Saint Porcarius
Encyclopedia
Saint Porcarius known as Saint-Porchaire in French
, was a Benedictine
monk, governed the abbey of Lérins
, off the coast of the French Riviera
, (now known as Île de Saint-Honorat, as the monastery was founded by Saint Honoratus of Arles
) at a time when the monastery included over 500 residents.
According to tradition, around the year 732, Porcarius was warned by an angel
in a vision that the monastery was about to be attacked by barbarian
s. Immediately the abbot heeded the warning and sent off to safety by ship all the young students at the abbey and 36 of the younger monks. When the ship left fully loaded, he set about preparing the rest of the community for death and prayed with them for courage.
The community was attacked by the Saracen
s, probably Moors
from Spain
or North Africa
, and were massacred, except four who were taken into slavery. Their feast is kept in the diocese of Fréjus
, France
, and the memorial day of Saint Porcarius and his companions is August 12.
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, was a Benedictine
Benedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
monk, governed the abbey of Lérins
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....
, off the coast of the French Riviera
French Riviera
The Côte d'Azur, pronounced , often known in English as the French Riviera , is the Mediterranean coastline of the southeast corner of France, also including the sovereign state of Monaco...
, (now known as Île de Saint-Honorat, as the monastery was founded by Saint Honoratus of Arles
Arles
Arles is a city and commune in the south of France, in the Bouches-du-Rhône department, of which it is a subprefecture, in the former province of Provence....
) at a time when the monastery included over 500 residents.
According to tradition, around the year 732, Porcarius was warned by an angel
Angel
Angels are mythical beings often depicted as messengers of God in the Hebrew and Christian Bibles along with the Quran. The English word angel is derived from the Greek ἄγγελος, a translation of in the Hebrew Bible ; a similar term, ملائكة , is used in the Qur'an...
in a vision that the monastery was about to be attacked by barbarian
Barbarian
Barbarian and savage are terms used to refer to a person who is perceived to be uncivilized. The word is often used either in a general reference to a member of a nation or ethnos, typically a tribal society as seen by an urban civilization either viewed as inferior, or admired as a noble savage...
s. Immediately the abbot heeded the warning and sent off to safety by ship all the young students at the abbey and 36 of the younger monks. When the ship left fully loaded, he set about preparing the rest of the community for death and prayed with them for courage.
The community was attacked by the Saracen
Saracen
Saracen was a term used by the ancient Romans to refer to a people who lived in desert areas in and around the Roman province of Arabia, and who were distinguished from Arabs. In Europe during the Middle Ages the term was expanded to include Arabs, and then all who professed the religion of Islam...
s, probably Moors
Moors
The description Moors has referred to several historic and modern populations of the Maghreb region who are predominately of Berber and Arab descent. They came to conquer and rule the Iberian Peninsula for nearly 800 years. At that time they were Muslim, although earlier the people had followed...
from Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
or North Africa
North Africa
North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...
, and were massacred, except four who were taken into slavery. Their feast is kept in the diocese of Fréjus
Diocese of Fréjus
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Fréjus-Toulon is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in France. In 1957 it was renamed as the Diocese of Fréjus-Toulon.A suffragan of the Archbishopric of Aix, it comprised the whole département of Var...
, 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...
, and the memorial day of Saint Porcarius and his companions is August 12.
Note
- A less well-known CatholicCatholicThe word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
figure also known as Porcarius (or in some documents, "Porcar") was a canonCanon (priest)A canon is a priest or minister who is a member of certain bodies of the Christian clergy subject to an ecclesiastical rule ....
of the cathedral of NantesNantesNantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the 6th largest in France, while its metropolitan area ranks 8th with over 800,000 inhabitants....
, and a monk in the Cistercian abbey of Buzay. He appears to be the brother "according to the flesh" who received, in Nantes, the then abbot Peter AbelardPeter AbelardPeter Abelard was a medieval French scholastic philosopher, theologian and preeminent logician. The story of his affair with and love for Héloïse has become legendary...
, when he came to return the visit of the count Conan III. http://www.cc-vallet.fr/abelard/abelard/abelgenealogie.htm