penance by confessing their sins, and the holy bishop was very earnest in the care of their conversion. He exhorted all to frequent the churches, give alins, set their slaves at liberty, and practise all sorts of good works; and he engaged several of both sexes to embrace a monastic life. Once, not far from Noyon, he preached on the feast of St Peter against dancing, which the people made a frequent occasion of many sins. Many murmured hereat, and even threatened the holy prelate but he preached the next festival on the same subject with greater vehemence than ever. Hereupon the incorrigible sinners openly threatened his life. The servants of the lord of the place went about stirring up the whole country against him: for such men, where they are not restrained by their master's authority, easily become lawless, and are the bane of a whole parish. The bishop at length found himself obliged to cut off these sons of Relial from the communion of the faithful, and to deliver them over to Satan, for the remedy of their souls. Fifty of them were afflicted by God, and made visible spectacles of his judgments: but, upon their repentance were cured by the saint. St Owen mentions many blind, lame, and sick persons, who received the benefit of their health and use of their limbs, by the prayers of St Eligius.

Among other prophecies, his prediction of the division of the French monarchy amongst the three sons of Clovis II. and its reunion under Theodoric, the youngest of them, was recorded by St Owen before its entire accomplishment (4). This author informs us (5), that our saint assembled the people every day, and instructed them with indefatigable zeal; and he gives us an abstract of several of his discourses united in one; by which it appears that his style was plain, simple, and without many ornaments, but tender and pathetic, and that he often borrowed whole passages from the sermons of St Cæsarius, as was customary in France at that time. He often explained the obligation of the solemn vows or promises which Christians make at their bap(4) Vita S. Elig. 1. 2. c. 31. Fleury, 1. 40. n. 9.

f. 2. C. 14.

(5) Ib.

tism, exhorting the faithful to have them always before their eyes, and to be no less careful to practise than to believe what they profess under the most sacred engagements. He insisted much on the obligation of almsdeeds, recommended the invocation of saints, and instructed the faithful to beware of superstitious practices then in vogue; among which he reckons the observation of unlucky days, the solemnizing of new-year's day with drinking and diversions, and the like. He strongly recommended prayer, the partaking of the body and blood of Christ, extreme-unction in time of sickness, and the sign of the cross' to be always worn on our forehead, the efficacy of which sign he set forth. The seventeen homiles, which bear his name in the library of the fathers, cannot be his work; for the author had been a monk before he was bishop (6). The charter of St Eligius, for the foundation of the abbey of Solignac, is still extant (7). The saint having governed his flock nineteen years and a half, was favoured with a foresight of his death, and a little before he was seized with his last sickness, foretold it to his disciples. Seeing them weep, he said: "Grieve not, my children; but rather congratulate with me. I have longed for this time, and sighing under the miseries of this world, have wished for a releasement." Falling ill of a fever, he prayed almost without interruption; and on the sixth day convened his disciples, and made them a pathetic exhortation to a virtuous life. They bursting all together into tears, he was not able to refrain from weeping with them, and on his knees he commended them all to God, praying him not to abandon them, and to give them an holy pastor. After this, he continued his private prayers for seve ral hours; then reciting the Canticle, Nunc dimittis, &c. and fervently commending his soul into the hands of his Redeemer, he happily expired at one o'clock the next morning, on the 1st of December, in 659, or in 665, it he was consecrated bishop in 646, being seventy years and some months old. Upon the news of his sickness, queen Bathildes set out from Paris with her children, the

(6) Bibl. Patr. T. 12. p. 300. Ceillier, p. 596. Rivet, p. 598. (7) Mabill. Act. Ben. T. 2. p. 1091, 1092.

lords of her court, and a numerous train: but arrived only the morning after his death. She bathed the corpse with a flood of tears, and caused all preparations to be made for carrying it to her monastery at Chelles. Others were very desirous that it should be conveyed to Paris: but the people of Noyon so strenuously opposed it, that the precious remains of their holy pastor were left with them, and the greatest part is kept at Noyon. to this day. His body was deposited in the church of St Lupus of Troyes, out of the walls, soon after called St Eligius's, as St Owen testifies. This monastery of St Eligius is now of the Benedictin Order of the reformed congregation of St Maur. The relicks of the saint were afterward translated into the cathedral. Several other churches lay claim to small portions. St Owen relates many miracles which followed his death, and informs us that the holy abbess St Aurea, who was swept off by a pestilence, with an hundred and sixty of her nuns, in 666, was advertised of her last hour some time before it, by a comfortable vision of St Eligius. Queen Bathildes, soon after laying aside all ornaments of state, gave them all to the poor, except her gold bracelets, of which she caused a cross to be made, which she placed at the head of St Eligius's monument. She also ordered a sort of canopy called Repa, to be made of gold and silver, and set it over his tomb. The noblemen of her court, imitating her ex. ample, offered abundance of gold and precious stones to adorn the same: and as it shone very bright, it was covered in Lent with a linen cloth, bordered with silk. A certain liquor which dropped from this linen cloth, cured various distempers (8). Fleury takes notice from this circumstance, that it was the custom at that time to cover on penitential days whatever looked bright or shining in churches.

St Eligius learned to be a saint, living in the world and in a court. But for this he studied neither to be (8) S. Audoen. vit. S Eligii, c. 40. See Du Cange, in Glossar. v. Repa.

of the world, nor to be withdrawn by the world from a constant application to religious duties. To attend to them, he sometimes excused himself even from waiting upon his prince, when called upon by him: nor would he remain in his service upon other conditions. In the world, conversation is a devoir of civility, charity, and friendship. But, first, it must be sincere; not formality and mere compliment, which is frequently the case. Men, who are idolaters of themselves, are inca pable of true charity towards others; jealousy, envy, and resentment, being, on every occasion, easily kindled in their hearts. Hence their protestations of friendship are often a base hypocrisy, and a traffic of mutual deceit; a disposition diametrically opposite to that of charity and simplicity. Secondly, conversation with men must not take up a considerable part of our time, nor be a source of vain amusement or unprofitable fooleries. Towards those who would overwhelm us with idle visits, we are allowed, and when necessary, ought to shew some coolness, in order to break off a frivolous and fruitless commerce. Worldly discourse usually tends to promote vanity, pride, sensuality, and other passions. Men, in general, are not capable of being spoken to in the language of solid truth. Therefore we ought to speak it often to ourselves by holy meditation and reading; and the oftener our circumstances oblige us to listen to the language of the world, so much the more diligent are we bound to be in attending to the voice of truth. It is only the blindness and spirit of vanity that reigns in the world, which has brought any other dialect but that of truth into fashion. St Eligius, and many other saints, found leisure, even in courts, to converse mostly with heaven and themselves, Who then can plead any excuse?

DECEMBER II.

Sr BIBIANA, V. M.

Abridged from her Acts, which are disfigured by interpolations. See Anast. in Simplicio, and Baron Annot. in Martyr. Rom. Bosius and Aringhi, Roma Subterr. 1. 3. c. 37.

A. D. 363.

WE are informed by Ammianus Marcellinus, a Pa

gan historian of that age, and an officer in the court of Julian the Apostate, that this emperor made Apro, nianus governor of Rome in the year 363, who, while he was on the way to that city, had the misfortune to lose an eye. This accident he superstitiously imputed to the power of magic, through the malice of some who excelled in that art; and in this foolish persuasion, to gratify his spleen and superstition, he resolved to punish and exterminate the magicians; in which accusation Christians were involved, above all others, on account of many wonderful miracles which were wrought in the primitive ages. Under this magistrate St Bibiana received the crown of martyrdom. This holy virgin was a native of Rome, and daughter to Flavian a Roman knight, and his wife Dafrosa, who were both zealous Christians. Flavian was apprehended, deprived of a considerable post which he held in the city, burned in the face with an hot iron, and banished to Acquapendente, then called Aqua Taurina, where he died of his wounds a few days after. Dafrosa, by an or der of Apronianus, who had thus treated her husband for his constancy in his faith, was on the same account confined to her house for some time; and at length carried out of the gates of the city, and beheaded. Bibiana, and her sister Demetria, after the death of their holy parents, were stripped of all they had in the world, and suffered much from poverty for five months, but spent that time in their own house in fasting and prayer. Apronianus had flattered himself that