Saint Mamert of Vienne

This is the occasion on which Saint Mamert had this pious thought: he was worthily occupying the archiepiscopal see of Vienne Episcopal see and principal city of the saint's activity. Vienne, in which he had succeeded Saint Simplicius, in the middle of the 5th century. In addition to the public calamities of all the Gauls, which were then exposed to the irruptions of barbarian nations, especially the Huns and the Goths, the city and the region of Vienne saw themselves afflicted by particular misfortunes that threatened them with universal desolation: this city was often shaken by such frightful earthquakes that its inhabitants were forced to abandon it, for fear of being crushed under its ruins; moreover, certain fires ignited underground, and, making the mountains and forests smoke, drove out the deer, bears, wild boars, and other wild beasts, which fled in terror into the villages and cities, where their presence spread terror. The vigilant pastor consoled and encouraged his people with eloquent speeches: he showed in these misfortunes as many blows from the rod of an angry father, whose clemency had to be implored through submission and through fervent and continual prayers.

It also happened that, on the night of Easter, fire broke out in a public building in Vienne, and continued there with such violence that everyone expected a general conflagration. Mamert, who had already performed similar wonders, prostrated himself before the altar, and his tears and prayers stopped th e fire. Sai Saint Avite Brother of Saint Apollinaris and Archbishop of Vienne. nt Avitus states explicitly that the flames were extinguished in a miraculous manner.

It was during this dreadful night that Mamert conceived, before God, the plan for the Rogations, and regulated the psalms and prayers for them; he added fasting, the confession of sins, tears, and contrition of heart. As for the purpose of these salutary processions, it is as follows, according to a homily believed to be by Saint Mamert, which is found among the sermons attributed to Eusebius of Emesa: "We shall pray there," he says, "to the Lord, to deliver us from our infirmities, to turn His scourges away from us, to preserve us from every misfortune, to protect us from plague, hail, drought, and the fury of our enemies; to grant us favorable weather for the health of our bodies and the fertility of the earth, to let us enjoy peace and calm, and to forgive us our sins."

This is just about all that is known of Saint Mamert. Saint Avitus calls him his godfather: spiritualem a baptismo patrem. He built a new church in Vienne in honor of Saint Ferreol, martyr, whose body he had transferred after discovering it. A Bishop Mamert is seen at the Council of Arles in 475. This is likely our Saint. He died, it is said, in 477. His body, buried in Vienne, was later, by the order of Pope John III and King Guntram, transported to Orleans and deposited in the cat Orléans The first diocese of which Roger was bishop. hedral of that city, where it was held in great veneration. The Protestants burned it in the 16th century.

Saint Mamertus had a younger brother. This was Mamertus Claudianus, a Mamert Claudien Brother of Saint Mamertus, monk, priest, poet, and theologian. monk, then a priest and faithful cooperator of the Bishop of Vienne. He lived in the middle of the 5th century and died between 470 and 474. Sidon Sidoine Apollinaire Poet and contemporary who celebrated the basilica of Perpetuus. ius Apollinaris regarded him as the greatest genius of his century. He was at once a poet, philosopher, and theologian: he could answer all kinds of questions and combat all errors; but his modesty and virtue made him even more commendable than his knowledge. He taught the holy Scriptures, ecclesiastical chant, and liturgy to his brother's clergy, which he enriched with several hymns, among others that of Passion Sunday: Pango, lingua, gloriosi Lauream certaminis. Sing, my tongue, the glorious combat of the suffering Christ. His most important work is his three-book treatise on the Nature of the Soul. The goal of Mamertus Claudianus is to refute Faustus of Riez, in Provence, who denied the incorpo reality of an Faust de Riez Bishop and author of the dogmatic letter of the Council of Arles. gels and human souls and admitted only the incorporeality of God. He dedicated his writing to Sidonius Apollinaris, who was still a layman. Never before had one reasoned so well on the nature of the body, on that of the soul, and on the distinction between these two substances. The author clearly teaches there the soul-body union: "The soul is the life of the body in this life; it is equally in the whole body and in each of its parts; it is not local, it is as much in each part of the body as in the whole." He proves, by ten excellent syllogisms, that the soul is incorporeal. One hardly speaks more solidly or more clearly today, even though psychological science has made indisputable progress.