Aurea of Ostia (or ''Aura''; in
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
, ''Chryse''; both names mean “golden girl”) is venerated as the
patron saint
A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...
of
Ostia.
According to one scholar, “
though the acta of Saint Aurea are pious fiction, she was a genuine martyr with a very early cultus at Ostia.”
Background
According to tradition, she was martyred sometime during the mid-third century, either during the reign of
Roman Emperor Claudius Gothicus
Marcus Aurelius Claudius "Gothicus" (10 May 214 – January/April 270), also known as Claudius II, was Roman emperor from 268 to 270. During his reign he fought successfully against the Alemanni and decisively defeated the Goths at the Battle ...
or
Trebonianus Gallus
Gaius Vibius Trebonianus Gallus (206 – August 253) was Roman emperor from June 251 to August 253, in a joint rule with his son Volusianus.
Early life
Gallus was born in Italy, in a family with respected Etruscan senatorial background. He had ...
.
Said to have been of royal or noble blood,
Aurea was exiled from
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
to Ostia because she was a Christian.
In Ostia, she lived on an estate outside of the city walls and maintained contact with local Christians, including the
bishop of Ostia
The Roman Catholic Suburbicarian Diocese of Ostia is an ecclesiastical territory located within the Metropolitan City of Rome in Italy. It is one of the seven suburbicarian dioceses. The incumbent Bishop is cardinal Giovanni Battista Re. Since 11 ...
, Cyriacus (Quiriacus).
Miracles associated with Aurea while she was in Ostia relate how a Christian prisoner named Censorinus had his chains miraculously loosened after he had been comforted by Aurea.
Seventeen soldiers
[Their names are given as Felix, Maximus, Taurinus, Herculanus, Nevinus, Historacinus, Menna, Commodius, Hermis, Maurus, Eusebius, Rusticus, Monaxius, Armandinus, Olympius, Eipros and Theodorus in the ''Acta''] converted to Christianity as a result of this miracle, and were later beheaded near Ostia's Arch of
Caracalla
Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Lucius Septimius Bassianus, 4 April 188 – 8 April 217), better known by his nickname "Caracalla" () was Roman emperor from 198 to 217. He was a member of the Severan dynasty, the elder son of Emperor S ...
.
Another legend states that Aurea and her friends also brought back to life the dead son of a shoemaker.
Ulpius Romulus executed Aurea's friends and tortured Aurea. When she refused to sacrifice to the Roman gods, she was thrown into the sea with a stone tied around her neck.
Veneration
According to tradition, Aurea was buried on her estate in Ostia.
The church of
Santa Aurea grew around her tomb. The church was rebuilt in the 15th century. A fragment of a Christian inscription that refers to Aurea was rediscovered near Santa Aurea in 1981 and later relocated to the castle of Ostia.
It reads: ''CHRYSE HIC DORM
T' ("Chryse sleeps here"). "It may be her original funerary inscription," one scholar states, "but it may also have been added later to the tomb."
A marble column from perhaps the 5th century
was discovered in 1950 near the same church. It reads ''S.AVR.''
References
External links
ACTA MARTYRUM AD OSTIA TIBERINA(Original Latin text, with English translation)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aurea Of Ostia
Italian Roman Catholic saints
3rd-century Christian martyrs
Year of birth unknown