Above:  St. Paulinus of Nola

Image in the Public Domain

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SAINT MEROPIUS PONTIUS ANACIUS PAULINUS (CIRCA 354-JUNE 22, 431)

Roman Catholic Bishop of Nola

St. Paulinus of Nola and his wife Therasia did much to help the poor, especially of Nola, Italy.

St. Paulinus and his wife were initially pagans.  Our saint, born in Buridigala, Gaul (now Bordeaux, France), circa 354, came from a prominent and wealthy family.  He became a lawyer and a Roman imperial official.  After he left public service the couple retired to Buridigala.  Later they moved to Therasia’s estate at Alcala de Henares, Spain.  There they welcomed their only son into the world.  There they also grieved after he died about a week after his birth.

In the wake of their son’s death St. Paulinus and Therasia converted to Christianity and dedicated their lives to God.  St. Ambrose of Milan and St. Delphinus of Bordeaux (d. 403), the Bishop of Buridigala, facilitated the conversions and baptisms in 392.  St. Paulinus and Therasia sold or gave away most of their wealth and embarked on their new lives.

St. Paulinus became a clergyman.  He, ordained a priest in Barcelona in 394, moved to Nola, Italy, where he and Therasia helped poor people.  In 409 our saint, by then a widower, became the Bishop of Nola by popular demand; he served for the rest of his life.  He lived as a monk at home.

St. Paulinus, a prolific writer, composed one of the oldest surviving Christian wedding songs.

St. Paulinus had a group of prominent friends.  They included Emperor Theodosius I “the Great” (reigned 379-395), Pope St. Anastasius I (in office 399-401), St. Augustine of Hippo, St. Nicetas of Remesiana, St. Martin of Tours, and St. Jerome.  The glue of Christian faith held them together.

St. Paulinus died at Nola on June 22, 431.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

JANUARY 28, 2018 COMMON ERA

THE FOURTH SUNDAY AFTER THE EPIPHANY, YEAR B

THE FEAST OF SAINT ALBERT THE GREAT AND HIS PUPIL, SAINT THOMAS AQUINAS, ROMAN CATHOLIC THEOLOGIANS

THE FEAST OF CHARLES KINGSLEY, ANGLICAN PRIEST, NOVELIST, AND HYMN WRITER

THE FEAST OF JOSEPH BARNBY, ANGLICAN CHURCH MUSICIAN AND COMPOSER

THE FEAST OF RICHARD FREDERICK LITTLEDALE, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND TRANSLATOR OF HYMNS

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Heavenly Gather, Shepherd of your people, we thank you for your servant Saint Paulinus of Nola,

who was faithful in the care and nurture of your flock;

and we pray that, following his example and the teaching of his holy life,

we may by your grace grow into the stature of the fullness of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ;

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.  Amen.

Ezekiel 34:11-16

Psalm 23

1 Peter 5:1-4

John 21:15-17

–Adapted from Holy Women, Holy Men:  Celebrating the Saints (2010), page 718

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