Pope St. Sixtus II
Sixtus was born in Athens. As a deacon of the Roman church , succeeded Pope St. Stephen on the throne of St. Peter for 257 years , during the persecution of Valerian. Sixtus is a graduate of St. Cyprian: peaceful and excellent prelate . And actually a little peace it rushed away, she just was elected to the churches of Rome and Carthage in bitter fighting over the issue of baptism of heretics. (See St. Stephen I). He had a reconciliation with St. Cyprian , but there was no time for further dialogue , then faced a new emergency : Valerian unleashed a second persecution against Christians. They were invited to recant on pain of expropriation of property and decapitation. In late August of 258, St. Cyprian, who would be beheaded on September 14 he wrote to one of his colleagues : " Valerian , in a letter to the Senate, has ordered that bishops , priests and deacons be executed immediately. Before Pope Sixtus died it is said the he gave St. Lawrence of Rome the chalice the Jesus Chris...