Saint Virgilius

St. Virgilius was born in Ireland in the year 700. He was an exceptional scientist who lived ahead of his time. He served as the abbot of Aghaboe, near Dublin, Ireland, and was famously known as "the Geometer" due to his extensive knowledge of geography. In 743, he embarked on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land but was unable to reach there. Instead, he ended up at the court of Pepin. In 745, when Pepin defeated Odilo, Duke of Bavaria, he appointed Virgilius as the abbot of the monastery of Sankt Peter and the Bishop of the diocese of Salzburg. Unlike the continental tradition, the Irish custom allowed the abbot to be the head of the diocese, and the bishop was supposed to be subject to the abbot. Therefore, Virgilius had himself consecrated as the bishop on June 15th, 767.

During their time in Salzburg, St. Virgilius and St. Boniface had a disagreement about the most appropriate method of baptism. Eventually, the Pope settled the dispute in Virgilius' favor. However, there were other controversial beliefs held by Virgilius relating to anthropology, geography, and astronomy that St. Boniface disagreed with. Consequently, Pope Zachary ordered an investigation into Virgilius' ideas. Nevertheless, there was no solid evidence found to support any claims of heresy, and Virgilius was able to successfully defend his beliefs.

St. Virgilius is remembered for his remarkable accomplishment in converting the Alpine Slavs to Christianity and for his missionary work in Hungary, where he made history by being the first missionary to visit the country. However, his dedicated service came to a sorrowful end when he fell ill and passed away on November 27th, 784, after returning from a preaching mission in a distant part of his diocese. His grave was discovered in 1181 after the grand cathedral he had built and dedicated to St. Rupert in Salzburg was destroyed. Later, in recognition of his remarkable life and contributions, he was canonized by Pope Gregory IX in 1233.

St. Virgilius, intercede for us that we may flourish in the divine wisdom of God.

Prepared and updated by:

Jonathan Fabian Ginunggil,

Penampang, Sabah Malaysia.