Saint Sebastian

Who they were

The oldest record of Sebastian, the Depositio Martyrum of 354, gives his name, his martyrdom and his burial in the catacombs on the Via Appia. St Ambrose says he came from Milan and was martyred in Rome, in the third or fourth century.

According to his Passion he rose high in the Praetorian Guard and became one of the emperors' personal guards, using his position to help Christians in prison secretly and to witness to the faith among noble families, until he was discovered and condemned for it.

The miracles

There was never a formal cause: Sebastian has been honoured as a martyr since the fourth century. He is counted the third patron of Rome after Peter and Paul, and his relics are in the basilica on the Via Appia that bears his name.

Why that counted as sanctity

Sebastian was ready to risk his position and his life out of loyalty to Christ, serving the persecuted from inside the emperor's own household.

Connected on this site

• Irene of Rome Saint
  “He was, according to tradition, rescued and healed by Irene of Rome, which became a popular subject in 17th-century painting.” — Wikipedia