Martyr
Martyr Auxentius of Sebaste
† нач. IV века
Martyr Auxentius of Sebaste, presbyter of the Arabian Church — one of the Five Martyrs of Sebaste (with Eustratius, Eugenius, Mardarius, and Orestes), who suffered under Emperor Diocletian; he was beheaded.
The martyr Auxentius, a presbyter of the Arabian church, was among the first Christians imprisoned at the outset of Emperor Diocletian's persecution in Sebaste, Armenia.
His faith and endurance in captivity inspired the military commander Eustratius, a secret Christian, to openly confess Christ before the governor Agricolaus. After Eustratius was tortured and burned alive, and the young soldier Orestes was martyred on a heated iron bed, Auxentius was beheaded.
Together with Eustratius, Eugenius, Mardarius, and Orestes, he is venerated by the Church as one of the Five Martyrs of Sebaste.
His feast is kept on December 13/26.
IMPORTANT NOTE ON THE IMAGES: of the entry's 5 former images, only the group icon "Holy Martyrs Eustratius, Auxentius, and Eugenius" confirms this specific identity. Two other images ("Venerable Auxentius" and "Venerable Cosmas and Auxentius") turned out to depict ENTIRELY DIFFERENT monastic saints sharing only the name — removed as inconsistent with the "martyr" category; a generic April calendar icon was likewise removed as inconsistent with the December feast.