Amandus (died c. 431) was the bishop of Bordeaux for two non-consecutive periods between about 404 and 431.
Amandus was raised in a Christian home and educated in the Christian Bible. Recognizing his qualities, Bishop Delphinus had him ordained a priest.[1] He was the priest who prepared Paulinus for baptism by Delphinus in 389. He wrote a consolatio to Paulinus, then living in Italy, on the death of the latter's brother. Paulinus' response survives.[2] In another letter, Paulinus reproves Amandus for having exaggerated Paulinus' literary skills to the point where Delphinus was requesting Paulinus write him a letter.[3] The earliest collection of Paulinus' letters contains six to Amandus.[4] Amandus may also have corresponded with Jerome.[5]
Amandus succeeded Delphinus as bishop of Bordeaux around 404.[6][7] When his health began to fail, he urged the people to elect a replacement. He was succeeded by Severinus, who had already served as bishop of Trier. When Severinus died not long after in 420, Amandus resumed the bishopric.[7][8] These events are known through the letters of Paulinus.[7]
Amandus is venerated as a saint and his feast day is 18 June in the Catholic Church. He is listed in the revised Roman Martyrology (2004), but not the revised General Roman Calendar (1969).[7]
Notes
edit- ^ Bangley 2005, s.v. June 18.
- ^ Conybeare 2000, p. 4.
- ^ Conybeare 2000, pp. 12–13.
- ^ Conybeare 2000, p. 161.
- ^ Trout 1991, p. 258 n89.
- ^ Conybeare 2000, p. 6.
- ^ a b c d Watkins 2016, p. 32.
- ^ Farmer 2011, p. 475.
Bibliography
edit- Bangley, Bernard (2005). Butler's Lives of the Saints: Concise, Modernized Edition. Paraclete press.
- Conybeare, Catherine (2000). Paulinus Noster: Self and Symbols in the Letters of Paulinus of Nola. Oxford University Press.
- Farmer, David Hugh (2011). The Oxford Dictionary of Saints (5th rev. ed.). Oxford University Press.
- Trout, D. E. (1991). "The Dates of the Ordination of Paulinus of Bordeaux and of His Departure for Nola". Revue d'Études Augustiniennes et Patristiques. 37 (2): 237–260. doi:10.1484/j.rea.5.104642.
- Watkins, Basil (2016). The Book of Saints: A Comprehensive Biographical Dictionary (8th rev. ed.). Bloomsbury.