Felix and Adauctus

Who they were

Felix and Adauctus were martyred at Rome in 303 under Diocletian and Maximian. Their Acts tell that Felix, a Roman priest, was led to execution after refusing to sacrifice, and on the way an unknown man declared himself a Christian and died with him; the Christians called him Adauctus, 'the one added'. The Acts are considered a legendary expansion of an inscription by Pope Damasus, but their veneration is very old.

The miracles

There was never a formal cause: they have been honoured as martyrs since the fourth century; they are commemorated in the Sacramentary of Gregory the Great. Their church stood over their graves in the cemetery of Commodilla near St Paul's.

Why that counted as sanctity

A priest died for Christ, and a stranger, moved by his witness, joined him - so that his name was lost and he is known only as 'the one added'.

Connected on this site

• Fèlix de Roma Saint
  “Felix and Adauctus were martyrs at Rome in 303, under Diocletian and Maximian.” — this site's research