Generosus

Holy Martyr Generosus is the patron of the town of Ortona dei Marsi in the Abruzzi region of Italy. He was a disciple of Saint Rufus the martyr and was put to death in the time of the Emperor Diocletian, around the year 304.

His body was at first buried in the catacombs of Saint Sebastian in Rome. His remains are kept at Ortona dei Marsi, in the parish church. His memory is kept on 8 May, the month in which the body was moved to the town; at first it was kept on 19 September. Every year the statue of the saint is carried in procession through the streets of the town. He is depicted as a warrior, with an olive branch in his right hand and a banner proclaiming him a "bringer of peace". For about four centuries his statue has stood in a niche near the altar, and in 1947 an altar was built in his honor. He is honored as a saint of the undivided Church, by the Western calendar (new style).