Martyr Alphius of Vasto and Mesopolis

Martyr Alphius, together with his brothers Philadelphus and Cyprian, was born in the town of Vasto in southern Italy, to Vitalius and Benedetta. The brothers were enlightened by faith in Christ and baptized by the presbyter Onesimus. Together with Onesimus, the presbyter Erasmus, and 14 other Christians, the brothers were sent to Rome, where most of their companions suffered martyrdom; Alphius and his brothers were then sent from there to Sicily, to the city of Mesopolis of Leontinoi, where they suffered for Christ. Saint Alphius's tongue was cut out, and he bled to death. The martyrs' relics were found at Leontinoi in 1517.