We do not know much about Pope Deusdedit, but the fragments of his biography that have been passed down to us certainly qualify him as a saint.

He was a Roman who lived after the fall of Rome—his society was troubled by unrest and civil disorder.

He was only pope for three years, but during that time, he led the clergy of the church in caring for the poor and the sick. When an earthquake ravaged the city and left behind a disorder of the skin that afflicted many people, he was front and center in the effort to care for them.

He was the first pope to seal documents with a bullae, a leaden seal—this is the source of the term “papal bulls” that continue to describe letters from the pope. One of his seals still exists today.

Deusdedit died in 618 and his relics rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica. His likeness is used here with permission from Catholic.org.

Pope St. Deusdedit, who used his short pontificate to care for the sick and poor, pray for us!