Daily Martyrology for May 12

In Rome, in the second century, Sts. Nereus and Achilleus, martyrs. According to an inscription about them written by Pope St. Damasus, they were members of the Pretorian guard who suddenly converted to Christianity and were martyred for their faith.

In 403, St. Epiphanius of Salamis, bishop. Born of Jewish parents, he converted to Christianity with his sister, and then joined a monastery in Gaza. He journeyed among the monks of Egypt and became an intransigent opponent of Arianism and other heresies. After many years as a monk in Palestine, he became bishop of Salamis on Cyprus.

In 732, St. Germanus, bishop of Constantinople. As patriarch he condemned Monothelitism and the iconoclastic policy of Emperor Leo III.

In 1490, Blessed Jane of Portugal. Resisting efforts by her father to force her to marry, and serving as regent while he was away fighting the Moors, she wished to give away her possessions and become a Dominican nun. After some years her family allowed her to do so.

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Our daily martyrology was written by Fr. Hugh Feiss, OSB. Copyright © 2008 by the Monastery of the Ascension, Jerome, ID 83338.