St. Damasus I

Damasus served in the Roman Church before becoming its bishop. His election was followed by the rival claim of Ursinus and serious conflict. Butler’s account does not detach the pontificate from those disputes, but follows the responsibilities of the pope through the troubled life of the Church.

The notice describes his defence of Catholic doctrine and dealings with bishops in the East. It also records his close association with St. Jerome, whom he employed in answering letters and consultations and encouraged in the study of Holy Scripture. Learning was placed at the service of the Church’s pastoral work.

Damasus repaired churches and gave particular attention to the burial places of the martyrs. Butler remembers the verse inscriptions associated with him, while warning that not every poem attributed to Damasus is his work. He died in 384. The source prints the life under December 11 and gives December 10 as the day of death, a distinction retained here.