Denis

Saint Denis was born in the third century, though the place of his birth is not known. Ancient tradition holds that he was sent from Italy to Gaul as a missionary and became bishop of Paris, then called Lutetia. In a city where the Christian community had been shaken by persecution, Denis preached the Gospel with steadfast courage, accompanied by two close companions, Rusticus and Eleutherius. Their conversions stirred opposition, and the three were arrested and imprisoned. Under the persecutions that likely followed Emperor Decius, Denis and his companions were condemned and beheaded on the hill now known as Montmartre. Christian devotion remembers Denis as a fearless martyr and, in beloved legend, as a cephalophore who lifted his severed head and walked while calling the people to repentance. A shrine rose over his burial place and grew into the Basilica of Saint-Denis, long honored by the Church in France. Saint Denis is revered as patron of Paris and the Archdiocese of Paris, and is counted among the Fourteen Holy Helpers. His feast day is October 9.