Athenodorus of Syria
martyr in Syria
Feast: 7 December (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Who they were
In Syria, Saint Athenodorus, martyr, who, as tradition says, after being tortured with fire and with other torments under the emperor Diocletian and the governor Eleusius, was at last condemned to death; but his executioner collapsed to the ground, and since no one else dared to strike him with the sword, he fell asleep in the Lord while praying.
The miracles
There was never a formal cause: he has been honoured as a saint since before the Church's formal processes began.
Why that counted as sanctity
The Roman Martyrology remembers him on 7 December as a martyr in Syria who was tortured under Diocletian and died in prayer when no executioner dared to strike him.
- Roman Martyrology, 7 December (Italian Bishops' Conference, Santo del giorno)
- Wikidata Q111335959 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
Checked against the sources listed on 22 September 2026. Corrections welcome.