St. Flavia Domitilla

St. Flavia Domitilla was a noblewoman of the early Roman Church and a niece of the Emperor Domitian. She was converted to the Christian faith by Sts. Nereus and Achilleus — her guards, who had themselves been baptized by St. Peter the Apostle. For her witness to Christ she was banished to the island of Pontia, and in the year 96 AD she gave her life in martyrdom. She is commemorated in the Roman Martyrology on the 7th of May.

A Prayer to St. Flavia Domitilla

St. Flavia Domitilla, in the face of worldly persecution, you bravely offered your life rather than deny the objectivity of the Truth. Help us, we beseech you, to follow your example by living each day as witnesses to the Lordship of Jesus Christ; that when we have given our lives — in daily sacrifice of will, or ultimate sacrifice of breath — we may rejoice with you in the Unconquerable Empire of our Risen Savior, unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Her Veneration

Though St. Flavia’s feast was removed from the General Roman Calendar in 1969, she remains inscribed in the Roman Martyrology under the 7th of May, and Mass may be offered in her honor on that day.

The Travels of St. Flavia

The Reliquary of St. Flavia

St. Flavia in the Roman Martyrology (1914)

The pages of the 1914 Roman Martyrology on which St. Flavia Domitilla appears, excerpted from the full volume.