ALL SAINTS CELEBRATED IN DECEMBER
Saints celebrated on the 2nd of December
SAINT LUCIUS OF CHUR, BISHOP AND CONFESSOR
Saint Lucius, the first bishop of Chur and patron saint of the Grisons (Switzerland) must not be confused with the British Lucius mentioned by Bede.
HE SPREAD THE FAITH IN THE FORMER ROMAN PROVINCE OF RAETIA
Lucius' medieval vita relates that he spread the faith in the former Roman province of Raetia. Unwilling to listen to Lucius' admonitions, some of the the pagan followers of the local cattle cult threw him into a deep well to get rid of him. Christian residents of Chur pulled him out again, brought him to the city and later made him their bishop. Perhaps the legendary tradition also points to the cattle cult, according to which he harnessed a bear as a draft animal after it had killed one of his oxen.
HIS RELICS
Up until the 8th century, Lucius' relics were venerated in the ring crypt of St Stephen's Church, of which only archaeological remains exist. The saint, highly venerated in Switzerland, now rests in the St Lucius Church in Chur. The relics of Emerita, who is known as his sister from the 12th century onwards, are part of the treasury of the Chur cathedral. (He is also celebrated on December 3.)
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