Domninus of Fidenza

Saint Domninus of Fidenza was born in Parma, Italy, and is traditionally said to have died a martyr around the year 304. Ancient devotion remembers him as a chamberlain in the service of Emperor Maximian and the trusted keeper of the imperial crown. When Domninus embraced the Christian faith, he chose loyalty to Christ over imperial favor, and so drew the emperor’s anger upon himself. Pursued by soldiers, he is said to have fled along the roads of northern Italy, openly carrying a cross as a sign of the hope that now guided him. Domninus was captured near Fidenza, on the banks of the Stirone along the Via Aemilia, and was beheaded for his confession of Christ. Tradition adds the striking image of the martyr gathering his severed head and placing it where the cathedral of San Donnino would later rise. His relics are venerated in Fidenza Cathedral, and his cult spread widely through the region. He is honored as patron of Fidenza and several neighboring towns, and has long been invoked against rabies. His feast day is October 9.