St. Viator of Lyon the Catechist (LD 001) Photo Block

Little is known of St. Viator of Lyon (4th century), a Gallo-Roman lector. At that time, the office of lector was strictly an ordained ministry. As assigned by his bishop St. Justus, St. Viator proclaimed the Scriptures at liturgy and instructed young people in the Faith at Lyon Cathedral. The bishop obviously thought very highly of St. Viator to entrust him with such an important task. And, the feeling was mutual: when St. Justus decided to retire from his bishopric to become a monk in Egypt, St. Viator joined him. The two saints died within weeks of each other at Scetes (present-day Wadi El Natrun), Egypt, c. 390, perhaps as the result of an epidemic. + St. Viator is patron saint of Catechists or Catechism Teachers and the Viatorians. The Viatorians or Clerics of St. Viator are a congregation of priests, brothers, and lay associates that was founded in 1831 by Fr. Louis Querbes. Their charism is education at all levels, from elementary school through university, and missionary work. + Feast: October 21 + NOTE WELL: St. Viator of Lyon the Catechist is often confused with St. Viator of Bergamo, a 4th-century Italian bishop (Feasts: January 15 and, in Bergamo, December 14). + Image Credit (LD 001): Antique headpiece, that is, a decorative ornament found at the start of a chapter or division of a book, of St. Viator from Vie de Saint Viateur confesseur et lecteur de l'Église de Lyon by Mgr. Ignace Bourget (Montreal, 1897), Chapter IV, p. 31. The headpiece has been colorized by computer by Saints_Aplenty in the fashion of 17th-19th century hand-colored devotional prints. See our St. Michael the Archangel COLLECTION (M 009) for an actual example of a 19th-century hand-colored image from such a devotional print.