The ''Vita patrum Iurensium'' ("Life of the Jura Fathers")According to , the full title as it appears in manuscripts is ''Vita vel regula sanctorum patrum Romani, Lupicini et Eugendi monasteriorum Iurensium abbatum'' ('Life and Rule of the Holy Fathers Romanus, Lupicinus and Eugendus, Abbots of the Jura Monasteries'). is an anonymous

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

biographical trilogy composed around 520. It is a

hagiographical A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian hagiographies might ...

work describing the lives of

Romanus Romanus (Latin for "Roman"), hellenized as Romanos (Ῥωμανός) was a Roman cognomen and may refer to: People * Adrianus Romanus, Flemish mathematician (1561–1615) * Aquila Romanus, Latin grammarian *Giles of Rome, Aegidius Romanus, mediev ...

, Lupicinus and

Eugendus Saint Eugendus (also Augendus; french: Oyand, Oyan; 449 – January 1, 510) was the fourth abbot of Condat Abbey, at Saint-Claude, Jura. He was born at Izernore. Life He was instructed in reading and writing by his father, who had become a prie ...

, the founding abbots of the Jura Mountain monasteries of Condat, Saint-Lupicin and

Romainmôtier Romainmôtier is a village and former municipality in the district of Orbe in the canton of Vaud, Switzerland. In 1970 the municipality was merged with the neighboring municipality Envy to form a new and larger municipality Romainmôtier-Envy ...

, respectively. They lived in the late 5th and early 6th centuries and were influenced by the monasticism of Lérins. Although the authenticity of the ''Vita'' was once doubted, it is now completely accepted and is regarded as one of the best biographies of its time. In his own words, the author of the ''Vita'', who knew Eugendus personally, aimed to "reproduce faithfully...—according to what I saw there with my own eyes or received from the tradition of the elders—the deeds, the way of life and the rule of the esteemed fathers of the Jura Mountains". He refers to himself as "the trinal narrator of the life of the three abbots", indicating clearly that the singular ''vita'' (life, not ''vitae'', lives) is intentional. Gérard Moyse and Ian Wood have ventured that the anonymous author was

Viventiolus Saint Viventiolus (french: Saint Vivientol) (460 – July 12, 524) (also known as Juventiole) was the Archbishop of Lyon (ancient Lugdunum) 514–523. Later canonized and venerated as a saint within the Catholic Church, ⁣re Archdiocese of Lyo ...

, a priest at Condat before he became

bishop of Lyon The Archdiocese of Lyon (Latin: ''Archidiœcesis Lugdunensis''; French: ''Archidiocèse de Lyon''), formerly the Archdiocese of Lyon–Vienne–Embrun, is a Latin Church metropolitan archdiocese of the Catholic Church in France. The Archbishops o ...

. He dedicated the work to John and Armentarius, monks of Acaunus. He says that Marinus, abbot of Lérins, had requested a copy of the ''Institutes'' he wrote for the community of Acaunus. The

Latinity Latinity (''Latinitas'') is proficiency in Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then kn ...

of the ''Vita'' is cumbersome but not uneducated. The author had access to

Jerome Jerome (; la, Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was a Christian presbyter, priest, Confessor of the Faith, confessor, th ...

's biography of

Paul of Thebes Paul of Thebes (; , ''Paûlos ho Thēbaîos''; ; c. 227 – c. 341), commonly known as Paul the First Hermit or Paul the Anchorite, was an Egyptian saint regarded as the first Christian hermit, who was claimed to have lived alone in the deser ...

, the ''Dialogues'' of

Sulpicius Severus Sulpicius Severus (; c. 363 – c. 425) was a Christian writer and native of Aquitania in modern-day France. He is known for his chronicle of sacred history, as well as his biography of Saint Martin of Tours. Life Almost all that we know of Se ...

and the biographies of

Anthony the Great Anthony the Great ( grc-gre, Ἀντώνιος ''Antṓnios''; ar, القديس أنطونيوس الكبير; la, Antonius; ; c. 12 January 251 – 17 January 356), was a Christian monk from Egypt, revered since his death as a saint. He is d ...

and

Martin of Tours Martin of Tours ( la, Sanctus Martinus Turonensis; 316/336 – 8 November 397), also known as Martin the Merciful, was the third bishop of Tours. He has become one of the most familiar and recognizable Christian saints in France, heralded as the ...

. He knew, perhaps indirectly or through anthologies, the works of

Basil the Great Basil of Caesarea, also called Saint Basil the Great ( grc, Ἅγιος Βασίλειος ὁ Μέγας, ''Hágios Basíleios ho Mégas''; cop, Ⲡⲓⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ Ⲃⲁⲥⲓⲗⲓⲟⲥ; 330 – January 1 or 2, 379), was a bishop of Ca ...

John Cassian John Cassian, also known as John the Ascetic and John Cassian the Roman ( la, Ioannes Eremita Cassianus, ''Ioannus Cassianus'', or ''Ioannes Massiliensis''; – ), was a Christian monk and theologian celebrated in both the Western and Eastern c ...

and

Pachomius the Great Pachomius (; el, Παχώμιος ''Pakhomios''; ; c. 292 – 9 May 348 AD), also known as Saint Pachomius the Great, is generally recognized as the founder of Christian cenobitic monasticism. Coptic churches celebrate his feast day on 9 May, ...

. It is possible that he knew

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

, which may still have been taught at Lérins. His preference is for mystical interpretations of scripture.

Gregory of Tours Gregory of Tours (30 November 538 – 17 November 594 AD) was a Gallo-Roman historian and Bishop of Tours, which made him a leading prelate of the area that had been previously referred to as Gaul by the Romans. He was born Georgius Florenti ...

, writing about sixty years after the ''Vita'' was composed, wrote the only other early biographies of the Jura Fathers in his ''Vita patrum''. It does not appear that he had access to the earlier ''Vita'', or else only to an epitome of it.

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