Martyr Samonas of Edessa

The Martyr Samon of Edessa suffered for Christ in the early 4th century in the Syrian city of Edessa (modern Şanlıurfa, Turkey), during Emperor Diocletian's persecution. Together with his friend and fellow confessor Gurias, a zealous preacher of the Christian faith, Samon was seized by the pagans, imprisoned, and subjected to cruel torture: beaten, suspended by bound hands with weights tied to their feet, and starved in a cramped cell. After several months of torment, Saints Gurias and Samon were beheaded on November 15, around the year 306. Christians of Edessa buried the martyrs' bodies. About a decade and a half later, under Emperor Licinius, the deacon Abibus was martyred in the same city, burned alive for refusing to sacrifice to idols; his memory is kept on the same day, November 15. The relics of all three martyrs were placed together, and from ancient times Saints Gurias, Samon, and Abibus have been venerated as patrons of Christian marriage and family. Feast day: November 15 (28).