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Similien, or , was a 4th-century, French
Similien
lived in the early fourth century and was the third
He has a church in the city of Nantes, situated on a hill on the Erdre. This site stems from very early times. According to an old tradition, the church stands on his grave. It would also have been the place where he retired during the persecutions, which may be true to the extent that the site was at least located outside the walls of the former city.
In the days of Clovis († 511; feast Nov. 27), the city was spared from a Saxon invasion. The siege lasted sixty days until one night, the besiegers saw a procession of white-clad figures from the church, each carrying a candle. They then saw a similar procession from the Church of Saint Donatian, and the Saxons were thrown into such panic that they abandoned their positions and fled.
When the
Similien, or , was a 4th-century, French 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 c ...
and Saint.
StSimilien
lived in the early fourth century and was the third
bishop of Nantes
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Nantes ( la, Dioecesis Nannetensis; french: Diocèse de Nantes; br, Eskopti Naoned) is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in Nantes, France. The diocese consists of the department of Loire- ...
, who, according to St. Gregory of Tours, was given the title of grand confessor
Confessor is a title used within Christianity in several ways.
Confessor of the Faith
Its oldest use is to indicate a saint who has suffered persecution and torture for the faith but not to the point of death.Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
a certain Donatian, who in turn brought to the Christian faith his brother Rogatian."Martial Monteil, « Les édifices des premiers temps chrétiens (IVe ‑ VIIe siècle de notre ère) à Nantes », dans Hélène Rousteau-Chambon (dir.) et al., Nantes religieuse, de l'Antiquité chrétienne à nos jours, Département d'histoire et d'archéologie de l'université de Nantes, coll. « Bulletin de la Société archéologique et historique de Nantes et de la Loire-Atlantique » (no hors série), 2008, 268 p. (ISSN 1283-8454), p. 49-56.
Life
During the persecution under Emperor Diocletian (284-305), the believers had begged him to leave the city with his clergy. In an old book onBreton
Breton most often refers to:
*anything associated with Brittany, and generally
** Breton people
** Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany
** Breton (horse), a breed
**Ga ...
saints, he is summarized as follows:
''"This worthy prelate
A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pre ...
remained unyielding and steadfast during the cruel persecutions of Diocletian and Maximian, and wisely led the ship that was entrusted to him. To protect his flock, this good shepherd repeatedly withstood the rage of the wolves. They had bitten him and he suffered there. With God's help he could always escape them or even tame them. He personally buried the venerable remains of the two heroes of the faith: Donatianus and Rogatianus († 287; feast May 24). Eventually he was allowed to experience peace falling over the church. As the winner of the protracted storm, he was the first bishop in Nantes, so drenched in the blood of Christian martyrs, the light did break through better times. After having demonstrated his holiness in many ways, he died in the Lord. "''
Veneration
He has a church in the city of Nantes, situated on a hill on the Erdre. This site stems from very early times. According to an old tradition, the church stands on his grave. It would also have been the place where he retired during the persecutions, which may be true to the extent that the site was at least located outside the walls of the former city.
In the days of Clovis († 511; feast Nov. 27), the city was spared from a Saxon invasion. The siege lasted sixty days until one night, the besiegers saw a procession of white-clad figures from the church, each carrying a candle. They then saw a similar procession from the Church of Saint Donatian, and the Saxons were thrown into such panic that they abandoned their positions and fled.
When the Normans
The Normans ( Norman: ''Normaunds''; french: Normands; la, Nortmanni/Normanni) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norse Viking settlers and indigenous West Franks and Gallo-Romans. ...
conquered the city in 843, they were said to have thrown the remains of Similian into a well. In the Middle Ages pilgrims came to drink from the well in the hope of healing.
References
{{authority control Bishops of Nantes 4th-century bishops in Gaul 4th-century Christian saints Diocletianic Persecution