Pope St Gregory III (10 December): Butler's Lives of the Saints

About this sermon

Pope St. Gregory III (†741) was a humble, wise, and heroic defender of the Catholic faith during one of the most turbulent periods in Church history. Born in Syria, he was elected pope by acclamation during the funeral procession of Pope Gregory II—so great was his reputation for holiness, knowledge, and administrative wisdom. Immediately upon becoming pope, Gregory III inherited the intense conflict with Emperor Leo III the Isaurian, who had launched a brutal campaign against the veneration of sacred images (Iconoclasm). Gregory bravely responded with letters of protest, councils condemning the heresy, and public acts honoring sacred images—including a colonnade with illuminated icons at St. Peter’s Basilica. Despite persecution and political pressure, Gregory remained steadfast. He strengthened missionary work in Germany by supporting St. Boniface and sending St. Willibald to assist the evangelization of the Germanic peoples. He also wrote scriptural exhortations to the pagan Saxons as part of the Church’s missionary outreach. As the Lombards threatened Rome, Gregory appealed to Charles Martel for protection and exhorted regional bishops to defend territories under attack. His pontificate blended courage, pastoral charity, deep humility, and unwavering orthodoxy. The Liber Pontificalis praises him as a man of Scripture, a devoted preacher, protector of the poor, and defender of the faith. He died on December 10, 741, only weeks after Charles Martel’s passing. May Pope St. Gregory III inspire us to safeguard truth with courage and love. 00:00 — Introduction 00:19 — The Life of Pope St. Gregory III 00:23 — His Election During the Funeral of Gregory II 00:41 — Conflict with Emperor Leo III and Iconoclasm 01:06 — Excommunication of Iconoclasts 01:26 — Emperor’s Attempted Retaliation 01:50 — A Season of Peace and Church Restoration 02:11 — Support for St. Boniface and Missionary Work 02:35 — Renewed Lombard Threats 02:59 — Pope Gregory’s Determination Despite Illness 03:06 — Death of Charles Martel and Gregory III 03:15 — Virtues and Legacy of Pope St. Gregory III https://sensusfidelium.com/the-lives-of-the-fathers-martyrs-and-other-principal-saints/december/ Get Butler's Lives of the Saints here: https://loretopublications.idevaffiliate.com/idevaffiliate.php?id=102&url=1 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 Support Catholic Businesses here - https://sensusfidelium.com/catholic-businesses/ Sensus Fidelium Press - https://sensusfideliumpress.com/ Sensus Fidelium Apps - https://sensusfidelium.tv/ Support Sensus Fidelium - https://sensusfidelium.com/donate-support/ 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 🙏🏻PLEASE HELP OUR CHANNEL GROW 🙏🏻 ▶ 1. Become a Channel Patron: https://www.patreon.com/SensusFidelium ▶ 2. Visit the website https://www.sensusfidelium.com for Gueranger, Saint of the Day, Apologetics, Meditation by the Saints, Scripture Study and more. ▶ 3. Subscribe to Other Video Platforms 🔴 SpiritusTV - https://spiritustv.com/@SensusFidelium 🔴 BitChute --- https://www.bitchute.com/channel/Sensus_Fidelium/ 🔴 Rumble --- https://rumble.com/c/c-298311 🔴 My Catholic Tube - https://mycatholictube.com/videos/sensus-fidelium-channel/ 🔴 LBRY.tv --- https://lbry.tv/@SensusFidelium:c 🔴 ODYSEE - https://odysee.com/@SensusFidelium:c 🔴 UGETube - https://videos.utahgunexchange.com/@Sensus%20Fidelium 🔴 BrandNewTube - https://brandnewtube.com/@SensusFidelium 🔴 GabTV - https://tv.gab.com/channel/Sensus_Fidelium 🔴 GloriaTV - https://gloria.tv/Sensus%20Fidelium 🔴 Brighteon - https://www.brighteon.com/channels/sensusfidelium ▶ 4. Paypal, Bitcoin, Anedot, Stripe, Square & PO Box donations - https://sensusfidelium.com/donate-support/ ▶ 5. YouTube: Click Subscribe, then Click "Notification Bell" = 🔔 Please "Like" our videos so that Youtube shares it to others by clicking the "Like" thumbs-up under the video = 👍🏻 ▶ 6. Please share this video 📲, and help others find Christ inside the Catholic Church! Please share this video on Facebook and Twitter using the share button. ▶ 7. Follow on Social Media: 🔴 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SensusFidelium/ 🔴 Twitter: https://https://twitter.com/Sensus_Fidelium 🔴 YouTube: Click Subscribe, then Click "Notification Bell" = 🔔 🔴 Parler: https://parler.com/profile/Sensusfidelium/posts 🔴 SP3RN: https://www.sp3rn.com/community/pages/14-sensus-fidelium 🔴 GAB: https://gab.com/Sensus_Fidelium 🔴 Bastyon: https://bastyon.com/sensusfidelium 🔴 GETTR: https://gettr.com/user/sensus_fidelium 🔴 INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/sensusfidelium/ 🔴 Telegram: https//t.me/RealSensusFidelium 🔴 Truth Social - @SensusFidelium ▶ 8. Follow on iTunes: 🔴 https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/sensus-fidelium-catholic-podcast/id1477010758 #SaintOfTheDay #PopeGregoryIII #LivesOfTheSaints #FrAlbanButler #CatholicSaints #Iconoclasm #CatholicHistory #ChristianMartyrs #December10Saint #ChurchHistory #CatholicYouTube #DailySai