Similien, or , was a 4th-century,

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

Bishop and

Saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...

. St
Similien
lived in the early fourth century and was the third bishop of Nantes, who, according to St.

Gregory of Tours Gregory of Tours (30 November 538 – 17 November 594 AD) was a Gallo-Roman historian and Bishop of Tours, which made him a leading prelate of the area that had been previously referred to as Gaul by the Romans. He was born Georgius Florenti ...

, was given the title of grand confessor. He is recorded as converting to Christianity 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 Persecution is the systematic mistreatment of an individual or group by another individual or group. The most common forms are religious persecution, racism, and political persecution, though there is naturally some overlap between these term ...

under Emperor

Diocletian Diocletian (; la, Gaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletianus, grc, Διοκλητιανός, Diokletianós; c. 242/245 – 311/312), nicknamed ''Iovius'', was Roman emperor from 284 until his abdication in 305. He was born Gaius Valerius Diocles ...

(284-305), the

believer Believer(s) or The Believer(s) may refer to: Religion * Believer, a person who holds a particular belief ** Believer, a person who holds a particular religious belief *** Believers, Christians with a religious faith in the divine Christ *** Bel ...

s had begged him to leave the city with his clergy. In an old book on Breton

saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...

s, he is summarized as follows: ''"This worthy prelate remained unyielding and steadfast during the cruel persecutions of Diocletian and

Maximian Maximian ( la, Marcus Aurelius Valerius Maximianus; c. 250 – c. July 310), nicknamed ''Herculius'', was Roman emperor from 286 to 305. He was ''Caesar'' from 285 to 286, then ''Augustus'' from 286 to 305. He shared the latter title with his ...

, 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 Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabita ...

, 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 Clovis may refer to: People * Clovis (given name), the early medieval (Frankish) form of the name Louis ** Clovis I (c. 466 – 511), the first king of the Franks to unite all the Frankish tribes under one ruler ** Clovis II (c. 634 – c. 657), ...

(† 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

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

s were thrown into such panic that they abandoned their positions and fled. When the Normans 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