Feast day: May 12
St. Pancras
A boy of about fourteen, orphaned and brought to Rome, who was beheaded for refusing to renounce Christ during the last great persecution and became a widely loved martyr.
Pancras — in Latin Pancratius — was a young Roman martyr of the early fourth century, put to death, tradition says, at about the age of fourteen, during the persecution under the emperor Diocletian. Though the historical details of his life are scant, his cult is among the oldest and most widespread in the Roman Church.
According to his legend, Pancras was an orphan, born in Phrygia and brought to Rome, who was converted to Christianity as a boy. Arrested for his faith, he refused with striking courage to renounce Christ or sacrifice to the gods, and was beheaded on the Via Aurelia, where a great basilica was later raised over his tomb.
His youth and his fearless constancy made him enormously popular. So solemn was his witness that oaths came to be sworn over his relics, and he was invoked as an avenger of perjury — the origin of his patronage of oaths, alongside his patronage of children.
His fame spread far beyond Rome: churches were dedicated to him across Europe, including the ancient St Pancras in London. He remains one of the best-loved of the young Roman martyrs, a boy who would not be frightened into denying his faith.
This teenage martyr's name spread as far as England — the London district and railway station of St. Pancras are named for him.
Image: Didier Descouens (CC BY-SA 4.0), via Wikimedia Commons.
Source: newadvent.org/cathen/10751a.htm
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