Martyr Cyricus of Tarsus

Cyricus was the three-year-old son of the noblewoman Julitta of Iconium. Fleeing Diocletian's persecution, Julitta escaped with her son and two servant women, first to Seleucia and then to Tarsus, where she was recognized, arrested, and brought to trial before the governor Alexander.

As Julitta was tortured, the child Cyricus cried out that he too was a Christian and struggled to reach his mother; the enraged governor seized him by the leg and threw him down the stone steps of the tribunal, killing him instantly. Julitta was then beheaded.

Their relics were later recovered under the emperor Constantine, and the two are venerated together, invoked especially for family well-being and the healing of sick children.

Their feast is kept on July 15/28.