FELIX I, Pope. - In the Liber Pontificalis he is called a Roman, the son of a certain Constantius. He was pope from 269 to 274. He intervened in the question concerning the deposition of Paul of Samosata at the Council of Antioch, after whose condemnation he wrote a letter to the clergy of Alexandria affirming the unity of person in Jesus Christ, son of God and of the Virgin Mary.

This letter of F. was later read also at the Council of Ephesus in 431. A decree is attributed to him by which permission was granted to celebrate Mass on the memorials of the martyrs, but the text of the Liber Pontificalis is neither clear nor certain. He died on 30 December 274 and was buried in the cemetery of Callistus, as is indicated in the Depositio episcoporum. The report of his martyrdom and of his corresponding burial on the Via Aurelia arose from the confusion of Pope F. with another martyr, Felix, buried there.

Bibliography5 works

BIBL.: G. B. De Rossi, La Roma sotterranea cristiana, II, Rome 1867, pp. 98-104; Jaffé-Wattenbach, I, p. 23; Lib. Pont., I, p. 158; G. P. Kirsch, Le memorie dei martiri nelle vie Aurelia e Cornelia, in Miscellanea Francesco Ehrle (Studi e testi, 38), II, Rome 1924, pp. 63-100; Martyr. Romanum, p. 215.

Agostino Amore

@incollection{ec5_felice_i_papa, author = {Amore, Agostino}, title = {Felice I, papa}, booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica}, volume = {V}, pages = {1134}, note = {Cited by column}, publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico}, address = {Città del Vaticano}, year = {1950}, url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/felice-i-papa} }

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Felix I, Pope, Saint

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