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Christian Saints

St. Alexis of Rome


            St. Alexis of Rome probably never existed. According to his legend he was born in Rome into a wealthy family approximately in the 5th century. He adopted Christianity and went on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. He lived in Edessa there as an almsman for 17 years. On his return to Rome he did not reveal his identity, but settled beneath a staircase of his father's home. He lived another 17 years as an anonymous beggar, and soon became renowned for his saintliness. When he was going to die the Pope hurried to his side, and Alexis disclosed to him who he really was. The legend of St. Alexis was very popular in the East, and at the end of the Middle Ages, in the West.
Feastday: 17 July.
See: Georges de La Tour.The Discovery of the Body of St. Alexis.

Recommended reading:
The Alexis in the Saint Albans Psalter: A Look into the Heart of the Matter (Garland Studies in Medieval Literature, V. 4) by Rachel Bullington. Garland Pub, 1991.
The Oxford Dictionary of Saints (Oxford Paperback Reference) by David Hugh Farmer. Oxford University Press, 2003.
The Golden Legend by Jacobus De Voragine, William Granger Ryan (Translator). Princeton Univ Pr, 1995.
 

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