Saint of the Day – 24 November – Saint Chrysogonus (Died 304) Priest Martyr. Died on 23 November 304 at Aguilera, Italy by beheading. Patronage – the City and Diocese of Zadar in Croatia. Also known as – Crisogono, Grisogono, Chrysogonius. Additional Memorial – 31 May in Aquileia, Italy, although Chrysogonus died on 23 November, his Feast is celebrated on 24 November, the anniversary of the Dedication of the Church in Rome which bears his name. The meaning of our Saint’s name, Chrysogonus, is a golden or precious birth. He is sometimes depicted as a Soldier or Official of the Roman Court which could relate to his history as the teacher of St Anastasia, the daughter of a Roman Prefect.
The Roman Martyrology reads: “The birthday of St Chrysogonus, Priest Martyr. After a long imprisonment in chains for the constant confession of Christ, he was, by order of Diocletian, taken to Aquileia, where he terminated his Martyrdom by being beheaded and thrown into the sea.”
Chrysogonus was a Greek but spent his life in Rome. There is some evidence that he was the iteacher of Saint Anastasia, the daughter of a noble Roman Praetextatus and befriended her when persecution struck her.
During the reign of Diocletian he was imprisoned for two years and then beheaded. His body was cast into the sea but was afterwards recovered and buried at Zara – now Zadar in Dalmatia/Croatia, where his Relics are still venerated.
Very early indeed, the veneration of this Martyr of Aquileia was equally regarded in Rome, where in Trastevere, a titular Church bears his name. A portion of his head is preserved and enshrined in a golden Reliquary there. He is held in great veneration by the Romans and by the Greeks, who call him “The Great Martyr.”
The name of this holy Martyr, occurs in the Roman Canon of the Mass and is mentioned in the ancient Calendar of Carthage of the 5th Century and in all Western Martyrologies since that time. The Church in Rome of which he is Titular Saint, is mentioned in a Council held by Pope Symmachus (dIED 514) and in the Epistles of Saint Gregory the Great, it gives title to a Cardinal Priest.
AnaStpaul 