St Hilary of Poitiers was born around 310 AD in Pictavium, Gallia Narbonensis (now Occitania and Provence, in Southern France).
He died around 367 AD at the age of 57 years.
He was the Bishop of Poitiers and a Doctor of the Church and was often referred to as the “Hammer of the Arians”.
We celebrate his feast day on January 13 every year in the Catholic Church.
| St Hilary of Poitiers Biography | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Date of Birth | 310 AD |
| Place of Birth | France in Europe |
| Profession | Bishop, Confessor and Doctor of the Church |
| Place of Work | Poitiers, France |
| Date of Death | 367 AD |
| Place of Death | Poitiers, France |
| Feast Day | January 13 |
| Canonization | Pre-Congregation |
| Patron Saint of | |
St Hilary of Poitiers Life History
Today’s saint was born a pagan, to pagans, in a pagan city. But his broad and deep education brought him into contact with Holy Scripture, where he found the truth he did not know he was seeking.
He became a Catholic through reading. He was to then spend his adult life defending Catholic truth with his pen.
The convert converted others and preserved the orthodoxy of the Nicene Creed against the Arian heresy. St. Athanasius called St. Hilary a “trumpet” of orthodoxy against theological error.
St. Hilary was elected the bishop of Poitiers, France, about 350. His learning and intelligence inevitably placed him at the centre of the violent theological battles of the 4th century.
The Council of Nicea of 325 AD had left some theological definitions open to incorrect interpretation.
A man named Arius caused immense confusion by just such misinterpretation. Arius argued that the words of the Nicene Creed meant that Jesus was less than God the Father, had a beginning in time, and was of like substance to the Father instead of the same substance.
St. Hilary was the first theologian from Western Europe, as opposed to the more theologically mature theologians from Egypt, Turkey, and the Middle East, to see what a grave threat the Arian heresy truly was.
St. Hilary spent the better part of his adult life studying, writing, speaking and arguing to ensure that the Nicene Creed was understood and adhered to throughout the Church. He was even sent into exile by the Emperor for not conforming his views to Arian teachings.
But he used his time in exile to read and write extensively, eventually becoming such a thorn in the side of the Emperor that he restored St. Hilary to his diocese.
St. Hilary went on to attend various synods of bishops in an effort to maintain the truth of the Nicene Creed against determined opposition at the highest levels.
The life of St. Hilary proves that good theology matters. Bad theology easily leads to bad worship, bad morality, and the decline of the true Christian community.
To disrupt or correct bad theology is to disrupt or correct bad community. And it is sometimes the obligation of the Church to break up false ideas of the church, of marriage, of family, of government, etc.
When certain things are built up, their opposites inevitably are broken up. St. Hilary knew all of this. He knew that bad theology was not just bad in and of itself but that it also had negative repercussions in the lived reality of the Church. When St. Hilary defended theological truth he defended many other truths too.
Today’s Catholic Quote:
St. Hilary, through reading and study you came to love the truths of the Catholic faith. And your love of truth then showed itself in your willingness to suffer for that truth. Help us to know. to love, and to serve the truth of God by knowing, loving, and serving the repository and instrument of His truth on earth
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