Quinidius
Encyclopedia
Quinidius (d. February 15, ca. 579) was a French
saint
. He was born at Vaison-la-Romaine
to a noble Christian family. As a young man, he became a hermit
near Toulon
and then at Lérins Abbey
to devote himself to a life of prayer
and asceticism
.
Esteemed for his piety, he was recalled to his natal town by Theodosius, Bishop of Vaison. He was made an archdeacon
. He was himself elected Bishop of Vaison in 556, and achieved a reputation for charity and fairness. He participated in the Councils of Paris of 558 and 573. He resisted the claims of the patrician Mummolus
, conqueror of the Lombards
.
was unearthed there in 1950 which may contain the possible relics of Quinidius. He was officially registered in the catalogue of saints during the papacy of Innocent III at the request of Rambaud Flotte, bishop of the city.
The apse
of the Church of St. Quenin at Vaison seems to date from the eighth century; it is one of the oldest in France.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
saint
Saint
A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...
. He was born at Vaison-la-Romaine
Vaison-la-Romaine
Vaison-la-Romaine is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France....
to a noble Christian family. As a young man, he became a hermit
Hermit
A hermit is a person who lives, to some degree, in seclusion from society.In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a Christian who lives the eremitic life out of a religious conviction, namely the Desert Theology of the Old Testament .In the...
near Toulon
Toulon
Toulon is a town in southern France and a large military harbor on the Mediterranean coast, with a major French naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region, Toulon is the capital of the Var department in the former province of Provence....
and then at Lérins Abbey
Lérins Abbey
Lérins Abbey is a Cistercian monastery on the island of Saint-Honorat, one of the Lérins Islands, on the French Riviera, with an active monastic community....
to devote himself to a life of prayer
Prayer
Prayer is a form of religious practice that seeks to activate a volitional rapport to a deity through deliberate practice. Prayer may be either individual or communal and take place in public or in private. It may involve the use of words or song. When language is used, prayer may take the form of...
and asceticism
Asceticism
Asceticism describes a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from various sorts of worldly pleasures often with the aim of pursuing religious and spiritual goals...
.
Esteemed for his piety, he was recalled to his natal town by Theodosius, Bishop of Vaison. He was made an archdeacon
Archdeacon
An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in Anglicanism, Syrian Malabar Nasrani, Chaldean Catholic, and some other Christian denominations, above that of most clergy and below a bishop. In the High Middle Ages it was the most senior diocesan position below a bishop in the Roman Catholic Church...
. He was himself elected Bishop of Vaison in 556, and achieved a reputation for charity and fairness. He participated in the Councils of Paris of 558 and 573. He resisted the claims of the patrician Mummolus
Mummolus
Mummolus, Mommolus, or Mummulus, born Eunius to one Peonius, Count of Auxerre. He was a Gallo-Roman patrician and prefect who served Guntram, King of Burgundy, as a general....
, conqueror of the Lombards
Lombards
The Lombards , also referred to as Longobards, were a Germanic tribe of Scandinavian origin, who from 568 to 774 ruled a Kingdom in Italy...
.
Death and veneration
At his death, his body was placed under the main altar of the cathedral of Vaison. A sarcophagusSarcophagus
A sarcophagus is a funeral receptacle for a corpse, most commonly carved or cut from stone. The word "sarcophagus" comes from the Greek σαρξ sarx meaning "flesh", and φαγειν phagein meaning "to eat", hence sarkophagus means "flesh-eating"; from the phrase lithos sarkophagos...
was unearthed there in 1950 which may contain the possible relics of Quinidius. He was officially registered in the catalogue of saints during the papacy of Innocent III at the request of Rambaud Flotte, bishop of the city.
The apse
Apse
In architecture, the apse is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome...
of the Church of St. Quenin at Vaison seems to date from the eighth century; it is one of the oldest in France.