked Jerome, an exceptional linguist and biblical scholar, to revise the Latin text of the Gospels using reliable Greek manuscripts.

Jerome began the work.

He later expanded his efforts to other parts of Scripture, working from Greek and Hebrew sources.

His translations and revisions eventually became the foundation of what became known as the Vulgate.

Did Damasus Create the Biblical Canon?

Damasus is sometimes credited with personally creating the Catholic biblical canon.

That is too simple.

The canon developed within the life of the early Church over time.

However, a Roman synod held during Damasus's pontificate in A.D. 382 is traditionally associated with a list of biblical books corresponding substantially to the Catholic canon.

Related canon lists also appeared at councils in North Africa soon afterward.

Damasus therefore belongs to an important period in which the Church was clearly identifying the books received as Sacred Scripture.

Honoring the Martyrs

Damasus had a profound devotion to the martyrs of Rome.

He sought out their burial places in the catacombs.

He restored tombs.

He commissioned inscriptions celebrating their courage.

Many of these inscriptions were written in verse.

Damasus wanted Christians living in a newly tolerated Church to remember the believers who had suffered when Christianity was illegal.

Freedom could easily lead to forgetfulness.

Damasus kept the martyrs before the eyes of the Church.

The Catacombs

The Roman catacombs became especially associated with Damasus because of his work preserving them.

These underground cemeteries contained the graves of ordinary Christians as well as martyrs and some early popes.

Damasus helped identify important burial sites and make them accessible to pilgrims.

His work contributed greatly to preserving the memory of early Roman Christianity.

The Role of the Roman See

Damasus also strongly emphasized the importance of the Church of Rome.

He connected the authority of the Roman See with St. Peter.

During his pontificate, the language surrounding Roman primacy became increasingly explicit.

Rome was not important simply because it was the imperial capital.

For Damasus, its special place in the Church came from its connection to the apostles Peter and Paul, especially the Petrine ministry.

Christianity in a Changing Roman Empire

Damasus lived during an extraordinary transformation.

He had been born while Christians could still face severe persecution.

By the time he was pope, Christianity enjoyed imperial favor.

That brought opportunities.

It also brought new dangers.

Church leadership now existed closer to political power.

Damasus had to guide the Church through a world where being Christian was becoming socially acceptable.

The memory of the martyrs helped keep the cost of discipleship visible.

His Death

St. Damasus died in A.D. 384.

His pontificate had lasted approximately eighteen years.

He left behind a stronger Roman Church, a renewed devotion to the martyrs, support for Nicene orthodoxy, and the biblical project entrusted to Jerome.

The Church later honored him as a saint.

What St. Damasus Teaches Us

St. Damasus teaches us the importance of remembering where the faith came from.

He lived in a generation that could easily have forgotten the martyrs once persecution ended.

Instead, he preserved their memory.

He also understood the importance of handing Scripture on carefully.

A badly transmitted text creates confusion.

A carefully preserved text serves generations.

Damasus therefore looked both backward and forward.

He remembered the martyrs of the past.

And he helped prepare the Bible that Christians of the future would read.

When Is the Feast of St. Damasus I?

The Catholic Church celebrates the Optional Memorial of St. Damasus I on December 11.

He is remembered as a pope, defender of Nicene Christianity, promoter of devotion to the Roman martyrs, and the pope who commissioned St. Jerome's revision of the Latin Scriptures.

Prayer Inspired by St. Damasus I

Lord Jesus Christ,

give us the faithfulness of St. Damasus.

Help us remember those who suffered to hand the faith on to us.

Give wisdom to the pope, bishops, Scripture scholars, and all who preserve and teach Your Word.

Keep Your Church faithful to the truth handed down from the apostles.

And may the witness of the martyrs give us courage to follow You in every age.

St. Damasus I, pray for us. Amen.