St. Clement, Pupil of Apostles, Martyred
Imagine being tied to an anchor and cast into the sea. According to legend, that was the fate that befell Clement of Rome under the emperor Domitian . This is probably incorrect, however, since Domitian died before the turn of the first century and church historian Eusebius of Caesarea tells us Clement was martyred on this day, November 23, 101, which would put his death in the reign of Trajan. Clement was only the fourth bishop of Rome, the first possibly being Peter. Did he know Peter and Paul? It is completely possible that those two Spirit-filled men taught him. Clement even wrote a letter to the Corinthian church that echoed the teachings of the apostles. We know next to nothing about the two bishops between Peter and Clement. But Clement's letter made him stand out among the early leaders of the Roman church. The Roman church claims that Clement's letter proves that the popes (although they weren't called by that name for many centuries to come) were already seen