Clemens I, the Pope of Rome. Mosaic from St. Sophia of Kyiv, 11th c. In places of loss (lower part of the composition) — oil painting of the 18th c.
St. Clement, our parish’s patron, was the fourth Bishop of Rome and the third successor to St. Peter, leading the Church in the last decade of the first century. Early Christian writers tell us he knew the apostles and heard them preach, and he is counted among the Apostolic Fathers, the earliest Christian writers after the apostles themselves. He is best known for his letter to the Christian community in Corinth, written around the year 96 to heal a bitter division there. The letter was so treasured that many early churches read it aloud alongside Scripture, and its message still speaks to us today: “Charity unites us to God. It knows no schism, does not rebel, does all things in concord.”
According to ancient tradition, Clement was exiled under the Emperor Trajan to the marble quarries of Crimea, near the Black Sea, and was martyred by being tied to an anchor and cast into the sea. The anchor became his symbol, and when St. Cyril recovered relics believed to be Clement’s in Crimea in the 860s, an anchor was found alongside them. The anchor carries a deeper meaning as well. It is one of the oldest Christian symbols, found on tombs in the Roman catacombs as a sign of hope and, with its crossbar, a quiet image of the cross. Just as an anchor holds a ship steady in rough water, our hope in Christ is, in the words of the Letter to the Hebrews, “an anchor of the soul, sure and firm” (Hebrews 6:19). It is fitting, then, that St. Clement is the patron of mariners and marble workers.
11th-century fresco in the Basilica of San Clemente, Rome: Saints Cyril and Methodius bring St Clement's relics to Rome
St. Clement lived long before the Church had a formal canonization process. Like many early martyrs, he has been honored as a saint since ancient times, and his name is still prayed at Mass today in Eucharistic Prayer I. The Church celebrates his feast day on November 23, and because he is our patron, Church norms allow us to transfer his feast to a Sunday in Ordinary Time so our whole parish community can celebrate together. Our ties to him run deep. The Basilica of San Clemente in Rome, believed to stand on the site of his home and where his relics rest today, inspired our parish’s founders, and the tree of life above our altar is a painted replica of the basilica’s 12th-century apse mosaic. Learn more about the Basilica of San Clemente and our connection to it.
Fun fact: Our parish is one of at least 17 Catholic churches across the United States that bear St. Clement’s name.
Sources
Rev. Alban Butler, life of Saint Clement, from The Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs and Other Principal Saints (EWTN): ewtn.com/catholicism/library/st-clement-pope-martyr-5389
Catholic Encyclopedia (1908), entry on Pope Saint Clement I, New Advent: newadvent.org/cathen/04012c.htm
Catholic Encyclopedia (1907), “The Anchor (as Symbol),” New Advent: newadvent.org/cathen/01462a.htm
Franciscan Media, Saint of the Day, Saint Clement: franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/saint-clement
Encyclopaedia Britannica, Saint Clement I: britannica.com/biography/Saint-Clement-I
Hebrews 6:19, New American Bible, Revised Edition (USCCB): bible.usccb.org/bible/hebrews/6
Church Directory USA, search results for “Clement”: churchdirectoryusa.com
Photos: Wikipedia, Clement of Rome: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clement_of_Rome