Auspicius of Apt also known as Auspice of Apt (96–102), was a Pre-Congregational saint, first

bishop of Apt The former French Catholic diocese of Apt, in southeast France, existed from the fourth century until the French Revolution. By the Concordat of 1801, it was suppressed, and its territory was divided between the diocese of Digne and the diocese o ...

, France who was consecrated by Clement I and

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

ed under

Trajan Trajan ( ; la, Caesar Nerva Traianus; 18 September 539/11 August 117) was Roman emperor from 98 to 117. Officially declared ''optimus princeps'' ("best ruler") by the senate, Trajan is remembered as a successful soldier-emperor who presi ...

Historic record

His name is mentioned in the passion of Saint Nereus and Achilles. and in the "Acts of St. Auspice". His tomb was found during renovation work in 1056, in a crypt under a ruined altar in the

Cathedral of Apt Apt Cathedral (''Cathédrale Sainte-Anne d'Apt'') is a Roman Catholic church and former cathedral located in the town of Apt in Provence, France now designated as a national monument. The shrine is the relic church of Saint Anne. Formerly a cathe ...

Life

The hagiographic tradition, holds him first bishop Apt sent by

Pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

Clement I, and he was martyred under Trajan. Ancient manuscripts hold he was attached to Flavia Domitilla like the brothers

Saints Nereus and Achilleus Nereus and Achilleus are two Roman martyr saints. In the present General Roman Calendar, revised in 1969, Nereus and Achilleus (together) are celebrated (optional memorials) on 12 May. The Tridentine Calendar had on 12 May a joint feast (semid ...

whom he would have himself buried after they were martyred.

Legend

According to a medieval tradition based in Provence,

Lazarus of Bethany Lazarus of Bethany (Latinised from Lazar, ultimately from Hebrew Eleazar, "God helped"), also venerated as Righteous Lazarus, the Four-Days Dead in the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the subject of a prominent sign of Jesus in the Gospel of John, ...

and his sisters

Martha Martha (Hebrew: מָרְתָא‎) is a biblical figure described in the Gospels of Luke and John. Together with her siblings Lazarus and Mary of Bethany, she is described as living in the village of Bethany near Jerusalem. She was witness ...

and

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

were put out to sea by those hostile to Christianity "...in a vessel without sails, oars, or helm, and after a miraculous voyage landed in Provence at a place called today the Saintes-Maries."Clugnet, Léon. "St. Lazarus of Bethany." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 9. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 20 October 2017 From there Lazarus continued on to Marseilles, where he became the first bishop of the city. The supposed relics of St. Anne were brought from the Holy Land to Constantinople in 710 and were kept there in the church of St. Sophia as late as 1333. During the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, returning crusaders and pilgrims from the East brought relics of Anne to a number of churches, including most famously those at Apt, in Provence, Ghent, and Chartres. According to

Frederick Holweck Frederick George Holweck (born Friedrich Georg Holweck; 29 December 1856 – 15 February 1927) was a German-American Catholic parish priest and scholar, hagiographer and church historian. Monsignor Holweck contributed some articles to the ''Catho ...

, "The tradition of the church of Apt pretends that the body of St. Anne was brought to Apt by St. Lazarus, the friend of Christ, was hidden by St. Auspicius (d. 398), and found again during the reign of Charlemagne (feast, Monday after the octave of Easter); these relics were brought to a magnificent chapel in 1664 (feast, 4 May)."Holweck, Frederick. "St. Anne." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. 20 October 2017. Léon Clugnet says,

Like the other legends concerning the saints of the Palestinian group, this tradition, which was believed for several centuries and which still finds some advocates, has no solid foundation. ...In the opinion of the most competent archæologists, however, this personage is Lazarus, Bishop of Aix, who was consecrated at Marseilles about 407, and who, having had to abandon his see in 411, passed some time in Palestine, whence he returned to end his days in Marseilles. It is more than likely that it is the name of this bishop and his return from Palestine, that gave rise to the legend of the coming of the Biblical Lazarus to Provence, and his apostolate in the city of Marseilles. "

References

{{Authority control Bishops of Apt 1st-century bishops in Gaul 1st-century Christian martyrs