Saint of the Day – 21 February – Saint Paterius of Brescia (Died 606) Bishop of Brescia Italy, Monk. Friend and spiritual student of Pope Saint Gregory the Great, prolific spiritual writer. Additional Memorial – 25 February (translation of Relics in 1479 and 20 April, together with all the Brescian Saints.
In the chronology of the holy Bishops of Brescia, at the beginning of the 7th Century, St Paterius is mentioned. All historians agree that his Episcopate was very short between 604 and 606, while some Diocesan yearbooks place him between 630 and 642. Although some indicate that he was a
Roman Benedictine disciple of St Gregory the Great, others categorically exclude him.
We know nothing about him personally.
The name of Paterius is reported in six manuscripts of the 11th-15th Centuries and in two early monastic litanies. In the Roman Martyrology his feast is reported on 21 February, while in the Brescian one, his memory is fixed on 25 February in memory of the translation of his body which took place in 1479. Since 1962 his feast has also been combined on 20 April together with all the Brescian Saints.
According to some, St Paterius was buried in San Fiorano, on Colle Degno in the Brescia area. This first burial would have been followed by a translation of the Relics which placed his remains under the High Altar of the monastic Church of Sant’Eufemia della Fonte. Subsequently, on 25 February 1479, the Monks transported the body of the Bishop to a Chapel dedicated to him. In the 17th Century, during some important restoration work on the Church, an Altar was built, the first on the right near the Baptistery, dedicated to St Paterius. And, in 1616, the prelate’s body was placed there. In 1787, during a final renovation of the Church, the Relics were brought back under the High Altar and enclosed in a marble urn with the dedication indicatied thereon.
Finally, the remains were received in a new sarcophagus especially made and placed in the Crypt of the Church. Since the second half of the 19th Century, the ark of St Paterius has been on display in the City Museum of Santa Giulia.
The Parish Church of Paisco Loveno in Valle Canonica, was dedicated to the Saint.
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