Abundius and Abundantius

Abundius ( † about 304 in Rome) was a Catholic priest who was martyred together with his deacon Abundantius and is therefore worshiped by the Roman Catholic Church as holy.

Life

According to legend, he was captured with his deacon, because he had refused to worship the Hercules statue. They were tortured in Carcer Mamertinus, sentenced to death and beheaded. Since Abundius on the way to the place of the deceased son of Senator John Marcian awakened by the prayer to life and father and son were then immediately Christians, Marcian and John was beheaded along with Abundius and Abundantinus.

The grave inscription for Abundius is kept in the Vatican Museums.

Worship

The worship was initially funded by a woman named Theodora in Rignano Flaminio. It was not until the reign of Emperor Otto III. the relics were transferred to Rome in the 10th century in the church of St. Cosmas and Damian and there along with those of Theodora converted to the Church of the Gesù in 1583.

The liturgical commemoration in the Roman Catholic church is the 16th of September.