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The holy and glorious [[Martyr]] '''Susanna the Virgin''' was the daughter of [[Presbyter]] Gavinius and a niece of the Holy [[Bishop]] Caius of Rome (283-296). She was raised in strict Christian piety and in her youthful years dedicated herself to God. The family of the [[saint]] was related to the emperor [[Diocletian ]] (284-305), who heard reports of her virtue and beauty. The Church celebrates her [[feast day]] on [[August 11]].
Having decided to give St. Susanna in marriage to his co-ruling emperor Maximian Hercules (284305-305311), Diocletian sent his own kinsman, the dignitary Claudius, to the priest Gavinius, and then his own brother Maximus. Both of them, together with the wife of Claudius Prepedigna and her sons Alexander and Cythius, accepted [[Baptism]] after conversation with the pious family. Having learned that the entire family of his relatives had been converted to Christianity, Diocletian sent them into exile.
Soon they burned the martyrs at Ostia, not far from Rome, and threw the ashes into the sea. They took the holy virgin Susanna to the palace, and the empress tried to persuade her to submit. But the empress, secretly a Christian, supported the martyr in her intention to preserve her virginity for the sake of the Lord. She explained to the emperor about the virgin's unwillingness to enter into [[marriage]] with a pagan. Diocletian gave permission to his co-ruler to defile the holy virgin, but an angel defended her.