Profile
Born to the nobility, Eucherius was very pious in youth, and highly educated; legend says that his pregnant mother had a dream of an angel who told her that her unborn son would be a holy bishop, and blessed them both. He took the cowl in Jumièges, Normandy, France in 714. When his uncle Suaveric, bishop of Orleans, France, died, the clergy and faithful asked for Eucherius as his replacement. Eucherius fought the appointment, but finally agreed in c.721.
He was an active, evangelizing bishop who often visited the monasteries in his diocese. When Charles Martel confiscated Church properties to finance his war against the Saracens, Eucherius protested. After his victory, Martel exiled the reluctant bishop to Cologne, Germany. There he was greeted enthusiastically, even receiving the position of distributor of the governor‘s alms. He was then exiled to Hesbaye in modern Belgium where he retired to the monastery of Sint-Truiden.
Born
- at Orleans, France
Died
- 20 February 743 at the monastery of Sint-Tuiden in Belgium of natural causes
- relics enshrined on 11 August 880
- relics re-enshrined on 11 August 1169
Canonized
- Pre-Congregation
Source: https://catholicsaints.info/saint-eucherius-of-orleans/
