St Giles was an abbot and a Hermit in Southern France.
He was born born in mid 7th century AD probably in Athens, Greece.
He died in the early 8th century in Southern France.
We celebrate his feast day on September 1 every year in the Catholic Church.
| St Giles, Abbot Biography | |
|---|---|
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| Date of Birth | Mid-7th century AD |
| Place of Birth | Athens, Greece |
| Profession | Hermit and Abbot |
| Date of Death | Early 8th Century |
| Place of Death | Southern France |
| Feast Day | September 1 |
| Canonization | Precongregation |
| Patron Saint of | The poor and the physically disabled |
St Giles Life History
St Giles is believed to have been born in Athens Greece in mid 7th century and hailed from a noble background.
He cherished so much living a lonely life and dedicating his time to God. When he was of age, he sailed to Southern France and started living as a hermit near the mouth of the Rhone River.
He later moved to live near River Gard and finally settled in a hermitage in the forest in the diocese of Nimes.
St Giles lived in great solitude for many years in his hermitage and his red deer who sustained him on her milk was his sole companion.
One time, the king’s hunters came hunting, and an arrow, aimed at the deer, struck and wounded St Giles instead. Consequently, he is regarded as the patron saint of the physically disabled.
The king prevailed upon him to forsake his solitary life but Giles refused. He would later accept a few disciples in the monastery the king helped him to found. He placed the monastery under the strict Benedictine rule.
St Giles died in the early years of the eighth century AD. The town of St-Gilles-du-Gard began to grow around the abbey and his veneration started growing from there and spread rapidly throughout Europe.
From the numerous writings commemorating his virtues and miracles, many pilgrims from all over Europe visited his shrine.
To protect St Gile’s relics from destruction by the Huguenots, they were secretly transferred to Toulouse, France in 1562.
This caused a decline in the number of pilgrims to his shrine but after the restoration of most of the relics to the abbey of Saint-Gilles-du-Gard in 1862, pilgrims started to trickle in again gradually.
St Giles is the patron saint of Beggars, Blacksmiths, Breast cancer, Breastfeeding, Cancer patients, Disabled people, Edinburgh (Scotland), Epilepsy, Noctiphobics, Forests, Hermits, Horses, Lepers, Mental illness, Outcasts, Poor people, Rams, Spur makers, Sterility.
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