Saint Sylvester I
Saint Sylvester I was a significant early Christian leader who served as the bishop of Rome from January 314 until his death in December 335 CE. His papacy unfolded during a transformative period when Christianity became the favored religion of the Roman Empire, particularly under Emperor Constantine the Great. Born in a time of civil unrest and persecution, Sylvester initially pursued a spiritual path and faced exile for his faith during the Great Persecution led by Emperor Diocletian.
As bishop, Sylvester played a crucial role in the establishment of important Christian sites in Rome, including the Laterani Palace and several basilicas, significantly shaping the city's religious landscape. He did not personally attend the crucial Councils of Arles and Nicaea but was represented by delegates, reflecting his influence in early Christian doctrine and governance. His legacy includes being one of the earliest bishops referred to as "Papa" (pope), marking a pivotal moment in the evolution of the papacy and the Church's authority in the Roman world. Sylvester's contributions laid the foundation for the future development of Christianity in the West.
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Saint Sylvester I
Related civilization: Imperial Rome
Major role/position: Bishop of Rome (pope)
Life
Sylvester was born at a time when the Roman world was beset by civil wars, barbarian invasions, and economic troubles. Like many people of his era, he looked to Christianity for solace and entered upon a spiritual life. He served in the lower grades of the clergy before becoming a priest early in the fourth century c.e. By then, the emperor Diocletian (r. 284-305) had restored order in the empire and begun the Great Persecution to force the Christians back to the Olympian cults. Sylvester resisted as a “confessor” and was sent into exile by the emperor Maximian (r. 293-305 c.e.) or his son Maxentius (r. 306-312 c.e.). However, with Constantine the Great’s conversion in 312 c.e., Christianity became the favored religion in the Roman Empire, and the Church received imperial support.
Sylvester I was elected bishop of Rome in January of 314 c.e. and held that position until his death in December of 335 c.e.—his papal reign was thus contemporary with the imperial reign of the first Christian emperor, Constantine the Great (r. 306-337 c.e.). Constantine decided that because the Roman bishop was the successor of Peter, “prince of the apostles,” he should have a palace for his official residence and a cathedral for public worship, so he granted the Laterani Palace at the east end of the capital to the bishop and erected a grand basilican church next to it—the old San Giovanni in Laterano (dedicated in 318 c.e.). Sylvester asked the zealous imperial convert to construct basilicas at the tombs of Rome’s apostolic martyrs. The emperor consented and built the old San Pietro in Vaticano on the western side and the first San Paolo Fuori le Mura to the south of Rome (c. 319-329 c.e.). Constantine and his family patronized five more Christian basilicas around Rome and gave all eight of them to the papacy.
At the end of his reign, Sylvester built the parish church later known as San Martino ai Monti. This was the first of many parish churches that the popes built into the next century, completing the transformation of the ancient pagan capital into the medieval apostolic see. Sylvester was not able to attend the Council of Arles (314 c.e.) or the great Council of Nicaea (325 c.e.) but was represented at both by Roman delegates. The bishops at Arles followed Rome in condemning the Donatists, and those at Nicaea accepted the Western position that Christ shared the same substance with God the Father against the Arian heresy.
Influence
Sylvester was one of the earliest Roman bishops addressed as Papa (pope), and the imperial patronage and building programs in his reign helped elevate the status of the Roman see.
Bibliography
McBrien, Richard P. Lives of the Popes. San Francisco: Harper, 1997.
Odahl, Charles. “The Christian Basilicas of Constantinian Rome.” The Ancient World 26, no. 1 (1995): 3-28.