Saint Giles
He is patron saint of those struck by some sudden misery. St. Giles is reputed to have been born in Athens of King Theodore and Queen Pelagia, about 640. Aegidius, the name by which he was then known, cared nothing for the splendour of the court and after the death of his parents, when he was twenty four years old, he sold all his possessions and gave generously to the poor, some sources attribute the working of miracles to him. To avoid acclaim St. Giles then began his journeyings, seeking a place of solitude to contemplate the mystery of God. His quest brought him to France, to the open deserts near the river Rhone, then later to the river Gard and lastly settling in a forest in the Diocese of Nimes.
It was in the depths of that forest near Nimes, that he found a cave in a glade by a stream which is to this day a place of pilgrimage. Here he lived in contemplation and prayer, his companion being a hind, whose milk he drank, and it was here that an incident took place which has been for ever associated with the name of St. Giles. One day the king was out hunting and shot an arrow at the hind who had fled terrified to her protector. The arrow missed the hind and hit St. Giles who was at his devotions. The king was greatly edified by the holiness of the Saint's life, whose fame soon spread far and wide, many miracles being wrought at his intercession, and later at his tomb. St. Giles could see deeply into the soul. On one occasion the king had not made a full Confession but St. Giles, seeing the error prompted the king who then made a frank confession and found peace in his soul. The king tried to persuade the hermit to leave his humble surroundings, but all to no avail. However, St. Giles was prevailed upon to establish a Benedictine abbey near Nimes and there he was ordained to the Priesthood. He is reputed to have been a wise abbot.
St. Giles became one of the most popular Saints of the Western Church, one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers. He is Patron Saint of woodland, of lepers, beggars, cripples, and of those struck by some sudden misery, of the mentally ill, those suffering epilepsy, nocturnal terrors (things that go bump in the night) and of those desirous of making a good Confession. He is the Patron Saint of over one hundred and fifty churches in this country, and he and the hind have often afforded a subject for the artist. St. Giles is commemorated on the 1st of September. The High Altar contains a relic of Our Patron, St. Giles.
Prayer:
O Lord, we beseech you to let us find grace through the intercession
of your blessed confessor St. Giles;
that what we cannot obtain through our merits
be given us through his intercession.
Through Christ our Lord. Amen.