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Today, 9 December, is the feast of ... * Hipparchus and his companions, the seven martyrs of Samosata (c. 300?) - the account in the *passio* that tells of the baptism by Hipparchus of five of the other soon-to-be-martyrs is of interest regarding early liturgy regarding baptism; the text is translated from the Syriac into French in H. Leclercq, *Les martyrs*, vol. 2 (1903) pp. 391-403 * Leocadia, virgin and martyr (304?) - patron of Toledo (Spain, not Ohio) * Gorgonia, matron (c. 372) - eldest child of St Gregory Nazianzen the Elder and his wife, St Nonna; sister of St Gregory Nazianzen (the Younger?) and St Caesarius * Budoc or Beuzec, abbot (6th century?) - some of the many miracles related in the *vita* deal with the mother of the saint, who was the daughter of the king of Brest; in order to distract a snake that was biting her father, she smeared her breast with milk and aromatic oil; the snake bit her breast and would not let go, so she had to cut her breast off; God, in recognition of her piety, gave her back a breast of gold *************** Dr Carolyn Muessig Department of Theology and Religious Studies University of Bristol Bristol BS8 1TB UK phone: +44(0)117-928-8168 fax: +44(0)117-929-7850 e-mail: [log in to unmask]