A laywoman of Anagni martyred in 250 during the persecution of the emperor Decius, honored in the city’s ancient local tradition.

Saint Secondina di Anagni was a laywoman of the Italian city of Anagni who was martyred in the year 250 under the emperor Decius, when Christians across the empire were ordered to sacrifice to the pagan gods. Few details of her death survive, but her memory has been preserved in Anagni’s ancient local liturgical tradition.

Quick Facts

• Died: 250 (Anagni, Italy)
• Venerated as: Laywoman and martyr

Who Was Saint Secondina di Anagni?

Saint Secondina was a laywoman of the ancient Italian city of Anagni who died for her faith in the year 250, during the persecution ordered by the emperor Decius, one of the first empire-wide, systematically enforced persecutions of Christians.

Historical Setting

Decius’s edict of 250 required all inhabitants of the empire to sacrifice to the gods and obtain a certificate proving compliance, catching many Christian communities unprepared and producing both martyrs and, controversially, believers who complied to save their lives. Anagni, an old Latin hill town southeast of Rome, had an established Christian community by this period.

Why the Church Remembers Saint Secondina di Anagni

Secondina is remembered as one of the local martyrs of Anagni whose refusal to comply with the Decian edict cost her life, a witness preserved in the city’s own ancient liturgical tradition even though few narrative details of her death survive.

Canonization and Feast Day

No formal canonization process for Secondina is recorded, as is expected for a martyr of this period. Her cult is ancient and local, received through the Church’s memory of the Decian persecution rather than confirmed by any later process.

What Catholics Can Learn Today

Secondina’s witness during the Decian persecution, a moment when many believers faced the real temptation to simply comply and survive, speaks to anyone who has ever weighed convenience against conviction. Her steadfastness is a quiet challenge to take integrity seriously even when compromise would be easy.

A Prayer to Saint Secondina di Anagni

Saint Secondina of Anagni, who refused to bow before Decius’s demand, give us your courage when the easier path would ask us to compromise what we believe. Intercede for the Christians of your own city and for all who face pressure to conform.

Sources

• Roman Martyrology
• Butler’s Lives of the Saints
• New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia
• Acta Sanctorum