
461 AD to 468
AD

Elected 461; the date of his death is given as 28 Feb., 468.
After the death of Leo I, an archdeacon named Hilarus, a native of
Sardinia, according to the "Liber Pontificalis", was chosen to
succeed him, and in all probability received consecration on 19
November, 461. Together with Julius, Bishop of Puteoli, Hilarus
acted as legate of Leo I at the "Robber Synod" of Ephesus in 449.
There he fought vigorously for the rights of the Roman See and
opposed the condemnation of Flavian of Constantinople (see FLAVIAN,
SAINT). He was therefore exposed to the violence of Dioscurus of
Alexandria (q.v.), and saved himself by flight. In one of his
letters to the Empress Pulcheria, found in a collection of letters
of Leo I ("Leonis I Epistolae", num. xlvi., in P.L., LIV, 837 sq.),
Hilarus apologizes for not delivering to her the pope's letter after
the synod; but owing to Dioscurus, who tried to hinder his going
either to Rome or to Constantinople, he had great difficulty in
making his escape in order to bring to the pontiff the news of the
result of the council. His pontificate was marked by the same
vigorous policy as that of his great predecessor. Church affairs in
Gaul and Spain claimed his special attention. Owing to political
disorganization in both countries, it was important to safeguard the
hierarchy by strengthening church government. Hermes, a former
archdeacon of Narbonne, had illegally acquired the bishopric of that
town. Two Gallican prelates were dispatched to Rome to lay before
the pope this and other matters concerning the Church in Gaul. A
Roman synod held on 19 November, 462, passed judgment upon these
matters, and Hilarus made known the following decisions in an
Encyclical sent to the provincial bishops of Vienne, Lyons,
Narbonne, and the Alps: Hermes was to remain Titular Bishop of
Narbonne, but his episcopal faculties were withheld. A synod was to
be convened yearly by the Bishop of Arles, for those of the
provincial bishops who were able to attend; but all important
matters were to be submitted to the Apostolic See. No bishop could
leave his diocese without a written permission from the
metropolitan; in case such permission be withheld he could appeal to
the Bishop of Arles. Respecting the parishes (paroeciae)
claimed by Leontius of Arles as belonging to his jurisdiction, the
Gallican bishops could decide, after an investigation. Church
property could not be alienated until a synod had examined into the
cause of sale.
Shortly after this the pope found himself involved in another
diocesan quarrel. In 463 Mamertus of Vienne had consecrated a Bishop
of Die, although this Church, by a decree of Leo I, belonged to the
metropolitan Diocese of Arles. When Hilarus heard of it he deputed
Leontius of Arles to summon a great synod of the bishops of several
provinces to investigate the matter. The synod took place and, on
the strength of the report given him by Bishop Antonius, he issued
an edict dated 25 February, 464, in which Bishop Veranus was
commissioned to warn Mamertus that, if in the future he did not
refrain from irregular ordinations, his faculties would be
withdrawn. Consequently the consecration of the Bishop of Die must
be sanctioned by Leontius of Arles. Thus the primatial privileges of
the See of Arles were upheld as Leo I had defined them. At the same
time the bishops were admonished not to overstep their boundaries,
and to assemble in a yearly synod presided over by the Bishop of
Arles. The metropolitan rights of the See of Embrun also over the
dioceses of the Maritime Alps were protected against the
encroachments of a certain Bishop Auxanius, particularly in
connection with the two Churches of Nice and Cimiez.
In Spain, Silvanus, Bishop of Calahorra, had, by his episcopal
ordinations, violated the church laws. Both the Metropolitan
Ascanius and the bishops of the Province of Tarragona made complaint
of this to the pope and asked for his decision. Before an answer
came to their petition, the same bishops had recourse to the Holy
See for an entirely different matter. Before his death Nundinarius,
Bishop of Barcelona, expressed a wish that Irenaeus might be chosen
his successor, although he had himself made Irenaeus bishop of
another see. The request was granted, a Synod of Tarragona
confirming the nomination of Irenaeus, after which the bishops
sought the pope's approval. The Roman synod of 19 Nov., 465, took
the matters up and settled them. This is the oldest Roman synod
whose original records have been handed down to us. It was held in
the basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore. After an address of the pope,
and the reading of the Spanish letters, the synod decided that the
church laws must not be tampered with. In addition to this Hilarus
sent a letter to the bishops of Tarragona, declaring that no
consecration was valid without the sanction of the Metropolitan
Ascanius; and no bishop was permitted to be transferred from one
diocese to another, so that some one else must be chosen for
Barcelona in place of Irenaeus. The bishops consecrated by Silvanus
would be recognized if they had been appointed to vacant sees, and
otherwise met the requirements of the Church. The "Liber
Pontificalis" mentions an Encyclical that Hilarus sent to the East,
to confirm the Oecumenical Councils of Nicaea, Ephesus, and
Chalcedon, and the dogmatic letter of Leo I to Flavian, but the
sources at our disposal furnish us no further information. In Rome
Hilarus worked zealously for the integrity of the Faith. The Emperor
Anthemius had a favourite named Philotheus, who was a believer in
the Macedonian heresy and attended meetings in Rome for the
promulgation of this doctrine, 476. On one of the emperor's visits
to St. Peter's, the pope openly called him to account for his
favourite's conduct, exhorting him by the grave of St. Peter to
promise that he would do all in his power to check the evil. Hilarus
erected several churches and other buildings in Rome. Two oratories
in the baptistery of the Lateran, one in honour of St. John the
Baptist, the other of St. John the Apostle, are due to him. After
his flight from the "Robber Synod" of Ephesus, Hilarus had hidden
himself in the crypt of St. John the Apostle, and he attributed his
deliverance to the intercession of the Apostle. Over the ancient
doors of the oratory this inscription is still to be seen: "To St.
John the Evangelist, the liberator of Bishop Hilarus, a Servant of
Christ". He also erected a chapel of the Holy Cross in the
baptistery, a convent, two public baths, and libraries near the
Church of St. Laurence Outside the Walls. He built another convent
within the city walls. The "Liber Pontificalis" mentions many votive
offerings made by Hilarus in the different churches. He died after a
pontificate of six years, three months, and ten days. He was buried
in the church of St. Laurence Outside the Walls. His feast day is
celebrated on 17 November.
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