Potamion, Bishop of Heraclea, Saint

POTAMION, Bishop of Heraclea, Saint. - In the Hieronymian Martyrology he is commemorated on May 18 as a martyr of the pagan persecutions and is called a presbyter. In the Roman Martyrology, however, on the same date he is called a bishop and said to have died during the struggles stirred up by the Arian controversy under Constantius II.

This second account is more reliable because it is supported by other sources. P. was in fact already bishop of Eraclea in 325, since in that year he took part in the Council of Nicaea. He was also later at the Synod of Tyre (335), convened by the Arians against St. Athanasius, and on that occasion with holy boldness he rose to speak against Eusebius of Nicomedia, the organizer and the soul of the Synod, reproaching him not only for his incompetence to judge St. Athanasius, but also for his suspect conduct during the persecution of Maximinus, from which he had emerged unscathed despite having been in prison. On that same occasion, by contrast, P. had been mutilated in one foot and had lost an eye. The Arians persecuted him bitterly and, having managed to capture him, scourged him until he bled, leaving him almost dead. He was aided and cared for by the faithful, but died shortly afterward as a result of the blows he had received.

Agostino Amore