The Latin Life of *Aunarius/Aunacharius (bishop of Auxerre, ob. 605, S02173) tells how an abbot suffering from a contraction of the feet was healed by Aunacharius' shoes, following a dream vision of a St *Lupus (probably the bishop of Troyes, ob. 479, S00418). Written at Auxerre (central Gaul), probably in the early 7th century.
E05966
Literary - Hagiographical - Lives
Life of Aunarius (Aunacharius), bishop of Auxerre (BHL 805)
For an overview of this Life, see E05909.
(6.) Dehinc cum in processu temporis fuisset quidam [abba] adtractione pedum damnatus, et clientium nisus manibus portaretur, suisque non mutaret motibus locum, noctis intempestæ profundo apparuit ei S. Lupus in extasi, dicens: Perniciter mittens, dirige unum ex fratribus, qui sacri antistis tibi Aunarii calciamenta deportet, et ea mox ut imposueris pedibus iam sopitis, extemplo recipies viandi usum, nec ulterius uteris manibus famulantum. Hac ille visione permotus, narrat fratribus fideli relatione, quæ viderat; fisusque tanti viri commonitione, misit protinus unum ex fratribus, qui tantæ legationis fungeretur ad virum Dei officio: veniensque frater ille ad sanctum Dei Aunarium, eius advolutus pedibus, Precor, ait, mi Domine, postulanti tu concede clienti. Abba ille meus, quem tu proprie, Pastor alme, nosti, me huc ad te ea de causa direxit, ut calciamenta ei dirigas, quibus sanctis quotidie uteris pedibus. Tum ille non suæ virtuti, sed divinitati adscribens, seque indignum tantæ rei ducens, dixit: Mane apud nos nocte hac, frater, et quæ Dominus inspiraverit, faciemus.
(7.) Dum hæc duceretur mora, rursum abba ille terribilius concutitur per soporem, misitque alium nuntium, cum fidei lacrymis dicens: Quæso, Homo Dei, ne tardes virtutis eventum, quam per te in præmortuis pedibus est divinitas conlatura. Quod audiens vir Deo plenus, solita pietate commotus, Refer, ait, quæ poposceras, frater: Dominus ille, qui centurionis puerum fide prædicabili sanavit, ipse tuo restituat gressus patri. Flensque paulisper, Vale, mi frater, inquit et ocius occurre petenti. Adepto abba ille, cum ardore fidei, quod poposcerat, munere, magno cum fletu advocatis fratribus ait: Propius accedite, filii, ad cognoscenda sacramenta, quæ fides petentis, meritumque dirigentis obtinuit, ut vobis et posteris sit in testimonium ista dies. Cumque, circumstante turba fratrum, calciamenta siccis pedibus induisset, illico restauratæ sunt in usum viandi debiles plantæ. Ducit molem corporis ad aulam Auctoris, ulterius vectandi subsellium servulorum manibus non requirens.
'(6.) Then, when through the passage of time a certain abbot was condemned to the contraction of his feet, and was carried, relying on the hands of his servants, and could not change his place through his own movements, in the depths of night Saint Lupus appeared to him in a dream, saying: "Sending swiftly, dispatch one of the brothers, who will bring back to you the shoes of the holy bishop Aunarius and as soon as you put them on your feet you will sleep, and you will immediately receive the ability to walk, and no longer will you need to use the hands of servants." Stirred by this vision, he reported faithfully to the brothers what he had seen, and relying on the admonition of such a great man immediately sent one of the brothers, who would perform the duty of such a great mission, to the man of God. When that brother came to the saint of God Aunarius, he threw himself at his feet. "I beg, my Lord," he said, "that you yield to the request of your servant. My abbot, whom you know personally, kind pastor, has sent me here to you for this reason: that you send him the shoes which you use every day on your holy feet." Then he [Aunarius] attributing it not to his own virtue but to the Divinity, and considering himself unworthy of such a great thing, said, "Stay with us overnight, brother, and what the Lord inspires, we will do."
(7.) While this delay passed, the abbot was again deeply shaken in his sleep, and sent another messenger, saying with tears of faith: "I ask, man of God, that you do not delay the outcome of the miracle, which the Divinity is going to bring, through you, to prematurely dead feet." Hearing this, the man full of God, stirred by his usual kindness, said, "Take back [with you] what you asked for, brother: the Lord, who healed the servant of the centurion with faith worthy to be preached [Matt. 8:5-13], will himself restore walking to your father." And weeping briefly he said, "Farewell, my brother, and go swiftly to the one beseeching." The abbot, when he received the gift he had asked for with the ardour of faith, called together the brothers and said with great weeping, "Come quickly my sons to the sacrament you are to experience, which the faith of the one seeking and the merit of the one sending obtained, so that this day will be a testimony to you and your successors." And when, with the crowd of brothers standing round him, he put the shoes on his dried out feet, his frail soles instantly had the ability to walk restored. He carried the weight of his body to the church of the Creator, no longer needing the litter on which he had been carried by the hands of his servants.'
Text: Acta Sanctorum, Sept. VII, 106.
Translation: David Lambert.
Miracle during lifetime
Miracle after death
Healing diseases and disabilities
Apparition, vision, dream, revelation
RelicsContact relic - saint’s possession and clothes
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesEcclesiastics - bishops
Ecclesiastics - abbots
Ecclesiastics - monks/nuns/hermits
Source
Aunacharius (a name often contracted to Aunarius by later scribes) was bishop of Auxerre, 561-605. For the full entry on his Life, see E05909.Discussion
The 'Saint Lupus' who appeared in the abbot's dream is not identified more precisely, but is probably *Lupus of Troyes (S00418). Lupus had been bishop of Troyes for much of the 5th century (427-479), and was a significant episcopal saint who was the subject of a Life (E00673), and is attested as receiving cult in the later 6th century (see E00674, E00721). Troyes is close to Auxerre, and the episcopal sees of Auxerre and Troyes bordered directly on each other.A possible but less likely figure is *Lupus of Sens (S02174). The problem here is chronological: Lupus was bishop of Sens in the early 7th century (Duchesne 1899, 412). At the earliest, he can have become bishop only towards the end of Aunacharius' episcopate, and quite possibly not till after his death. He would have been alive at the time of this miracle: strictly speaking the abbot's vision is not said to have been of a dead saint, and visions of living individuals are not unknown, but there is nothing in the author's presentation to indicate that the vision was of a living person. In other respects, Lupus of Sens would be quite a plausible figure: as with Troyes, Sens was a neighbouring see to Auxerre, but Sens was also its metropolitan see. There was also a connection between Lupus and Aunacharius, since according to his own Life (E06464) Lupus was Aunacharius' nephew (Life of Lupus of Sens 3 – this is not mentioned in the Life of Aunacharius). It is possible to conjecture situations in which Lupus of Sens was the saint intended by the author – for example, if the Life was written in the late 7th century or after, and the author did not have an accurate idea of the relative chronology of the two men – but on balance it seems more likely that when the author referred to 'Saint Lupus' without any further identification, he was thinking of Lupus of Troyes, who had a well-established cult throughout the 6th century and throughout Aunacharius' episcopate.
Bibliography
Edition:Acta Sanctorum, Sept. VII (Antwerp, 1760), 106-107.
Further reading:
Duchesne, L., Fastes épiscopaux de l'ancienne Gaule. Tome deuxième, l'Aquitaine et les Lyonnaises (Paris, 1899).
David Lambert
22/08/2024
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00418 | Lupus, bishop of Troyes, ob. 479 | Lupus | Uncertain | S02173 | Aunacharius, bishop of Auxerre, ob. 605 | Aunarius | Certain | S02174 | Lupus, bishop of Sens, ob. c. 620 | Lupus | Uncertain |
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