Eleutheropolis (diocese)

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Eleutheropolis in Palaestina is a titular see of the Roman Catholic Church, located in what is now Israel. The seat of the bishop is currently vacant. In AD 200, Septimius Severus founded a Roman colony on the site of the Jewish town Maresha, which Vespasian had destroyed about 130 years earlier. The new colony grew quickly because of its position on important trade routes, and in 325 it became the site of an episcopal see in Palestina Prima, with Macrinus as its first bishop. Eusebius of Caesarea, a key early church writer who lived there, used it as a starting point for measuring distances to other places. We know of six bishops in total; Macrinus and Zebennus are named, while four others are unknown. Church writings mention 50 soldiers who were executed there in 638 for not abandoning the Christian faith after the arrival of Islam, and their burial site is nearby. The diocese ceased to function effectively from that time. The last titular bishop was Alfred Matthew Stemper.