St. John I

Their story

John was born in Tuscany, in Italy, and served the Church of Rome as a deacon for many years. In 523, already elderly and in poor health, he was elected pope. At that time Italy was ruled by Theodoric, king of the Ostrogoths, who followed the Arian heresy. In the eastern empire, the emperor Justin had begun to close Arian churches and pressure Arians to become Catholic. Theodoric was angry and sent Pope John to Constantinople at the head of a delegation, ordering him to persuade the emperor to reverse his policy. It was a terrible position for the pope to be in. John made the long journey and became the first pope to visit Constantinople, where he was welcomed with great honor and celebrated Easter with the people. He obtained some concessions for the Arians, but he would not ask the emperor to force Catholics who had once been Arian to return to heresy. When John came back to Italy, Theodoric suspected him of plotting with the emperor against him. The king had the pope arrested and thrown into prison in Ravenna. Weakened by age and by harsh treatment, John died there in May 526. His body was brought back to Rome and buried in St. Peter's Basilica, and he has always been honored as a martyr who gave his life for the freedom of the Church.