Martyr
Martyr Severian of Sebaste
† ок. 320
Martyr Severian of Sebaste — a nobleman who visited the Forty Martyrs of Sebaste in prison and encouraged them, for which he himself was tortured and hanged from the city wall under Emperor Licinius around 320.
Saint Severian was not among the Forty Martyrs of Sebaste themselves, but, being a nobleman, visited them in prison and encouraged them before their execution. About six months after their martyrdom, he himself was seized by order of the governor Lysias during the persecution of Emperor Licinius (c. 320) for venerating the relics of the Forty Martyrs and openly confessing Christ.
He was scourged, hung from a tree, and had his flesh torn with iron hooks, then was hanged from the city wall with stones tied to his neck and feet. Tradition holds that at his burial his servant was briefly resurrected — a witnessed miracle.
IMPORTANT NOTE: the saint held no clerical rank — the category "martyr" (not "hieromartyr") is confirmed by all sources checked. The previous image — a black-and-white photograph of an early 20th-century officer in a German (Prussian) pickelhaube helmet with medals — has no connection whatsoever to the saint and has been removed as clear contamination.
His feast is kept on September 9/22.