Hierarch
Hierarch Pope Pius I of Rome
епископ Римский ок. 140–155, † ок. 155
Pius I — the tenth Bishop of Rome (c. 140–155), who opposed the Gnostic teachings of Marcion, Valentinus, and Cerdo; the tradition of his martyrdom is considered legendary even by Western scholarship.
CRITICAL: category corrected from "hieromartyr" to "hierarch" — the tradition of Pius I's martyrdom traces to an unreliable source (the 6th-century Liber Pontificalis), which the Orthodox Encyclopedia itself calls partly invented; even the Catholic Church's 1969 calendar reform dropped his martyr status due to unreliable information. No source supports "July 15 O.S."; replaced with the Western date July 11, given without an Old-Style/New-Style designation (Pius I has no established date in the general Orthodox calendar — he is a pre-Schism saint venerated only in specialty "Western saints" lists and is practically absent from the standard Russian Church menaion).
CRITICAL IMAGE NOTE: all 4 previous images have been removed — verification showed every one unrelated: (1) a metal riza icon of Great Martyr George slaying the dragon; (2) a Byzantine "Man of Sorrows" (Christ in the Tomb) icon with John the Baptist and a figure labeled "ΓΕΡΑΣΙΜΟΣ"; (3) a photo of a Baroque Catholic altar with a statue explicitly labeled "PIUS V" — a completely different, much later pope; (4) an icon of the Mother of God and Child ("MP ΘU"). None depict Pius I.
Pius I was the tenth Bishop of Rome, successor to Hyginus and predecessor of Anicetus. By tradition (per the Liber Pontificalis) he came from Aquileia, was the son of a man named Rufinus, and brother of Hermas — the presumed author of "The Shepherd of Hermas" (a kinship disputed by modern scholarship). He held the see during the reigns of Emperors Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius.
He is chiefly known for opposing Gnostic teachings: during his pontificate Marcion arrived in Rome and was excommunicated (traditionally dated to c. 144), and he is also credited with opposing Valentinus and Cerdo. No reliable evidence supports a violent death — this is one of a cluster of early "martyred pope" traditions now recognized as pious legend rather than historical fact. Pius I's historicity as Bishop of Rome itself, however, is securely attested by ancient succession lists transmitted via Irenaeus of Lyon and Eusebius of Caesarea.