The Forty Holy Martyrs
Ss. Quadraginta Martyrum
The Forty Holy Martyrs were soldiers of the Roman army who suffered death together for the faith at Sebaste in Armenia, during the persecution under the Emperor Licinius in the early fourth century. Their feast is kept on 10 March.
Among the most honoured of the early martyrs are the Forty soldiers who gave their lives together for Christ at Sebaste, in the region of Armenia, around the year 320, during the persecution carried on under the Emperor Licinius. Their memory was held in great reverence throughout the early Church, in both East and West, and several of the Fathers, including Saint Basil the Great and Saint Gregory of Nyssa, preached in their honour, so that the broad outline of their witness is well attested.
Witnesses Unto Death
According to the constant tradition, these forty men, all soldiers, refused to renounce their Christian faith when commanded to do so. As their punishment they were exposed naked upon a frozen pond in the bitter cold of winter, with a warm bath set nearby to tempt any who would abandon Christ to save their lives. The tradition relates that the forty endured the cold with prayer and constancy, encouraging one another, until they passed to their reward. They have ever since been venerated together as a single company of martyrs, a striking image of fidelity and of brethren united in suffering for the Lord.
Of the individual men little can be said with historical certainty beyond their number, their soldier’s calling, and the place and manner of their death. Yet the Church honours them with confidence, for what is certain is enough: that forty men chose death rather than deny their Saviour, and that their names are written in heaven. Their feast invites us to remember the great company of martyrs and the communion of saints, in whose fellowship we hope one day to share.
The Collect
Grant, we beseech Thee, almighty God, that we who acknowledge the glorious confession of Thy holy Martyrs may be helped by their loving intercession before Thee. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen.
Praesta, quaesumus, omnipotens Deus: ut, qui gloriosos Martyres fortes in sua confessione cognovimus, pios apud te in nostra intercessione sentiamus. Per Dominum nostrum Iesum Christum Filium tuum, qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.
Patronage
The Forty Holy Martyrs of Sebaste are venerated as patrons of soldiers, and have been honoured from ancient times throughout the Eastern and Western Church.
In the Modern Calendar
In the modern calendar, this feast is observed as an optional memorial on 10 March.
Common Questions
Who were the Forty Holy Martyrs?
They were forty soldiers of the Roman army who were put to death together for refusing to deny the Christian faith at Sebaste in Armenia, in the early fourth century. They are sometimes called the Forty Martyrs of Sebaste.
When is their feast day?
Their feast is kept on 10 March. In the traditional calendar of the 1962 Missal it is a Third Class feast; in the modern calendar it is an optional memorial on the same day.
How do we know about them?
Their witness was honoured very early in the Church, and several Fathers, including Saint Basil the Great and Saint Gregory of Nyssa, preached in their memory. What is most certain is their number, that they were soldiers, and the place and manner of their martyrdom; of their individual lives little more is reliably known.
See where this feast falls in the Church’s year on the liturgical calendar, or find a Traditional Latin Mass near you.
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