Saint Sebastian
Saint Sebastian
Sebastian is a popular male saint, especially today among athletes. In medieval times, he was regarded as a saint with a special ability to intercede to protect from plague), and devotion to him greatly increased when plague was active.
Life
There is not much known about Saint Sebastian's early life, but the ancient source mentioning Sebastian is found in the Chronograph of 354, a compilation of chronological and calendrical texts produced in 354 AD by the calligrapher and illustrator Furius Dionysius Filocalus, which mentions him as a martyr who was venerated on January 20. His cult is also mentioned by Ambrose of Milan in his Expositio in Psalmum CXVIII, a theological and exegetical commentary of Psalm 118 dated to 386–390 AD; Ambrose states that Sebastian came from Milan and that he was venerated as a saint there.
Life
The first surviving account of Sebastian's life and death is the Passio Sancti Sebastiani, long thought to have been written by Ambrose in the 4th century, but now regarded as a 5th-century account by an unknown author (possibly Arnobius the Younger). This includes the "two martyrdoms", and the care by Irene in between, and other details that remained part of the story.
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