St. Pancras of Rome

  Posted on May 12, 2020  by admin  No comments

Born: c.290 at Phrygia 

Died: beheaded c.304 on the Via Aurelia, Rome, Italy, relics interred in the Saint Pancras church, Rome, but were destroyed in 1798, his head is still in the basilica of Saint John Lateran 

Patronage: against cramps, against false witness or perjury, against headaches, children, oaths, treaties, diocese of Albano, Italy, 27 cities in Germany and Italy 

Feast day: 12 May

Fourteen-year-old orphan, brought to Rome by his uncle, Saint Dionysius. Convert to Christianity. Martyred with Saint Nereus, Saint Achilleus, and Saint Domitilla for publicly proclaiming his faith. 

Pope Saint Vitalian sent his relics from the cemetery of Calepodius in Rome to the British Isles as part of the evangelization of England, so they would have relics of the Church at large, and to install in altars in new churches. Saint Augustine of Canterbury dedicated the first church in England to Saint Pancras, and subsequent churches throughout England are similarly named for him.