Portal:Catholic Church/Patron Archive/September 26

Cosmas and Damian (Arabic: قُزما ودميان, romanized: Qozma wa Dimyān; ‹See Tfd›Greek: Κοσμᾶς καὶ Δαμιανός; Latin: Cosmas et Damianus; c. 3rd century – c. 287 or c. 303 AD) were two Arab physicians and early Christian martyrs. They practised their profession in the seaport of Aegeae, then in the Roman province of Cilicia.

Cosmas and Damian were third century Arabian-born twin brothers who embraced Christianity and practised medicine and surgery without a fee. This led them to being named anargyroi (from the Greek Ἀνάργυροι, 'the silverless' or 'unmercenaries'); by this, they attracted many to the Christian faith. They reputedly cured blindness, fever, paralysis and reportedly expelled a serpent. They were arrested by Lysias, governor of Cilicia (modern-day Çukurova, Turkey) during the Diocletian persecution because of their faith and fame as healers. Emperor Diocletian, who favoured the worship of the Olympian gods, issued a series of edicts that condemned the Christians with the goal of eliminating Christianity from the Roman Empire. (Full article...)
Attributes: depicted as twins, beheaded, or with medical emblems
Patronage: surgeons, physicians, protectors of children, barbers, pharmacists, veterinarians
See also: Thérèse Couderc, France