Exuperius of Toulouse, St.
EXUPERIUS OF TOULOUSE, ST.
Bishop; date and place of birth uncertain; local tradition places his tomb at Blagnac near Toulouse. As bishop of Toulouse c. 405 to 411, Exuperius (or Exsuperius; Spire in French) completed the basilica begun by his predecessor, St. Silvius. It was dedicated to the first bishop of Toulouse, St. Saturninus, whose relics were brought there. St. jerome dedicated the Commentarii in Zachariam to Exuperius, praised his steadfastness during the Vandal invasion (Epist. 123), and, in a letter to Rusticus of Marseilles (Epist. 125), praised his generosity. Exuperius sought the advice of innocent i on several points of Scripture and discipline. His reply is an important document (P. Jaffé, Regesta pontificum romanorum ab condita ecclesia ad annum post Christum natum 1198, ed. S. Löwenfeld and F. Kaltenbrunner n.405). gregory of tours (Historia Francorum 2:13) took note of his career.
Feast: Sept. 28.
Bibliography: Acta Sanctorum Sept. 7:583–589. s. le nain de tillemont, Mémoires pour servir à l'histoire ecclésiastique des six premiers siècles (Paris 1693–1712) 10:617–620, 825–826; 12:268, 285, 322. g. bareille, Dictionnaire de théologie catholique, ed. a. vacant (Paris 1903–50) 5.2:2022–27. a. butler, The Lives of the Saints, ed. h. thurston and d. attwater (New York 1956) 3:664–665. É.griffe, La Gaule chrétienne à l'époque romaine, v.2 (Paris 1957); Catholicisme 4:1017.
[g. e. conway]