St. Sebastian
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Saint Sebastian (in
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...
: ''Sebastianus''; Narbo, Gallia Narbonensis,
Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...
c. AD 255 –
Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...
, Italia, Roman Empire c. AD 288) was an early Christian
saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Catholic, Eastern Or ...
and martyr. According to traditional belief, he was killed during the
Diocletianic Persecution The Diocletianic or Great Persecution was the last and most severe persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire. In 303, the emperors Diocletian, Maximian, Galerius, and Constantius issued a series of edicts rescinding Christians' legal rig ...
of Christians. He was initially tied to a post or tree and shot with arrows, though this did not kill him. He was, according to tradition, rescued and healed by Saint Irene of Rome, which became a popular subject in 17th-century painting. In all versions of the story, shortly after his recovery he went to Diocletian to warn him about his sins, and as a result was clubbed to death. He is venerated in the
Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...
and the
Orthodox Church Orthodox Church may refer to: * Eastern Orthodox Church * Oriental Orthodox Churches * Orthodox Presbyterian Church * Orthodox Presbyterian Church of New Zealand * State church of the Roman Empire * True Orthodox church See also * Orthodox (d ...
. The oldest record of the details of Sebastian's martyrdom is found in the '' Chronograph of 354'', which mentions him as a martyr, venerated on January 20. He is also mentioned in a sermon on Psalm 118 by 4th-century bishop Ambrose of Milan (Saint Ambrose): in his sermon, Ambrose stated that Sebastian came from
Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city ...
and that he was already venerated there at that time. The full account of his martyrdom comes from the ''Passio Sancti Sebastiani'', a 5th-century text written by an anonymous author, possibily Arnobius the Younger. Saint Sebastian is a popular male saint, especially today among athletes. In medieval times, he was regarded as a saint with a special ability to intercede to protect from
plague Plague or The Plague may refer to: Agriculture, fauna, and medicine *Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis'' * An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural) * A pandemic caused by such a disease * A swarm of pes ...
, and devotion to him greatly increased when plague was active.


Early life

The ancient source mentioning Sebastian is found in the '' Chronograph of 354'', a compilation of chronological and calendrical texts produced in 354 AD by the calligrapher and illustrator
Furius Dionysius Filocalus Furius Dionysius Filocalus was a Roman scribe and stone engraver, specialized in epigraphic texts, who was active in the second half of the fourth century. Chronography of 354 One of his most noteworthy works is the "Chronography of 354", als ...
, which mentions him as a martyr who was venerated on January 20. His cult is also mentioned by Ambrose of Milan in his ''Expositio in Psalmum CXVIII'', a theological and exegetical commentary of Psalm 118 dated to 386-390 AD; Ambrose states that Sebastian came from
Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city ...
and that he was venerated as a Saint there. The first surviving account of Sebastian's life and death is the ''Passio Sancti Sebastiani'', long thought to have been written by Ambrose in the 4th century, but now regarded as a 5th-century account by an unknown author (possibly Arnobius the Younger). This includes the "two martyrdoms", and the care by Irene in between, and other details that remained part of the story. According to Sebastian's 18th-century entry in '' Acta Sanctorum'', still attributed to Ambrose by the 17th-century hagiographer Jean Bolland, and the briefer account in the 14th-century ''
Legenda Aurea The ''Golden Legend'' (Latin: ''Legenda aurea'' or ''Legenda sanctorum'') is a collection of hagiographies by Jacobus de Voragine that was widely read in late medieval Europe. More than a thousand manuscripts of the text have survived.Hilary ...
'', he was a man of Gallia Narbonensis who was taught in Mediolanum (
Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city ...
). In 283, Sebastian entered the army in Rome under Emperor Carinus to assist the martyrs. Because of his courage he became one of the captains of the
Praetorian Guard The Praetorian Guard (Latin: ''cohortēs praetōriae'') was a unit of the Imperial Roman army that served as personal bodyguards and intelligence agents for the Roman emperors. During the Roman Republic, the Praetorian Guard were an escort fo ...
s under Diocletian and Maximian, who were unaware that he was a Christian. According to tradition, Marcus and Marcellianus were twin brothers from a distinguished family and were
deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...
s. Both brothers married, and they resided in Rome with their wives and children. The brothers refused to sacrifice to the Roman gods and were arrested. They were visited by their parents Tranquillinus and Martia in prison, who attempted to persuade them to renounce Christianity. Sebastian succeeded in converting Tranquillinus and Martia, as well as Saint Tiburtius, the son of Chromatius, the local prefect . Another official, Nicostratus, and his wife Zoe were also converted. It has been said that Zoe had been a mute for six years; however, she made known to Sebastian her desire to be converted to Christianity. As soon as she had, her speech returned to her. Nicostratus then brought the rest of the prisoners; these 16 persons were converted by Sebastian. Chromatius and Tiburtius converted; Chromatius set all of his prisoners free from jail, resigned his position, and retired to the country in
Campania (man), it, Campana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demog ...
. Marcus and Marcellianus, after being concealed by a Christian named Castulus, were later martyred, as were Nicostratus, Zoe, and Tiburtius.Butler, Alban. ''Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs and Other Principal Saints'', Vol.I
/ref>


Martyrdom

Sebastian had prudently concealed his faith, but in 286 it was detected. Diocletian reproached him for his supposed betrayal, and he commanded him to be led to a field and there to be bound to a stake so that the chosen archers from Mauretania would shoot arrows at him. "And the archers shot at him till he was as full of arrows as an urchin is full of pricks, and thus left him there for dead." Miraculously, the arrows did not kill him. The widow of Castulus, Irene of Rome, went to retrieve his body to bury it, and discovered he was still alive. She brought him back to her house and nursed him back to his health. Sebastian later stood by a staircase where the emperor was to pass and harangued Diocletian for his cruelties against Christians. This freedom of speech, and from a person whom he supposed to have been dead, greatly astonished the emperor; but recovering from his surprise, he gave orders for Sebastian to be seized and beaten to death with
cudgels A club (also known as a cudgel, baton, bludgeon, truncheon, cosh, nightstick, or impact weapon) is a short staff or stick, usually made of wood, wielded as a weapon since prehistoric times. There are several examples of blunt-force trauma caused ...
, and his body thrown into the common sewer. A holy lady, named Lucina, 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.


Location of remains

Remains reputed to be those of Sebastian are housed in Rome in the ''Basilica Apostolorum'', built by
Pope Damasus I Pope Damasus I (; c. 305 – 11 December 384) was the bishop of Rome from October 366 to his death. He presided over the Council of Rome of 382 that determined the canon or official list of sacred scripture. He spoke out against major heresies (i ...
in 367 on the site of the provisional tomb of Saints Peter and Paul. The church, today called
San Sebastiano fuori le mura San Sebastiano fuori le mura (Saint Sebastian beyond the Walls), or San Sebastiano ''ad Catacumbas'' (Saint Sebastian at the Catacombs), is a Minor basilica in Rome, Central Italy. Up to the Great Jubilee of 2000, San Sebastiano was one of the ...
, was rebuilt in the 1610s under the patronage of Scipione Borghese. St. Ado, Eginard, Sigebert, and other contemporary authors relate that, in the reign of Louis Debonnair, Pope Eugenius II gave the body of St. Sebastian to Hilduin, Abbot of St. Denys, who brought it into
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, and it was deposited at Saint Medard Abbey, at Soissons, on 8 December, in 826. Sebastian's cranium was brought to the town of Ebersberg (
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
) in 934. A Benedictine abbey was founded there and became one of the most important pilgrimage sites in southern Germany. It is said the silver-encased cranium was used as a cup in which to present the consecrated wine of the
Blessed Sacrament The Blessed Sacrament, also Most Blessed Sacrament, is a devotional name to refer to the body and blood of Christ in the form of consecrated sacramental bread and wine at a celebration of the Eucharist. The term is used in the Latin Church of th ...
to the faithful during the feast of Saint Sebastian. Relic of St. Sebastian 01.JPG, Silver sculpture from 1450 Relic of St. Sebastian 03.JPG, The cranium


As protector against plague

The belief that Saint Sebastian was a defense against
the plague Plague or The Plague may refer to: Agriculture, fauna, and medicine *Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis'' * An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural) * A pandemic caused by such a disease * A swarm of pes ...
was a medieval addition to his reputation, which largely accounts for the enormous increase in his importance in the Late Middle Ages. The connection of the martyr shot with arrows with the plague is not an intuitive one, however. In Greco-Roman myth,
Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...
, the archer god, at times destroys his enemies by shooting plague-arrows from the heavens, but is also the deliverer from pestilence; the figure of Sebastian Christianizes this folkloric association. The hopeful example of Sebastian being able to recover from his "first
martyrdom A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...
" (or "sagittation", as it is sometimes called) was also relevant, and the arrow-wounds can resemble the buboes that were symptoms of bubonic plague. Visually, "the arrow wounds call to God for mercy to us, as the symptoms of the unfirm call for pity from the passerby", as
Molanus Joannes Molanus (1533–1585), often cited simply as Molanus, is the Latinized name of Jan Vermeulen or Van der Meulen, an influential Counter Reformation Catholic theologian of Louvain University, where he was Professor of Theology, and Rector ...
put it. The chronicler Paul the Deacon relates that, in 680,
Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...
was freed from a raging pestilence by him. The '' Golden Legend'' transmits the episode of a great plague that afflicted the
Lombards The Lombards () or Langobards ( la, Langobardi) were a Germanic people who ruled most of the Italian Peninsula from 568 to 774. The medieval Lombard historian Paul the Deacon wrote in the ''History of the Lombards'' (written between 787 an ...
in the time of King Gumburt, which was stopped by the erection of an altar in honor of Sebastian in the Church of Saint Peter in the Province of Pavia.


In art and literature


Art

The earliest known representation of Sebastian is a mosaic in the Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo (Ravenna, Italy) dated between 527 and 565. The right lateral wall of the basilica contains large mosaics representing a procession of 26 martyrs, led by Saint Martin and including Sebastian. The martyrs are represented in Byzantine style, lacking any individuality, and all have identical expressions. Another early representation is in a mosaic in the Church of San Pietro in Vincoli in Rome, probably made in the year 682. It shows a grown, bearded man in court dress but contains no trace of an arrow. The archers and arrows begin to appear by 1000, and ever since have been far more commonly shown than the actual moment of his death by clubbing, so that there is a popular misperception that this is how he died. As protector of potential plague victims (a connection popularized by the ''Golden Legend'') and soldiers, Sebastian occupied an important place in the popular medieval mind. He was among the most frequently depicted of all saints by Late Gothic and Renaissance artists, in the period after the Black Death. The opportunity to show a semi-nude young male, often in a contorted pose, also made Sebastian a favorite subject. His shooting with arrows was the subject of the largest
engraving Engraving is the practice of incising a design onto a hard, usually flat surface by cutting grooves into it with a burin. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or glass are engraved, or may provide an in ...
by the ''
Master of the Playing Cards The Master of the Playing Cards (german: Meister der Spielkarten) was the first major master in the history of printmaking. He was a German (or conceivably Swiss) engraver, and probably also a painter, active in southwestern Germany – probab ...
'' in the 1430s, when there were few other current subjects with male nudes other than Christ. Sebastian appears in many other
prints In molecular biology, the PRINTS database is a collection of so-called "fingerprints": it provides both a detailed annotation resource for protein families, and a diagnostic tool for newly determined sequences. A fingerprint is a group of conserved ...
and paintings, although this was due to his popularity with the faithful. Among many others, Botticelli,
Perugino Pietro Perugino (, ; – 1523), born Pietro Vannucci, was an Italian Renaissance painter of the Umbrian school, who developed some of the qualities that found classic expression in the High Renaissance. Raphael was his most famous pupil. ...
, Titian, Pollaiuolo, Giovanni Bellini, Guido Reni (who painted the subject seven times), Mantegna (three times), Hans Memling,
Gerrit van Honthorst Gerard van Honthorst (Dutch: ''Gerrit van Honthorst''; 4 November 1592 – 27 April 1656) was a Dutch Golden Age painter who became known for his depiction of artificially lit scenes, eventually receiving the nickname ''Gherardo delle Notti' ...
, Luca Signorelli, El Greco,
Honoré Daumier Honoré-Victorin Daumier (; February 26, 1808February 10, 1879) was a French painter, sculptor, and printmaker, whose many works offer commentary on the social and political life in France, from the Revolution of 1830 to the fall of the second N ...
, John Singer Sargent and Louise Bourgeois all painted Saint Sebastians. An early work by the sculptor Gianlorenzo Bernini is of Saint Sebastian. The saint is ordinarily depicted as a handsome youth pierced by arrows. Predella scenes when required often depicted his arrest, confrontation with the Emperor, and final beheading. The illustration in the infobox is the ''Saint Sebastian'' of Il Sodoma, at the Pitti Palace, Florence. Hans Holbein the Elder created a statuette of Saint Sebastian "in silver and parcel-gilt," now in the Victoria and Albert Museum in
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
. A mainly 17th-century subject, though found in predella scenes as early as the 15th century, was ''
Saint Sebastian Tended by Saint Irene Saint Sebastian Tended by Saint Irene is an incident in the legends of Saint Sebastian and Saint Irene of Rome. It was not prominent in the hagiographical literature until the late Renaissance, and is hardly seen in art before then. As an art ...
'', painted by Georges de La Tour,
Trophime Bigot Trophime Bigot (1579–1650), also known as Théophile Bigot, Teofili Trufemondi, the Candlelight Master (''Maître à la Chandelle''), was a French painter of the Baroque era, active in Rome and his native Provence. Bigot was born in Arles in 1 ...
(four times),
Jusepe de Ribera Jusepe de Ribera (1591 – 1652) was a painter and printmaker, who along with Francisco de Zurbarán, Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, and the singular Diego Velázquez, are regarded as the major artists of Spanish Baroque painting. Referrin ...
, Hendrick ter Brugghen (in perhaps his masterpiece) and others. This may have been a deliberate attempt by the Church to get away from the single nude subject, which is already recorded in
Vasari Giorgio Vasari (, also , ; 30 July 1511 – 27 June 1574) was an Italian Renaissance Master, who worked as a painter, architect, engineer, writer, and historian, who is best known for his work ''The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculpt ...
as sometimes arousing inappropriate thoughts among female and male churchgoers. The Baroque artists usually treated it as a nocturnal
chiaroscuro Chiaroscuro ( , ; ), in art, is the use of strong contrasts between light and dark, usually bold contrasts affecting a whole composition. It is also a technical term used by artists and art historians for the use of contrasts of light to achi ...
scene, illuminated by a single candle, torch or lantern, in the style fashionable in the first half of the 17th century. There exist several cycles depicting the life of Saint Sebastian. Among them are the frescos in the basilica church of San Sebastiano, Acireale in Sicily painted by
Pietro Paolo Vasta Piero or Pietro Paolo Vasta (31 July 1697 - 28 November 1760) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, mainly active in the east of his native Sicily. Biography He was born in Acireale. and initially trained with both the painters Giacint ...
. Egon Schiele, an Austrian Expressionist artist, painted a self-portrait as Saint Sebastian in 1915.


Literature, fiction, and music

In 1911, the Italian playwright Gabriele d'Annunzio in conjunction with Claude Debussy produced '' Le Martyre de saint Sébastien''. The American composer Gian Carlo Menotti composed a ballet score for a Ballets Russes production which was first given in 1944. In his novella '' Death in Venice'',
Thomas Mann Paul Thomas Mann ( , ; ; 6 June 1875 – 12 August 1955) was a German novelist, short story writer, social critic, philanthropist, essayist, and the 1929 Nobel Prize in Literature laureate. His highly symbolic and ironic epic novels and novell ...
hails the "Sebastian-Figure" as the supreme emblem of
Apollonian The Apollonian and the Dionysian are philosophical and literary concepts represented by a duality between the figures of Apollo and Dionysus from Greek mythology. Its popularization is widely attributed to the work ''The Birth of Tragedy'' by Fri ...
beauty, that is, the artistry of differentiated forms; beauty as measured by discipline, proportion, and luminous distinctions. This allusion to Saint Sebastian's suffering, associated with the writerly professionalism of the novella's protagonist, Gustav Aschenbach, provides a model for the "heroism born of weakness", which characterizes poise amidst agonizing torment and plain acceptance of one's fate as, beyond mere patience and passivity, a stylized achievement and artistic triumph. Sebastian's death was depicted in the 1949 film '' Fabiola'', in which he was played by Massimo Girotti. In 1976, the British director Derek Jarman made a film, '' Sebastiane'', which caused controversy in its treatment of the martyr as a " homosexual icon", according to a number of critics reflecting a subtext perceptible in the imagery since the Renaissance.. Also in 1976, in the American horror film '' Carrie'', a figure of Saint Sebastian (commonly misconstrued as a figure of the crucified Christ) appears in Carrie's prayer closet. Boxer
Mohammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, ...
was pictured with the iconography of a bound Saint Sebastian pierced by arrows, in the April 1968 issue of '' Esquire Magazine.'' The image was created by photographer
George Lois George Lois (June 26, 1931 – November 18, 2022) was an American art director, designer, and author. Lois was perhaps best known for over 92 covers he designed for ''Esquire'' magazine from 1962 to 1973. Background Lois was born in New Yor ...
and art director Carl Fischer. A depiction of Saint Sebastian in a fresco restoration in an isolated Italian village is the central motif and cryptic mystery of the 1976
giallo In Italian cinema, ''Giallo'' (; plural ''gialli'', from ''giallo'', Italian for yellow) is a genre of mystery fiction and thrillers that often contains slasher, crime fiction, psychological thriller, psychological horror, sexploitation, and, ...
horror film ''
The House with Laughing Windows ''The House with Laughing Windows'' ( it, La casa dalle finestre che ridono) is a 1976 Italian ''giallo'' film co-written and directed by Pupi Avati. The film was shot in Lido degli Scacchi in the Ferrara province of the Emilia-Romagna region i ...
''. In her 1965 story "Everything That Rises Must Converge",
Flannery O’Connor Mary Flannery O'Connor (March 25, 1925August 3, 1964) was an American novelist, short story writer and essayist. She wrote two novels and 31 short stories, as well as a number of reviews and commentaries. She was a Southern writer who often ...
's character Julian feels as if he were the martyr while taking his mother to "reducing" classes at the Y. In 1997, the eighth episode of the second season of the television series ''
Millennium A millennium (plural millennia or millenniums) is a period of one thousand years, sometimes called a kiloannus, kiloannum (ka), or kiloyear (ky). Normally, the word is used specifically for periods of a thousand years that begin at the starting ...
'', the protagonists search for the hand of Saint Sebastian. In 2007, artist Damien Hirst presented Saint Sebastian, Exquisite Pain from his Natural History series. The piece depicts a cow in formaldehyde, bound in metal cable and shot with arrows. British pop band
Alt-J Alt-J (stylised as alt-J, real name Δ) are an English indie rock band formed in 2007 in Leeds. Their lineup includes Joe Newman (guitar/lead vocals), Thom Sonny Green (drums), Gus Unger-Hamilton (keyboards/vocals), and formerly Gwilym Sainsbur ...
's video for " Hunger of the Pine" contains references to the story of Saint Sebastian's death, adapted to fit the lyrics of the song. Tarsem Singh's video for the R.E.M. song "
Losing My Religion "Losing My Religion" is a song by American alternative rock band R.E.M., released in February 1991 as the first single from the group's seventh album, '' Out of Time'' (1991). Built on a mandolin riff, the song was an unlikely hit for the gro ...
" makes use of imagery of St. Sebastian, drawing particular inspiration from paintings by Guido Reni and Caravaggio. The indie folk band the Mountain Goats have a song called "Hail, St. Sebastian" that makes reference to his life. Scottish musician Momus has a song "Lucky like St Sebastian", featuring on his 1986 debut album '' Circus Maximus.'' Madonna's song "I'm a Sinner" from her 2012 album '' MDNA'' has a segment resembling a litany, with one line saying, "St. Sebastian, don't you cry; let those poisoned arrows fly." The 2013–2018 Canadian drama series '' Forgive Me'' centres on a priest haunted by recurring visions of Saint Sebastian. The look of the character Gemino in the popular action-platform videogame '' Blasphemous'' is clearly inspired by Saint Sebastian. The family del Valle in Isabel Allende's novel "House of the Spirits" attends Sunday mass in the Church of Saint Sebastian.


Patronage

In the
Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
, Sebastian is commemorated by an optional memorial on 20 January. In the
Church of Greece The Church of Greece ( el, Ἐκκλησία τῆς Ἑλλάδος, Ekklēsía tē̂s Helládos, ), part of the wider Greek Orthodox Church, is one of the autocephalous churches which make up the communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity. It ...
, Sebastian's feast day is on 18 December. As a protector from the bubonic plague, Sebastian was formerly one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers. In Catholicism, Sebastian is the patron saint of archers, pin-makers, athletes (a modern association) and of a holy death. Sebastian is one of the
patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...
s of the city of
Qormi Qormi ( mt, Ħal Qormi ; pronounced in the Qormi dialect), also known by its title Città Pinto, is a city in the Southern Region of Malta, southwest of Valletta in the centre of the island. It has a population of 16,324 (as of March 2018), mak ...
in
Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
Sebastian is the
patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...
of Acireale,
Caserta Caserta () is the capital of the province of Caserta in the Campania region of Italy. It is an important agricultural, commercial, and industrial '' comune'' and city. Caserta is located on the edge of the Campanian plain at the foot of the Ca ...
and
Petilia Policastro Petilia Policastro is a '' comune'' and town in the province of Crotone, in Calabria, Italy. History Petilia Policastro is an ancient village, of presumed Byzantine origin, surrounded in the past by defensive walls. In its territory, along th ...
in
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
, Melilli in
Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...
, and San Sebastián as well as Palma de Mallorca, Lubrín and Huelva in Spain. He is the patron saint of Negombo,
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
and
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
,
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
. Informally, in the tradition of the Afro-Brazilian syncretic religion Umbanda, Sebastian is often associated with
Oxossi Oshosi (Yoruba: Ọ̀ṣọ́ọ̀sì, Portuguese: Oxóssi) is an Orisha of the Yoruba religion in West Africa and subsequently in Brazil and Cuba. Yoruba Oshosi is the spirit associated with the hunt, forests, animals, and wealth. He is spiri ...
, especially in the state of Rio de Janeiro itself. In Lubrín, every year on the 20th of January, there is a festival in honor of Saint Sebastian. A statue of Saint Sebastian leads a procession around the village, and people hurl bread rolls from their balconies to the crowds following the saint in the streets below. The rolls have a hole in the middle and some people string them on a rope around their body. The festival is thought to have originated in the 14th century, after a plague of cholera hit the area. At this time, the wealthy were said to have thrown bread and money to the poor on the streets below, so as to avoid catching the disease. The San Sebastian 'bread festival' is so unusual that it has been declared a Fiesta of National Tourist Interest in
Andalusia Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a "historical nationality". The ...
. King
Sebastian I of Portugal Sebastian ( pt, Sebastião I ; 20 January 1554 – 4 August 1578) was King of Portugal from 11 June 1557 to 4 August 1578 and the penultimate Portuguese monarch of the House of Aviz. He was the son of João Manuel, Prince of Portugal, and h ...
, the only King to ever have this name, was so named for having been born on this saint's feast day. The Feast of St. Sebastian is celebrated among
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
communities of
Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South Ca ...
in India. Churches are illuminated and decorated, with fireworks being a main event in Catholic homes to commemorate the saint. Every parish has its own date of celebration, especially in the districts of
Thrissur Thrissur (), formerly Trichur, also known by its historical name Thrissivaperur, is a city and the headquarters of the Thrissur district in Kerala, India. It is the third largest urban agglomeration in Kerala after Kochi and Kozhikode, and t ...
, Ernakulam,
St. Andrew's Basilica, Arthunkal The largest shrine of St Sebastian in the world, the church known as Arthunkal St. Andrew's Basilica and St. Sebastian's International Shrine in Arthunkal, Cherthala, Alappuzha district, Kerala, India, was constructed by waning just Portugue ...
and
Kottayam Kottayam () is a municipal town in the Indian state of Kerala. Flanked by the Western Ghats on the east and the Vembanad Lake and paddy fields of Kuttanad on the west. It is the district headquarters of Kottayam district, located in south ...
. In Kanjoor Syro Malabar Church the feast is celebrated with the largest procession of Golden Crosses and Decorated umbrellas in Asia. Besides this, many pilgrim centres, churches, shrines and many educational institutions too, throughout Kerala, bear the name of the saint. He is the patron of San Sebastian College – Recoletos in
Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populated ...
,
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
, which is adjacent to the Minor Basilica of San Sebastian, the all-steel church in the Philippines and in Asia administered by the Order of Augustinian Recollect (OAR). At the Catholic Newman Community at the
University of Rochester The University of Rochester (U of R, UR, or U of Rochester) is a private research university in Rochester, New York. The university grants undergraduate and graduate degrees, including doctoral and professional degrees. The University of ...
, the St. Sebastian Society is an organization of campus-wide Christian athletes that works to serve the greater
Rochester, New York Rochester () is a City (New York), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, the county seat, seat of Monroe County, New York, Monroe County, and the fourth-most populous in the state after New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffalo, ...
area through methods of restorative justice, special needs fundraising and community service. Sebastian is the patron saint of the
Roman Catholic Diocese of Bacolod The Roman Catholic Diocese of Bacolod is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in Negros Occidental, Philippines. A suffragan of the Archdiocese of Jaro, its jurisdiction covers most of the northwestern towns and cities of the ...
, in Negros Occidental,
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
and Lipa City in
Batangas Batangas, officially the Province of Batangas ( tl, Lalawigan ng Batangas ), is a province in the Philippines located in the Calabarzon region on Luzon. Its capital is the city of Batangas, and is bordered by the provinces of Cavite and L ...
,
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
. Also, Saint Sebastian is the patron saint of
Leon Leon, Léon (French) or León (Spanish) may refer to: Places Europe * León, Spain, capital city of the Province of León * Province of León, Spain * Kingdom of León, an independent state in the Iberian Peninsula from 910 to 1230 and again f ...
City
Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...
. A representation of the Saint in his martyrdom is present in the upper left corner of the city coat of arms. Saint Sebastian is the patron of Knights of Columbus Council #4926 in the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Jose in California, serving the cities of Mountain View and Los Altos. Saint Sebastian is the patron saint of the
Catholic War Veterans Catholic War Veterans (officially called the Catholic War Veterans of the United States of America) is a national service organization of baptized Catholics that have served or are currently serving in the United States Armed Forces. Founded in 1 ...
of the United States of America. The highest award given by the CWV is the Honor Legion of the Order of St. Sebastian. In his 1906 ''Reminiscences'',
Carl Schurz Carl Schurz (; March 2, 1829 – May 14, 1906) was a German revolutionary and an American statesman, journalist, and reformer. He immigrated to the United States after the German revolutions of 1848–1849 and became a prominent member of the new ...
recalls the annual "bird shoot" pageant of the
Rhenish The Rhineland (german: Rheinland; french: Rhénanie; nl, Rijnland; ksh, Rhingland; Latinised name: ''Rhenania'') is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly its middle section. Term Historically, the Rhinelands ...
town of
Liblar Erftstadt () is a town located about 20 km south-west of Cologne in the Rhein-Erft-Kreis, state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The name of the town derives from the river that flows through it, the Erft. The neighbouring towns are Brü ...
( de), sponsored by the Saint Sebastian Society, a club of sharpshooters and their sponsors to which nearly every adult member of the town belonged. The
St. Sebastian River The Saint Sebastian River is a river in the U.S. state of Florida, a tributary of the Indian River west and north of the city of Sebastian. Dredging Dredging Dredging is the excavation of material from a water environment. Possible ...
in the American state of
Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...
is named after him. The river is a tributary of the Indian River Lagoon and comprises part of the boundary between Indian River County and Brevard County. The adjacent city of
Sebastian, Florida Sebastian is a city in Indian River County, Florida, United States at the confluence of the St. Sebastian River and the Indian River. It is two miles away from the Atlantic Ocean. It is the largest city in Indian River County and the biggest pop ...
and St. Sebastian River Preserve State Park are also named for Saint Sebastian. Within the Diocese of Central Florida, the nearby Episcopal Church on Melbourne Beaches is named St Sebastian-by-the-Sea.


LGBT association

American author Richard A. Kaye wrote in 1996 that Some religious images depicting Saint Sebastian have been adopted by the LGBT community. A combination of his strong, shirtless physique, the symbolism of the arrows penetrating his body, and the countenance of rapturous pain have intrigued artists (gay or otherwise) for centuries. Sebastian's resilience in the face of persecution juxtaposed with the erotic elements of his suffering resonates particularly with the spiritual queer community.


See also

* '' Le martyre de Saint Sébastien'', Claude Debussy * '' Saint Sebastian at the Column'' * Santa Muerte, from Mexican folk Catholicism, who is sometimes referred to as ''Santa Sebastiana'' * The three paintings by Mantegna * '' Saint Sebastian and the Angel ''


Notes


References


Sources

* Barker, Sheila, ''The Making of a Plague Saint'', ch. 4 in ''Piety and Plague: from Byzantium to the Baroque'', Ed. Franco Mormando,
Thomas Worcester Thomas Worcester is an American Jesuit, academic and university administrator. He served on the faculty of College of the Holy Cross and is the 11th President of Regis College, Toronto. Biography Worcester was born and raised in Burlington, Ve ...
Truman State University, 2007,
Google books
* * Hedquist, Valerie, "Ter Brugghen’s Saint Sebastian Tended by Irene," ''Journal of Historians of Netherlandish Art'' 9:2 (Summer 2017)
fully online
* Mitchell, Peter, "The Politics of Morbidity: Plague Symbolism in Martyrdom and Medical Anatomy", in ''The Arts of 17th-Century Science: Representations of the Natural World in European and North American Culture'', eds. Claire Jowitt, Diane Watt, 2002, Routledge,
google books


External links



* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20061224030351/http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/golden155.htm ''Legenda Aurea'': Life of Saint Sebastian
Saint Sebastian


* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sebastian 256 births 288 deaths 3rd-century Romans 3rd-century Christian martyrs Gallo-Roman saints People from Gallia Narbonensis Members and leaders of the Praetorian Guard Executed ancient Roman people People executed by the Roman Empire Deaths by beating in Europe 3rd-century Gallo-Roman people LGBT and Catholicism Christians martyred during the reign of Diocletian