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The saints

Sts. Nereus and Achilleus

Two soldiers of the emperor who threw down their weapons when they met Christ.

Feast: 12 May · about 300 · The early Church · Rome

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Two stained-glass windows, each showing a saint in a red cloak holding a palm.

Man vyi, 2013. Wikimedia Commons, Public domain.

Home / The saints / Sts. Nereus and Achilleus

The catacomb of Domitilla, Rome

Pope Damasus wrote an inscription for their tomb in the catacomb of Domitilla.1

It says they were soldiers who carried out cruel orders, until they were converted.1

Then they threw away their shields and weapons and confessed Christ, and they were put to death.

Patronage No official patronage we can cite yet. The Church remembers them as soldiers who laid down their arms for Christ.

01Sts. Nereus and Achilleus

The tomb

Their basilica was built over their grave on the Via Ardeatina.1

Live it this week

Lay down one weapon

Nereus and Achilleus threw down their arms when they met Christ. This week, give up one weapon you use on people (sarcasm, the silent treatment, a cutting comment) for seven straight days.

Notes

How we know · 1 source for this page
  1. Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), “Sts. Nereus and Achilleus, Domitilla and Pancratius”. New Advent edition. newadvent.org

The Catholic Encyclopedia (1913) is in the public domain; we quote the New Advent edition. Texts of the Holy See are quoted briefly from vatican.va. Scripture: World English Bible, Catholic edition (public domain); Verse numbers are modern, with Douay-Rheims numbers in brackets where they differ. Photographs: Wikimedia Commons, credited under each image; full list on the photo credits page.

Lines in the narrator’s voice, without a note, are our reflection, not a historical claim. Stone & Incense restates Church teaching in plain words; our wording is not an official Church text. Report an errorCorrections.