Agathoclia
{{redirect|Agathocleia|the princess of Bactria|Menander I}}
{{Infobox saint
|name= Saint Agathoclia
|birth_date=
|death_date=c. 230 AD
|feast_day= September 17
|venerated_in= Eastern Orthodoxy
Roman Catholic Church
|image= Agathocleia (Menologion of Basil II).jpg
|imagesize=300px
|caption= Miniature from the Menologion of Basil II
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|death_place=
|titles=
|beatified_date=
|beatified_place=
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|canonized_date=
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|patronage=Mequinenza, Aragon
|major_shrine=
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}}
Saint Agathoclia (Agathocleia;{{Efn|Latinization of the Greek name Ἀγαθόκλεια.}} {{langx|es|Santa Agatoclia}}) (died c. 230 AD) is venerated as a patron saint of Mequinenza, Aragón, Spain. Her feast day is September 17.
Biography
Tradition states that she was a virgin Christian slave owned by two people who had converted to paganism from Christianity, named Nicolas and Paulina. They subjected Agathoclia to regular physical abuse, including whipping and other violence, in an effort to get Agathoclia to renounce her faith. She repeatedly refused to do so.
Her owners then subjected her to a public trial by a local magistrate. There too, she refused to renounce Christianity, which subjected her to savage mangling from the authorities. When she was found guilty, her sentence included having her tongue cut out, a nonfatal injury.
There is some disagreement about how Agathoclia met her death. Some sources say that her mistress Paulina poured burning coals on her neck. Other sources say that she herself was cast into fire.
Veneration
The town of Mequinenza celebrates festivals in honor of Santa Agatoclia (called simply “La Santa”) from September 16 to 20.{{cite web|url=http://www.mequinensa.com/es/cultura/festeslocals.asp |title=Fiestas locales - Ayuntamiento de Mequinenza |access-date=2007-03-16 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070701123012/http://www.mequinensa.com/es/cultura/festeslocals.asp |archive-date=2007-07-01 }} There is also a confraternity in the town dedicated to the saint.{{cite web|url=http://cofradiasantaagatoclia.org/ |title=Cofradía Santa Agatoclia |access-date=2008-09-13 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080920140241/http://www.cofradiasantaagatoclia.org/ |archive-date=2008-09-20 }}
See also
Notes
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References
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Sources
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20070701123012/http://www.mequinensa.com/es/cultura/festeslocals.asp Mequinensa page]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20080920140241/http://www.cofradiasantaagatoclia.org/ Brotherhood of Saint Agatoclia page]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20070209045312/http://www.catholic-forum.com/saintS/saintaba.htm Catholic Forum page]
- [http://www.orthodox.net/menaion-september/17-holy-martyr-agathocleia.html St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church Dallas Texas page on Agathocleia]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20061230234839/http://web2.airmail.net/~carlsch/MaterDei/Martyrol/sep-17.htm The Roman Martyrology for September 17]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20070314051343/http://www.domcentral.org/life/martyr09.htm Dominican Martyrology page on September feasts]
- [http://www.groupsrv.com/religion/about156665.html September 17 page of grousrv.com]
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Category:3rd-century Roman women
Category:3rd-century Christian saints
Category:Christian slaves and freedmen
Category:Ancient Christian female saints