Holy First Martyrs of the Church of Rome
The day after the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, the Church celebrates the many Christian martyrs who were brutally killed during the first persecution in Rome, which took place under Nero and began in 64.
Saints Peter and Paul
Through preaching, suffering and the witness given to Christ by their personal martyrdom under Nero they enabled the development of the Church and the transmission of the Christian faith
Saint Irenaeus of Lyons
He was the first theologian who lived after the apostolic age to compile an organic synthesis of Christianity. He bequeathed a very rich doctrine, ranging from the pre-eminence of the Church of Rome to the role of Mary as the new Eve
Saint Cyril of Alexandria
He was called “Seal of all the Fathers” because of the way he expounded the doctrine of the Incarnation and defended orthodoxy
Saint Josemaría Escrivá
The founder of Opus Dei had the merit of remembering that all men are called to holiness, which can be achieved first of all through the sanctification of daily work.
Saint William of Vercelli
He is known for the various monasteries he founded in southern Italy, the most famous of which is that of Montevergine.
Nativity of Saint John the Baptist
The birth of the Forerunner, which according to tradition took place at Ain Karem, is the first public sign of the beginning of Messianic times
Saint Joseph Cafasso
He was one of those giants of holiness who illuminated nineteenth-century Turin, full of social problems, striving to do everything “that can contribute to the greater glory of God and to the benefit of souls”.
Saint Thomas More
Saint John Paul II recalled that the message of the English statesman, martyred under Henry VIII, “speaks to men of all times of the inalienable dignity of conscience”
Saint Aloysius Gonzaga
His ardent desire to do the Lord's will was strengthened after his First Communion, which he received from the hands of Saint Charles Borromeo. He is patron of: young people, students, AIDS patients
Saint John of Matera
He was the founder of the Congregation of Pulsano Hermits
Saint Romuald
The founder of the Camaldolese continually went in search of saintly solitude, founding hermitages and small monasteries
