Saint Eutropius

Eutropius (died c. 308 in Amasea, Pontus) was a Christian martyr and a saint in the Catholic and Orthodox Churches, and the brother of Saint Cleonicus. Eutropius lived at the turn of the 3rd and 4th centuries. He and his brother were friends of Saint Theodore the Recruit. Following Theodore's martyrdom during the persecutions of Christians under Emperor Galerius, the brothers remained in prison in Amasea, where they defended the Christian faith and converted many pagans. A Christian named Basiliscus, a nephew of Theodore, was also imprisoned with Eutropius and Cleonicus. For their activities, Eutropius and Cleonicus were subjected to various tortures: their bodies were lacerated with iron tools, their wounds were doused with vinegar and sprinkled with salt, and they were doused with boiling tar. During the torture, Saint Eutropius reportedly prayed aloud to the Savior. In response to his plea, the Lord appeared to the martyrs with angels and Saint Theodore the Recruit, who reportedly said to them: "Behold, the Savior comes to your aid, so that you may know of eternal life." Strengthened by visions of Christ and the angels, the courageous brothers did not renounce their faith. They were sentenced to death by crucifixion. The sentence was carried out on March 3, c. 308, in Amasea. Saint Basiliscus was taken captive and beheaded with a sword on May 22 of the same year in the city of Comana in Pontus. The Roman Martyrology commemorates the three saints as follows: "Also Saint Cleonicus, Eutropius, and Basiliscus, soldiers who gloriously overcame the persecution of Maximian during the time of the governor Asclepiades through death on the cross." Their liturgical memorial is celebrated by the Catholic Church on their dies natalis (March 3). The Orthodox Church commemorates the martyrs twice: on March 16 (the death of the brothers) and June 4 (the death of Saint Basiliscus, according to the Gregorian calendar). In iconography, the martyrs are depicted together.