It is a Roman Catholic tradition that you can only give your
child a name that has previously been that of a recognised saint. Sometimes one
comes across the story of a saint about whom so little is known that one
wonders if they are only on the list to give parents a wider choice when it
comes to baby names!
One such saint might be Saint Martina, whose day for
celebration falls on 30th January. Almost nothing is known about her
life, apart from the fact that she was buried in a Christian tomb in an ancient
church in Rome along with her two brothers, Concordius and Epiphanius.
In 1634 Pope Urban VIII wanted to rebuild the church, which
was when the tomb was discovered. It was decided to honour the supposed martyrs
and the sculptor Bernini was commissioned to create a magnificent bronze shrine
for Martina and her brothers. This is now the centrepiece of the church of
Santi Luca e Martino in Rome.
© John Welford
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