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Aureus of Mainz (born at an unknown date in the Rhone-
Loire The Loire (, also ; ; oc, Léger, ; la, Liger) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhôn ...
region; died c. 436 or 451,
Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-west, with Ma ...
or
Eichsfeld The Eichsfeld ( or ; English: ''Oak-field'') is a historical region in the southeast of the state of Lower Saxony (which is called "Untereichsfeld" = lower Eichsfeld) and northwest of the state of Thuringia ("Obereichsfeld" = upper Eichsfeld) in th ...
) is a Roman Catholic saint and the first named
bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...
of
Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-west, with Ma ...
. His feast is on 16 June.


Life

His is the first name on the earliest surviving list of bishops of Mainz, which dates to the 10th century. The only sources for his life are church sources and legends of his life. The earliest one derives from a work written by
Rabanus Maurus Rabanus Maurus Magnentius ( 780 – 4 February 856), also known as Hrabanus or Rhabanus, was a Frankish Benedictine monk, theologian, poet, encyclopedist and military writer who became archbishop of Mainz in East Francia. He was the author of th ...
, the first Archbishop of Mainz after it was promoted to an archdiocese in the early 780s - this was written on Rabanus' consecration of Fulda Abbey, in whose south aisle there was later an altar dedicated to Aureus. In 843 Rabanus also wrote a
martyrology A martyrology is a catalogue or list of martyrs and other saints and beati arranged in the calendar order of their anniversaries or feasts. Local martyrologies record exclusively the custom of a particular Church. Local lists were enriched by n ...
testifying to the murder of Aureus and his sister St Justina on 16 June in a church during a
Hun The Huns were a nomadic people who lived in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Europe between the 4th and 6th century AD. According to European tradition, they were first reported living east of the Volga River, in an area that was part ...
raid. Later sources fix the raid in 454, but this is unlikely and may be an error for one of the datable raids in 451. If the raid occurred in the migratory period, the raids in 451, 436, 406-407 or even 368 is possible -
Alban of Mainz Alban of Mainz (Latin: ''Albanus'' or ''Albinus''; supposedly died in or near Mainz) was a Catholic priest, missionary, and martyr in the Late Roman Empire. He is venerated as Saint Alban of Mainz in the Catholic Church, not to be confused with ...
is said to have been beheaded for preaching against
Arianism Arianism ( grc-x-koine, Ἀρειανισμός, ) is a Christological doctrine first attributed to Arius (), a Christian presbyter from Alexandria, Egypt. Arian theology holds that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, who was begotten by God ...
during a raid in 406-407 for example. Diesel's tradition speaks of bishop Aureus as being expelled before the time of Alban. This would mean Aureus was bishop of Mainz before 406. Tradition holds that the people of Mainz expelled him for opposing Arianism and that
Theonistus Saint Theonistus (''Theonist, Teonesto, Thaumastus, Thaumastos, Theonestus, Thonistus, Onistus, Teonisto, Tonisto'') is a saint venerated by the Catholic Church. Theonistus is venerated with two companions, Tabra and Tabratha (also ''Tabraham and ...
and Alban carried on his work in his absence. Aureus then returned to the now-destroyed city after 406 and resumed his work as bishop. However, if his martyrdom is dated to 451, this would mean he was in office for fifty years and complicates the dating of the next bishop, Maximus. Aureus and his sister Justina were thus probably martyred in 436. His remains were either buried in the city's Basilica of St Alban immediately after his death or transferred there in 805.


Cult

He is traditionally venerated as a saint in the Diocese of Mainz. The Aureuskapelle chapel was built in the Zahlbach district of the city on the traditional site of his martyrdom and his initial burial - it is probably the earliest site of Christian worship in Mainz. Its predecessor was the St. Hilariuskirche, often the burial place for early bishops of the city. It was completely destroyed in the Siege of Mainz in 1793 and replaced by a new building to designs by
Vincenz Statz Vincenz Statz (9 April 1819, Cologne – † 21 August 1898, Cologne) was a Neo-Gothic German architect, mainly active in the Rhineland. Bibliography (in German) * Pfarrgemeinderat Neuss-Grefrath (Hrsg.): ''Festschrift zum 125-jährigen Ju ...
, which was itself destroyed in an air-raid in 1944. In 1022, relics of Aureus was transferred to
Heilbad Heiligenstadt Heilbad Heiligenstadt is a spa town in Thuringia, Germany. It is the capital of the Eichsfeld district. Geography Heiligenstadt is approximately 14 km east of the tripoint where the states of Thuringia, Hesse and Lower Saxony meet. It lies ...
, where from the late Middle Ages he and the deacon Justinus were revered as patron saints of the town. This was based on a different version of his legend, in which he and his deacon Justinus were fleeing
Atilla the Hun Attila (, ; ), frequently called Attila the Hun, was the ruler of the Huns from 434 until his death in March 453. He was also the leader of a tribal empire consisting of Huns, Ostrogoths, Alans, and Bulgars, among others, in Central Europe ...
, who caught up with them at
Eichsfeld The Eichsfeld ( or ; English: ''Oak-field'') is a historical region in the southeast of the state of Lower Saxony (which is called "Untereichsfeld" = lower Eichsfeld) and northwest of the state of Thuringia ("Obereichsfeld" = upper Eichsfeld) in th ...
, where he tortured and beheaded them. They were then buried there and miracles began occurring on the spot.heilbad-heiligenstadt.de
/ref> He is also venerated in Oberursel-Bommersheim and has a festival in the diocesan calendar of Mainz on 16 June.


Churches dedicated to him

* St. Aureus und Justina (Bommersheim) * St. Aureus und Justina (Büdesheim)


Bibliography

* Hans Werner Nopper: Die vorbonifatianischen Mainzer Bischöfe, Books on Demand, Norderstedt 2001,


References


External links

*
Aureus von Mainz im Portal ''Ökumenisches Heiligenlexikon''
{{authority control Bishops of Mainz (to 745) German Roman Catholic saints 5th-century deaths