Saints Nereus and Achilleus’ Story

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Devotion to these two saints goes back to the fourth century, though almost nothing is known of their lives. They were praetorian soldiers of the Roman army, became Christians, and were removed to the island of Terracina, where they were martyred. Their bodies were buried in a family vault, later known as the cemetery of Domitilla. Excavations by De Rossi in 1896 resulted in the discovery of their empty tomb in the underground church built by Pope Siricius in 390.

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Two hundred years after their deaths, Pope Gregory the Great delivered his 28th homily on the occasion of their feast. “These saints, before whom we are assembled, despised the world and trampled it under their feet when peace, riches and health gave it charms.”

https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saints-nereus-and-achilleus/

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Nereus and Achilleus were Roman soldiers in the household of Flavia Domitilla. They were instructed and converted by St. Peter. These two soldiers in turn inspired St. Domitilla to consecrate her virginity to God. Thereupon, Aurelianus, the fiancee of Domitilla, reported all three to the Roman authorities as being Christians. They were martyred out of hatred for Christianity. Pancras, a noble Phrygian youth, came to Rome at the age of fourteen, and was martyred in 275 because he refused to offer sacrifices to the pagan gods.

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According to the 1962 Missal of St. John XXIII the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, today is also the feast of St. Domitilla. Historically today is the feast of Bl. Imelda Lambertini, daughter of Count Egano Lambertini of Bologna and Castora Galuzzi. She was a student at Dominican Convent of Valdi-Pietra in Bologna and had a great devotion to Saint Agnes of Rome, of whom she may have had visions. On 12 May 1333 she miraculously received her First Communion, and immediately after died in an ecstasy of love and joy.

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Saints Nereus and Achilleus (died 304) were Roman soldiers who served under Emperor Trajan. When Diocletian ascended to the thrown, persecution of Christians began in earnest, which Nereus and Achilleus readily participated in. However, through this participation, they came to meet holy men and women who moved their hearts, leading to their eventual conversion to Christianity. While holy legend suggests that they were baptized in the faith by Saint Peter himself, the timing of their lives suggests this not to be true (although no less remarkable!).

Upon their conversion and baptism, the soldiers threw down their weapons and armor, free from the tyranny of sin, and rejoicing in their newfound freedom. Of course, having been involved in the persecution of Christians, both Nereus and Achilleus knew what was in store for them, and were not disappointed. They were arrested, tortured, and exiled to the island of Terracina. There, they were beheaded for failure to renounce their faith and sacrifice to the Roman gods, true followers of Jesus Christ.

Pope Damasus wrote an epitaph for Nereus and Achilleus in the fourth century. He wrote: “The martyrs Nereus and Achilleus had enrolled themselves in the army and exercised the cruel office of carrying out the orders of the tyrant, being ever ready, through the constraint of fear, to obey his will. O miracle of faith! Suddenly they cease from their fury, they become converted, they fly from the camp of their wicked leader; they throw away their shields, their armor and their blood-stained javelins. Confessing the faith of Christ, they rejoice to bear testimony to its triumph. Learn now from the words of Damasus what great things the glory of Christ can accomplish.”

Pope Gregory the Great dwelt on the vanity of the earth's goods. In his homilies, he encouraged his congregation to despise the earth’s physical treasures by the example of Saints Nereus and Achilleus, whose relics lay under the very altar around which they were that day assembled. "These Saints," he said, "before whose tomb we are now standing, trampled with contempt of soul on the world and its flowers. Life was then long, health was uninterrupted, riches were abundant, parents were blessed with many children; and yet, though the world was so flourishing in itself, it had long been a withered thing in their hearts."

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