ST ABEL OF REIMS, BISHOP - 5 AUGUST

 

ALL SAINTS CELEBRATED IN AUGUST

Saints celebrated on the 5th of August

Prayer to the Angels and the Saints

Heavenly Father, in praising Your Angels and Saints we praise Your glory, for by honouring them we honour You, their Creator. Their splendour shows us Your greatness, which infinitely surpasses that of all creation.

In Your loving providence, You saw fit to send Your Angels to watch over us. Grant that we may always be under their protection and one day enjoy their company in heaven.

Heavenly Father, You are glorified in Your Saints, for their glory is the crowning of Your gifts. You provide an example for us by their lives on earth, You give us their friendship by our communion with them, You grant us strength and protection through their prayer for the Church, and You spur us on to victory over evil and the prize of eternal glory by this great company of witnesses.

Grant that we who aspire to take part in their joy may be filled with the Spirit that blessed their lives, so that, after sharing their faith on earth, we may also experience their peace in heaven. Amen.

ST ABEL OF REIMS, BISHOP 

Various feast days are given for the 8th century bishop Saint Abel, who is said to be of Irish parentage. The Bollandists inserted an entry of St Abel on August 5. 

THE COUNCIL OF SOISSONS

St Boniface presided over the Council of Soissons in March 744. The conciliar acts record that Abel was elected archbishop.

In June, Pope Zacharias confirmed Abel as archbishop by sending him the pallium. He did the same for Hartbert, bishop of Sens, and Grimo, bishop of Rouen.

ONE OF ST BONIFACE'S "FELLOW BISHOPS"

The next time one hears of Abel, he is named as one of Boniface's 'fellow bishops' who around 746 sent a letter of exhortation to Aethelbald, king of Mercia.

It is unknown when Abel gave up his position or died. He may have withdrawn to prepare himself for eternity by intense prayer and fasting, as was not uncommon among bishops. The Life of St Remigius, on the other hand, written by Hincmar, Archbishop of Reims, claims that Abel was driven from the see in favour of Tilpin, Abel's successor. The date given is 748. 

(Information from Wikipedia - https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abel_of_Reims)