Januarius

Saint Januarius
Copy taken from a portrait of Saint Januarius by Caravaggio
Bishop and Martyr
Born3rd century (c. 21 April 272[citation needed])
Benevento or Naples, Campania, Roman Empire
Diedc. 19 September 305
Pozzuoli, Campania
Venerated inCatholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, and Armenian Apostolic Church
Major shrineNaples Cathedral, Italy and the Church of the Most Precious Blood, Little Italy, Manhattan, New York City.
Feast19 September, Feast of San Gennaro (Catholic Church)
21 April (Eastern Christianity)
Monday after second Sunday of Advent (Armenian Apostolic Church)
Attributesvials of blood, palms, Mount Vesuvius
Patronageblood banks; Naples; volcanic eruptions[1]

Januarius (/ˌæn.juˈɛəriəs/ JAN-yoo-AIR-ee-əs;[2] Latin: Ianuarius; Neapolitan and Italian: Gennaro), also known as Januarius I of Benevento, was Bishop of Benevento and is a martyr and saint of the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church. While no contemporary sources on his life are preserved, later sources and legends claim that he died during the Great Persecution,[3] which ended with Diocletian's retirement in 305.

Januarius is the patron saint of Naples, where the faithful gather three times a year in Naples Cathedral to witness the liquefaction of what is claimed to be a sample of his blood kept in a sealed glass ampoule.

  1. ^ "Star Quest Production Network: Saint Januarius". Archived from the original on 2 April 2008. Retrieved 13 April 2008.
  2. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011). Roach, Peter; Setter, Jane; Esling, John (eds.). Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary (18th ed.). Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-15255-6.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference cathenc was invoked but never defined (see the help page).