Ss. Cosmas and Damian were twin brothers who, according to ancient tradition, were born in Arabia and practiced medicine in Cilicia in Asia Minor. They accepted no payment for their services and became known as anargyroi, "the silverless." As Catholics, we pray the novena to Ss. Cosmas and Damian to ask for their intercession for physical healing, for the sanctification of doctors and other health professionals, and for the grace to serve others generously without counting the cost.
Begin PrayingMore about Ss. Cosmas and Damian
According to ancient Christian tradition, Sts. Cosmas and Damian were twin brothers born in Arabia who practiced medicine at Aegeae in Cilicia, Asia Minor. They treated the sick without payment and used their work to bear witness to the Christian faith. For this reason, they became known as anargyroi, a Greek word meaning "the silverless." During the persecution under Diocletian, they were arrested and ordered to renounce their faith. Later accounts describe several failed attempts to execute them before they were finally beheaded. Some traditions also name three brothers who suffered martyrdom with them. The exact date of their death is unknown, but their martyrdom is generally placed near the beginning of the fourth century. A medieval legend attributes to the saints the miraculous replacement of a sick man’s diseased leg with the healthy leg of a recently deceased Ethiopian. The story became a frequent subject in sacred art and was depicted by Fra Angelico.
Devotion to these martyrs is among the oldest shared by Christians in the East and West. Churches were dedicated to them in Constantinople and Rome. According to an ancient tradition, Emperor Justinian attributed his recovery from a grave illness to their intercession and enlarged the church dedicated to them in Constantinople. In Rome, Pope Felix IV dedicated a basilica in their honor in the sixth century, and its apse mosaic remains an important work of early Christian art. Their names appear in the Roman Martyrology and in the Roman Canon of the Mass. They are among the patron saints of physicians, surgeons, pharmacists, and other health professionals. The Church celebrates their feast on September 26 in the current Roman calendar. The novena is traditionally prayed from September 17 through September 25 in preparation for their feast. Through their intercession, the faithful ask God to heal the sick, strengthen those who suffer, and inspire more people to give freely what they have freely received (Matthew 10:8).
