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The saints

Sts. Cornelius and Cyprian

A pope and an African bishop who agreed that sinners who fell could come home.

Feast: 16 September · died 253 and 258 · The early Church · Rome and Carthage

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Painting of St. Cyprian as a bishop in a miter and green cope, holding a palm and a sword.

Master of Messkirch, 1535. Wikimedia Commons, Public domain.

Home / The saints / Sts. Cornelius and Cyprian

Rome and Carthage, the 250s

After the persecution of Decius, many Christians who had denied the faith wanted to return.1

Some said they could never be forgiven.1

Pope Cornelius and Bishop Cyprian of Carthage agreed they could come back after real repentance.

Patron of North Africa (Cyprian)1

01Sts. Cornelius and Cyprian

Two martyrs

Cornelius was exiled and died in 253.2 Cyprian was beheaded in 258.1

Both are named in the Roman Canon.1

Live it this week

Welcome someone home

Cornelius and Cyprian opened the door to those who had fallen away. This week, invite someone who left the Church to Mass or coffee, with no lecture.

Notes

How we know · 2 sources for this page
  1. Franciscan Media, Saint of the Day: “Saint Cyprian”. franciscanmedia.org. franciscanmedia.org
  2. Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), “Pope Cornelius”. New Advent edition. newadvent.org

The Catholic Encyclopedia (1913) is in the public domain; we quote the New Advent edition. Texts of the Holy See are quoted briefly from vatican.va. Scripture: World English Bible, Catholic edition (public domain); Verse numbers are modern, with Douay-Rheims numbers in brackets where they differ. Photographs: Wikimedia Commons, credited under each image; full list on the photo credits page.

Lines in the narrator’s voice, without a note, are our reflection, not a historical claim. Stone & Incense restates Church teaching in plain words; our wording is not an official Church text. Report an errorCorrections.