St. Vincent of Saragossa

St. Vincent of Saragossa is honored as the protomartyr of Spain, a deacon who served the Church of Saragossa under its bishop, St. Valerius, in the early fourth century. When the persecution of the Emperor Diocletian broke out, both were arrested and brought before the governor Dacian; because the aged bishop had a hesitant speech, it was the young deacon Vincent who boldly answered for the faith, confounding the judge with his fearless constancy.

Handed over to a series of horrifying tortures meant to break his spirit, Vincent endured them all with such serene and even joyful courage that, according to the ancient accounts, his very torturers were moved to wonder, and he died of his sufferings at Valencia around the year 304. So celebrated was his witness that St. Augustine preached on his feast, and his cult spread swiftly through the whole Church; he is honored as a patron of vine-growers and of the poor, and his memory is kept on 22 January.