Sulpicius II. the Pious (; died 17 January 646) was a 7th-century bishop of Bourges and

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 ...

Life

According to his ''Vita'', Sulpicius was born at Vatan ( Diocese of Bourges), of noble parents, before the end of the sixth century. From his youth he devoted himself to good works and to the study of

Scripture Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They often feature a compilation or discussion of beliefs, ritual practices, moral commandments and ...

, and donated his large patrimony to the Church and the poor.Butler, Alban. "St. Sulpicious II", ''The lives of the primitive fathers, martyrs, and other principal saints'', J. Moir, 1798
/ref> Austregisilus, Bishop of Bourges, ordained him

cleric Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

of his church, then

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian denominations, such as the Cathol ...

, and finally made him director of his episcopal school.

Clotaire II Chlothar II, sometimes called "the Young" (French language, French: le Jeune), (May/June 584 – 18 October 629) was king of the Franks, ruling Neustria (584–629), Kingdom of Burgundy, Burgundy (613–629) and Austrasia (613–623). The son of ...

(King of the

Franks file:Frankish arms.JPG, Aristocratic Frankish burial items from the Merovingian dynasty The Franks ( or ; ; ) were originally a group of Germanic peoples who lived near the Rhine river, Rhine-river military border of Germania Inferior, which wa ...

from 613 to 629), who had heard of his merits, summoned him and made him almoner and chaplain of his armies. Upon the death of Bishop Austregisilus (c. 624) Sulpicious was recalled to

Bourges Bourges ( ; ; ''Borges'' in Berrichon) is a commune in central France on the river Yèvre (Cher), Yèvre. It is the capital of the Departments of France, department of Cher (department), Cher, and also was the capital city of the former provin ...

to succeed him. Thenceforth he labored with much zeal and success to re-establish ecclesiastical discipline, for the relief of the poor.Dégert, Antoine. "Sulpitius." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 14. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 18 Jun. 2013
/ref> In 627Weidemann, Margarete. "Zur Chronologie der Merowinger im 6. Jahrhundert." Francia 10 (1982): 494
/ref> Sulpicius attended the Council of Clichy and held several others with the bishops of his province. St. Desiderius of Cahors, treasurer to King Clothar II and later Bishop of Cahors, was his personal friend; three letters survive which he addressed to him. In the settings of ''Vita Sulpicii Episcopi Biturgi'',An English translation of the Vita Sulpicii Episcopi Biturigi via MGH by Sarah Brush i
on-line
Sulpicius' miracles show him receiving "Theudogisilus", a noble from the ''palatium'' of the king with entertainments and a "great heaped fire" (in a fireplace in the centre of the

great hall A great hall is the main room of a royal palace, castle or a large manor house or hall house in the Middle Ages. It continued to be built in the country houses of the 16th and early 17th centuries, although by then the family used the great cha ...

, the smoke issuing through a vent in the roof). Sulpicius allegedly extinguished this fire, when it threatened to get out of control, with the sign of the cross.Benjamin Savill, Cult of Saints, E06495, The Cult of Saints in Late Antiquity, University of Oxford, 2021
/ref> The ''vita'' asserts with approval that "he, the holy man gave leave for no-one, neither heretic, gentile or Jew, to live in the city of Bourges without the grace of baptism" - with many consequent conversions from the Jews of Bourges. The ''Vita'' tells that

Dagobert I Dagobert I (; 603/605 – 19 January 639) was King of the Franks. He ruled Austrasia (623–634) and Neustria and Burgundy (629–639). He has been described as the last king of the Merovingian dynasty to wield real royal power, after which the ...

sent his representative the merciless general Lollo (''Lollonius'') to reside at Bourges and to bring the city more closely under the king's command. Sulpicius intervened with King Dagobert on behalf of his flock, of whom a too heavy tax was exacted. When the people came complaining of their treatment to Sulpicius, he decreed a three-day fast for clergy and laity, but also sent one of his clergy, Ebargisilus by name, to the king, and the tax was remitted. Towards the end of his life Sulpicius took a

coadjutor The term "coadjutor" (literally "co-assister" in Latin) is a title qualifier indicating that the holder shares the office with another person, with powers equal to the other in all but formal order of precedence. These include: * Coadjutor bishop ...

, Vulfoleudus, and retired to a monastery which he had founded near Bourges. There he died on 17 January 646, which day several manuscripts of the Hieronymian Martyrology indicate as his feast. The reports of miracles at his tomb in the

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica (Greek Basiliké) was a large public building with multiple functions that was typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek Eas ...

he had ordered built began soon after his death and the place became a place of pilgrimage.

That place, the basilica, where the memorable man of God is buried, is called Navis, because the port of ships is seen to be there. It is a most lovely place between two rivers with pastures and woods and vineyards in great number, with fields and rivers flowing between huge plains so that there, the inhabitants may be seen to possess the image of paradise.

Legacy

In his honour the church of Saint-Sulpice was built in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, from which the

Society of Saint-Sulpice The Society of Priests of Saint-Sulpice (; PSS), also known as the Sulpicians, is a society of apostolic life of Pontifical Right for men, named after the Church of Saint-Sulpice, Paris, where it was founded. The members of the Society add the ...

derives its name. The ''vita'' of Sulpicius also contains a ''vita'' of his saintly contemporary, Eustadiola.

Feast days

* 17 January – main commemoration ( death anniversary), * 18 January – main commemoration ( Mozarabic Rite), * 19 January – main commemoration ( death anniversary), * 27 August – translation of his relics from Bourges to Vatan (1757),

Notes

References

External links

A translation of the ''Life of Sulpitius''
{{Authority control 6th-century births 646 deaths 7th-century Frankish bishops Bishops of Bourges 7th-century Frankish saints 7th-century Frankish writers 7th-century writers in Latin Letter writers in Latin French Catholics