St. Agatha

Their story

Agatha lived in Sicily in the third century and is one of the most honored virgin martyrs of the early Church. According to tradition, she came from a wealthy and respected family in Catania. As a young woman she dedicated her life to God and promised to belong to Christ alone. When the emperor Decius began his persecution of Christians around the year 250, a powerful Roman official named Quintianus wanted Agatha for himself. When she refused him, he had her arrested as a Christian. He tried first to break her will by sending her to live in a house of immoral women, but she stayed faithful. Then he had her cruelly tortured. The stories say that while she lay in prison, St. Peter appeared to her and healed her wounds. She died in prison around the year 251, praying to Christ, whom she loved more than life. A year after her death, Mount Etna erupted. The people of Catania carried her veil in procession, and the lava stopped before it reached the city. Ever since, she has been invoked for protection against fire, earthquakes and volcanoes. Because of the tortures she suffered, she is also a patron of women with breast cancer and of nurses. Her name is among the saints listed in the First Eucharistic Prayer. Agatha's quiet courage reminds us that our bodies are sacred, and that God's strength can sustain us even in the worst suffering.