Martyr Boniface at Tarsus in Cilicia, and Righteous Aglaϊa of Rome

Commemorated on December 19.

On the eve of their arrival, an Angel appeared to Aglaϊa in her sleep and told her to prepare herself to receive her former slave, now the brother and fellow servant of the Angels. Aglaϊa summoned the clergy, and she received the holy relics with great reverence. Then she built a church on the site of his grave and dedicated it to the Holy Martyr. There she enshrined his relics, which were glorified by numerous miracles.

After distributing all her wealth to the poor, Aglaϊa withdrew to a monastery, where she spent fifteen years in repentance, then she fell asleep in the Lord. She was buried beside Saint Boniface. The sins of the one were washed away by his blood, while the other was purified by her tears and asceticism. Both were found worthy to appear unsullied before our Lord Jesus Christ, Who desires not the death of a sinner, but that he should turn from his wickedness and live (Ezekiel 33:11).

We pray to Saint Boniface for deliverance from drunkenness.