Martyr
Maximus of Ostia
A martyr honored in Western calendars; few details survive.
Uncertain source. We are looking to verify this information as soon as we can.
- Era
- 3rd century
- Place
- Lido di Ostia
- Order
- Martyrs
Life
Maximus of Ostia appears in the Acts of Aurea of Ostia as a priest of Ostia, the harbour of Rome. The Acts are the only source and their historical value is doubted; it is even thought that Maximus may never have existed.
According to the Acts, in the time of the emperor Claudius II (268 to 270) he stood beside the deacon Archelaus, the bishop Quiriacus and Aurea, and worked miracles. The story says he spoke to the guards, and sixteen soldiers were baptised. The vicar Ulpius Romulus then ordered that Maximus, Archelaus, Quiriacus and the converted soldiers be beheaded near the arch in front of the theatre and their bodies thrown into the sea. Eusebius recovered them and buried them in the necropolis on the Via Ostiense.
Maximus is honoured in the Western tradition as a saint of the undivided Church; the source gives no feast day.