Holy Martyr Arsakios

St. Arsakios the Martyr (Feast Day - November 12)

Verses

Arsakios rejoiced when he beheld the sword,
With the sword, he also beheld the crown.

The Holy Martyr Arsakios met his end by the sword. Nothing else is known of his life.

According to the Latin tradition, Saint Arsakios (Arsacius) is also known as Saint Arsatius. He is said to have been a Bishop of Milan, who lived either around 400 or in the 6th century, and possibly a martyr, but there is no evidence. Because of the traditional connection with Milan, he is further supposed to have been a disciple of Saint Ambrose, who was also Bishop of Milan, but there is no evidence of this either. His relics were brought in 766 from Rome to Ilmmünster Monastery in Bavaria, Germany where a cultus grew up around them and where the well-known Arsatius-Basilika is still dedicated to him. They were moved to Munich in 1495, but returned to Ilmmünster in 1846.