May 18th - St. Pope John I By: Jaiden Puthenkalam

Today’s saint of the day is St. Pope John l. He was Pope from August 13, 523 - May 18, 526. Saint Pope John l was born in year 470 in Tuscany, Italy. While he was a deacon in Rome, he was known to have been a strong supporter of the anti-pope Laurentius. He was the Deacon John that signed the “Acta” of the Roman Synod of 499 and 502. At this time, the Catholic Church has only seven Deacons, making it very easy to identify him. He also was the one that dictated secretly of the early religious documents written between 512 - 520. Saint John was very weak when he was elected to the Papacy. He was sent to Constantinople by the Arian King, Theodoric the Great, to secure a moderation of Emperor Justin’s decree of year 523 against the Arians. The King threatened Saint Pope John l that if he fail in his mission, there would be retaliation against the Catholics in the West. Even though the mission was a success, Saint John was arrested once he got back home because the King thought he was helping Emperor Justin. He was imprisoned in Ravenna, where he died of neglect and ill treatment. His body was buried in the Basilica of St. Peter.

INTERCESSORY PRAYER

O dearest St. John, you were imprisoned and starved to death by a heretical Germanic King and still had faith in those difficulty moments. Help us also to have faith in times that are tough. We ask this through Christ out Lord, Amen