St. Paul the Hermit
Feast day: January 15
Born in Egypt, Paul was left an orphan at around the age of 15. He hid during the persecution under Emperor Decius. At the age of 22, he went to the desert to circumvent a planned effort by his brother-in-law to report him to authorities as a Christian. Paul soon found that the eremitical life suited him, and so remained in a desert cave for the rest of his long life. St. Anthony visited the aged Paul and, upon his death, buried him in a cloak from St. Athanasius. According to legend, two lions assisted in digging the grave. Sometimes called Paul of Thebes, Paul is known as the first Christian hermit.
Collect
O God, who alone are holy
and without whom no one is good,
command, we pray, through the intercession of Saint Paul the Hermit,
that we be numbered among those
who do not deserve to be deprived of your glory.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
