St. Odilo of Cluny

The list of saints for the first day of January is long, filled with the names of martyrs and confessors of the faith. One of them is St. Odilo of Cluny. He was born to the French nobility, the son of Berald de Mercoeur and Gerberga who became a nun when widowed. Cured of an unnamed malady in childhood by the intervention of Our Lady, he became a monk at Cluny at age 29. He was named Abbot at Cluny in 994 at age 32 until his death. He promoted the Truce of God whereby military hostilities were suspended at certain times for ostensibly religious reasons, but which allowed enough commerce that people could survive, and which guaranteed sanctuary to those who sought refuge in a church. He instituted the feast now known as All Soul's Day and was known to sell Church property and treasures to feed the poor during times of famine. He declined the archbishopric of Lyon and increased the Cluniac houses from 37 to 65. The cause for his canonization was pressed by Saint Peter Damian, who wrote a biography of him. His feast is January 1.