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Today, 6 November, is the feast of ... * Leonard of Noblac (sixth century?) - supposedly converted by St Remigius, with Clovis as godfather; later, thanks to Leonard's prayers that enabled wife of Clovis to give birth safely, Clovis gave Leonard as much land as he could ride around in a night on a donkey; founded a monastery on this land - widespread devotion to him in north-west and central Europe in the later Middle Ages * Melaine, bishop of Rennes (c. 530) - succeeded Amand as bishop; played leading role at Council of Orleans in 511 * Illtud or Illtyd, abbot (sixth century) - ordained by St Germanus of Auxerre, he was renowned for his wisdom and learning; spent much time Wales - attempts have been made to identify him with the Galahad of Arthurian legends; no mention of him in pre-11th-century liturgical texts * Winnoc, abbot (717?) - although Winnoc spent little time in Britain, he is commemorated in nearly all English calendars of tenth and eleventh centuries * Demetrian, bishop of Khytri (c. 912) - after 40 years as a monk, he was elected bishop; he fled and hid in a cave, but his 'friend' who had previously helped him told the authorities where they could find the fugitive; regarded as one of the greatest bishops and saints of Cyprus * Barlaam of Khutyn, abbot (1193) - born into a wealthy family, he sold all he had, gave it to the poor and lived as a solitary on the banks of the Volga; here, due to the constant stream of admirers, he founded the monastery of the Transfiguration * Christina of Stommeln, virgin (1312) - an extraordinary case: at 13 became a beguine at Cologne; had many visions (e.g. Satan, disguised as St Bartholomew, tried to get her to kill herself) - her biographer, Peter of Dacia, witnessed many incidents (such as her stigmata that bled profusely during Holy Week, and showers of filth that poured down 'from nowhere' on her and her visitors) - after Peter left town, Christina still corresponded with him through the parish priest, who sometimes added to her dictation comments of his own; this priest died in 1277, and was succeeded by a schoolmaster, whose accounts are the most extreme of all; not for the faint of stomach! * Jeanne Marie de Maille, widow (1414) - lived in chaste marriage for 16 years; her husband then went to war and was captured, so she sold everything to raise the ransom but he escaped with the help of a miracle of the Virgin - eventually, she became completely destitute, sleeping with pigs and in dog-kennels; however, at age 57 she started to live in a tiny room of a church in Tours, where she worked many conversions and miracles * Nonius (1431) - born in Lisbon in 1360, as a young soldier he helped establish Portugal as a distinct state from Castile; later, he entered a Carmelite friary he had founded * Margaret of Lorraine, widow (1521) - a noble widow, influenced by Francis of Paola, she founded a convent under the rule of the Poor Clares at Argentan * * * * * * * * Dr Carolyn Muessig Department of Theology and Religious Studies University of Bristol Bristol BS8 1TB UK phone: +44(0)117-928-8168 fax: +44(0)117-929-7850 e-mail: [log in to unmask] %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%