Saint Sylvester I

Saint Sylvester was born in Rome, the son of a priest named Rufinus. After his father’s early death, his mother, Justa, entrusted him to a learned and virtuous priest to be brought up, and under his care Sylvester acquired knowledge and a virtuous disposition. At the age of 30 he was ordained a deacon and then a priest. His zealous service of God earned him great respect, and in 314 he was elected pope.

As pope, he solemnly consecrated the basilicas of Saint Peter at the Vatican and Saint John at the Lateran, which had been founded by Constantine the Great. He witnessed the birth of the Church as a lawful institution and took part in shaping its first structures.

Sylvester is the patron of domestic animals and of prayers for a good harvest of fodder and for a happy and prosperous New Year. He was recognized as a saint even though he was not a martyr. In iconography he is depicted as an old man with a short gray beard and curly hair, wearing a bishop’s liturgical vestments and holding the Book of the Gospels.

Saint Sylvester’s Day is the last day of the calendar year.