1. Saint Maurus is mentioned in Gregory the Great's biography of the latter as the first oblate, offered to the monastery by his noble Roman parents as a young boy to be brought up in the monastic life.
20 Facts About Saint Maurus
1. 2.
Four stories involving Saint Maurus recounted by Gregory formed a pattern for the ideal formation of a Benedictine monk.
3.
Saint Maurus is venerated on January 15 in the 2001 Roman Martyrology and on the same date along with Placid in the Proper Masses for the Use of the Benedictine Confederation.
4.
Scholars such as Hippolyte Delehaye believe that this Life of Saint Maurus is a forgery by the late-9th-century abbot of Glanfeuil, Odo.
5.
The bones of Saint Maurus were "discovered" at Glanfeuil by one of Odo's immediate predecessors, Gauzlin, in 845.
6.
At the age of about twelve, Saint Maurus was entrusted to the care of Benedict at Subiaco to be educated.
7.
Hurrying to reach Placidus, Saint Maurus ran out upon the water.
8.
Saint Maurus was ordained a deacon, and subsequently Benedict, prior to leaving for Monte Cassino, appointed him coadjutor at Subiaco.
9.
Around 528, Benedict summoned Saint Maurus to join him at Monte Cassino.
10.
Saint Maurus was dispatched and, during the journey, obtained a number of cures for the sick and injured encountered along the way.
11.
Saint Maurus resigned the abbacy in 581 to spend the remainder of his life in solitude and prayer.
12.
Saint Maurus was originally buried in the abbey church at Glanfeuil.
13.
When, in 868, Odo and the monks of Glanfeuil were obliged to flee to Paris in the face of Vikings marauding along the Loire, the remains of Maurus were translated to the abbey of Saint-Pierre-des-Fosses, later renamed Saint-Maur-des-Fosses.
14.
Saint Maurus is still venerated by Benedictine congregations today, many monks adopting his name and dedicating monasteries to his patronage.
15.
The cult of Saint Maurus slowly spread to monasteries throughout France and by the 11th century had been adopted by Monte Cassino in Italy, along with a revived cult of Placidus.
16.
Saint Maurus is venerated even as far as in India, where he is highly honoured in certain areas of the southern state of Kerala.
17.
The feast of St Maurus is observed in the parish Church of St Mary, where the villagers irrespective of their religion consider St Maurus as the patron saint of the village.
18.
The Blessing of Saint Maurus Maur is customarily bestowed on the sick with a relic of the true Cross, in hopes of assisting to restore their health.
19.
Saint Maurus was invoked especially against fever, and against rheumatism, epilepsy, and gout.
20.
Saint Maurus is sometimes depicted with a scale, a reference to the implement used to measure a monk's daily ration of bread, given to him by Benedict when he left Montecassino for France.