Saint Marcian of Syracuse

Saint Marcian of Syracuse was born in Antioch of Syria in the first century and later journeyed west to Sicily, where Christian tradition remembers him as the first bishop of Syracuse. Ancient devotion portrays him as a disciple of the Apostle Peter, sent from the East to bring the light of the Gospel to the peoples of the West—so much so that he is sometimes honored as the earliest bishop to shepherd a Western church while Peter still labored in the East. Though the earliest written accounts of Marcian come from later Byzantine-era hymns and sermons, the Church has long cherished his witness as a bishop who preached Christ with apostolic zeal and sealed his ministry with martyrdom in Syracuse. His memory endured in the city’s early Christian sites and in venerable depictions, including a fresco in the catacombs of Saint Lucy. His relics are honored today outside Syracuse, especially in Gaeta and Messina. Saint Marcian is invoked as patron of Carasco. His feast day is October 30.