Saint Sebastian (256-288 AD)
Feast Day: January 20
St. Sebastian was born at a time when the Church was persecuted. Sebastian joined the Roman Guard and used it as a cover to aid the persecuted Christians.
After Diocletian became emperor, Sebastian was promoted to commander of the guards, but he did not know that Sebastian was a Christian. In 286, the persecution of Christians became more rampant. Diocletian was informed by a traitor, and Sebastian was finally exposed as a Christian, and the emperor ordered him to be handed over to the archers to be shot with arrows. He was bound to the execution ground, and the arrows shot straight at him like raindrops. The saint fell on the ground and people thought he was dead; but he survived. One day, he stood by a place where the emperor passed by. He harangued the emperor for persecuting the Christians. The emperor was furious and ordered Sebastian to be beaten to death with cudgels and thrown into the sewer.
A pious lady, admonished by the martyr in a vision, privately removed the body and buried it in the catacombs at the entrance of the cemetery of Calixtus, where now stands the Basilica of St. Sebastian.