Desideratus

St. Desideratus
Born	Soissons
Died	May 8, 550
Venerated in	Roman Catholic Church
Canonized	Pre-congregation
Feast	May 8

Desideratus (died 550) was a French saint from Soissons in the Christian church.

Disideratus came from a family of saints, as his father, Auginus, mother, Agia, and brothers Desiderius and Deodatus, were all canonized. The parents taught the boys to care for the poor and to use their possessions to aid others.[1]

Desideratus became chancellor for King Clotaire and sought to eliminate simony and heresy in Clotaire's lands. He became archdeacon at Bourges.[2] Desideratus wished to retire to a monastery but Clotaire argued that he should put the needs of his subjects ahead of himself.[1] In 549 he succeeded Arcadius as Bishop of Bourges.[3] As bishop he often mediated disputes in the region and managed to reconcile Anjou and Poitou, who had been in conflict.

At the fifth Council of Orleans and second Council of Auvergne, he combated Nestorianism.[1] He died on May 8, 550.[4] May 8 is his feast day.

St. Desideratus is invoked for rain.[5]

References

1. "St. Desideratus, Bishop", The Congregation of the Sisters of the Divine Redeemer
2. Holweck, Frederick George. A Biographical Dictionary of the Saints, Volume 1, B. Herder, 1924. p. 271
3. Goyau, Georges. "Bourges." The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 2. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. 16 April 2020 This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
4. Hoever, Hugo. Lives of the Saints, New York: Catholic Book Publishing, 1977
5. Schäfer, Joachim. "Desideratus von Bourges", Ökumenischen Heiligenlexikon