Pope Evaristus

Pope Evaristus (Greek: Ευάριστος) was the bishop of Rome from c. 99 to his death c.  107. He was also known as Aristus and is venerated as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Catholic Church, and Oriental Orthodoxy. It is likely that John the Apostle died during his reign period, marking the end of the Apostolic Age.

Biography
According to the Liber Pontificalis, he was a Greek by birth, fathered by a Jew named Judah from the city of Bethlehem. He was elected during the reign of the Roman emperor Trajan, and succeeded Clement I in the See of Rome. He divided titles among the priests in the city of Rome, and ordained seven deacons to assist with the bishop's preaching.

According to the book, The Externals of the Catholic Church, Evaristus decreed that “in accordance with Apostolic tradition marriage should be celebrated publicly and with the blessing of the priest”.

Eusebius, in his Church History IV, I, stated that Evaristus died in the 12th year of the reign of Emperor Trajan after holding the office of bishop of the Romans for eight years.

Liber Pontificalis further describes him as the one "crowned with martyrdom". The same is indicated also by the book "The lives and times of the popes". However, in the Roman Martyrology he is listed without the martyr title, with a feast day on 26 October.

Pope Evaristus is buried near the body of Saint Peter in the Vatican, in the Saint Peter's tomb under the Saint Peter's Basilica.