Feast day: 20 January
Saint Sebastian
Sanctus Sebastianus
An officer of the imperial guard who secretly strengthened Christians awaiting martyrdom; shot with arrows, nursed back to health, he confronted the emperor again and was clubbed to death.
- Born
- 3rd century, traditionally Narbonne, raised at Milan
- Died
- c. 288, Rome, under Diocletian
- Canonization
- Ancient cult: he is named in the Depositio Martyrum of 354 and buried in the catacomb on the Appian Way that bears his name. The narrative details come from fifth-century Acts and are legendary.
- Country
- Roman Empire (Italy)
Biography
Soldier and secret Christian
The fifth-century Passio, attributed in part to the circle of Saint Ambrose, presents Sebastian as a native of Narbonne educated at Milan who enlisted in the Roman army about 283 and rose to the praetorian guard. He used his position to visit imprisoned Christians, to encourage the brothers Marcus and Marcellianus who were wavering before execution, and to bury the dead.
The arrows and the second martyrdom
Denounced to Diocletian, he was tied to a post and shot with arrows by Mauretanian archers and left for dead. According to the Acts, the widow Irene came to bury him and found him alive; she nursed him back to health. Recovered, Sebastian confronted the emperor publicly to rebuke his cruelty and was beaten to death with clubs, his body thrown into the Cloaca Maxima and recovered by a Christian woman named Lucina, who buried him in the catacombs on the Appian Way.
Protector in time of plague
In 680 a plague in Rome ceased after a procession of his relics, and from then he was invoked across Europe against epidemics, together with Saint Roch. His basilica became one of the seven pilgrimage churches of Rome. Renaissance and Baroque painters, drawn by the arrows, made him one of the most represented saints in Western art.
Timeline
- ~c. 283 — Enters the Roman army
- ~c. 286 — Encourages Marcus and Marcellianus before their martyrdom
- ~c. 288 — Shot with arrows; healed by Irene; martyred by clubbing
- 354 — Listed in the Depositio Martyrum
- 680 — Invoked against the plague at Rome
Dates marked ~ are traditional or debated among historians.
Symbols
Arrows — His first execution, and the plague-arrows he is asked to turn aside.
Soldier's armour — His service in the praetorian guard.
Club — The instrument of his actual death.
Virtues & spiritual lessons
Courage that used worldly office for the Gospel, fraternal encouragement of the fearful, and perseverance that returned to testify a second time.
Importance in the Church
One of the earliest Roman martyrs with a continuous cult, Sebastian is the patron of Christians in uniform and the classic intercessor in epidemics, invoked again by many in recent times of pandemic.
Quotes
“Do not fear the sentence of men; fear only to lose what Christ has promised you.”
Passio Sancti Sebastiani — a legendary source; the words are traditional, not documented history
Prayers
Prayer to Saint Sebastian in time of sickness
Saint Sebastian, soldier of Christ who did not fear the arrows of men, intercede for the sick and for those who care for them, defend our families from contagion and fear, and obtain for us the courage to confess our faith wherever we serve. Amen.
Traditional prayer used in plague-time processions in Rome and Italy.
Places
Basilica of San Sebastiano fuori le mura, Rome — Over the catacomb where he was buried.
Palatine Hill oratory, Rome — Traditional site of his death near the imperial palace.
Entries are drawn from the Roman Martyrology, the General Roman Calendar, canonization records of the Holy See, and the saints' own writings. Where a date, quotation or attribution is uncertain, it is marked as such. (63 saints)