Pope Saint Cletus

Cletus, also called Anacletus, was the third bishop of Rome, after Saint Peter and Saint Linus, according to the earliest lists of popes preserved by Saint Irenaeus. He led the Church of Rome in the late first century, probably from about 76 to about 88, during the years when the Gospels were being written and the apostles' disciples were still alive.

Very little is known of his life. Tradition says he was a Roman and that he divided the city into parishes, ordaining a number of priests to serve them. Later sources honor him as a martyr, perhaps under Emperor Domitian, and say he was buried near Saint Peter on the Vatican Hill. His name, Cletus, appears in the ancient list of saints in the Roman Canon, the First Eucharistic Prayer, which links each Mass to the apostolic Church of Rome.

Cletus is honored in Rome as one of the first successors of Peter. Each time the Roman Canon is prayed, his name is recalled with Linus and Clement, a reminder of the unbroken line of shepherds since the apostles.