20,000 Martyrs of Nicomedia

20,000 Martyrs of Nicomedia
20,000 Martyrs of Nicomedia
	Martyrs
Died	c. 4th century; Nicomedia, Bithynia; (modern-day İzmit, Turkey)
Venerated in	Catholic Church; Eastern Orthodox Church; Oriental Orthodoxy; Lutheran Church; Anglican Church;
Martyr's palm
Patronage	Persecuted Christians

The 20,000 Martyrs of Nicomedia refers to victims of persecution of Christians in Nicomedia, Bithynia (modern Izmit, Turkey) by the Roman emperors Diocletian and Maximian in the early 4th century AD.

According to various

Christmas Day

.

This event took place when the emperor Maximian (284-305) returned with victory over Ethiopians in 304 AD. It happened after they had refused to sacrifice to idols during Christmas Mass in order to thank gods for the victory he had acquired.^[1] Later Maximian and his soldiers entered the church and told the Christians they could escape punishment if they renounced Christ. The Christian priest Glycerius answered that the Christians would never "renounce their faith, even under the threat of torture". Maximian ordered him to be burned to death. Those who had not been burned in the church were captured and tortured to death. The bishop Anthimos who had escaped burning in the church was captured and beheaded.

In the Catholic Church, the number 20,000 is considered to be apocryphal.

Byzantine Catholic Churches.^[3] In the Roman Martyrology of the Catholic Church, there are separate entries for groups of martyrs of Nicomedia. The martyrdom of Anthimus of Nicomedia

and companions is commemorated on 24 April and "the commemoration of many holy martyrs of Nicomedia" on June 23.