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SS. XENOPHON, MARY, ARCADIUS, AND JOHN - 26 JANUARY

 

ALL SAINTS CELEBRATED IN JANUARY

Saints celebrated on the 26th of January

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SS. XENOPHON, MARY, ARCADIUS, AND JOHN 

A map of the Holy Land, where our family of saints got reunited

Saint Xenophon was a senator in Constantinople and led a pious, virtuous life with his wife Mary. The same is placed in the fifth century and is described by Simeon Metaphrastes. 

HE INSTRUCTED HIS SONS IN THE FEAR OF GOD

He instructed his sons Arcadius and John in the fear of God, and when they had matured into youths, he sent them to Berytus (later Beirut, the port city for Damascus) to have them fully trained in jurisprudence at the world-famous law school there. 

THEY SUFFERED SHIPWRECK

When he fell ill soon after, his sons came to visit him, which restored him to full health. On the return voyage to Beirut, the sons were shipwrecked. Both escaped to shore, albeit in such a way that neither knew that the other was still alive.

THEY EMBRACED THE MONASTIC STATE

John entered a monastery near Tire and his brother Arcadius near Jerusalem. They were reunited at a later stage, when the parents also travelled to the Holy Land. They were overjoyed to see each other again. They, too, lived a godly and mortified life to the end of their lives, which is why the whole family is revered as saints.

(Information from Stadler's Complete Encyclopedia of Saints, Volume 5, Augsburg, 1882)

Stadler's Complete Encyclopedia of Saints - Sources and Abbreviations

PRAYER:

Grant, we beseech you, almighty God, that the venerable feast of Saint Xenophon and his family may increase our devotion and promote our salvation. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Sources of these articles (in the original German): books.google.co.uk, de-academic.com, zeno.org, openlibrary.org


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