Book Log 2018 #13: Christine Falls by Benjamin Black

Quirke, a hard-drinking pathologist in 1950s Dublin, comes to work one day to find his brother (by adoption - Quirke is an orphan) tampering with records related to a woman who had just come into the morgue. This leads Quirke to investigate the death more closely, which leads to an even greater mystery - what happened to the woman's baby, who seems to have disappeared not long after birth? This mystery puts Quirke in some difficulty with the powerful Catholic Church, a shadowy organization that's helping them, and members of his own family.

I liked the book, both for the main whodunit plot and the twisted family dynamics, which help explain Quirke's apparent self-loathing (which I'm taking from his apparently lack of care about his physical well-being).  And while it's not a historical novel, the details of mid-century Ireland help to ground the novel, especially in reminding us how much church and state were intermingled at the time.

As a side note, Benjamin Black is the pen name for the author John Banville, whose more literary works have won a variety of awards. He's also considered a potential Nobel Prize winner, which is probably why he was the subject of a hoax phone call saying he'd won the 2019 prize.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 40: Cyprian and Justina

Cyprian was a pagan magician beset by devils. Justina, a Christian woman, used the sign of the cross to keep the devils at bay, while they were finally defeated when Cyrpian made the sign himself. Converting to Christianity, Cyprian would rise to become a bishop, while Justina would head a convent. Both were captured and tortured during the Diocletian persecutions, but did not waver in their faith. Brought to Diocletian himself,  he ordered that they be beheaded. The pair were then made saints for their piety and martyrdom.

Except maybe they weren't?

Evidence suggests that the pair didn't exist, and that this Cyprian was confused with St. Cyprian of Carthage, whose writings, acts, and martyrdom during the persecution of Valerian are all well documented.  Also, there was no bishop in Antioch named Cyprian.

The pair were removed from the Roman Martyrology (a list of saints) in 2001, but as there were five saints named Cyprian and two named Justina the idea that there was confusion as to who exactly was who isn't too far-fetched.

 So that's it for 2018! I now have 320(ish) days to figure out what to do for next year.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 39: Donatus of Arezzo

Not much is known about Donatus, but that didn't keep people from writing about him. There are at least two written accounts of his life that claim Donatus:

• Was orphaned when his family moved to Rome, where he would get religious instruction along with a boy named Julian - who, as Julian the Apostate, would become emperor and kill several Christians, including Donatus' parents... who were already dead?
• Killed a dragon who poisoned a well (no word if Donatus was able to unpoison the well).
• Brought a dead woman back to life and restored the sight of a different blind woman.
• Fixed a glass chalice shattered by pagans, but with one piece missing. The wine did not flow out of the hole, leading 79 pagans to convert.
• Was martyred, or not. 

With that much uncertainty, it's not hard to see why Donatus was dropped from the calendar. His veneration does continue in two interesting ways:

1. A church bearing his name on the island of Murano near Venice has some of his relics, including relics of the dragon he slew. 
2. He's one of two patron saints of Guardiagrele in Abruzzo, and during the festival celebrating the pair it's traditional to eat porchetta.  Given the choice between alleged dragon bones and three days of eating roast pork, I'm taking the pork.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 38: Lucius I

Another early pope who got to be a saint by being an early pope. Serving in the 3rd century, he was briefly banished from Rome but was given permission to return. He got dropped from the calendar based on his not actually having been a martyr. It was claimed that he was martyred under the persecution of Valerian, but that persecution didn't start until after Lucius' death.

One odd story about Lucius. Demons were said to be haunting the Isefjord near Roskilde, Denmark, saying that the only thing they feared was Lucius' skull. (why his skull is an open question). The skull was promptly brought to the fjord, the demons went away, and Lucius was made patron saint of Zeeland.  The skull remained in Denmark as a relic, but carbon dating proved the skull attributed to Lucius dated back to about 100 years after Lucius died. The skull did move around a little, so it's possible Lucius' skull crossed paths with another one and they were switched.

Just another example of why you should always keep your head about you.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 37: Paul of Thebes

Also known as Paul, the First Hermit or Paul the Anchorite. What we know of Paul comes from Saint Jerome, who writes that Paul fled to the desert to avoid persecution (thanks to his brother in law, who was trying to get Paul's inheritance), where he lived for nearly 100 years in a cave, living off of water and dates until a raven started to bring him half a loaf of bread every day.

I think we have a new fad diet to replace keto.

Anyway, once Paul died a monastery was started on the site of his cave, where his remains are kept.

Apparently, Paul was dropped from the calendar due to questions of the historical accuracy of Jerome's story. So while good PR is important, it can only get you so far.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 36: Hyginus

Hyginus was pope after Telesphorus, but his history is murky, to the point that his martyrdom can't be proven. He's also credited with establishing the rank for clergy and requiring all churches be consecrated, but who knows? 

Hygiuns had to deal with at least a couple of well-known Gnostic heretics - his dealings with them make up most of what passes for a biography - and there's no real discussion of how he became a saint. Other than by being an early pope, proving once again that timing is everything.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 35: Telesphorus

You may remember Pope Telesphorus coming up during Lentorama 2010 (and if you do, you should probably work on remembering more important things), but it turns out his feast day was originally created for another martyr. And apparently most of what was attributed to Telesphorus was connected to him well after his death in order to bolster the authority of the papacy. 

The pope Telesphorus has separate feast day from the non-pope Telesphorus, though it doesn't look like either of them are on the General Roman Calendar. Two for one today!

Book Log 2018 #12: Terror in the City of Champions by Tom Stanton

The 1930s were a great time to be a sports fan in Detroit, between the titles won by the pro teams and Joe Louis proving dominant in the ring. Contrasting that was the growing power of a group called the Black Legion, a white supremacist organization whose power grew along with its membership, which included several prominent citizens across the midwest.

The two themes of this book never quite connect - I don't recall that any of the athletes actually joined the Legion - but together they do illustrate an interesting time in American history, between the recovery from the Depresstion and the US entry into World War II.  There are also echoes into the present day, and how "economic anxiety" in the same part of the country helped bring Trump to power with his own particular nativist agenda.

This is one of the more successful books I've read in that Erik Larson style of weaving true crime and social history together, very much worth reading.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 34: Dorothea of Caesarea

The earliest record of Dorothea contains three items: when she was martyred, where she was martyred, and her name and the name of Theophilus. The legend of her death says that Theophilus was a pagan who mocked Dorothea while she was on her way to her execution. She sent him her headdress, whose fragrance of roses and fruits was taken as a sign. Theophilus declared himself a Christian and was martyred for his troubles.

From that story (later embellished), veneration of Dorothea grew and she became the patron saint of gardeners. She also became associated with better known female saints, such as the group known as the Fourteen Holy Helpers.  It never hurts to have good PR.

Book Log 2018 #11: Atlas Obscura by Joshua Foer, Dylan Thuras, and Ella Morton

This is a book version of the website of the same name, which covers the wide variety of weird and wonderful from around the globe. You can try to read it cover to cover, but I found it better to read it in chunks. A great book for browsing, endlessly interesting and engaging. And thinking of the original purpose of this log, probably not a bad book for commuting as it's easy to start and stop (though I'm guessing the size of the book might be an issue).

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 33: Saint Placidus

Another case of mistaken (or combined) identity. This Placidus, along with 30 others, were martyred. Could have been pirates, could have been the emperor Diocletian. Definitely in Sicily. Maybe?

Anyway, jump ahead a few hundred years and a writer confuses this Placidus with another Placidus who was a follower of St. Benedict. Who, to be honest, doesn't have much of a history other than his connection to Benedict. And both men also apparently had connections to Messina. So the confusion is understandable, I guess.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 32: Nicholas of Tolentino

Born in Sant'Angelo, Nicholas moved to Tolentino due to angelic visions. Once there, he settled into a life of preaching and working with the poor. He was responsible for giving food to the poor, and created a special bread based on another vision. Augustinians still bless and distribute St. Nicholas bread today.

Between the visions, his work with the poor and prisoners, and attempts at bringing peace during the conflict between the Guelphs and the Ghibelines, the calls for his sainthood started shortly after he died. He was the first Augustinian to be made a saint when Eugene IV canonized him in 1446.

At least one person suggests that he's responsible for Spain getting a foothold in the New World. The settlement of Potosi, Bolivia apparently was suffering from high infant mortality (not surprising, being a colonial city at 13000 feet in altitude). A man dedicated his unborn child to Nicholas, and the son that was born lived to adulthood. This began a tradition of dedicating children and naming them after the saint, which helped the city to grow and become permanent. I imagine all the silver in the area helped the city stick, but it's a good story.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 31: Gervasius and Protasius

These two were twins, sons of martyrs who were martyred themselves by Nero. Or Diocletian. Or Antoninus. It's not clear. They had big hands, apparently. Not much to build a sainthood on.

Jump ahead a couple of centuries, to when St. Ambrose was asked to consecrate a new basilica in Milan, but needed relics to do so. A dream led him to the place where the pair were buried (I'm assuming their skeletons had huge hand bones), and Ambrose brought them back to the basilica to be his relics, and many miracles apparently ensued.

The twins are patron saints of Milan, which may be a problem if, as is rumored, they were moved to Germany after Frederick Barbarossa destroyed the city. Milan denies this happened, but what else would they say?

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 30: John of Matha

So over the course of doing this we've run into a number of saints whose "demotion" is understandable. You can only get so far when your actual existence is unproven.

I am less sure why today's saint got the heave ho. A French nobleman who joined the priesthood at the end of the 12th century, John reportedly saw a vision during his first Mass which would lead him to found the Order of the Most Holy Trinity, whose original mission was to ransom Christian captives to secure their freedom (which the Crusades made a necessary thing).

Today the order operates worldwide, and continues its mission (although it's broadened the concept of who is captive to cover people who are oppressed or persecuted but not enslaved outright).

Basketball fans may recognize his name thanks to DeMatha Catholic High School, a national hoops powerhouse that is also the order's only secondary/college prep school in the Americas).

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 29: Pope Victor I

Another of the many early popes who became saints for no good reason. He was apparently a pope in the late second century, and was the first pope from the Roman province of Africa (he's believed to have been Berber).

Not much is known of his papacy. He excommunicated a writer named Theodotus of Byzantium for his teachings that claimed Jesus was a mere man. Victor also cut ties with several Eastern churches over a dispute on when to celebrate Easter. None of this seems like particularly fruitful ground for sainthood, which explains why he was removed from the saints calendar altogether.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 28: Gabriel of the Sorrowful Virgin

Francesco Possenti was the 11th of 13 children, and while he had a reputation for charity and piety as a young man he showed no interest in religious life. He was poised to follow his father into government work, and was also (and perhaps better) known for his attention to his looks and his dancing.

Things were slated to take a turn when he took ill and promised to enter the religious life if he recovered. He did recover, but didn't change his vocation. A similar pledge also went unheeded when he narrowly avoided getting shot during a hunting trip. A second bout of illness brought the same pledge, and this time he actually started the process to join the Jesuits after he healed, but it was never completed.

It was a cholera epidemic that killed a sister that finally drove Francesco into the religious life, when he claimed to hear a voice during a procession of an icon of Mary asking why he continued to live in the world. Despite the best efforts of his father, Francesco joined the Passionists (who gave him the name Gabriel). He showed great promise, both academically and spiritually, but apparently not physically, as he developed a case of tuberculosis.  He would succumb to it before being ordained.

A couple of miracle cures were forwarded as evidence for his canonization, which occurred in 1920. The Passionist monastery in which he was buried (which had been abandoned for a time) developed a shrine for Gabriel, which became a popular pilgrimage site, especially among local youth who go there 100 days before graduation from high school to pray for good scores on their final exams. Even so, he wasn't popular enough to keep on the general calendar.

On a side note, there is a movement to have Gabriel named the patron saint of handgunners, stemming from a story that he saved the village where his monastery is located from a marauding band due to his proficiency with hand guns. I guess we really can let God sort them out?

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 27: Andrew Corsini

As one might expect from one of 12 kids born to a notable family, Corsini fell into a life of dissipation that lasted until his mother recounted a dream where he was a wolf among sheep, which apparently made quite an impression as almost immediately afterwards he joined a Carmelite house. He would become ordained, living a life of mortification and concern for the poor.

He would later be named bishop of Fiesole, a role in which he reportedly increased his personal mortification and attention to the poor. According to legend, in 1373 a visitation by Mary announced that Corsini would pass away on Epiphany, which he did. Almost immediately multiple miracles were said to take place at his tomb, though he wouldn't be named a saint until 1629. He would later be removed from the General Roman Calendar for not being of universal importance, which I guess makes sense for someone who spent his entire life and career in and around Tuscany.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 26 - St. Pope Soter

Soter was notable for his declaration that marriage was only valid as a sacrament blessed by a priest, and (fitting for Lentorama) for making Easter an annual festival in Rome. He was also noted for his charity towards exiled Christians and people condemned to the mines.

What he is not noted for is being a martyr, as he's not listed in the Roman Martyrology as one. It's not a requirement for sainthood, but it's common, and not being listed as a martyr also runs against the common belief that all early popes were martyred. It also doesn't help Soter that the date of his death is unknown.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 25 - Margaret of Antioch

As with many of the early saints, much of what is written about Margaret is said to be fictitious, though with her at least one story was said to be as such pretty much from the start. Margaret was said to be the daughter of a pagan priest who, raised by a Christian nurse, opted for the new religion and moved with her to the country. When a local governor wanted to marry Margaret, but said she'd need to revert to paganism, she refused, leading to various tortures (many of which would result in miracles) before she was martyred.

One of the tortures was reportedly being fed to Satan in the guise of a dragon, The cross Margaret wore irritated the dragon's insides, resulting in Margaret being regurgitated unharmed. The recounting of the story in the Golden Legend lives of the saints says this story is "apocryphal and not to be taken seriously." Further evidence that Margaret wasn't real is her also being referred to as Marina, suggesting she's a version of the Greek Saint Pelagia, and perhaps even influenced by the story of Aphrodite.

Pope Gelasius I declared Margaret apocryphal in 494, but she continued to be venerated, most notably in England, as the Council of Oxford added her to a list of feast days in 1222. She also gained popularity during the Crusades, and was said to have promised great indulgences for anyone who wrote or read her life story. Pretty good staying power for a saint that may never have existed.

(Note that she should not be confused with Margaret of Scotland, of whom there is plenty in the historical record.)

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 24 - Paschal Baylon

From youth, Paschal expressed a deep interest in the Eucharist, to the point where he once disappeared from home and was found climbing the altar steps in the local church so he could see the tabernacle. His religious devotion took a back seat to being a shepherd until his 20s ,when he joined a monastery. He developed a reputation for his austerity and piety, and his continued devotion to the Eucharist saw him sent to France to debate a Calvinist, but he was almost killed by a hostile crowd.

After he died, miracles were reported at his tomb pretty much immediately. Once he was canonized he was named a "seraph of the Eucharist" and was named a patron of groups that venerate the Eucharist. He's also often depicted carrying a monstrance, which you might remember is used to display relics or consecrated hosts. Still, for all his devotion to the centerpiece of the Mass, Paschal got dropped off the calendar for (say it with me now) not being of universal importance.

Book Log 2018 #10: Bats of the Republic: An Illuminated Novel by Zachary Thomas Dodson

My wife picked this out for me as a Christmas present, and I can see what she was thinking. It's not just set in a dystopian future, but the story is told using a variety of aids, from hand-drawn maps to letters and telegrams to parts of another novel that gives insight as to what's going on in the book's present (hence the "illuminations" in the title). It is the sort of book that's right up my alley.

I just wish it had worked a little better.

It's not a bad book. The story, involving a man living in Texas who is close to power (he has a relative that's a US Senator, which is a much bigger deal in the book's future) but not particularly poweful himself, sees the man come across some of the country's biggest secrets, which he has to deal with while dodging a pervasive surveilance state (though in an odd steampunk kind of way). Moving between the present and the past, the book presents interesting characters and story that I can only really describe as weird. But in a good way.

The problem is that it feels like the book was written as a way to show off the design of the book and story rather than for the story itself. This is not surprising given that the author is a designer, with a particular interest in "narrative design" (as you can see on his website). I think if you go into this book knowing that it's as much about experiencing the book as an object of design as plot or character, you'll like it more than if you go into it expecting a traditional book.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 23 - Maurice and Companions

Maurice was the leader of the Theban Legion of the Roman army during the third century. When the unit was transferred to Gaul to help Emperor Maximian, Maurice and his legionnaires (all Christians) refused to sacrifice to pagan gods or pay homage to the emperor. They would then refuse orders to harass local Christians, which led Maximian to order a decimation of the legion. More refused order led to a second decimation, and further refusal to attack Christians resulted in the entire legion being put to death.

There's a fair amount of debate over the historical veracity of this story, with those arguing for its historical basis pointing at physical evidence like coins and contemporary written sources, and those arguing for it being of a literary origin only. It's also noted that monastic sources don't confirm that the entire legion was killed, often suggesting that most of the legion was able to escape. There's also the fact that the Roman military at the time was strongly aligned with pagan gods like Mithras or Isis, so the existence of an entire legion (roughly 1000 men) of Christians seems unlikely.

So while Maurice and his legion aren't on the general calendar any more, Maurice is still widely venerated and is the patron saint for a number of professions and groups, including the pope's Swiss Guard. So it's kind of a soft landing for Maurice.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 22 - Ubald

Like some other saints, Ubald was educated by the church after the death of his father, and earned offices at an early age. Made a canon, and later joining a monastery, he spent a few years in Vienna learning from other canons. He returned to his home city of Gubbio, where he developed a reputation for his piety, poverty, and humility. He refused higher office several times, but finally relented and was named the bishop of Gubbio.

Ubald died in 1160, already having miracles attributed to him during his lifetime. Further miracles were proclaimed, and at his canonization his body was found to be flexible and incorrupt when it was moved to a hilltop oratory. A church was later built at that site, and has remained a popular pilgrimage site for Umbrians. But he's apparently not that popular outside of Umbria, which led to his being removed from the general calendar.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 21 - Geminianus

It always helps to know people. Geminianus found his way onto the calendar through association with Saint Lucy, but found his way off because he was determined to be fictitious. There is an unrelated Saint Geminianus, but it looks like he lived well after Lucy died, which I suppose wouldn't completely prevent some sort of confusion connecting the two. Maybe Geminianus was just a lot more popular of a name in the fourth century.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 20 - Emerentiana

Emerentiana was the daughter of St. Agnes's wet nurse, and may have been considered a foster sister to Agnes. A few days after Agnes was martyred, Erementiana went to her tomb to pray and was stoned to death by a crowd.

That is pretty much all that's known about her (and even that comes from the legends of St. Agnes),  so it's probably not surprising that she got demoted. I did find it interesting that she was not a Christian at the time of her death, as she was a catechumen at the time.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 19 - Martina of Rome

The daughter of an ex-consul, she was ordered to return to the religion of the Roman state, but refused. For this she was ordered to undergo various tortures (including attack by wild animals and burning alive), all of which she escaped from unscathed. This apparently didn't protect her from beheading, which is how she was reportedly martyred.

Over time her story was increasingly embellished, and apparently conflated with the lives of other saints. But no one seemed to mind, and she was canonized just the same. Jump forward 1400 years after her death and her remains were discovered in the crypt of a church named for her. But a couple hundred years later she was taken off of the General Calendar, but she remains on the calendar for her church and in and around Rome, of which she's a patron saint.

Book Log 2018 #7, #8 and #9: The Passage, The Twelve, and The City of Mirrors

I'm not that into vampires, so this is not a trilogy I would have normally picked up. But after seeing a couple of friends rave about the series, I figured I'd pick it up.

OK, these aren't vampires as you'd classically describe them. They are the result of a government experiment to create super soldiers using a bat-borne virus found in South America. As with all such experiments, things go badly wrong, and the subjects escape. The effect on humanity is, also as you might expect, catastrophic.

The books themselves follow some of the humans who survive, including a man who was close friends with the "patient zero" vampire, and a girl whose own pre-vampire supernatural abilities may prove crucial to humanity's ultimate survival.

I didn't like these books as much as the friends who raved about it, though I did appreciate the scope of the story and the ways in which the author brought vampire lore into the present (and near future). My one big problem with the series comes in the last book, where we get the crucial insight as to why that "patient zero" vampire caused the de facto downfall of humanity, and it's underwhelming. I suppose you can say it's a textbook case of the banality of evil.  Still, there's a lot of well-paced story before this, and it's worth a read if this is the sort of thing that interests you.

Lentorana 2018: Second String Saints

Day 18 - William of Montevergine

Born into a rich Italian family, William started on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem when he was beaten and robbed, which he took as a sign that he should stay where he was in southern Italy. He moved to a mountaintop (the Monte Vergine of his name) and became a hermit. He wound up attracting several followers and built a monastery.  He would earn the patronage of Roger II, which allowed him to build several more monasteries.

Which seems like a good thing, right? Maybe too much of a good thing, as William became increasingly at odds with the other clergy in his monasteries over the austerity of life under his domain. So William moved off his mountain and settled in a town called Goleto, where he founded more monasteries but was able to live out the rest of his days.

Not sure how or when William was sainted - he does have a couple of miracles attributed to him (including one in which he laid down on a bed of hot coals to thwart a prostitute who was testing his faith), and apparently knew his death was near by a "special revelation." The king of Naples had his remains moved from its original resting place in 1807, I'm assuming to gain some sort of advantage by relocating him to his original mountain home. He was removed from the calendar, like so many others, for not being of "universal importance." Which I suppose makes sense for a hermit, as that's not exactly a career path that gets you universality.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 17 - John of Sahagun

Unlike many of our previous entries, quite a bit is known about the life of John. The oldest of seven children to a wealthy Spanish family, during his education he was introduced to the bishop of Burgos, who was impressed by John and educated him within his own home. John would quickly be ordained and given several different offices, most notably being made a canon of Burgos cathedral.

John was uncomfortable holding simultaneous titles (it being disallowed under canon law), and resigned them all in order to become the priest to a poor parish, where he could focus on preaching. During this time he became ill and required surgery (a daunting prospect in the 15th century) to remove kidney stones. He made a pledge to become a religious if he survived the operation, which he did.

At that point, John joined a monastery and would work his way up to become master of novices and then prior. He continued to preach, but was also said to have developed an ability to discern a person's conscience, making it nearly impossible to lie to him. His preaching also apparently brought him many enemies as he often preached against vices popular among the local gentry, with the former concubine of one of them (who had turned back towards God) allegedly poisoning John (though this looks to be a detail added well after John's death).

But for all of his apparent piety and the existence of a historical record, John got demoted for not being of universal importance. Not enough days in the calendar.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 16 - Pope Anacletus

You know there may be issues when there's not really agreement on your name. The third pope, he's listed as both Cletus and Anacletus in historical records, and while there's general agreement they're the same person you'd like to think such agreement wouldn't be needed. There's also some minority opinion that he was actually the fourth pope, in case you needed some more ambiguity.

Also unclear is on what grounds Anacletus was actually made a saint. About all that's known about him is that he divided Rome into parishes and ordained an undetermined number of priests. His martyrdom looks to be more asserted than proven, based on the widespread persecution of Christians in the first century.  Kind of hard to believe he stayed on the calendar as long as he did.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 15: Dorothea of Caesarea

Legend has it that Dorothea, a martyr of the Diocletian persecution, was mocked on the way to her death to provide fruits from her bridegroom's garden (the bridegroom being Jesus). Before being killed, she gave her headdress to a six year old boy, who delivered it to the person who mocked her, who found it full of roses and fruits. He then declared himself a Christian, and was killed himself.

As time passed, Dorothea became more widely venerated, most notably in the Middle Ages, and was named a patron saint of gardeners. But as there's almost nothing known of her (just the day and place of her martyrdom and the name of the person who mocked her), she got demoted off of the calendar.

Lentorama 2018: Second String Saints

Day 14 - Liborius

The second bishop of Le Mans, Liborius spent the 49 years in office developing the church in and around Le Mans. He died in the arms of his friend Martin of Tours, and it's after his burial that things got interesting. Several miracles were said to have happened at his tomb, and at the instigation of Pope Leo III Liborius was moved to Paderborn, Germany to serve as the diocese's saint. This began a connection between Le Mans and Paderborn that has survived all the various Franco-German troubles.

And while he's no longer on the calendar, he is still the patron saint for getting rid of/avoiding kidney stones and gallstones, so keep that in mind.