St. Giles, Abbot (1 September) ~ Dom Prosper Guéranger

About this sermon

St. Giles was an Athenian of noble birth who surrendered his inheritance, cared for the poor, and fled worldly fame to seek God in solitude. After traveling from Greece to southern France, he lived hidden in a cave, sustaining himself on herbs, water, and the milk of a gentle hind. When royal hunters pursued the animal, she fled to Giles for protection. An arrow intended for the hind struck the hermit instead, leaving him with a wound he humbly carried for life. His solitude was discovered, a monastery arose around his cave, and Giles reluctantly became its abbot. Following his death, his tomb at Saint-Gilles became one of medieval Europe’s great pilgrimage destinations. Churches and shrines dedicated to him spread across France, England, Spain, Italy, Germany, Hungary, Poland, and beyond. St. Giles is the only confessor among the Fourteen Holy Helpers. Soldiers invoked him for courage in battle, mothers sought his protection for frightened or sick children, and penitents asked his help in overcoming shame and human respect when confessing their sins. This reading from Dom Prosper Guéranger’s The Liturgical Year concludes with a moving prayer asking St. Giles to accompany Christians through childhood, youth, danger, middle age, and death. It also commemorates twelve African martyrs honored at Benevento and notes the Byzantine Feast of the Indiction—the beginning of the ecclesiastical year on September 1. St. Giles, Abbot and Holy Helper, pray for us! 0:00 St. Giles, Abbot—September 1 0:17 The simple and upright man who feared God 0:32 Fleeing the world to find God 0:48 His hidden cave in Septimania 1:05 Living on herbs, water and the milk of a hind 1:20 The royal hunt discovers St. Giles 1:28 Wounded while protecting the hind 1:44 A monastery rises around his cave 2:00 His solitude gives way to worldwide devotion 2:23 St. Giles and the Fourteen Holy Helpers 2:48 One of the five privileged saints 2:57 Popes and kings visit his shrine 3:28 Soldiers and children seek his protection 3:54 One of the three great Western pilgrimages 4:09 The magnificent basilica of Saint-Gilles 4:25 Raymond of Saint-Gilles 4:42 Raymond VI’s public penance 5:05 Churches dedicated to St. Giles across Christendom 5:23 England’s 146 shrines 5:47 The surviving account from the Divine Office 5:56 His relics preserved at Saint-Sernin 6:12 Rediscovery of his original tomb 6:21 His noble Athenian birth and works of charity 6:35 Clothing and healing a sick poor man 6:43 Fleeing fame to St. Caesarius of Arles 6:58 His miraculous life in the wilderness 7:12 The hind takes refuge in his cave 7:21 A monastery founded at the king’s request 7:36 The holy abbot enters heaven 7:45 Prayer for St. Giles’s intercession 8:09 Protector of mothers and children 8:32 Guardian of youth and Christian courage 8:41 Protection during storms and battle 8:48 Overcoming human respect 8:56 Courage to confess our sins 9:04 Peace through middle age and death 9:21 “Accept us among thy devout clients” 9:28 The twelve African martyrs of Benevento 9:45 Prayer honoring the brotherhood of martyrs 10:01 The Byzantine Feast of the Indiction 10:09 September 1—the ecclesiastical New Year 📜 About Saint Giles Feast Day: September 1st Patron of: The disabled, beggars, nursing mothers, children, and soldiers One of the 14 Holy Helpers Known for: Humility, miracles, protection of the weak and innocent https://sensusfidelium.com/the-liturgical-year-dom-prosper-gueranger/september/september-1-st-giles-abbot/ #SaintGiles #Catholic #LiturgicalYear #CatholicSaints #DomProsper #FourteenHolyHelpers #LivesOfTheSaints #CatholicFaith #FeastDay #ChurchHistory 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 ✝️ SUPPORT THE MISSION 🙏 Donate https://sensusfidelium.com/donate-support/ 📬 Free Catholic Newsletter https://sensusfidelium.com/newsletter/ 📰 Read on Substack https://sensusfidelium.substack.com/ ──────────────────── 📺 WATCH & READ 📺 Sensus Fidelium App https://sensusfidelium.tv/ 📚 Sensus Fidelium Press https://sensusfideliumpress.com/ 👕 Official Merchandise https://sensusfidelium.com/merchandise/ ──────────────────── 🤝 PARTNER WITH US 📣 Advertise on Sensus Fidelium https://sensusfidelium.com/advertise-with-sensus-fidelium/ 🎤 Invite Steve Cunningham to Speak https://sensusfidelium.com/speaking/ ⛪ Parish Formation & Consultation https://sensusfidelium.com/for-parishes/ ──────────────────── 🌎 CATHOLIC COMMUNITY ✝️ Trusted Catholic Businesses https://sensusfidelium.com/catholic-businesses/ 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴