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Daniel of Padua
Deacon and martyr, killed in northeastern Italy in 168.
Said to be of Jewish descent, Daniel aided Prosdocimus, the first bishop of Padua, in the evangelization of northeastern Italy. His body was discovered centuries later and solemnly enshrined 3 Jan 1064 in the church of Santa Sofia in Padua.
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Akhila
Deacon and monk of Pechersk, in the Farther Caves at Kiev in the Ukraine, died in 14th c.
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Clerus of Antioch
Deacon and martyr, killed at Antioch in Syria, in 300. For having professed faith in Christ, he was tortured seven times, kept in prison a long while, and finally beheaded.
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Theophilus
Deacon and martyr in Libya, with the layman Helladius, date of death unknown. For preaching the gospel, they were tortured and thrown into a furnace.
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Nicanor
Deacon and martyr, one of the seven ordained by the apostles (Acts 6:5), according to tradition killed in Cyprus, c. 76 [also July 28].
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Hermylus
Deacon and martyr of Singidunum, with his servant Stratonicus, killed in the Balkans, in 315.
They were martyred by drowning in the Danube at Singidunum (present Belgrade, capital of Serbia).
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Marianus
Deacon and martyr, with presbyter Diodorus and others, killed at Rome in 284.
In Rome under Numerian, a group of Christians including Diodorus and Marianus were found praying in the catacombs on the anniversary of an earlier martyrdom. The Roman authorities sealed them in the crypt alive. Diodorus and Marianus were canonized, and a church was later built above the sandpit. The two martyrs were particularly popular in 4th century Rome, and their names appear in the Martyrologium Hieronymianum (Martyrology of Jerome).
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Augurius and Eulogius
Deacons and martyrs, with bishop Fructuosus of Tarragoña, martyred by burning in Spain, on 21 January 259.
According to the Acta: The bishop and his two deacons were arrested on Sunday, 16 January, just as they were going to bed. The bishop asked for permission to put on his shoes, after which he cheerfully followed the arresting guards. In prison they spent their time in fervent prayer, full of joy at the prospect of the crown prepared for them. Fructuosus blessed those who visited him and on Monday baptized a catechumen named Rogatianus. On Wednesday they kept the usual fast of the stations until 3 p.m.
A few days later, on Friday, 21 January, the three were brought before the governor. Their examination was short and to the point: the prisoners affirmed their worship of one God, and were sentenced to be burned to death. Officers were posted to prevent any demonstration because even the pagans loved Fructuosus for his virtues. The Christians accompanied them with sorrow tempered with joy. The faithful offered Fructuosus a cup of wine, which he refused because, since it was only 10 in the morning, it was too early to break the fast. Even with the guards at the gate of the amphitheater, some of the Christians were able to get close. The bishop’s reader, Augustalis, with tears asked permission to remove his bishop’s shoes. Felix, a Christian soldier, stepped in and asked the bishop for his prayers.
Fructuosus replied so that all could hear, “I am bound to bear in mind the whole universal church from East to West. Remain always in the bosom of the catholic church, and you will have a share in my prayers.” He added words of comfort to his flock. As the flames enveloped them and burned through their bonds, “they stretched forth their arms in token of the Lord’s victory, praying to him till they gave up their souls.”
The account of their examination still exists and is authentic. Tradition adds that Babylas and Mygdone, two Christian servants of the governor, saw the heavens open and the saints carried up with crowns on their heads. By night the faithful came and each took some part of the martyrs’ bodies to their own home, but heaven admonished them and they each returned the relics to a single grave. In art the three martyrs are portrayed as a bishop and two deacons singing on their funeral pyre. They are venerated at Tarragoña and in Africa.
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Vincent of Saragossa
Martyred at Valencia, Spain, on 22 January 304.
Vincent was born at Huesca but lived in Zaragoza (Saragossa in English; also in the Aragon region of Spain). He served as the deacon of Valerius, bishop of Saragossa. Imprisoned in Valencia for his faith, and tortured on a gridiron—a story perhaps adapted from the martyrdom of Laurence—Vincent, like many early martyrs in the early hagiographic literature, succeeded in converting his jailer. Though he was finally offered release if he would consign scripture to the fire, Vincent refused.
The earliest account of Vincent’s martyrdom is in a carmen (lyric poem) written by Prudentius, (348-aft. 405), who wrote a series of lyric poems, Peristephanon (Crowns of Martyrdom), on Hispanic and Roman martyrs, including Laurence and Vincent. Prudentius describes how Vincent was brought to trial along with his bishop Valerius. Since Valerius had a speech impediment, Vincent spoke for both, but his outspoken manner so angered the governor that Vincent was tortured and martyred, though his aged bishop was only exiled.
As Prudentius describes the martyrdom:
During the persecution, Vincent was arrested and brought before the prefect Dacian. Initially, using “soft, cajoling words,” the judge attempted to get Vincent to renounce his faith and worship the pagan gods as the laws of Rome demanded. In answer Vincent then cries out, A levite of the sacred tribe, Who at God’s altar stands and serves, One of the seven pillars white: ‘Let these dark fiends rule over you, Bow down before your wood and stone; Be you the lifeless pontifex Of gods as dead as you, yourself. But we, O Dacian, will confess The Father, Author of all light, And Jesus Christ, his only Son, As one true God, and him adore.’
The prefect replied that Vincent must submit to the civil power that ruled the world or die. ‘Give ear to this fiat of mine: You must now at this altar pray And offer up incense and turf, Or bloody death will be your lot.’
Vincent invited the judge to use whatever power he could muster. Even then, Vincent insisted, he would still defy the laws. He then rejected the judge’s threat in a less than tactful manner. ‘How senseless are your false beliefs, How stupid Caesar’s stern decree! You order us to worship gods That match your own intelligence.’
Vincent ridiculed the idols made by human hands and the foolishness of housing them in costly temples. He declared that any spirits dwelling there were infernal powers living in terror of Christ and his kingdom. No longer could the wicked judge Endure the martyr’s ringing words, ‘Silence the wretch,’ he madly cries; ‘Stop his contemptuous blasphemies! . . . Come tie his hands behind his back And on the rack his body turn, Until you break his tortured limbs And tear asunder every joint. When this is done, flay him alive With piercing blows that bare the ribs, So that through deep and gaping wounds The throbbing entrails may be seen.’
Vincent was tortured but did not yield. The deacon laughed at his torments and rebuked the two executioners for not wounding him more grievously. They were rapidly becoming exhausted with their efforts. The martyr now in ecstasy, No shadow of his bitter pain Upon his shining countenance, In vision, saw thee near, O Christ. ‘O shame! What face the man puts on!’ Cried Dacian in an angry voice. ‘More ardent than his torturers He beams with joy and courts their blows!’
The prefect recognized that the punishments being meted out to Vincent were having no effect. He did not criticize the torturers for they knew their work well and had never been outdone. Instead, he ordered them to rest their hands awhile so that their muscles might revive. ‘Then when his wounds are dry, And clotted blood has formed hard scabs, Your hands may plow them up again And rend anew his tortured frame.’ To him the levite makes reply: ‘If now you see that all the strength Of your vile dogs is giving way, Come, mighty slaughterer, yourself, Come, show them how to cleave my flesh And my inmost recesses bare; Put in your hands and deeply drink The warm and ruddy streams of blood. You err, unfeeling brute, if you Imagine that you punish me When you dismember me and kill A body that is doomed to die. There is within my being’s depths Another none can violate, Unfettered, tranquil and unmarred, Immune from pain and suffering.’
Vincent explained that it is the spirit within him that Dacian must subdue. He added that that spirit is free, invincible, and subservient to God alone. Then the tortures resumed. The prefect saw he was unable to break Vincent and tried another tactic. He asked Vincent to show him his scriptures so that he might consign them to the flames. The martyr quickly replied that anyone who threatened to burn the holy books would suffer an even worse fate and end up “in the depths of hell.” The tyrant, maddened at these words Turns pale, then red with burning rage; He rolls his frenzied blood-shot eyes, Foams at the mouth and grinds his teeth. Then after some delay, he roars: ‘Let trial by torture now be made, The crown of all our punishments, The gridiron, flames, and red-hot plates.’
The martyr hurried to receive these new torments. With “no trace of fear upon his brow,” he mounted the pyre “as though ascending upon high to take possession of his crown.” The fire sent sparks that implanted themselves “with sizzling punctures in his flesh.” Fat oozed from the burning wounds and slowly covered his body with smoking oil. Unmoved amid these sufferings, As though unconscious of his pain, The saint to heaven lifts his eyes, For heavy fetters stay his hands.
Then the prefect had Vincent raised “from his fiery bed of pain” and “cast into a dungeon foul . . . a stifling subterranean pit.” The angry foe now hurls the saint Into this pit of deepest woe And thrust his feet in wooden stocks With tortured limbs set far apart. The monster skilled in penal art Then adds a torment new and strange, To no oppressor known before, Recorded in no previous age. He orders broken earthenware, Sharp-cornered, jagged, piercing keen, Spread out upon the dungeon floor To make for him a painful bed.
However, the plans of the prefect were once again frustrated. The darkness of the prison cell was soon replaced with a radiant light. The stocks on the martyr’s feet flew open. And then does Vincent recognize That Christ, the Source of light, has come To bring the promised recompense For all the pangs he has endured. He sees the broken earthenware Now clothe itself with tender flowers That fill the narrow prison vault With fragrance like to nectar sweet. And then around the martyr throngs A host of angels greeting him, Of whom one of majestic mien Accosts the hero in these words: ‘Arise, O glorious martyr saint, Arise, set free from all your chains, Arise, now member of our band, And join our noble company. You have already run your course Of frightful pain and suffering; Your passion’s goal is now attained, And death now gives you kind release.’
Vincent’s sufferings ended. The light within the cell penetrated the bolted door through narrow crevices. The guardian of the cell who had been stationed there noticed the light. He heard the prisoner singing and “a voice chanting in response.” Then, trembling, he draws near the door And plants his eyes against the jamb That he may through the narrow slit Explore the room as best he can. He sees the bed of potsherds bloom With fragrant flowers of many hues, And, singing as he walks about, The saint himself with fetters loosed.
The jailer sent word to the prefect who wept at his defeat. He ordered Vincent to be removed from the dungeon and asked that his wounds be bathed with healing balms. His intention was that when the prisoner was restored, he would again be put to torture. Upon his release, the faithful from all the city thronged to their deacon. They made him an easeful bed, cared for his wounds, and carried away blood-soaked cloths as relics. The warden of his prison cell accepted Christ with sudden faith. Soon afterwards, in this peaceful setting, Vincent died. The prefect was furious that Vincent had eluded him yet again and was determined to feed the anger that “burned within his vengeful heart.” As serpent of its fangs bereft The madman raged in frenzy wild. ‘The rebel has evaded me And carried off the palm,’ he cries. ‘Though he be dead, I still can wreck One last outrage upon this wretch: I’ll throw his body to the beasts, Or give it to the dogs to rend.’
Dacian wanted to destroy Vincent’s body lest it be honored in a tomb inscribed with the martyr’s name. Accordingly, “the sacred body he exposed, all naked in a sedgy marsh.” And then a strange thing occurred. A raven guarded the body, driving away a bird of prey and a wolf. The prefect decided to throw the body into the sea where it would be food for fish or tossed by storms and torn on the rocks. ‘Is there some man among you here Who, skilled in piloting a boat With oar and rope and hoisted sail, Can briskly plow the open sea? Go, take the body that now lies Unharmed among the marshy reeds And, in a wherry light and swift, Bear it away through surging tides. Wrap up the corpse and then enclose It in a sack of rushes made, To which a heavy stone is tied, That it may sink into the deep.’
A soldier volunteered for the job. He wove a net of ropes into which he sewed Vincent’s body. Then he sailed out to sea and hurled it into the waves. Although a heavy stone had been attached to it, the body did not sink but moved with the tide toward the shore. The heavy millstone swims along As lightly as the snow-white foam; The bag that holds the sacred pledge Is borne on top of swelling waves. Aghast, the baffled mariners Behold it floating calmly back Across the level shining sea, Sped on by favoring tide and wind. With rapid oars they cleave the main, As wroth they urge their vessel on, But far ahead the body flies Into a quiet, secluded bay.
The body came to rest on the beach before the skiff could reach the shore. There it was buried until the Christians could build a tomb. Later, when the persecution was over, a church was built and the bones of Vincent were buried at the foot of the altar.
“The Poems of Prudentius,” trans. Sr. M. Clement Eagan, CCVI, in The Fathers of the Church, vol. 43, Catholic University of America Press, Washington, DC, 1962.
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Parmenus
One of the seven ordained by the apostles (Acts 6:5), according to tradition martyred at Philippi in Macedonia, c. 98 [also July 28].
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Caesarius of Angoulême
Deacon under Ausonius, the first bishop of Angoulême (originally Iculisma) in southwestern France, died of natural causes, 1st c.
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