On this day, July 9 according to the Julian Calendar (July 22 civil calendar), the Georgian Orthodox Church commemorates Hieromartyr Bagrat, Bishop of Taormina.
Hieromartyr Bagrat, Bishop of Taormina, was born at the time when the incarnate Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, walked among men and filled the earth with wonder through His new teaching and miracles. Bagrat’s parents were from Antioch.
His father Sosipater was a disciple of the Holy Apostle Paul and is himself numbered among the Seventy Apostles. Bagrat was raised in the Christian faith from childhood and grew up to become a bishop of the Church in Sicily, at the city of Taormina.
He was a faithful shepherd of his flock and a bold preacher of the Gospel. When persecution of Christians arose, Bishop Bagrat was arrested for his refusal to sacrifice to idols and his unwavering confession of Christ.
He suffered many torments for the faith and was finally martyred in the first century, receiving the crown of a hieromartyr. The Church venerates him as one of the early champions of the Christian faith in the western lands.
May the intercessions of Hieromartyr Bagrat, Bishop of Taormina be with us all.