The life of St Polychronius of Babylon
Brought before Decius and ordered to sacrifice to idols, Polychronius answered that they offered themselves instead as a sacrifice to Christ, and would not bow to gods made by human hands.
Thrown into prison and questioned again, Polychronius stayed silent under his suffering, and when Decius mocked him for it, the priest Parmenius answered on his behalf, for which Decius had Parmenius's tongue cut out. Undeterred, Parmenius continued to encourage his bishop even without his tongue. By Decius's order Polychronius was struck in the mouth with stones until he died, and his body was left exposed before a pagan temple until Christians could recover it for burial by night. His surviving companions were taken onward by Decius and eventually put to death as well, tortured and finally executed, holding to their confession of Christ to the end. Miraculous details recorded in the fuller account, including a voice heard from heaven, are omitted here for length.
