St. Felix II was a member of an old Roman family of high position. He was not only a pope and saint himself, but the great-grandfather of Pope St. Gregory the Great who lived from 540 to 604. Felix had been married, but his wife had died before he became a priest.
Gregory wrote that when his aunt, St. Tharsilla, was dying, Pope Felix appeared to her and asked her to come to heaven where he was.
Felix became pope in 483 and was honest and brave in troubled times. Groups of people within the Church were divided because of false teachings. Political leaders made his job as pope more difficult. But Felix proved himself a brave defender of the truths of our faith and the rights of the Church.
Many compared him to Pope St. Leo the Great who had died in 461. Pope Felix viewed the problems faced by the universal Church in different parts of the world and tried to understand and solve them as best he could. He so beautifully lived the Beatitude "Blessed are the peacemakers" that Jesus taught us.
In the early years of his papacy Felix heard painful cries for help from the miserable Catholics in Africa. Hunneric, the Arian Vandal king, cruelly tortured the poor African Catholics. Then Hunneric died, and the Pope quickly helped to get the Church in Africa on its feet.
Felix spent nine years of his life as pope. He was totally committed to Jesus and his Church. Pope St. Felix died in 492. He is buried in St. Paul's on the Ostian Way.
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Thursday, March 1 |
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Liturgical Color: Violet |
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