Rusticus of Narbonne

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Saint Rusticus of Narbonne ((French) Saint-Rustique) (d. October 26, 461) was a saint of Gaul, born either at Marseilles or at Narbonne.

According to biographers, Rusticus is the one to whom St. Jerome (about 411) addressed a letter, commending him to imitate the virtues of St. Exuperius of Toulouse and to follow the advice of Procule, then Bishop of Marseilles. When he had completed his education in Gaul, Rusticus went to Rome, where he soon gained a reputation as a public speaker, but he wished to embrace the contemplative life. He wrote to St. Jerome, who advised him to continue his studies.

Thus Rusticus entered the monastery of St. Vincent of Lérins. He was ordained at Marseilles, and on October 3, 430 (or 427) was consecrated Bishop of Narbonne. With all his zeal, he could not prevent the progress of the Arian heresy which the Goths were spreading abroad.

The siege of Narbonne by the Goths and dissensions among the Catholics so disheartened him that he wrote to Pope Leo I, renouncing the bishopric, but St. Leo dissuaded him.

Rusticus then endeavored to consolidate the Catholics. In 444-448, he built the church in Narbonne; in 451, he assisted at the convocation of forty-four bishops of Gaul and approved St. Leo's letter to Flavian, concerning Nestorianism; he was present also at the Council of Arles, with thirteen bishops, to decide the debate between Theodore, Bishop of Fréjus, and the Abbey of Lérins.

A letter from Ravennius, Bishop of Arles, sent to Rusticus, proves the high esteem in which he was held. His letters are lost, with the exception of the one to St. Jerome and two others to St. Leo, written either in 452 or 458. His feast is celebrated on 20 October.

This article incorporates text from the public-domain Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913.