Saint Rusticus (c. 455 – 25 April 501), the successor of Saint

Lupicinus of Lyon Lupicinus of Lyon was the first Archbishop of Lyon (491–494) Bishop of Lyon The Archdiocese of Lyon (Latin: ''Archidiœcesis Lugdunensis''; French: ''Archidiocèse de Lyon''), formerly the Archdiocese of Lyon–Vienne–Embrun, is a Latin Churc ...

(491-494), served as

Archbishop 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 ...

from 494 to April 501. Later

canonized Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the canon catalogue of s ...

and venerated in the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, his feast day is 25 April.

Family

He and his brother St. Viventiolus were the sons of Aquilinus (c. 430-c. 470), a nobleman at Lyon. Aquilinus was the son of Tullia (born 410), the daughter of Saint Eucherius and his wife Gallia. Tullia's husband, whose name is unknown, was the son of

Decimus Rusticus Decimus Rusticus (sometimes Rusticus Decimus) of Treves (then ''Augusta Treverorum'') and Lyon ('' Lugdunum'') (c. 370 – before 423) was a Master of the Offices and the praetorian prefect of Gaul between 409 and 410 or 413. He was one of those ...

and his wife Artemia, and was a ''

vicarius ''Vicarius'' is a Latin word, meaning ''substitute'' or ''deputy''. It is the root of the English word "vicar". History Originally, in ancient Rome, this office was equivalent to the later English " vice-" (as in "deputy"), used as part of th ...

'' of a province in

Gaul Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...

between 423 and 448 under Apollinaris, the father of Aquilinus' schoolfellow and friend,

Sidonius Apollinaris Gaius Sollius Modestus Apollinaris Sidonius, better known as Sidonius Apollinaris (5 November of an unknown year, 430 – 481/490 AD), was a poet, diplomat, and bishop. Sidonius is "the single most important surviving author from 5th-century Gaul ...

(c. 400).

Bishop

Rusticus served for many years as a magistrate. Around 494 he succeeded

as bishop. Shortly after his consecration, Rusticus sent some financial aid to Pope Gelasius I. Gelasius wrote back in February 494, recommending to the bishop's good offices

Epiphanius of Pavia Epiphanius of Pavia (438–496), later venerated as Saint Epiphanius of Pavia, was Bishop of Pavia from 466 until his death in 496. Epiphanius additionally held the offices of lector, subdeacon and deacon. During his lifetime, Epiphanius undertoo ...

, who was on his way to Gaul to see to the ransom of certain captives held by the Burgundian king Gundobad. According to Ennodius, among those freed were 400 from Lyon.

Marriage and issue

Married before 480 to Hiberie de Limoges (born c. 460), daughter of

Ruricius Ruricius I (c. 440c. 510) was a Gallo-Roman aristocrat and bishop of Limoges from c. 485 to 510. He is one of the writers whose letters survive from late Roman Gaul, depicting the influence of the Visigoths on the Roman lifestyle. He should not ...

Bishop of Limoges The Roman Catholic Diocese of Limoges (Latin: ''Dioecesis Lemovicensis''; French: ''Diocèse de Limoges'') is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in France. The diocese comprises the '' départments'' of Haute-Vienne and Cr ...

(then Augustoritum) and his wife Ommance. Rusticus and his wife had three children: * St. Sacerdos,

Heinzelmann, Martin. ''Gregory of Tours: History and Society in the Sixth Century''
United Kingdom, Cambridge University Press, 2001. p, 21 * Leontius, Archbishop of Lyon * Artemia, the wife of Florentinus, born in 485, a Senator, who were the parents of: **

Gondulf of Provence Duke Gondulf ( la, Gondulphus, Gondulfus, Gundulfus), was also known as Gundulf. He is thought to have been a patrician of Provence who later became Bishop of Metz in the year 591. There is some evidence that he was only a chorbishop.

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are rank ...

Bishop of Metz Metz ( , , lat, Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand E ...

** Arthemia, wife of Munderic Vitrey, Pretender of Austrasia ** St. Nicetius, Archbishop of

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, third-largest city and Urban area (France), second-largest metropolitan area of F ...

Odden, Per Einar. "Den hellige Niketius av Lyon (513-573)", Den katolske kirke, July 29, 2018
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References

Sources

, ''The Letters of Sidonius'' (Oxford: Clarendon, 1915) (orig.), pp. clx-clxxxiii; List of Correspondents, Notes, V.ix.1. {{DEFAULTSORT:Rusticus 450s births 501 deaths Year of birth uncertain 5th-century Frankish bishops Archbishops of Lyon Gallo-Roman saints 6th-century Frankish bishops 5th-century archbishops 6th-century Christian saints Pippinids