Saint Aurelius

Who was Saint Aurelius?

Saint Aurelius was Christian saint who died around 430. He was a bishop of Carthage from ca. 391 and led a number of ecclesiastical councils on Christian doctrine. Augustine of Hippo admired Aurelius, and a number of letters from Augustine to Aurelius have survived. Aurelius's feast day in the Roman Catholic Church is July 20. His relics were transferred to Hirsau Abbey in Germany.

Aurelius served as a patron to Augustine while Augustine served as a priest in Hippo. Augustine sought the establishment of a monastic community - for which space was granted by bishop Valerius - and was funded by Aurelius. Aurelius provided the monastery with new members for the purpose of episcopal training, effectively turning the monastery into a sort of early episcopal seminary.