Dr. John (Ellsworth) Hutchison-Hall

Eastern Orthodox Christian theologian, historian, philosopher, and cultural commentator.

            

Home » Orthodox Saints of the Pre-Schism See of Rome 26th March (NS) — 13th March (OS) 2024


Orthodox Saints of the Pre-Schism
See of Rome
26th March (NS) — 13th March (OS) 2024

by | 26th March 2024 | Orthodox Western Saints

13th March O.S.

ANSOVINUS, a wonderworking hermit priest at Castel Raimondo near Torcello (part of present-day Metropolitan Venice), who was consecrated Bishop of Camerino (in the present-day Italian Marches) by Pope Leo IV (†855). While Bishop, St. Ansovinus was confessor to Emperor Louis the Pious (r. 813–840) and attended the Council of Rome in 861. St. Ansovinus reposed in 868.

GERALD, St. Gerald founded the monastery, and Diocese of Mayo in western Ireland. He was one of the English monks who accompanied St. Colman (18th February) when he retired to Ireland, following the Synod of Whitby. St. Colman made him abbot of the English monastery he founded at Mayo, which he ruled with great success, reposing at a very advanced age in 732.

HELDRAD (ELDRAD), originally from Provence, he spent his fortune on good works, and then went on a pilgrimage to Rome, where he became a monk at the Abbey of SS. Peter and Andrew (Abbazia di Novalesa) in Novalesa, part of present-day Turin, Italy. St. Heldrad served as Abbot of Novalesa for thirty years, reposing in 842.

KEVOCA (KENNOTHA, QUIVOCA), an Irish or Scottish saint of whom nothing is now known with any certitude. Some claim that he is the same saint as St. Mochoemoc (vide infra), founder and first Abbot of Liath-Mochoemoc in Co. Tipperary, Ireland. However, in ancient Scottish Calendars St. Kevoca is listed as a female saint.

MOCHOEMOC (MOCHAEMHOG, PULCHERIUS, VULCANIUS), the nephew of St. Ita (15th January), he received monastic tonsure at Bangor Abbey (in present-day Co. Down, Ulster) when St. Comgall (10th May) was Abbot. St. Mochoemoc later was the Abbot-founder Liath-Mochoemoc Abbey in Co. Tipperary, Ireland. He reposed circa 655.

RAMIRUS and COMPANIONS, St. Ramerirus, Prior of St. Claudius Abbey, Léon, Spain, along with the rest of the monks were martyred whilst chanting the Creed by Arian Visigoths circa 600–630.

RODERICK (RUDERICUS, RODRIGO) and SALOMON (SOLOMON), St. Roderick was a priest in Moorish Spain. One of his brothers converted to Islam and then told the athorities St. Roderick had converted as well. When the authorities asked if it was indeed true that he had converted. St. Roderick denied this proclaiming his faith in Christ. The authorities decided that he had become a Muslim and then apostatised. For this he was imprisoned. In prison he shared a cell with St. Salomon, with whom he was beheaded in 857. SS. Roderick and Salomon are counted amongst the group collectively known as The Martyrs of Córdoba.

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26th March N.S.

BERTILO of DIJON, the Abbot of the Abbey of St. Benignus of Dijon (abbaye de Saint-Bénigne de Dijon) at Dijon in Burgundy (east-central France). St. Bertilo was circa 883 martyred at the altar of the Abbey church along with some of his monks during a sack of his abbey by Vikings.

BRAULIO of ZARAGOZA, a monk at the Monastery of St. Engratia in Zaragoza in present-day Aragon, Spain. In 631 St. Braulio succeeded his brother, John (who had ordained him to the priesthood), as Archbishop of Zaragoza. In addition to his customary duties as bishop, St. Braulio served as an advisor to the monarchs. A fierce foe of Arianism St. Braulio successfully converted many Visigoths to Christianity. St. Braulio reposed in 646.

CASTULUS of ROME, a chamberlain in Diocletian’s palace in Rome and husband of St. Irene of Rome (30th March). In 288, St. Castulus was arrested, tortured, and then buried alive for having provided refuge to fellow Christians.

FELICITAS of PADUA, a ninth century nun in Padua, whose relics are enshrined at the Basilica of St. Justina in Padua, Italy.

FELIX of TRIER, though the records of the Church in Trier were destroyed by the Normans, we do know that St. Felix was in 386 consecrated the thirty-third Bishop of Trier by St. Martin of Tours (11th November). A fervent opponent of Priscillianism, St. Felix reposed in 400.

GARBHÁN, (Seventh Century), nothing certain is known about this Irish saint, though he seems to have left his name to the town of Dungarvan (Dún Garbháin) in Co. Waterford, Ireland.

LUDGER of UTRECHT, Apostle of Saxony, a native of Frisia (present-day Netherlands), who spent some time in England and at Monte Cassino. He preached mainly in Westphalia and served as the founding Bishop of the See of Münster. St. Ludger authored a Life of St. Gregory of Utrecht (25th August). He reposed in 809.

MOCHELLOC (CELLOG, MOTTELOG, MOTALOGUS) of KILMALLOCK, (Seventh Century), the patron saint of Kilmallock (Cill Mocheallóg) in Co. Limerick, Ireland. There are no reliable details of his life extant.

MONTANUS the MARTYR and MAXIMA the MARTYR, Montanus, a priest, and Maxima, his wife, martyred by drowning during the Diocletianic Persecution (303–313).

PETER, MARCIAN, JOVINUS, THECLA, CASSIAN, and COMPANIONS, Martyrs of Rome, (Date Unknown), a group of martyrs in Rome whose lives have become hopelessly intertwined that it is now impossible to disentangle them. It is said that some of them may have been bishops.

SINCHEALL of KILLEIGH, (Fifth Century), a disciple of St. Patrick (17th March), and founder of the monastery of Killeigh in Co. Offaly, Ireland. At its peak, there were one hundred and fifty monks at the monastery. There is no further information on this saint extant.

Prior to the Schism the Patriarchate of Rome was Orthodox, and fully in communion with the Orthodox Church. As Saint John of Shanghai and San Francisco +1966 said “The West was Orthodox for a thousand years, and her venerable Liturgy is far older than any of her heresies”.

Details of British Saints excerpted from Orthodox Saints of the British Isles.
Details of continental saints from these sources.

In many cases there are several spelling versions of the names of saints from the British Isles. I use the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography version as the primary version with the more prevalent version in parenthesis e.g. Ceadda (Chad) of Lichfield.