Saint Nicetius (Nicetus, Nicet or Nizier) (513 – 2 April 573) was

Archbishop of Lyon The Archdiocese of Lyon (; ), formerly the Archdiocese of Lyon–Vienne–Embrun, is a Latin Church metropolis (religious jurisdiction), metropolitan archdiocese of the Catholic Church in France. The archbishops of Lyon are also called Primate o ...

, then

Lugdunum Lugdunum (also spelled Lugudunum, ; modern Lyon, France) was an important Colonia (Roman), Roman city in Gaul, established on the current site of Lyon, France, Lyon. The Roman city was founded in 43 BC by Lucius Munatius Plancus, but cont ...

, France, during the 6th century. He served from 552 or 553. He is venerated as a

saint In Christianity, Christian belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of sanctification in Christianity, holiness, imitation of God, likeness, or closeness to God in Christianity, God. However, the use of the ...

in the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

Life

Nicetius was descended from an ancient noble Gaulish family in Burgundy, and, by the care of virtuous parents, received a learned and pious education. He was ordained as a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

by Agricola of Chalon-sur-Saône. Nicetius was the nephew of Sacerdos,

bishop of Lyon The Archdiocese of Lyon (; ), formerly the Archdiocese of Lyon–Vienne–Embrun, is a Latin Church metropolis (religious jurisdiction), metropolitan archdiocese of the Catholic Church in France. The archbishops of Lyon are also called Primate o ...

, and his successor. He revived ecclesiastical chant in his

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided Roman province, prov ...

. Nicetius received the title of

patriarch The highest-ranking bishops in Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, the Roman Catholic Church (above major archbishop and primate), the Hussite Church, Church of the East, and some Independent Catholic Churches are termed patriarchs (and ...

from the pope. He took it upon himself to judge secular as well as ecclesiastical cases and therefore came into conflict with the local count. Nicetius attended a council at his own city of Lyon some time between 567 and 570.

Veneration

His feast day is 2 April, the day on which he died. Miracles were attributed to him after his death.Monks of Ramsgate. “Nicetius”. Book of Saints, 1921. CatholicSaints.Info. 25 March 2016
/ref> The church of Saint-Nizier in Lyon is dedicated to him. There is an early life of Nicetius which can be found in Vita Nicetii Episcopi Lugdunensis, ed. B. Krusch, Monumenta Germaniae Historica Scriptores Rerum Merovingicarum III pp. 518–524 and is translated onlin
here

Gregory of Tours Gregory of Tours (born ; 30 November – 17 November 594 AD) was a Gallo-Roman historian and Bishop of Tours during the Merovingian period and is known as the "father of French history". He was a prelate in the Merovingian kingdom, encom ...

- who refers to Nicetius as his uncle- also wrote a supplementary life to him in his ''Vita Patrum''.

References

External links

Nicetius
* '' Les ancêtres de Charlemagne'', 1989,

Christian Settipani Christian Settipani (born 31 January 1961) is a French genealogist, historian and IT professional, currently working as the Technical Director of a company in Paris. Biography Settipani holds a Master of Advanced Studies from the Paris-Sorb ...

513 births 573 deaths 6th-century Burgundian bishops Archbishops of Lyon 6th-century Frankish saints {{france-bishop-stub