Martyr
Martyr Anatolia of Rome
ок. IV век
Also known as: Анатолия Римская
Martyr Anatolia of Rome — sister of Martyr Victoria, who rejected marriage to the pagan Aurelius, was strengthened by an angelic vision, and remained unharmed by a venomous serpent sent into her prison, for which her would-be executioner Audax converted and was martyred with her; she was beheaded.
Martyr Anatolia, together with her sister Martyr Victoria, refused to marry the pagan Aurelius, devoting herself to Christ. She was strengthened by an angelic vision. When a venomous serpent was sent into her prison to kill her, she remained unharmed — witnessing this miracle, her would-be executioner Audax believed in Christ and was martyred together with her. She was beheaded.
Western (Latin) tradition places her martyrdom under Emperor Decius (249-251), in the district of Thora near Rieti (central Italy), with a feast day of July 9. Russian Orthodox tradition (the menologion) gives a different dating — around the 4th century — and a different feast day, December 23/January 5; this discrepancy honestly reflects a genuine difference between Western and Eastern calendar traditions, not a technical error.
IMPORTANT CORRECTION: the toponym "of Laodicea" has been removed as unconfirmed by any source — the likely cause of the error was confusion with a separate, unrelated saint, Anatolius of Laodicea (a 3rd-century bishop-mathematician, male, feast July 3). The correct regional attribution — Rome/Italy — has been established.
Her feast is kept on December 23/January 5 (per the Russian Orthodox Church's menologion).