Leontius of Tripolis

Leontius was a Greek by birth, born in Hellas in the first century, and entered the Roman army as a young man under the Emperor Vespasian (69–79). He rose to a position of command and was stationed at Tripolis in Phoenicia. He had been baptized in his youth and continued to confess the faith openly in the camp; his manifest virtues — his generosity to the poor, his prayers, his refusal to take part in the army's pagan ceremonies — drew the notice of the prefect Hadrianus, a man of particular hostility to Christians.

Hadrianus sent an emissary named Hypatius to summon Leontius for examination; on the way, Hypatius was overtaken by a serious illness, and Leontius — when he learned of it — visited him, prayed for him, and baptized him together with his companion Theodulus, both of whom were healed and went to martyrdom rejoicing. Leontius himself was finally arrested, tortured, and beheaded together with his two converts.

His feast, with theirs, is kept on June 18.