Saints Firmus and Rusticus ( it, San Fermo e San Rustico) (died c. 290 AD) are venerated as two

martyr 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 external ...

s of

Verona Verona ( , ; vec, Verona or ) is a city on the Adige River in Veneto, Italy, with 258,031 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region. It is the largest city municipality in the region and the second largest in nor ...

. Their unreliable ''Acts'' state that Firmus and Rusticus, kinsmen, were prominent citizens of

Bergamo Bergamo (; lmo, Bèrghem ; from the proto- Germanic elements *''berg +*heim'', the "mountain home") is a city in the alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from Switzerland, the alpine lakes C ...

. They were martyred at Verona under the Emperor

Maximian Maximian ( la, Marcus Aurelius Valerius Maximianus; c. 250 – c. July 310), nicknamed ''Herculius'', was Roman emperor from 286 to 305. He was ''Caesar'' from 285 to 286, then '' Augustus'' from 286 to 305. He shared the latter title with his ...

after refusing to sacrifice to pagan idols. Under the judge Anolinus, they were

torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons such as punishment, extracting a confession, interrogation for information, or intimidating third parties. Some definitions are restricted to acts ...

d, beaten with clubs, and beheaded.Monks of Ramsgate. "Firmus and Rusticus". ''Book of Saints''
1921. CatholicSaints.Info. 9 August 2016 It has been postulated that Firmus and Rusticus were actually two martyrs of

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

whose

relics In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tang ...

were translated to Verona. Their ''Acts'' were written to make them heroes of Verona instead. Their feast day is celebrated on August 9.

Gallery

Image:Grignano3.JPG, Church of San Fermo e Rustico, Brignano Gera d'Adda. 12th century. Image:Caravaggio, san Fermo e Rustico.jpg, Parish church of Caravaggio, Lombardy, dedicated to Firmus and Rusticus. File:Pittura con leggenda dei SS. Fermo e Rustico - Borno (Foto Luca Giarelli).jpg, Fresco about Saints Firmus and Rusticus in Val Camonica

References

External links

Dominican Martyrology
{{DEFAULTSORT:Firmus and Rusticus 290 deaths Saints from Roman Italy Sibling duos Saints duos 3rd-century Christian martyrs Year of birth unknown Year of death uncertain