History of the FranksGregory, Bishop of Tours, Saint
History
History of the Franks
Gregory, Bishop of Tours, Saint
France -- Church history -- To 987; France -- History -- To 987; Franks -- History -- To 768
[U]14. In the city of Tours after the death of bishop Eustochius
in the 17th year of his episcopate, Perpetuus was ordained fifth
bishop after the blessed Martin. And when he saw that miracles were
being worked continually at Saint Martin’s tomb, and that the chapel
which had been built over it was a tiny one, he judged it unworthy
of such miracles, and moving it away he built there a great church
which remains to the present day, situated 550 paces from the city.
It is 160 feet long and 60 wide and 45 high to the vault; it has 32
windows in the part around the altar, 20 in the nave; 41 columns; in
the whole building 52 windows; 120 columns; 8 doors, three in the
part around the altar and five in the nave. The feast of the church
is given sanctity by a triple virtue; that is, the dedication of the
temple, the transfer of the body of the saint, and his ordination
as bishop. This feast you shall observe four days before the Nones
of July, and remember that his burial is the third day before the
Ides of November. And if you celebrate these faithfully, you will
merit the protection of the blessed bishop both in the present life
and that to come. And since the ceiling of the former chapel was of
choice workmanship the bishop thought it unworthy that this work
should perish, and he built another church in honor of the blessed
apostles Peter and Paul in which he placed the ceiling. He built many
other churches which remain to the present time in Christ’s name.
[15. Eufronius, bishop of Autun, who “piously sent the block of
marble which is placed above the holy tomb of the blessed Martin.”]
16. Now after the death of the bishop Rusticus, saint Namatius became
the eighth bishop of Clermont. He undertook the task of building
the older church which is still standing and is contained within
the walls of the city, one hundred and fifty feet in length, sixty
in width,--that is, the nave,--fifty in height to the vault, with
a round apse in front and on each side aisles finely built; the
whole building is laid out in the form of a cross; it has forty-two
windows, seventy columns, eight doors. The fear of God is in it and a
great brightness is seen, and in the spring a very pleasant fragrance
as if of spices is perceived there by the devout. It has near the
altar walls of variegated work adorned with many kinds of marble. The
blessed bishop on finishing the building in the twelfth year, sent
priests to Bologna in Italy, to procure relics of saints Agricola and
Vitalis, who we know very certainly were crucified in the name of
Christ our God.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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