Sebastian, << sih BAS chuhn, >> Saint (died A.D. 288), was an early Christian martyr. Legends about him were made famous by painters of the Renaissance. According to these legends, Saint Sebastian entered the Roman Army without revealing his intent to assist and protect the Christians. The Emperor Diocletian liked him and made him commander of soldiers in Milan. But Sebastian’s religious faith was discovered, and he was condemned to death. A troop of soldiers tied him to a tree and shot him with arrows. They thought him dead and left him. He was cared for by a Christian woman named Irene. Sebastian again declared his faith after he recovered. The emperor then ordered him clubbed to death in the amphitheater, and he was buried in the catacombs. Saint Sebastian tied to the tree was a favorite subject of early Italian painters. His feast day is January 20.
