Saint Giles

Born in the seventh century in Athens, Greece, Saint Giles was a Catholic hermit from a noble family.  His excellent knowledge and deep piety made him well-known and highly admired by his countrymen.  But he did not want to bask in this worldly popularity and would rather live a hidden life, that he decided to sail away from his land and move to France.  Saint Giles lived in solo retreat in Rhone, then in the River Gard, and finally settled in the area of Nimes, France.

As a hermit in the forest, Saint Giles spent his time conversing only with God.  It was believed his only companion was a female deer, the milk of which helped sustain him as he ate only a vegetarian diet.  It was because of this he became known as patron saint of breastfeeding mothers.  Saint Giles’ reputation as a holy man likewise became popular in France but the French king could not convince him to leave his solitary life.  At one point the king’s hunters chased the deer back to its place of refuge and shot an arrow at it, but hit and wounded Saint Giles instead.  Thus, he became considered as patron saint of people with physical disability.  Soon after, people started to flock to the forest to join Saint Giles.  To accommodate this, he later founded there in the  valley a monastery under the Benedictine rule.

Saint Giles, whose sole desire was to live in the presence of God, pray for us!

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