"In Lyon, France, we remember the holy martyrs Pothinus, bishop, and Blandina of Lyon, together with forty-six companions, whose numerous and arduous trials, endured during the time of Emperor Marcus Aurelius, are attested to in the letter addressed by the Church of Lyon to the churches of Asia and Phrygia. Of these, Bishop Potinus, aged ninety, perished shortly after being imprisoned; some died like him in prison, while others were led into the arena in front of thousands of spectators: those who were found to be Roman citizens were beheaded, while the others were fed to the wild beasts; Finally, Blandina, her throat cut after suffering endless and increasingly cruel tortures, was finally able to join in glory those companions whom she had previously exhorted to attain the palm of martyrdom. (2 June)"