Memorial of Saints (January 14)

Feasts, Obligatory and Optional Memorials of Saints

• Felix Nola, confessor
• Macrina the Elder, widow
• Barbasymas and Companions, martyrs
• Datius, bishop
• Kentigern or Mungo, bishop
• Sava, bishop
• Odoric of Pordenone, friar

St. Felix of Nola (d. ca. 260 A.D.) was the son of Hermias, a Roman soldier who had an estate at Nola near Naples, Italy. On the death of his father Hermias, Felix distributed his inheritance to the poor and was ordained by Bishop Maximus of Nola. During the persecution of Christians by Decius, St. Maximus fled to the desert and Felix, being the bishop's assistant, was arrested in his stead and imprisoned. An angel was said to have released Felix from prison and directed him to his ailing bishop, Maximus. As an opportunity presented itself, Felix brought bishop Maximus back to Nola.

Decius died in 251 A.D. but Felix continued to be hidden until the persecution completely ended. When bishop Maximus passed away, the people naturally and unanimously selected Felix as their bishop. However, Felix declined the honor in favor of Quintus, a priest who is senior to Felix.

St. Felix of Nola decided to live on a small piece of land and shared what he had with the poor. His tomb soon became famous for the miracles that happened to people who visited his tomb. St. Paulinus, who became a bishop of Nola a century later in 410 A.D., wrote all that is known today of St. Felix of Nola.

Saints in the Byzantine Calendar [January 14]

• Fathers of Sinai and Raitha

The Holy fathers slain at Sinai and Raithu are saints venerated together on January 14 by the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Greek Catholic Churches. There were two occasions when the monks and hermits were murdered by the barbarians. The first occasion took place in the 4th century A.D., when 40 fathers were killed at Mt. Sinai, and 39 were slain at Raithu on the same day. The attack at Raithu is attributed to the tribe called the Blemmyes, from parts of Arabia.

The names of the fathers were:

• Isaiah,
• Sabbas,
• Moses and his disciple Moses,
• Jeremiah,
• Paul,
• Adam,
• Sergius,
• Domnus,
• Proclus,
• Hypatius,
• Isaac,
• Macarius,
• Mark,
• Benjamin,
• Eusebius,
• Elias,
• and others

The second occasion was the killing of the martyrs of Raithu about the middle of the 5th century A.D.

Sinai and Raithu are both located in the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt. Raithu is now known as El Tor, which is the capital of the South Sinai Governorate. The Raithu desert is situated around El Tor, between Saint Catherine and the Red Sea. It is part of the Archdiocese of Mount Sinai and Raithu of the Eastern Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem.

It is to be noted that the attack came from barbarians and other tribes. Although unverifiable, the attacks may not have been religious in nature as Islam came into being only in the 7th century A.D.

Citation from Wikipedia.org