Mary the Mother of Jesus Miracles_BLay Saints 
Miracles 100   200   300   400   500   600   700    800   900   1000    1100   1200   1300   1400  1500  1600  1700  1800   1900  
St John on this day The Church commemorates because of the annual pilgrimage to his grave miiracle of red dust
 33 AD Elioz of Mtskheta and Longinoz of Karsani, Georgia;  Robe of our Lord, it was acquired by them;
1st v. Saint Archippus (Greek for "master of the horse")  the saint at Colossae, son of devout Christians from the city of Hieropolis; He persuaded many pagans who came to the holy spring to accept holy Baptism, to forsake pagan impiety, and to turn to the One True God and Savior Jesus Christ

1st v. Archangel Michael at Colossus, later called Chone The miracle performed by
1st v.St.  Epitacius and Basileus body thrown into sea found by Elpidiphorus through angel revelation Martyrs both
       bishops

       Martyrdom of St.Aristobulus one of the seventy apostles bishop of Abratabias performed many miracles.
   68 St. Antipas Martyr and disciple of St. John the Apostle who called Antipas "my faithful witness." body untouched by fire tomb was the site of many miracles
1st v. Apostles of the Seventy The Holy Silas, Silvanus, Crescens, Epenetus and Andronicus disciples of the Savior
Pérgami, in Asia, sancti Antípæ, testis fidélis, cujus méminit sanctus Joánnes in Apocalypsi.  Ipse autem Antípas, sub Domitiáno Imperatóre, in bovem æneum candéntem conjéctus, martyrium consummávit.
   Departure of St. Jason, one of the Seventy disciples accompanied St. Paul Acts 17:9) ordained bishop by St. Paul over Tarsus God performed through him many miracles and signs
 100 Holy Martyr Sukhios and 16 Gruzian (Georgian) Companions new names: to the eldest -- Sukhios (replacing his
       old name Bagadras), and  companions Andrew, Anastasias, Talale, Theodorites, Juhirodion, Jordan, Kondrates,
       Lukian, Mimnenos, Nerangios, Polyeuktos, James, Phoki, Domentian, Victor and Zosima.

102 Saint Auxibius encountered holy Apostle /Evangelist Mark who established Auxibius as bishop in the city of Soli miracles and the signs worked
127-140 St. Zoe & Exsuperius (Hesperus) and 2 sons martyred for their faith children encouraged parents to remain
       faithful bodies preserved in the fire unharmed, and angelic singing was heard, glorifying the confessors of the Lord

 135 Saint Leontius Roman Greek general martyrs killed with Hypatius and Theodolus in Tripoli, Phoenicia (Syria)
         many miracles occurred and were attributed to him

140 Holy Virgin Martyr Paraskeva of Rome only daughter of Christian parents, Agathon and Politia, from her early years she dedicated herself to God. She spent much of her time in prayer and the study of the Holy Scriptures. After the death of her parents St Paraskeva distributed all of her inheritance to the poor, and consecrated her virginity to Christ. Emulating the holy Apostles, she began to preach to the pagans about Christ, converting many to Christianity.
160 January 13 Saint Potitus The Holy Martyr accepted holy Baptism at thirteen by the power of God he worked
      wondrous miracles settled on Mount Garganus and lived in solitude, among the animals.
180 April 01 St. Melito Bishop of Sardis in Lydia, Asia Minor; powerful gift of prophecy as attested by Saint Jerome and Eusebius
190 St. Victor at Damascus The Holy Martyr was a soldier miracles
2nd v Fronto of Nitria desert father Hermit (RM)
Alexandríæ sancti Frontónis Abbátis, cujus vita sanctitáte et miráculis cláruit.
    At Alexandria, St. Fronto, an abbot whose life was graced by sanctity and his miracles.
(also known as Frontom) 2nd century. A desert father of Nitria, Egypt (Benedictines, Encyclopedia).
In art, Saint Fronto is a pilgrim with a large hat, birch, and crucifix (Roeder).

2nd v. June 19 Gervase and Protase twin sons of Saints Vitalis and Valeria, suffered beheading for the faith martyrs themselves appeared to Saint Ambrose in an apparition MM (RM)
33 AD Elioz of Mtskheta and Longinoz of Karsani, Georgia; Robe of our Lord, it was acquired by them; Christ revealed to His Mother it was not His will for her to preach there. “You have been entrusted to protect the Georgian nation,” He said, “but the role of evangelizing that land belongs to My disciple Andrew the First-called. Send him with an image of your face “Not-Made-By- Hands” to protect the Georgian people to the end of the ages!”
Sidonia.jpg
During the reign of King Aderki of Kartli, the Jewish diaspora in Mtskheta learned that a wondrous Child had been born in Jerusalem. Then, thirty years later, a man came from Jerusalem to deliver this message: “The youth has grown up. He calls Himself the Son of God and preaches to us the New Covenant. We have sent envoys to every Jewish diaspora to urge the scholars of the religion to come to Jerusalem and judge what measures should be taken in regard to this matter.”
In response to the envoy’s request and at the recommendation of the Jewish Sanhedrin, Elioz of Mtskheta and Longinoz of Karsani were chosen to journey to Jerusalem. Elioz of Mtskheta was born to a pious family, and as his mother prepared him for the journey, she tearfully begged him not to take any part in the spilling of the blood of the Messiah.
When the Roman soldiers were nailing our Savior to the Cross on Golgotha, Elioz’s mother miraculously heard each strike of the hammer. She cried out in fear, “Farewell majesty of the Jews! For inasmuch as you have killed your Savior and Redeemer, henceforth you have become your own enemies!” With this she breathed her last.
After the soldiers had cast lots for the Robe of our Lord, it was acquired by Elioz and Longinoz, and with great honor they carried it back with them to Mtskheta. Upon their arrival, Elioz met his sister Sidonia, who took from him the Sacred Robe. With much grief she listened to the story of our Savior’s Crucifixion, clutched the Robe to her breast, and immediately gave up her spirit.
Many miracles were worked by the Robe, and news of this flashed like lightning throughout Mtskheta.
King Aderki had a great desire to possess the Robe but, frightened by the miracles, he did not attempt to free it from Sidonia’s embrace. Elioz was obliged to bury his sister and the Precious Robe together. A cypress tree grew up on Sidonia’s grave. When the disciples of Christ cast lots after Pentecost, the lot for evangelizing Georgia fell to the Most Holy Theotokos. But Christ revealed to His Mother that it was not His will for her to preach there. “You have been entrusted to protect the Georgian nation,” He said, “but the role of evangelizing that land belongs to My disciple Andrew the First-called. Send him with an image of your face “Not-Made-By- Hands” to protect the Georgian people to the end of the ages!”
According to the will of God and the blessing of the Theotokos, St. Andrew the First-called set off for Georgia to preach the Christian Faith. He entered Georgia from the southwest, in the region of Atchara, and subsequently preached in every region of the nation. He established a hierarchy for the Georgian Church and then returned to Jerusalem for Pascha. When he visited Georgia for the second time, the Apostle Andrew was accompanied by the Apostles Matthias and Simon the Canaanite.

Years passed and, under threat from Persian fire-worshippers and other pagan communities, the memory of Christ faded from the minds of the Georgian people.  Then, at the beginning of the 4th century, according to God’s will and the blessing of the Most Holy Theotokos, the holy virgin Nino arrived in Kartli to preach the Christian Faith. She settled in the outskirts of Mtskheta, in the bramble bushes of the king’s garden. St. Nino inquired as to the whereabouts of our Lord’s Robe, but no one could remember where it had been preserved. In her quest for the Precious Robe, she became acquainted with Elioz’s descendants, the Jewish priest Abiatar and his daughter, Sidonia. St. Nino converted them to Christianity.

St. Nino was blessed by God with the gift of healing. She healed the afflicted through the name of our crucified Savior and through the grace of the cross formed from grapevines by the Theotokos and bound with strands of St. Nino’s hair.
Mirian.jpg
At that time King Mirian ruled Kartli. Following in the footsteps of his ancestors, he worshiped the idol Armazi, but in the depth of his heart he was drawn to the Faith that the holy virgin was preaching. Mirian’s wife, Queen Nana, was the daughter of a famous military leader of Pontus. Thus, the king had received some prior knowledge of the Faith of the Greeks.
Once Queen Nana fell deeply ill, and only through the prayers of St. Nino was she spared from death. After this miraculous healing, King Mirian became intrigued by the Faith that St. Nino was preaching, and he began asking the newly enlightened Abiatar about the Holy Scriptures.

Once, while he was hunting on Mt. Tkhoti near Mtskheta, King Mirian was suddenly gripped by an evil spirit, and he burned with a desire to destroy the Christian people of his land and—above all others— the virgin Nino. But suddenly the sun was eclipsed, and the king was surrounded by darkness. The frightened Mirian prayed to the pagan gods to save him from this terror, but his prayers went unanswered. Then, in utter despair, he began to pray to the Crucified God-man and a miracle occurred: the darkness scattered and the sun shone as before. Raising his hands to the east, Mirian cried out, “Truly Thou art the God preached by Nino, God of gods and King of kings!”

Having returned to the capital, King Mirian went immediately to the bramble bushes where St. Nino dwelt. He greeted her with great honor and spent several hours seeking her counsel. Upon her recommendation, he sent messengers to Emperor Constantine in Byzantium, requesting that he send priests to baptize the people of Kartli and architects to build churches.

This happened on June 24 of the year 324, which was a Saturday.
King Mirian began to construct a church so that the priests arriving from Constantinople would have a place to serve. Seven columns to support the church were formed from the wood of a cypress tree that had grown in the king’s garden. Six of the columns were erected without a problem, but the seventh could not be moved from the place where it had been carved. St. Nino and her disciples prayed through the night, and at dawn they watched as a youth, encompassed by a brilliant light, descended from the heavens and raised the column. The miraculous column began to shine and stopped in mid-air at a height of twelve cubits.
Sweet-smelling myrrh began to flow from under the Holy Pillar’s foundations, and the entire population of Mtskheta flocked to that place to receive its blessing. Approaching the Life-giving Pillar, the sick were healed, the blind received sight, and the paralyzed began to walk.  By that time a certain Bishop John and his suite had arrived from Constantinople. St. Constantine the Great sent a cross, an icon of the Savior, a fragment from the Life-giving Cross of our Lord (from the place where His feet lay), and a nail from His Crucifixion as gifts to the newly enlightened King Mirian and his people.

At the confluence of the Mtkvari and Aragvi Rivers in Mtskheta, the king and queen, the royal court, and all the people of Kartli were baptized into the Christian Faith. After the glorious baptism, Bishop John and his retinue from Constantinople set off toward southern Georgia, for the village of Erusheti. There they built churches and presented the Christian community with the nail from our Lord’s Crucifixion. Soon after, they began to construct Manglisi Church and placed the fragment from the Life-giving Cross inside.

King Mirian wanted to keep some of the newly obtained sacred objects in the capital city, but St.Nino informed him that one of the holiest objects, the Robe of our Savior, was already located in Mtskheta. The king summoned the priest Abiatar and inquired about the Robe, then rejoiced greatly after Abiatar confirmed St. Nino’s words that the Robe of the Lord was held in the embrace of Sidonia, who was buried under the stump of the cypress tree which now served as the pedestal for the Life-giving Pillar.

At that time a lush, sweet-smelling, wonder-working tree grew up on a mountain over Mtskheta and, at Bishop John’s suggestion, Prince Revi, the son of King Mirian, ordered that the tree be chopped down and a cross formed from its wood. The tree was chopped down and replanted, without its roots, next to a church that was under construction. For thirty-seven days the tree retained its original appearance—even its leaves did not fade or wither. Then, after thirty-seven days had passed, three crosses were formed from its wood.

For many days after this miracle the people of Mtskheta saw a vision: during the night a fiery cross shone above the church, surrounded by stars. When morning came, two of the stars had moved away from the cross in opposite directions—one to the west and the other to the east. The fiery cross headed to the north, stopped for some time over the hill on the other side of the River Aragvi, then disappeared.

St. Nino advised King Mirian to erect one of the three crosses in the west, on Tkhoti Mountain, and another in the east, in the village of Ujarma. But it was unclear where the third cross should be erected, so King Mirian prayerfully beseeched the Lord to reveal to him the place.  The Lord heard his prayers and sent an angel to show him the place: a rocky hill to the north of the capital, at the confluence of the Aragvi and Mtkvari Rivers. Today this hill is called Jvari (Cross) and upon it towers the magnificent church of Jvari Monastery. At the moment the cross was erected on this hill, all the idols in Mtskheta fell and shattered to pieces.

Prior to his death King Mirian blessed his heir, Prince Bakar, and urged him to dedicate his life to the Holy Trinity and fight ceaselessly against idolaters. Then he peacefully reposed in the Lord.

According to his will, Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles King Mirian was buried in the upper church at Samtavro, where today a convent in honor of St. Nino is located. The king was too modest to be buried in the lower church, the Svetitskhoveli Cathedral, in which the Life-giving Pillar had been preserved.
Queen Nana reposed two years later and was buried next to her husband.
1st v. Archangel Michael at Colossus, later called Chone The miracle performed by

The Miracle of the Holy Chief Commander Archangel Michael at Colossae. In Phrygia, not far from the city of Hieropolis, in a place called Cheretopos, there was a church named for the Archangel Michael, built over a miraculous spring.

This church was built by a certain inhabitant of the city of Laodicia in gratitude to God for healing his mute daughter. The holy Chief Commander Michael appeared to this man in a dream and revealed to him that his daughter would receive the gift of speech after drinking from the water of the spring. The girl actually did receive healing and began to speak. After this miracle, the father and his daughter and all their family were baptized. In fervent gratitude, the father built the church in honor of the holy Chief Commander Michael. Not only did Christians begin to come to the spring for healing, but also pagans. In so doing, many of the pagans turned from their idols and were converted to the faith in Christ.

At this church of the holy Chief Commander Michael, a certain pious man by the name of Archippus served for sixty years as church custodian. By his preaching and by the example of his saintly life he brought many pagans to faith in Christ. With the general malice of that time towards Christians, and especially against Archippus, the pagans thought to destroy the church in order to prevent people from coming to that holy place of healing, and at the same time kill Archippus.

Toward this end they made a confluence of the Lykokaperos and Kufos Rivers and directed its combined flow against the church. St Archippus prayed fervently to the Chief Commander Michael to ward off the danger. Through his prayer the Archangel Michael appeared at the temple, and with a blow of his staff, opened a wide fissure in a rock and commanded the rushing torrents of water to flow into it. The temple remained unharmed. Seeing such an awesome miracle, the pagans fled in terror. Archippus and the Christians gathered in church glorified God and gave thanks to the holy Archangel Michael for the help. The place where the rivers plunged into the fissure received the name "Chonae", which means "plunging."
The Chudov ("of the Miracle") monastery in Moscow is named for this Feast.
6 September - The miracle is the springs which St. Michael is said to have drawn from the rock at Colossae (later called Chonae, the present Khonas, on the Lycus). The pagans directed a stream against the sanctuary of St. Michael to destroy it, but the archangel split the rock by lightning to give a new bed to the stream, and sanctified forever the waters which came from the gorge.
The Greeks claim that this apparition took place about the middle of the first century and celebrate a feast in commemoration of it. {MELKITE}
Troparion of the Angels (tone 4)  Captains and Leaders of the armies of heaven, unworthy as we are, we beseech you without cease to surround us with your intercessions and cover us beneath the shelter of the glory of your ethereal wings. We bend our knees and cry out with perseverance, "Deliver us from danger, O Princes of the Powers on high!"
Exapostilarion of the Holy Archangel Michael Radiantly reflecting illuminations of great brightness of the Trinity, O Archangel, you pass like lightning across the whole creation,fulfilling the divine commands, and guarding, preserving and protecting those who joyfully sing your praises.  Pray that St Michael and all angels will intercede with God for our protection and salvation.
Martyrdom of St.Aristobulus one of the seventy apostles bishop of Abratabias performed many miracles.
On this day St. Aristobulus, one of the seventy apostles that was chosen and sent to preach by the Lord before His passion, was martyred. He received along with the disciples the gifts of the Spirit the comforter, accompanied, ministered to them and preached with them the Life-giving Gospel. He turned many to the path of salvation, believed in the Lord Christ, baptized them and taught them the Divine commandments. The disciples ordained him bishop for the city of Abratabias, and he went there, preached it's people, performed many miracles, taught and baptized them. Many tribulations and humiliation befell him from the Jews and the Greeks, who threw him out many times, and cast him with stones.
Having finished his strife, he departed in peace. St. Paul had mentioned him in his Epistle to the Romans (Ch.16:10).
"To Greet Apelles, who is approved (has gone through so much for) in Christ.
Greet those who belong to the family of Aristobulus. "

May his prayers be with us. Amen.
1st v. Saint Archippus (Greek for "master of the horse")  the saint at Colossae, son of devout Christians from the city of Hieropolis; He persuaded many pagans who came to the holy spring to accept holy Baptism, to forsake pagan impiety, and to turn to the One True God and Savior Jesus Christ
At age ten went to pray in the church of the holy Chief Commander Michael and he remained at this temple to serve as church caretaker.

He led a strict and ascetic manner of life, constantly at fasting and prayer.
   He persuaded many pagans who came to the holy spring to accept holy Baptism, to forsake pagan impiety, and turn to the One True God and Savior Jesus Christ. Tenacious pagans headed by idolous priests repeatedly tried to kill St Archippus, but each time the Lord delivered him out of their hands.
   Finally, the pagans devised a plan to destroy the church and at the same time kill also Archippus by flooding the spot where both the church and the curative spring stood. Seeing the preparations for this wicked deed, St Archippus firmly resolved not to abandon the holy place, and he prayed to God and to the Archangel Michael to preserve the church and the spring. The Lord heard his prayer, and the saint witnessed the great Miracle of the Chief Commander Michael at Colossae. Miraculously delivered from death, St Archippus lived at the church into his old age, and he died peacefully at the age of 70. Christians buried the saint at Colossae, at the place of his deeds
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1st v.St.  Epitacius and Basileus body thrown into sea found by Elpidiphorus through angel revelation Martyrs both bishops
In Hispánia sanctórum Mártyrum Epitácii Epíscopi, et Basiléi.
    In Spain, the holy martyrs Epitacius, a bishop, and Basileus.
Epitacius was the first bishop of Tuy, Spain. Basileus ruled Braga, Portugal. At Amasea in Pontus, St. Basileus, bishop and martyr, whose illustrious martyrdom occurred under Emperor Licinius.  His body was thrown into the sea, but was found by Elpidiphorus, through the revelation of an angel, and was honorably buried.
Epitacius and Basileus MM (RM) 1st century. It is likely that Saint Epitacius was the first bishop of Tuy in Spanish Galicia and Basileus the first bishop of Braga, Portugal (Benedictines).

St. Antipas 68 Martyr and disciple of St. John the Apostle who called Antipas "my faithful witness." body untouched by fire tomb was the site of many miracles
Pérgami, in Asia, sancti Antípæ, testis fidélis, cujus méminit sanctus Joánnes in Apocalypsi.  Ipse autem Antípas, sub Domitiáno Imperatóre, in bovem æneum candéntem conjéctus, martyrium consummávit.
    At Pergamum in Asia, the faithful witness, St. Antipas, who was mentioned by St. John in the Apocalypse.  Under Emperor Domitian, he was enclosed in an ox made of brass that had been heated to redness, and thus completed his martyrdom.
The Hieromartyr Antipas, a disciple of the holy Apostle John the Theologian (September 26), was bishop of the Church of Pergamum during the reign of the emperor Nero (54-68).   During these times, everyone who would not offer sacrifice to the idols lived under threat of either exile or execution by order of the emperor. On the island of Patmos (in the Aegean Sea) the holy Apostle John the Theologian was imprisoned, he to whom the Lord revealed the future judgment of the world and of Holy Church.

"And to the angel of the Church of Pergamum write: the words of him who has the sharp two-edged sword. I know where you live, where the throne of Satan is, and you cleave unto My Name, and have not renounced My faith, even in those days when Antipas was My faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwells" (Rev 2:12-13).

By his personal example, firm faith and constant preaching about Christ, St Antipas began to turn the people of Pergamum from offering sacrifice to idols. The pagan priests reproached the bishop for leading the people away from their ancestral gods, and they demanded that he stop preaching about Christ and offer sacrifice to the idols instead.
St Antipas calmly answered that he was not about to serve the demons that fled from him, a mere mortal. He said he worshiped the Lord Almighty, and he would continue to worship the Creator of all, with His Only-Begotten Son, and the Holy Spirit. The pagan priests retorted that their gods existed from of old, whereas Christ was not from of old but was crucified under Pontius Pilate as a criminal. The saint replied that the pagan gods were the work of human hands and that everything said about them was filled with iniquities and vices. He steadfastly confessed his faith in the Son of God, incarnate of the Most Holy Virgin.
The enraged pagan priests dragged the Hieromartyr Antipas to the temple of Artemis and threw him into a red-hot copper bull, where usually they put the sacrifices to the idols. In the red-hot furnace the martyr prayed loudly to God, imploring Him to receive his soul and to strengthen the faith of the Christians. He went to the Lord peacefully, as if he were going to sleep (+ ca. 68).
At night Christians took the body of the Hieromartyr Antipas, which was untouched by the fire.hey buried him at Pergamum. The tomb of the hieromartyr became a font of miracles and of healings from various sicknesses.  We pray to the Hieromartyr Antipas for relief from toothache, and diseases of the teeth.
Apostles of the Seventy The Holy Silas, Silvanus, Crescens, Epenetus and Andronicus disciples of the Savior.
Silvanus_Crescens_Silas.jpg

St Silas was a respected figure in the original Church at Jerusalem, one of the "chief men among the brethren" (Acts 15:22). The Council of the Apostles was convened at Jerusalem in the year 51 to deal with the question of whether Gentile Christian converts should be required to observe the Mosaic Law. The Apostles sent a message with Paul and Barnabas to the Christians of Antioch, giving the decision of the Council that Christians of Gentile origin did not have to observe the prescriptions of the Mosaic Law. Nonetheless, they were told that they must refrain from partaking of foods offered to idols, from things strangled and from blood, to refrain from fornication (Acts 15:20-29). Together with Sts Paul and Barnabas, the Council of the Apostles sent Sts Silas and Jude to explain the message in greater detail, since they both were filled with the grace of the Holy Spirit. St Jude was later sent back to Jerusalem, but St Silas remained at Antioch and zealously assisted St Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles, on his missionary journeys preaching the Gospel. They visited Syria, Cilicia, Macedonia.
In the city of Philippi they were accused of inciting unrest among the people, and for this they were arrested, beaten with rods, and then thrown into prison. At midnight, when the saints were at prayer, suddenly there was a strong earthquake, their chains fell off from them and the doors of the prison opened. The prison guard, supposing that the prisoners had fled, wanted to kill himself, but was stopped by the Apostle Paul. Then, he fell down trembling at the feet of the saints, and with faith accepted their preaching about Christ. He then led them out of the prison and took them to his own home, where he washed their wounds, and was baptized together with all his household.
From Philippi Sts Paul and Silas proceeded on to the cities of Amphipolis, Apollonia and Thessalonica. In each city they made new converts to Christ and built up the Church.
At Corinth the holy Apostle Silas was consecrated as bishop, and worked many miracles and signs, and there he finished his life
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Departure of St. Jason, one of the Seventy disciples accompanied St. Paul Acts 17:9) ordained bishop by St. Paul over Tarsus God performed through him many miracles and signs
On this day St. Jason, one of the seventy disciples who were chosen by the Lord, departed. He ministered with the disciples before the passion of the Savior, and performed many signs and wonders. Then he was supported by the grace and power on the day of Pentecost.

He was born in Tarsus, and was the first to believe from this city. He accompanied St. Paul on his evangelical missions, and journeyed with him to many countries. He was arrested with St. Paul and Silas in Thesalonica, and when they had taken security from Jason and the rest, they let them go. (Acts 17:9)
He was ordained bishop by St. Paul over Tarsus where he shepherded the church of Christ with the best of care. He preached the Gospel also in the city of Korkiras, many believed on his hands and he baptized them. He built for them a church in the name of St. Stephen the Archdeacon.
When the Governor of the city knew about this, he arrested him and imprisoned him. He met seven thieves in the prison, taught them the faith and baptized them. They confessed their faith in the Lord Christ openly before the Governor who put them in a caldron filled with tar and sulphur, they departed and were granted the crown of martyrdom.
Then, the Governor brought St. Jason from the prison, and tortured him with much torture but he was not harmed. The daughter of the Governor watched this torture from her window and she believed in the Lord Christ, the God of St. Jason. She took off her jewelry and ornaments and distributed them among the poor, and confessed that she was Christian and believed in the God of Jason. Her father became angry, he threw her in prison, and ordered to throw arrows at her. She gave up her pure spirit in the hand of Christ whom she loved.
The Governor sent St. Jason to one of the islands to be tortured there. He took a boat with some soldiers to this island, and God drowned them all and saved St. Jason, who continued to teach and preach for many years until another Governor was installed. The new Governor brought him and the Christians who were with him, and tortured them much. When the Governor saw that his torture did not harm their bodies, he and all those in his city also believed in the Lord Christ Who only Has the power to protect His chosen one. The Saint baptized them all, taught them the commandments of the Gospel, and built for them churches.
God performed through him many miracles and signs. He departed in a good old age. May his prayers be with us. Amen.
100 Holy Martyr Sukhios &16 Gruzian (Georgian) Companions new names: to the eldest -- Sukhios (replacing his old name Bagadras), and  companions Andrew, Anastasias, Talale, Theodorites, Juhirodion, Jordan, Kondrates, Lukian, Mimnenos, Nerangios, Polyeuktos, James, Phoki, Domentian, Victor and Zosima.
They were illustrious dignitaries who served at the court of the Albanian (Hagbanite) ruler (i.e. "Caucasian Albania" -- a realm on the present day territory of Azerbaizhan).

Escorting the Albanian ruler's daughter Satenika, spouse of the Armenian emperor Artaxar (88-123), Saint Sukhios and his 16 Companions arrived in Artashat, the ancient capital of Armenia (the city was later destroyed by the Romans in the year 163).

Preaching there at the time was the Greek Christian named Chrysos, who had been enlightened and ordained by the holy Disciple Thaddeus (+ c. 44, Comm. 21 August).

The dignitaries came to believe in Christ the Saviour, and they firmly resolved to devote all their life to the service of God.
All seventeen of the newly-converted Gruzianians followed Chrysos into Mesopotamia. At the time of their Baptism in the waters of the Euphrates, made over them by Bishop Chrysos, they were vouchsafed to behold the Lord of Glory Jesus Christ.  At the place of their Baptism, the holy martyrs erected a venerable cross and named it the "Cross of the Annunciation". Bishop Chrysos at the Baptism gave all the saints new names: to the eldest -- Sukhios (replacing his old name Bagadras), and to his companions the names -- Andrew, Anastasias, Talale, Theodorites, Juhirodion, Jordan, Kondrates, Lukian, Mimnenos, Nerangios, Polyeuktos, James, Phoki, Domentian, Victor and Zosima.

After the martyr's death of Blessed Chrysos, Saint Sukhios became the spiritual leader of the brethren. All soon resettled in a wild locality on Mount Sukaketi, not far from the mountain village of Bagrevandi. Here the former dignitaries led very strict ascetic lives, the scant mountain vegetation sufficed them for food, and for drink -- a cold spring of water.

The new ruler of pagan Albania, Datianos, learned of this, that his former officials had accepted Christianity and had gone off into prayerful solitude. He commissioned his associate Barnapas with a detachment of soldiers to persuade them to return to court and return also to their former faith. Barnapas searched out Saint Sukhios and his companions, but in keeping of their vow of service to God, they refused all the entreaties.

Then by order of Barnapas, Saint Sukhios and his companions in cross-like form were nailed to the ground and consigned to burning. After the burning, their bodies were dismembered and scattered all about Mount Sukaketi, from which the martyrs received also the title the "Mesukevians" (more correctly -- "Sukaketians"). This occurred in the year 123 (by another account -- in the year 130; although an Athos parchment manuscript of the XI Century from the Iveria monastery indicates the year as 100).

The holy remains of the martyrs remained undecayed and unburied until the time of the IV Century, when they were placed in graves and consigned to earth by local Christians (the names of the holy martyrs were found written on a cliff).

The holy PriestMartyr Gregory, Enlightener of Armenia (+ c. 335, Comm. 30 September), built a church on this spot and established a monastery. And afterwards, a curative spring of water was discovered there.( shown a golden base where the cathedral at Vagharshapat (later Etchmiadzin) see map close to Yerevan {
Even when Agathangelos describes well-known events, he borrows from the Bible. Diocletian's persecution of the Church is talked about completely in Bible images, with no reference to any actual events. Gregory is nourished in the terrible pit as Elijah was; Drtad's bestial transformation recalls that of Nebuchadnezzar. There are also countless references to liturgical and patristic writings, and it is unfortunate that we modern readers miss so many of these. Agathangelos presumed on the part of his readers an intimate familiarity with the Scriptures, Liturgy, and spiritual writings that most of us today simply do not possess.

Agathangelos had a purpose in mind as he wrote about Gregory. That purpose is reflected in some of the differences in emphasis between Agathangelos' work about the saint and the work of others. For example, Movses Khorenatsi gives us much more detail about Gregory's origins, and tries to tie him to the first enlightener, Thaddeus. In general, he gives more detail about all aspects of Gregory's life than Agathangelos does. But Agathangelos is not interested in establishing an apostolic tie for Gregory, or presenting his life in detail. His purpose is mainly to enhance Gregory's role as the first bishop, first church builder, and first establisher of a hierarchy in the Armenian Church. He wants to show the importance of the hierarchical structure of the Church, and emphasize the authority of the patriarch's position, and this he does by tying both to the great saint so highly venerated in the Church.
Central to this effort is Agathangelos' description of Gregory's vision of the burial place of the martyrs. Gregory is shown a golden base where the cathedral at Vagharshapat (later Etchmiadzin) is to be built. Thus Agathangelos establishes a divine foundation for the cathedral and for the church leaders who will reside there ­ so again, he makes a case for the "rightness" of the hierarchs and the hierarchical structure of the Church.}
St John on this day The Church commemorates because of the annual pilgrimage to his grave miiracle of red dust
When St John was more than one hundred years old, he took seven of his disciples and went to a spot outside the city of Ephesus.
There he told them to dig a grave in the form of a cross.
Then he climbed into the grave and told his disciples to cover him with earth.
Later, the grave was opened and the saint's body was not there. 
Each year on May 8 a red dust would arise from the grave which the faithful collected in order to be healed of their illnesses.
St John's main Feast is on September 26.

102 Saint Auxibius encountered holy Apostle /Evangelist Mark who established Auxibius as bishop in the city of Soli miracles and the signs worked
Born at Rome in a rich family he was raised with his brother Tempstagoras, and from an early age he displayed remarkable talents. In the schools of Rome he easily learned the secular sciences. His parents wanted their son to marry. Learning of this, the youth secretly left Rome and journeyed to the East.

Arriving upon the island of Cyprus, he settled in the environs of Limnitis, not far from the city of Soli. By God's dispensation, he encountered the holy Apostle and Evangelist Mark (September 27, October 30, January 4, April 25), preaching the Word of God at Cyprus. St Mark established Auxibius as bishop in the city of Soli, and himself went to preach at Alexandria.

St Auxibius went toward the western gates of the city and settled near the pagan temple of Zeus. Gradually he converted the local pagan priest and other idol-worshippers to Christianity. Once, St Heraklides (September 17) came to St Auxibius. He had been made a bishop in Cyprus earlier by St Mark, and he consulted with St Auxibius to preach the Gospel of Christ

One day, St Auxibius arrived at the marketplace and began to preach to the people about Christ. Many, seeing the miracles and the signs worked by the saint, believed in Christ. Among the converted were many people from the surrounding villages. One man, by the name of Auxinios, remained with St Auxibius and assisted him until the end of his days.

After a certain while Tempstagoras, the brother of St Auxibius, came from Rome. He was baptized with his wife, became a priest, and served in one of the churches. St Auxibius guided his diocese for fifty years and died peacefully in the year 102, leaving his disciple Auxinios upon the cathedra.

127-140 St. Zoe & Exsuperius (Hesperus) and 2 sons martyred for their faith children encouraged parents to remain faithful bodies were preserved in the fire unharmed, and angelic singing was heard, glorifying the confessors of the Lord
Attalíæ, in Pamphylia, sanctórum Mártyrum Exsupérii, et Zoes uxóris, atque Cyríaci et Theodúli filiórum; qui, sub Hadriáno Imperatóre, cum servi essent cujúsdam viri Pagáni, omnes, ipso hero jubénte, ob líberam Christiánæ fídei professiónem, primum verberáti sunt ac veheménter torti, deínde, in accénsum clíbanum injécti, ánimas suas Deo tradidérunt.
 At Attalia in Pamphylia, the holy martyrs Exuperius and Zoe, his wife, with their sons, Cyriacus and Theodulus.  They were the slaves of a man named Paganus.  During the reign of Emperor Hadrian, because of their outspoken profession of the Christian faith, their master ordered them to be scourged and severely tortured.  They were finally cast into an oven, and in this way gave up their souls to God.
 
The Holy Martyrs Hesperus, his Wife Zoe, and their Children Cyriacus and Theodulus suffered for their faith in Christ in the second century, during the persecution under Hadrian (117-138). They had been Christians since their childhood, and they also raised their children in piety. They were all slaves of an illustrious Roman named Catullus, living in Attalia, Asia Minor. While serving their earthly master, the saints never defiled themselves with food offered to idols, which pagans were obliged to use.

Once, Catullus sent Hesperus on business to Tritonia. Sts Cyriacus and Theodulus decided to run away, unable to endure constant contact with pagans. St Zoe, however, did not bless her sons to do this. Then they asked their mother's blessing to confess their faith in Christ openly, and they received it. When the brothers explained to Catullus that they were Christian, he was surprised, but he did not deliver them for torture. Instead, he sent them with their mother to St Hesperus at Tritonia, hoping that the parents would persuade their children to deny Christ. At Tritonia, the saints lived in tranquility for a while, preparing for martyrdom.
All the slaves returned to Attalia for the birthday of Catullus' son, and a feast was prepared at the house in honor of the pagan goddess Fortuna. Food was sent to the slaves from the master's table, and this included meat and wine that had been sacrificed to idols. The saints would not eat the food. Zoe poured the wine upon the ground and threw the meat to the dogs. When he learned of this, Catullus gave orders to torture Zoe's sons, Sts Cyriacus and Theodulus.
The brothers were stripped, suspended from a tree, and raked with iron implements before the eyes of their parents, who counselled their children to persevere to the end.

Then the parents, Sts Hesperus and Zoe, were subjected to terrible tortures. Finally, they threw all four martyrs into a red-hot furnace, where they surrendered their souls to the Lord. Their bodies were preserved in the fire unharmed, and angelic singing was heard, glorifying the confessors of the Lord.

Hesperus, and his wife, Zoe, both Christians, were slaves of Catulus at Pamphylia, Asia Minor, during the reign of Emperor Hadrian(117-138).
When they refused to eat food offered to the Gods by their master on the birth of their son, they and their two sons, Syriacus and Theodulus, were tortured and then roasted to death in a furnace.

127-140 Exsuperius (Hesperus), Zoë, Cyriacus & Theodulus MM (RM) According to a Greek legend, this family of slaves belonged to a rich pagan of Attalia, Pamphylia, Asia Minor. Exsuperius, his wife Zoë, and their two sons were roasted to death for refusing to participate with their master in ritual sacrifice. It was the children who encouraged their parents to remain faithful. The legend names the husband Hesperus (Attwater2, Benedictines, Coulson).
135 Saint Leontius Roman Greek general martyrs killed with Hypatius and Theodolus in Tripoli, Phoenicia (Syria) many miracles occurred and were attributed to him

in Tripoli, Lebanon, or Libya, Leontius (d.c. 135) + Leontius, Hypatius (Ipazio), and Theodulus MM (RM) Died in Tripoli, Phoenicia (Syria), 135? Saint Leontius of Tripoli was a Greek general in the Roman army serving in Syria. A religious man, he was tortured and beaten to death under the Emperor Vespasian for converting non-Christians. Two soldiers who were to arrest him, Hypatius and Theodulus were converted and martyred as well.

Leontius was buried in the yard of a woman by the name of Giovannia (Joanna). Her husband built a church in honor of Leontius and it was there that many miracles occurred and were attributed to him. Many other churches were dedicated to him. A cathedral at Bosra, Syria was consecrated to him, SS. Sergio and Bacco in 513. He was formerly the patron saint of Syria (Benedictines, Bibliotheca Sanctorum, VII, 1966, researched by Robert Leonzio; Encyclopedia).
140 Holy Virgin Martyr Paraskeva of Rome only daughter of Christian parents, Agathon and Politia, from her early years she dedicated herself to God. She spent much of her time in prayer and the study of the Holy Scriptures. After the death of her parents St Paraskeva distributed all of her inheritance to the poor, and consecrated her virginity to Christ. Emulating the holy Apostles, she began to preach to the pagans about Christ, converting many to Christianity.

She was arrested during the reign of Antoninus Pius (138-161) because she refused to worship the idols. She was brought to trial and fearlessly confessed herself a Christian. Neither enticements of honors and material possessions, nor threats of torture and death shook the firmness of the saint nor turned her from Christ. She was given over to beastly tortures. They put a red-hot helmet on her head and threw her in a cauldron filled with boiling oil and pitch. By the power of God the holy martyr remained unharmed. When the emperor peered into the cauldron, St Paraskeva threw a drop of the hot liquid in his face, and he was burned. The emperor began to ask her for help, and the holy martyr healed him. After this the emperor set her free.

Traveling from one place to another to preach the Gospel, St Paraskeva arrived in a city where the governor was named Asclepius. Here again they tried the saint and sentenced her to death. They took her to an immense serpent living in a cave, so that it would devour her. But St Paraskeva made the Sign of the Cross over the snake and it died. Asclepius and the citizens witnessed this miracle and believed in Christ. She was set free, and continued her preaching. In a city where the governor was a certain Tarasius, St Paraskeva endured fierce tortures and was beheaded in the year 140.

Many miracles took place at the saint's tomb: the blind received sight, the lame walked, and barren women gave birth to children. It is not only in the past that the saint performed her miracles, but even today she helps those who call on her in faith
.
160 Saint Potitus The Holy Martyr accepted holy Baptism at thirteen by the power of God he worked wondrous miracles settled on Mount Garganus and lived in solitude, among the animals
Suffered under the emperor Antoninus Pius (reigned 138-161). Having become familiar with the Christian teaching, the young Potitus believed in the true God and accepted holy Baptism at thirteen years of age. When he learned of this, his pagan father was extremely upset and tried, first by endearments, and then by threats to dissuade his son from his faith in Christ the Savior, but his efforts were in vain. Impressed by the boy's firmness of faith, the father also came to believe in the Son of God and became a Christian himself.

St Potitus traveled through many lands preaching about Christ, and by the power of God he worked wondrous miracles.

In the region of Epiros, lived the illustrious woman Kyriake, the wife of a senator; she was afflicted with leprosy. Hearing of St Potitus, she summoned him and asked him to heal her. The saint declared that if she believed in Christ, she would be healed. The woman accepted holy Baptism and was immediately made well. Seeing such a miracle, her husband and all their household believed in Christ and were baptized as well.
After this, the saint settled on Mount Garganus and lived in solitude, among the animals. He was found there by servants of the emperor Antoninus, whose daughter was possessed by a demon. Through the lips of the maiden, the devil said that he would come out of her only if Potitus should come. They brought the holy youth to the emperor, and through the prayers of St Potitus the demon released the girl. But instead of being grateful, the emperor treated the saint with inhuman cruelty. For his firm confession of faith in Christ the Savior, and for his refusal to offer sacrifice to the pagan gods, to whom the emperor imputed the healing of his daughter, he ordered that the saint's tongue be torn out, and that he be blinded. After lengthy torture, St Potitus was finally beheaded
180 St. Melito Bishop of Sardis in Lydia, Asia Minor; powerful gift of prophecy as attested by Saint Jerome and Eusebius

180 ST MELITO, Bishop OF SARDIS
EUSEBIUS and other ecclesiastical writers greatly commend the writings of  St Melito, Bishop of Sardis in Lydia, who during the second century wrote an Apology for Christianity addressed to the Emperor Marcus Aurelius and many other works, theological and ethical. Eusebius and St Jerome give the titles or the subjects of a number of these writings, but of the books themselves little has survived but a few fragments. According to Tertullian, who was rather disdainful of his oratorical diction and style, St Melito was regarded as a prophet by many people. His name occurs in some of the old martyrologia, but beyond the fact that he was unmarried and was said to have ruled his conduct by the teaching of the Holy Spirit, nothing whatever is known of his life or death.
Owing to the similarity between the names of Sardis and Sardinia, St Melito has often been confused with a fictitious namesake reputed to have been a pupil of St Boniface, the first bishop of Cagliari, and to have suffered martyrdom in Sardinia under Domitian.

There is a very full article on Melito, concerned of course principally with the writings attributed to him, in DTC., vol. x, cc. 540—547, to which the writer, E. Amann, appends a full bibliography. See also G. Salmon in DCE., vol. iii, pp. 894—900, and Bardenhewer, Altkirchliche Literatur, vol. i, pp. 546—557.
He was praised by Eusebius and had the gift of prophecy. Melito had a great reputation as an ecclesiastical writer, authoring an Apologia for Christianity to Emperor Marcus Aurelius. He was also revered by Tertullian as a prophet.

Melito of Sardis B (AC). Bishop Melito of Sardis, Lydia, was an ecclesiastical writer of the period of the apologists. There are some writings attributed him that are now believed to have been composed by an unknown writer. Nevertheless, he was endowed with a powerful gift of prophecy, which led to the surname of "the Prophet," as attested by Saint Jerome and Eusebius (Attwater2, Benedictines, Husenbeth).

SAINT MELETION, THE BISHOP OF SARDIS IN ASIA MINOR
Meletion was a celebrated shepherd of the second-century Church. Governing with great ability, he endeavored to gather all the books of Sacred Scripture into a single Codex. By his meekness and piety, Meletion again labored to restore peace in the Church of Laodicea, which arose over the controversy regarding the celebration of Pascha (The Feast of the Resurrection). Besides this, he defended Christianity against the pagans. He traveled to Rome about the year 170 A.D. and submitted to Emperor Marcus Aurelius a written Apologia (Defense) of the Faith and of the Christian Church. St. Meletion, this learned, pious and zealous man, died peacefully in the L

  190 Victor at Damascus The Holy Martyr was a soldier; miracles
during the reign of the emperor Marcus Aurelius the Philosopher (161-180). When the emperor began a persecution against Christians, Victor refused to offer sacrifice to the pagan gods. Such obligatory sacrifices were a test of a soldier's loyalty to the gods, the emperor and the state. The saint was given over to torture, but he came through all the torments unharmed. By the power of prayer he was victorious over a sorcerer, who from that point gave up give sorcery and became a Christian.

Through St Victor's prayers, blind soldiers suddenly received their sight. Witnessing the miracle worked by the Lord through St Victor, Stephanida, the young Christian wife of one of the torturers, openly glorified Christ, for which she was condemned to a cruel death. She was tied to two palm trees bent to the ground, which when released, sprung back and tore her apart. She was fifteen years old.
The torturer ordered that the holy Martyr Victor be beheaded. Hearing the commander's order, St Vincent told his executioners that they would all die in twelve days, and that the commander would be captured by the enemy in twenty-four days. As he foretold, so it came to pass.
The martyrs suffered in the second century at Damascus, where their venerable relics were buried.
2nd v. Gervase and Protase twin sons of Saints Vitalis and Valeria, suffered beheading for the faith martyrs themselves appeared to Saint Ambrose in an apparition MM (RM)
Medioláni sanctórum Mártyrum Gervásii et Protásii fratrum, ex quibus priórem támdiu jussit Astásius Judex plumbátis cædi, quoúsque ille spíritum exhaláret; posteriórem vero, fústibus cæsum, cápite truncári.  Horum córpora, Dómino revelánte, beátus Ambrósius sánguine conspérsa et ita incorrúpta réperit, ac si eo die ipsi fuíssent interémpti; in quorum translatióne cæcus, féretri tactu, lumen recépit, et plúrimi, vexáti a dæmónibus, liberáti sunt.
    At Milan, the holy martyrs Gervase and Protase, brothers.  The former, by order of the judge Astasius, was scourged with leaded whips for so long that he expired.  The latter, after being scourged with rods, was beheaded.  Through divine revelation their bodies were found by St. Ambrose.  They were partly covered with blood, and as free from corruption as if they had been put to death that very day.  When the translation took place, a blind man recovered his sight by touching their relics, and many persons possessed by demons were delivered.

Nazarius, Celsius, Gervasius und Protasius
Orthodoxe Kirche: Nazarius, Celsius, Gervasius und Protasius - 14. Oktober Katholische Kirche: Gervasius und Protasius - 19. Juni
SS. GERVASE AND PROTASE, MARTYRS
IN a letter addressed to his sister, Marcellina, St Ambrose describes the circumstances which led to the finding of the relics of SS. Gervase and Protase, who from that time to the present day have been venerated as the first martyrs of Milan. He tells her that he had completed the famous basilica which bears his name, and was preparing for the dedication, when he was asked by some of his people to solemnize it with all the ceremonial that had dignified his recent consecration of a Roman church dedicated in honour of the Apostles and enshrining some of their relics. "I will do so", he had replied, "if I can find the necessary relics." In order to fulfil his promise-St Augustine says it was as the result of information imparted to him in a vision-he caused excavations to be made in the cemetery church of SS. Nabor and Felix. They revealed the remains of two very tall men buried in close proximity. The heads were severed from the bodies, but the skeletons were otherwise entire. These were identified as being the bones of SS. Gervase and Protase, of whom nothing was remembered except their names and a vague tradition of their martyrdom. The relics were borne on litters, first to the basilica of Faustus, where they were venerated by a great concourse of people, then to the Ambrosian church amid the rejoicings of the whole city.
   A number of miracles reported as having taken place during the translation were regarded as attesting the genuineness of the relics.  St Ambrose, his secretary Paulinus, and St Augustine, who were all three in Milan at the time, particularly mention the case of a blind butcher, Severus, who regained his sight upon touching the fringe of the ornaments that covered the remains. The man made a vow to continue in the service of the church of the saints and was still a servant there in 411, when Paulinus was writing the life of St Ambrose.
No credence can be attached to the so-called acts of these two saints, based as they are on a letter purporting to have emanated from St Ambrose, but now universally admitted to be spurious. They represent Gervase and Protase as the twin sons of the two martyrs, Vitalis and Valeria, and as having suffered in the days of Nero, ten years after the death of their father. Gervase is said to have been beaten to death with leaded whips; Protase was beheaded.
Much controversy has arisen over these two martyrs. Dr J. Rendel Harris has boldly attempted to identify them with the pagan deities Castor and Pollux, whilst others have contented themselves with denying their existence. The majority of modern hagiographers, however, regard them as genuine martyrs whose history has perished, but who belonged to the reign of the Emperor Antoninus or even to an earlier period. The mortal remains of St Ambrose were laid, at his own wish, beside those of St Gervase and St Protase, and one of his successors in the see of Milan, Angilbert II, in the ninth century, placed the three bodies in a porphyry sarcophagus. It was for some time believed that the bones were removed by the Emperor Frederick Barbarossa, to be subsequently parcelled out to various churches in Germany and France; but this is quite untrue. Actually they remained undisturbed under the high altar of Sant' Ambrogio, where they were rediscovered in 1864. A crypt has since been constructed accessible to worshippers, and there the relics can be viewed behind a panel of glass. From an early date almost all calendars and martyrologies contain an entry commemorating SS. Gervase and Protase on this day, June 19.
The relevant passages of St Ambrose, St Augustine, Paulinus, etc., will be found quoted in the Acta Sanctorum, June, vol. iv, as also the pseudo-Ambrosian letter which professes to narrate the history of the martyrs. For a general discussion of St Ambrose's discovery of the bodies, see F. Savio, Gli antichi Vescovi d'Italia, Milano, pp. 788-810; F. Lanzoni, Diocesi d'Italia, vol. ii, pp. 1000-1007; and CMH., pp. 325-326. There is a certain difficulty in reconciling the statements of St Ambrose and St Augustine regarding the date and day of the week on which the bodies were found and transferred to Sant' Ambrogio; on this, Delehaye has written in some detail in the Analecta Bollandiana, vol. xlix (1931), pp. 30-34. The attempted identification of Gervase and Protase with the Dioscuri has been dealt with by P. Franchi de' Cavalieri in the Nuovo Bullettino di archeologia cristiana, vol. ix (1903), pp. 109-126, and cf. Analecta Bollandiana, vol. xxiii (1904), pp. 427-432.

Nazarius war ein Römer. Er war von Linus getauft worden. Nazarius zog als Wanderprediger durch Italien und kam nach Mailand. Hier traf er Gervasius und Protasius, die Söhne von Vitalis und Valeria. Ihre Eltern hatten bereits den Märtyrertod gefunden. Nazarius kümmerte sich um die Waisen, wurde aber vertrieben und wanderte weiter nach Gallien. Hier konnte er viele Menschen bekehren und taufen. Unter ihnen war auch Celsius, der Nazarius auf seinen weiteren Reisen begleitete. Beide wurden ergriffen und wilden Tieren vorgworfen. Als diese sie nicht anrührten, sollten sie ertränkt werden. Auch dies mißlang und die Folterer bekehrten sich zu Christus und ließen die beiden frei. Nazarius und Celsius kehrten nach Mailand zurück und besuchten Gervasius und Protasius. Sie wurden hier gefangengesetzt und vor Nero gerbacht, der sie köpfen ließ. Auch Gervasius und Protasius wurden hingerichtet. Ihre Gebeine wurden am 17.6.386 von Bischof Ambrosius (nach himmlischen Hinweisen) feierlich erhoben. Es ist das erste bekannte Beispiel einer Auffindung (inventio) von Märtyrerreliquien. Ihre Reliquien befinden sich heute unter dem Hochaltar von S. Ambrogio in Mailand sowie im Breisacher Münster.


2nd century. Tradition relates that Gervase and his twin brother Protase, the sons of Saints Vitalis and Valeria, suffered beheading for the faith. Gervase was said to have been beaten to death with a lead-tipped whip, and Protase was beheaded. They are considered the first martyrs of Milan ever since Saint Ambrose, guided by a vision, unearthed their remains in 386 (see Saint Augustine's City of God, 22).
Saint Paulinus of Nola in his Life of Saint Ambrose says that the martyrs themselves appeared to Saint Ambrose in an apparition.

Ambrose was about to dedicate a new church, which was later called Saint Ambrose the Great, and the people wanted him to do it with the same solemnity as he had at the church dedicated to the holy Apostles. He, however, had no relics for the basilican church. After the vision Ambrose caused the area inside the rails enclosing the tomb of SS. Nabor and Felix to be dug up. There he found the bodies of two very big men, with their bones entire, and in their natural position, but the heads separated from their bodies, with a large quantity of blood, and all the marks which could be desired to ascertain the relics.
Even at the time the relics were discovered by Ambrose nothing was remembered about them except their names and that they were martyrs in an early persecution, perhaps under Nero.

These saints are pictures as youths holding the palm of martyrs. At times one may be holding a scourge loaded with lead and the other a sword, or they may hold stones and be shown with their father, Saint Vitalis. These martyrs are venerated in Milan (Roeder).

150 St. Gervase; tradition has Gervase and his twin brother, Protase, the sons of Vitalis and Valeria, who suffered martyrdom for their Faith. Both children were also martyred for their Faith; Gervase was beaten to death with a lead tipped whip and Protase was beheaded. They are considered the first martyrs of Milan ever since St. Ambrose, guided by a vision, unearthed their remains there 386 .