Description
St. Eleutherios’ mother was baptized by the Apostle Paul, and after being widowed at a young age, gave her son to be raised by Anacletus, the bishop of Rome. Because of St. Eleutherios’ great spiritual gifts, he was made the bishop of Illyria, in present day Albania, when only twenty years old. Because the church flourished under his direction, Hadrian, the Roman Emperor from a.d. 117 to 138, sent his commander Felix to bring him in bonds to Rome. Felix was so moved by meeting St. Eleutherios, that his fiery nature was subdued, and he was converted to Christianity.
They both came to Rome where they were tortured. St. Eleutherios was flogged, roasted on a gridiron, boiled in pitch, and cast into a blazing furnace, but God preserved him unharmed. Seeing this great wonder before his own eyes, the governor Choribus was converted and proclaimed his faith in Christ before all present, for which he was tortured and beheaded, along with St. Eleutherios and St. Felix. Anthea, St. Eleutherios’ mother, came to mourn her son, and was beheaded too. They all suffered in the year a.d. 120, and went to live with Christ in His Kingdom without end.