Saint Agilus (or Agilo, Ayeul, Aisle, Ail, Aile; c. 580–650) was a

Frankish Frankish may refer to: * Franks, a Germanic tribe and their culture ** Frankish language or its modern descendants, Franconian languages, a group of Low Germanic languages also commonly referred to as "Frankish" varieties * Francia, a post-Roman ...

nobleman who became a Christian missionary in

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

and later was abbot of Rebais monastery near Paris, France. He was considered a saint, and his feast day is 30 August.

Life

Saint Agilus or Ayeul was from a noble Frankish family, son of Chagnoald and descended from

Pharamond Pharamond, also spelled Faramund, is a legendary early king of the Franks, first referred to in the anonymous 8th-century '' Liber Historiae Francorum'', which depicts him as the first king of the Franks. Historical sources and scholarship Phara ...

and Frotmund. He was educated by Saint

Columbanus Saint Columbanus (; 543 – 23 November 615) was an Irish missionary notable for founding a number of monasteries after 590 in the Frankish and Lombard kingdoms, most notably Luxeuil Abbey in present-day France and Bobbio Abbey in presen ...

Luxeuil Abbey Luxeuil Abbey (), the ''Abbaye Saint-Pierre et Saint-Paul'', was one of the oldest and best-known monasteries in Franche-Comté, located in what is now the département of Haute-Saône in Franche-Comté, France. History Columbanus The abbey was f ...

, France. He served as a missionary in

, Germany. According to tradition,

Weltenburg Abbey Weltenburg Abbey (Kloster Weltenburg) is a Benedictine monastery in Weltenburg near Kelheim on the Danube in Bavaria, Germany. Geography The abbey is situated on a peninsula in the Danube, in a section of the river valley called the Weltenbu ...

in Bavaria was founded around 617 AD in the course of the

Hiberno-Scottish mission The Hiberno-Scottish mission was a series of expeditions in the 6th and 7th centuries by Gaels, Gaelic Missionary, missionaries originating from Ireland that spread Celtic Christianity in Scotland, Wales, History of Anglo-Saxon England, England a ...

by Agilus and

Eustace of Luxeuil Eustace of Luxeuil (c. 560 – c. 626), also known as Eustasius, was the second abbot of Luxeuil from 611. He succeeded his teacher Columbanus, to whom he had been a favorite disciple and monk. He had been the head of the monastic school. Life ...

, two

monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

s of Luxeuil Abbey. At the council of Clichy on 1 May 636 Agilus was made the first abbot of the Rebais monastery. He died in 650 AD. He was buried in the Saint-Jean church, which became the parish church of the town of Rebais. He was succeeded as abbot by his disciple Saint Filibert.

Butler's account

The hagiographer

Alban Butler Alban Butler (13 October 171015 May 1773) was an English Roman Catholic priest and hagiography, hagiographer. Born in Northamptonshire, he studied at the English College, in Douai, Douay, France where he later taught philosophy and theology. He s ...

wrote,

Notes

Sources

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Agilus 6th-century Frankish saints 7th-century Frankish saints 580 births 650 deaths