Saint Gaudentius of Rimini

Gaudentius of Rimini (Italian: San Gaudenzo di Rimini, sometimes spelled Gaudenzio) (c. 280 AD – 14 October 360) was a bishop of Rimini, who is venerated as a martyred saint in the Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodox Church. The accounts of Gaudentius' life vary. According to one account, Gaudentius was born in Ephesus in around 280 AD, consecrated as a bishop in Rome, and sent to preach in Ariminum (Rimini). He founded an early Christian community in the city, and ordained Saint Marinus as a deacon. In another account, in 359, he participated in the Council of Ariminum, and was killed by a mob on 14 October 360, either by supporters of Arianism or imperial guards. As well as being the patron saint of Rimini, Gaudentius is celebrated in Ostra, in the Marche region, Garaguso, in Basilicata, both of which host some of his relics. In Rimini, his feast day of 14 October is celebrated as a holiday. The contents of Gaudentius' hagriographic tradition vary. He was born in Ephesus, in Asia Minor, in around 280 AD. Gaudentius came from a wealthy Christian family, allowing him to be educated. His parents were killed by Manichaeans, and Gaudentius fled to Rome, where he was baptised, became a priest, and was consecrated as a bishop. Pope Sylvester I sent Gaudentius was to preach the Gospel in Ariminum (Rimini); he is considered to be the city's first proto-bishop. He founded a Christian community that met in a domus ecclesiae. During his episcopate, he ordained the stonemason Saint Marinus, who would found the Republic of San Marino, as a deacon. Some sources claim that Gaudentius also ordained Leo of Montefeltro, after whom San Leo is named, as priest. Several miracles are attributed to Gaudentius during his life: that he exorcised a man possessed by the devil and that he transformed the waters of the Misa river in Sena Gallica (Senigallia) into wine for his travelling companions.