The life of St Christopher
Tradition gives varying accounts of his origins, some placing him among the Canaanites, others among a people of Thessaly, and centuries of retelling wrapped his story in legend, so that almost nothing about his life or death can be counted as certain history, even as the Church has never doubted that a martyr of this name was venerated at least as early as the sixth century.
The tradition remembers that two hundred soldiers were sent to arrest him, and that on the road they came to believe in Christ and were baptized alongside him by Bishop Babylas of Antioch. Brought before Decius, Christopher would not deny his faith. Two women sent to turn him from it were converted instead, and were martyred for it, as were the soldiers who had believed. Accounts differ on the manner of Christopher's own torment and death, agreeing only that he endured great cruelty and was finally beheaded. He is remembered as a protector of travelers.
