Saint Caius

Pope Caius (died 22 April 296), also called Gaius, was the bishop of Rome from 17 December 283 to his death in 296. Little information on Caius is available except that given by the Liber Pontificalis, which relies on a legendary account of the martyrdom of Susanna of Rome for its information. According to legend, Caius baptized the men and women who had been converted by Tiburtius (who is venerated with Susanna) and Castulus. His legend states that Caius took refuge in the catacombs of Rome and died a martyr. Christian tradition makes Caius a native of the Dalmatian city of Salona, the son of a man also named Caius or Gaius, and a member of a noble family related to the Emperor Diocletian. About 280, an early Christian house of worship was established on the site of Santa Susanna, which, like many of the earliest Christian meeting places, was in a house (domus ecclesiae). The domus belonged, according to the sixth-century acta, to brothers named Caius and Gabinus, prominent Christians. Caius may be this pope, or Caius the Presbyter. Gabinus is the name given to the father of Susanna. Thus, sources state that Caius was the uncle of Susanna. As pope, Caius decreed that before someone could assume the position of bishop, he must first be porter, lector, exorcist, acolyte, subdeacon, deacon, and priest. He also divided the districts of Rome among the deacons. During his pontificate, anti-Christian measures increased, although new churches were built and cemeteries were expanded. Pope Caius would go into hiding due to increased persecution of the church, alongside Saints Polycarp, Sebastian, Tranquillinus, Tiburtius, Nicostratus and Zoe, in the house of Castulus, a Christian officer employed at the Imperial Palace. Over the course of the next few years, the entire group would be discovered one by one by Roman authorities and martyred.